Whenever I talk to people who have been there, they always like the resorts and beaches etc., but say the food is bad. We're planning on visiting the Bahai Resort in Feb. Says its a 4 star and we're hoping the food is also ****. What did you think??

We visited the DR in April. We stayed at the Gran Ventana Beach Resort in Puerta Plata. This resort is an AI and is rated a 5 star. I beg to differ on the rating as the rooms were very small, the service poor (hostile at times) and the food bland and unimaginative. The beaches on the north coast are also less than inspiring, lots of eel grass, murky. Overall, we were disappointed with the resort. I wish you a better time. One more thing, the tap water is not safe for drinking. Our tour operator failed to inform us and the member of our party who drank the water was sick for the duration of our stay. Your hotel should provide bottled water, although ours had us fill up 2 small complimentary bottles from a cooler by the pool. <BR> <BR>

We have been to Casa de Campo in the DR and the restaurants were SUPERB! Definitely comparable to the finer NYC restaurants.

<BR>Stayed at Jack Tar Village Puerto Plata twice and would return. Jack Tar has a LOT of return visitors I think that says a lot about the hotel. The staff was very friendly. Jack Tar is a bit more than some other hotels but it was worth it. You get what you pay for. <BR> <BR>re: the water <BR>I wouldn't drink tap water anywhere with making sure it was okay!

Since I'm not a water drinker I can't comment, but we have been to the D.R. four times and will be going back in February and depending on where you go the food can be superb...

If there was bad food, what was bad about it, and what exactly were you served? Just curious as to what to expect.

The food at our resort was just really bland and basic. When they served rice-it was simply white. They offered really dry, broiled chicken, equally leathery roast beef and set off quite the reaction one morning when they served red hot pepper butter with the pancakes (guests were talking about that one all day--a mistake or their idea of cuisine??). The beach restaurant served totally overcooked, fatty hamburgers along with frozen pizza and french fries. Even the salad dishes left much to be desired-lettuce shredded so fine and swimming in water. We thought we would have better luck at one of the resorts 3 a la carte restaurants but we found that the food was eqully low in quality. We were only able to get a reservation at the resort's Italian restaurant (guests had to stand in a VERY long line at 6 am to make a dinner reservation). The ravoli tasted like chef boyardee from a can. I know that all of this sounds awful and it truly was but remeber that this is simply one experience from one resort (the Gran Ventana). Your experience, hopefully, will be completly better.

Hi I just returned from the DR this week <BR>I heard the same horror stories that <BR>you have, but I found the opposit to be <BR>true. Don't expect US mainland quality <BR>food, and you won't be dissapointed. <BR>purified water is 20 pesos per gallon. <BR>aprox. 1.25 US buy a few gallons. and <BR>drink plenty of it. <BR> <BR>PS try taking bismuth BEFORE you go.

Hi, <BR>I was in Santo Domingo two years ago on a last minute deal trip. We stayed at a 3star called Punta Garza. Compared to the Coral Costa Caribe down the street the appearance of the hotel left a lot to be desired, yet it was cozy, the staff was great, the weather was great, and the beach was great. I thought the food was excellent. Everyday there was different selections, and it was very fresh (unlike Cuba). I had no complaints.

My husband and I have traveled to the D.R. five times and more than likely will be back again. We started going there way before alot of people were even aware of the island as a vacation spot. Anyway, we stayed near puerto plata at paradise beach club & casino,sosua at sand castle, punta cana at ibertstar, Santo domingo at costa linda. Also we stayed at Club Dominicas near bayahibe. We were going to stay at coral canoa this year which is a new resort in bayahibe but it will not be completed until nov.and we are going in dec. so we decided to try it another time. The beaches are the best in bayahibe and punta cana area. The food all good except we found the food at the five star resort imberstar too european for us. We love to visit with most of the dominican people finding them to be some of the friendliest people we have come across on our travels. The only rude people we met were the quests at the punta cana area , mostly european.

Carla: <BR>We stayed at the Playa Naca in Puerto Plata last January 6th. It is an older resort but very clean. I found the wide variety of food to be somewhat spicy and I loved it. The staff was very nice. It was a great deal for the money. In my opinion, the beach at this resort is better than most in the area. The weather was extremely humid and I found the nights to be cool.

Hi, we're trying to go to the DR for a family vacation (8 people) in May. Does anyone have any suggestions? What about Santo Domingo? We're looking for a mix of activities (i.e. beach, culture, history, watersports, etc). Any suggestions about where to stay? Is it possible to rent villa's in the DR? What part of the DR is the most beautiful and conducive to a great vacation? Any safety issues? Would love a reply, thanks for any and all suggestions!

Hi, <BR>We just returned from DR, we stayed on the northern coast in the town of Sosua. <BR>We had a nice time. I thought the food was really quite good. I was surprised to see so much cattle and they grow everything. It was quite amazing, they seem to be pretty self sufficient. <BR>Everywhere we went we were told not to drink the water. <BR>There is a high European tourist trade many many people from Germany. As a matter of fact there are many signs written in German. <BR>If you are looking for white sandy beach and calm seas do not stay on the Atlantic Ocean side go more south. <BR>All in all we had a good time and will revisit the island again. <BR> <BR>

Hi, we spent 2 weeks at the Bahia Principe in RioSanJuan in Jan 99. The resort is beautiful but yes the food for the most part was very disappointing. For breakfast the Italian Restaurant was good and for snacks the beach restaurant served decent chicken/burgers. The evening buffet and Mexican/Italian restaurants were nothing to get excited about. The food seemed to be more geared towards the European guests(and their were lots of them), lots of sauces and bland. The Canadian bar on the strip outside the resort is excellent, if you go say hi to Barb and James for us, you will definitely have a great time at this nightclub.

Sadly, all the Dominican Republic is good for is providing major league baseball with many great ballplayers. DR was actually occupied by Haiti for about thirty years in the mid-1800s so one can understand how degraded the people are. Losing to Haiti in a war and being occupied by them is akin to a pro basketball team losing to the Los Angeles Clippers or the Golden State Warriors. DR is the armpit of the Caribbean; they've even degraded the South Bronx. Somehow, they are less advanced than the Puerto Ricans.

Go to www.debbies dominican republic. It's an excellent site and you can read lots of reviews on different resorts by people who have been there. I find it a very good web site for anyone considering a trip to DR. Have a good time!