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Dominican Republic Hotel & Villa Reviews

Occidental Allegro Punta Cana All-Inclusive 11/06/2005
Reviewers Rating: Excellent
Submitted by Marlene & Phil, Kingston, ON
Date of Stay: October 16 - 23, 2005
Supplier: Air Canada Vacations, Toronto to Punta Cana
Arrival
Our party of 8 (4 couples) left Toronto at 6:30 a.m. We booked two rooms at the Days Inn across from the airport (now changed to a 4 Points Sheraton when we returned a week later). We parked our cars at the hotel for the week and caught the complimentary shuttle to Terminal 1 at 4:30 a.m. Some people who arrived with no tickets in hand to the Air Canada line didn't realize they had to pick them up at the Air Canada Vacations booth, which is not the same as the Air Canada flight line so they waited in vain. Finally, after a few episodes of this, the Air Canada reps made an announcement that the tickets had to be picked up before standing in the line to get your boarding pass.
We were delayed departure for approx 30 minutes for an unexplained reason and arrived at our destination later than scheduled but the process went smoothly. The Air Canada flight from Montreal was due to arrive 5 minutes behind us but they got there earlier. There was no congestion at the Allegro as they processed the two flights in two different areas. The Toronto group was directed to a conference room adjacent to the hotel lobby. Some rooms were ready; others weren't. Our rooms in building 5 were available. I think Air Canada Vacations has this building almost exclusively. It is a great location, right on the beach; some rooms face the beach, others toward the garden and shuffle board/activities centre. There was an orientation meeting the next morning at 10 a.m. in the conference room where resort and excursion information is passed.
Resort
The approx 500 room resort is just the right size; not too large, not too small. It is a short walk between all amenities. There is one large, meandering pool in the centre, and the bars and restaurants are scattered throughout the grounds. The outdoor theatre performances are easily moved inside to the air conditioned disco on rainy nights. We enjoyed sitting on the loungers around the pool to watch the entertainment - not so far back that you couldn't see or hear very well.
You will be amazed at the antics of the bartenders who flip those full bottles high into the air before pouring a drink; the bartender in the lobby bar is the most entertaining. Every employee at the resort was always smiling and very helpful. We all were made to feel very special and very welcome.
Rooms
On booking with Jill at Travel Last Minute in Toronto, I had requested that the four couples be in the same building and that was granted. Two rooms were allocated on the third floor and two on the second. Three of the four rooms were beach/ocean view and the fourth (ours) looked to the back of the building with a view of the gardens and shuffleboard. The three ocean view rooms were suites with a separate sitting area. None of our rooms had a fridge but there were ice buckets in each room by the coffee maker and jug of water provided to make the early morning coffee. The sinks look like a bowl that sits on top of the vanity. There was no way to get the metal stopper up if you pushed it down unless you got under the vanity and pushed it back up manually. The sink looked nice but it wasn't practical. I knew about the half glass in the shower from reading other reviews. The shower head can be adjusted on its pole to be lowered or turned toward the wall. The shower head can also be removed from the pole and hand-held. We had a bit of water on the floor but no great amount and there was a floor towel to absorb what escaped. I don't understand why people were bothered about the glass door separating the sink area from the tub/toilet area. For the most part, the glass is frosted. For anyone concerned, draping the bath towel over the door would suffice. We had no trouble with shower pressure, even at 5 pm when there was a lot of usage.
If the remote control wasn't in a room on arrival, they were stocked at the front desk. Some remotes had to be programmed to work with the TVs and the directions were found, in english, on the flip side of the battery door. Our friends got a remote without the instructions but we were able to program theirs the same way we did ours. There were a lot of stations to choose from in English. We particularly enjoyed CNN for the news and weather updates for Hurricanes Wilma and Alpha. Fortunately, our week was hot and a sunny 30C. It only rained the day we arrived, Sunday Oct 16th at supper and the day we left, the following Sunday, it drizzled on and off until our departure at 3 p.m.
Beach and Vendors
