The Dom Rep is more of a golden sand resort in the north. For white sands, cuba will be your best bet so I read although I havent been yet but am booking to go this week.

what about the south or the east of DR?

As I read on here, the south and east enjoy the caribbean sea and benefit from white sand and clear waters..

Cuba sounds good, but not really much to do on the island according to a friend of mine who just got back. Not sure how adventurous he was though..

please, some more suggestions!!

I'm not sure there is more to do in Dom Rep from my experience and what I have read. Its the usual swimming with dolphines and suchlike.

Hey,

just got a quote for £1270pp for 14 nights on the 14th June.

Staying at the resort Excellence Punta Cana which is apparently a top 5 star resort on the east of the island.

What do you reckon? anyone been here before?

please, let me know, cheers.

If anyone can assist by posting a review, please do so HERE.

Thanks.

Pippy

also, woman from another company said Cuba is much better than Dom Rep in terms of beaches and advised me to go there..

I got quoted the Iberostar Varadero for £1180 for 14 nights pp. But I can't choose between the two.

NEED HELP!

Ones I have stayed at are the Iberostar Hacienda Dominicus (IHD) in Bayahibe, which has a full thread somewhere. Was a great hotel which a nice sandy beach. They had stuck large strawberry pots in the sea to form an artificial coral reef to attract the fish. excursions are a trip to Sauna island, day trip to Santo Domingo and the Outback safari where you end up bodyboarding on Macao Beach. great Diaquiri de Narange and great orange juice.

In Cuba there is the Playa Pesquero, again has it's own thread, one of the top hotels in the Holguin area according to the locals and noticably cheaper than the paridisus rio.
24 hour food and drink, and I do mean 24 hour, if you wake in the night and fancy burgers and chips they will make you one. Ice cream available all day. Massive pools. Sand on the beach is a bit gritty if you want to be really picky, and if you want to see better fish whilst snorkelling you have to walk to the far end of the beach, however the watersports cats, canoes, windsurfs, and swan boats at we used to call them, were always available.
Day trips were Snorkelling from a cat and swimming with dolphins. There was a day trip to a game island, once "owned" by FD himself. Tobacco factory and train ride in Holguin. You can do trips to Havana and Santiago. Would go back this year if I didn't have to pay full price for my 2yr old grandson, who loved it. One problem was the orange juice, not a patch on the DR as it is shipped in from South America.

Have stayed at secrets excellence, three years ago - it was EXCELLENT!...
Did have a review posted on another site, but long since gone... the resort had some bad reviews middle of last year whilst there was an on-going change in management, but is now under new ownership and is back to it's former excellence...

Also re-named Excellence punta cana

Any specifics, pm me

ATB,J.

Cheers for posts guys.

Hey, stevebel, those places you gave me are different to the deals I've been offered.. Do you know enouh to say your recommendations are better (in terms of beaches, hotels, weather etc)?

I ask because I have basically jumped to the conclusion for some reason that Punta Cana is the best suited resort on Dom Rep for me and likewise for Cuba.

Merseygull - You reckon £1200 fo the fortnight is reasonable for that hotel? Apparently, because it's adults only, you look to pay a bit extra.

And one general question for everyone (well a few sub q's too) -
Best resort on Cuba?
Best resort on Dom Rep?

Please consider beaches.. Must have clear waters, prferably soft and white sand.

Went to the IHD 2 years ago. We decided that we would do the Saona island trip and the Santo Domingo trip and so plumped for the South rather than the East, where you had to travel across the island to start the trips (an extra 3hrs per trip). Other factors involved were the calmer waters and softer sand.
The North has the strongest waves as it is the Atlantic, the South has the calmest seas as it is the Caribbean, or some such thing.
At the time we went the IHD had the reputation of being one of the best hotels on the island and we enjoyed it, however times change and you may be after something different.
I hesitate to recommend anywhere because a few years back a large group (27) of us had a fantastic holiday in a turkish hotel, but within a couple of weeks many of the subsequent guests at that hotel ended up in hospital, so all I ever say is that I had a great time and it was good when I went.
The weather at the Playa Pesquero end of Cuba is supposed to be better and at less risk to hurricanes. The lad on the Cat snorkelling/dolphin trip told me they had only had one hit in 20 years or so. Don't know if it is true.
It is a lot further to Havana if that is the reason for the trip, but they do run (high priced) 2 day trips to Havana from the hotel.
Forgot to mention the Coffee bar in the PP.
Have a look at the threads and reviews for both hotels. If you go to Cuba try and go eclipse as the first choice planes are better standard class than the others. Thomson planes and FC planes to DR are supposedly the same standard from May this year.

We went to both places in the second half of June and it did rain at both locations but not enough to upset the holiday.
As for the PP which is the last one we went to, if you just want to laze around the pool or the beach there is plenty of opportunity, you can also take bikes from the front of the hotel and ride around the area. you may even see some traffic.
It is a long time since I was 20 so not sure what you would be looking for to keep you going. With us were my 18yr old son, 21 yr old daughter etc and they both would go back. Price wise we paid £750 each last year for the 2 weeks but I can't seem to get it below about £875 this year. Trouble is the TO wants the same price for my 2 yr old, which I baulk at, particularly as I have to pay!

Hi.

We've been to the DR South staying in Bayahibe (Sunscape Casa Del Mar)and to the East staying in Punta Cana (Sunscape The Beach). We went at the same time of year and in terms of beaches, the South had the edge, as the water was much calmer and less rocky.
If you want to know anything else, just ask
Sunaholic.

Reviews for the above can be found HERE

Pippy