The sand looked just like light brown sugar. It wasn't hot to walk on because of the coral content. There are plenty of tall palms and beach palappas to lounge under an there was never a problem finding space throughout our stay. We sooned discovered the morning ritual of turning left on the Allegro Beach and walking past the Natura Park, next door, to the undeveloped, virgin beach that stretched for (miles??). We would walk for half an hour, then go in the water and the gentle current would take us right back to our beach in about 20 minutes. You had to do this before 9 or after 4 when there were no motor boats coming and going. It was really peaceful. There were two vendors who set up their wares on the beach along this vacant stretch. They weren't aggressive like the vendors to the right of the Allegro in the market area........those guys drive you nuts, begging for you to look in their shops. If you are persistent, they will sell for half their original request price. They all have the same thing - there are about 20 stalls alongside each other selling necklaces, beach towels, carvings, nick nacks, etc. On Thursday and Friday nights, vendors come directly to the Allegro and set up their wares around the pool; they are just as aggressive as the beach vendors and you'll notice that they all wear the same T-shirts so they work for the same company and are in competition with one another to get your business.
The water in front of the Allegro was warm and the waves were gentle. There was seaweed every morning which was constantly raked by the beach staff. Considering that Hurricane Wilma was raging north of the island in the Caribbean and in Florida, it is no wonder there was a lot of seaweed being carried by the prevailing currents. I must remember to bring a vinyl floatie with me next time. What I could get in our dollar store was priced at $15 US in the resort gift shop so I did without for this trip.
Food
All 8 of us found the food to be very good with an excellent selection. The main buffet opened at 6:30 a.m. for breakfast. The Petit Cafe by the pool served coffee earlier in the morning (help yourself) or you can make your own pot of coffee in your room. This was replenished each day if you used it. Two china demi-tasse cups are provided beside the coffee maker with packets of sugar and sweetner but no creamer. There was a full gallon jug of water provided beside the coffee maker. Some people use this water to brush their teeth. We used the tap water for brushing with no problems to our digestive system at all.
The specialty restaurants: 4
The Grill was only open two nights a week
The Italian, Seafood, and Caribbean a la cartes require booking reservations. You can do this all at once upon arrival or go each morning. There are three sittings 6:30, 8:00 and 9:00 p.m. Lobster at the Seafood is a $30 US surcharge. The best one, in our opinion, was the Italian for ambience, service and menu - truly a special dining experience.
There are two buffets, one main one and one at the beach (breakfast and lunch only)....then it becomes the Caribbean and Seafood a la cartes. You will find fresh fuits, local dishes, traditional dishes, etc. The main buffet has theme nights like Dominican (Wednesday), Mexican, Gala, etc. Very nice and never boring. Being low season, the staff must be reduced somewhat because service to get drinks was slow in the main buffet; e.g. coffee, water, wine, pop. You were shoo'd from helping yourself to beverages during dinner but it was help yourself for breakfast.
Excursions
On the beach, there are offers of excursions similar to what is offered by your tour rep. They have parasailing ($62 for two tandem), banana boats ($10 per person) but if you book in numbers of 5 or more, the price goes down (pay for 3 and 2 are free)....this worked to our advantage being a group of 8....pay for 5 and 3 were free.
Five of our group opted to go on the Santo Domingo City Tour for $72 US per person. It was a long day, from 6:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. but they enjoyed the scenic view during the 3.5 hour drive to the city. They all returned very happy for the cultural experience of seeing Diego Columbus' house, the 16th century colonial city, the amber museum, shopping (better buys in the city than at the resort area) and lunch was provided at a very nice restaurant.
The ATV tour was popular also as it gave folks a chance to drive into the countryside. Snorkeling tours were abundant and glass bottom boats were anchored near our beach for $10.00 a ride (1 hour). There were two shark pens directly off our beach (a long way offshore but visible). Excursions took snorkelers to this site.
Entertainment
The entire staff went above and beyond to entertain guests at the Allegro. I don't know how they keep up their energy level. The highlight for us was the musical rendition of The Lion King. It was one of the best shows I've seen in a resort setting and not to be missed.
Kid's Club
Although we didn'thave any youngsters with us, we toured the Kid's Club and were really impressed how kid-friendly the facilities and programs were. On our way to supper, they were showing a big screen Disney movie each night at the outdoor theatre. The girl in charge of the program was loved by each little guest and they clung to her throughout the day as we observed.
Overall Impression
All eight of us agreed that this resort in Punta Cana was an excellent choice for us. It met all of our expectations. There was an equal mix of Canadians, Americans and Europeans, young and middle-aged and it appeared that everyone was having a good time.

Marlene MacKenzie

3 stars Allegro Punta Cana by Occidental

Allegro Punta Cana by Occidental


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