Viva Wyndham Dominicus Palace All-Inclusive Resort, La Romana

Well first of all we were told by an american couple that had been there previously that the resort had changed owners and most of the staff had changed. It was very difficult to find anyone that could speak english. The girl at the front desk was very rude and didnt want to help if you didnt speak spanish. We did have alot of bad weather when we were there and so most outdoor things were closed down but that left nothing to do with 3 teenagers for 5 days as there is no indoor activities (spanish shows and dancing lessons). The food was not great..alot of things I had never heard of and the meat like beef and chicken were either very dry or tough. The buffet basically stays the same for every breakfast and lunch...so you get pretty sick of the same thing. The Italian restaurant was great. The actual resort is beautiful and the beach is great. Rooms were nothing special..no clock radio or coffee maker in room and the fridge barely worked. Overall if you dont speak spanish or italian I would chose a different resort.

We were at the Wyndham Palace for Chrismas week, and enjoyed the experience very much. We went with the understanding and expectaton that this was not a 5 star resort, therefore we were more than satisfied by what we found. The rooms were more than adequate, although certainly not luxerious. Staff were universally friendly and helpful, even when there was a language barrier. There were very few Americans, and almost all activities were in Spainish or Italian - which we were fine with. If we had wanted an all English speaking experience we could have gone to an English speaking island. We really had no problems as most of the staff spoke at least some English. The food was good with plenty of variety. We had no problems getting reservations at the ala carte restaurants even though this was one of the busier weeks of the year. We enjoyed trying all the restaurants and bars during the week. We particularly like that some of the bars were geared towards the party set with music and activities going non stop, while others were quiet and restful, so we could pick according to our mood. Our main complaint was with the condition of the water sports equipment; we are experienced sailors and found that the boats were in extremely poor condition. We tried several different types of sailboats and had problems with all, the watersports staff seemed somewhat indifferent to these issues. The beaches were delightful, the grounds were very well kept. There was construction taking place around the main pool area at the Wyndham Beach, once it is complete it should be very nice. Even with the construction going on, it really did not diminish our enjoyment. The two resorts seamlessly blend into one another and as a guest we really were not aware of when we went from one to the other. Their is a long sidewalk that runs between the hotel units and the beach the entire length of both resorts; it is a great people watching place. Beware of the beach vendors on the public beach just to the east of the resort beach; they swarm you if you cross onto the public beach and can be extrememly persistant in their sales techniques; we quickly learned to be pleasant but very firm when saying no. Overall we would go back to this resort without hesitation.

I visited this country the 1st time on 28th Feb and found the people in general and the staff of this resort truly friendly ! Keeping into mind the money we paid for this trip, it was an ultimate vacation. Food was great. Rooms were tidy and had good views all around. Keep in mind that if you pay for a 3 star facility and then expect a super 5 star treatment, then you are wrong and not anybody else !! Will visit again next year from INDIA, where I live !!

mostly Italian and French making English the last language barely spoken Heavy smokers and butts on the beach - disgusting Snorkelling was average and expensive at $40pp - garbage in the water Food was good in the speciality restaurants and service was great - Domincans are friendly and kind grounds were very clean and attractive overall pretty nice place

From reading the other reviews, it is obvious that Americans can not deal with cultural differences. First they complain about the 1-2 hour taxi ride, but they tried to save money first by not flying into Laromana airport, which is a 25 minute taxi ride for $30. Sure the food was not the best, but it was really not something to ruin your life about. It would have been nice if more of the staff spoke English, but being that my family has travelled internationally many time, it was not a problem because we understood that we needed to be patient. Trying to reserve the separate restaurants for dinners was not customer service oriented. So this is a problem. But to read all these American reviews on how negative it is, simply stay away. When I, as an American, would rather visit someplace internationally that not many Americans go to, it is more pleasant. Being around Americans when travelling internationally is not the best experience.

Yes, the beach is really nice, but we have mixed reviews...Visited there in June 07 for a week's vacation...Found great prices to stay here and wanted all inclusive so we figured we'd try it out. First off, the location is far from both Santo Domingo and Punta Cana, so getting there is very expensive. We paid $100 each way! The resort itself is clean, landscape is nicely kept up. Beaches are nice with lots of mature palm trees that provide a nice canopy to retreat to if you get sunburned. Food was so so. We really wanted to have Dominican food, but it was everything but native foods. The poolside cafe-bar serves hamburgers, hot dogs, etc; the buffet for breakfast, lunch and dinner is typical American and European style; and the "nice restaurants" are Chineese, Italian, Mexican...Go figure... Then the real annoying parts are some of the staff. There are Wyndham people constantly pressuring you to take an hour or two out of your vacation to sit and listen to them trying to sell you something... They won't leave you alone until you do this. Literally after 5 days of this, we finally went to hear their sales pitch just to stop being harrassed (after wasting 45 min, it turned out they didn't have anyone to speak English to deal with us)... Clearly these people must make a living by the number of sales, so we also attended because we felt bad, but that's wrong for Wyndham to do this. Pay them a regular salary, and if guests want to buy, cool, if not, don't harrass them! Some of the actual hotel staff were very friendly, but a couple of them were down right rude...Especially the young lady that handles the travel arrangements for excursion trips. When I asked her a simple question, she replied very rudely. I was amazed at this and would've made a big deal about it, but literally this was our last day there and didn't want to blow our day over this. Additionally, the resort caters mainly to the European crowd. Smoking is permitted everywhere, and we were shocked at how few spoke English, yet everyone knew German, Italian, and French. Finally, it is expensive in the long run, because everything is in US Dollars instead of the native Dominican monetary (so don't plan on it being too cheap of a vacation after all). This is not just the resort, everything from taxis, to the airport Customs fee is all in US Dollars...And the international taxes you pay are a rip off compared with other exotic destinations. We paid around 80 dollars each, plus the tourist cards. Dominican Republic is nice, but I think overrated..Will go back one day, but will go to many more places before...

First off be aware that from St. Domingo airport the bus trip is 2 hours w/ some crazy local drivers, ha. They stop at other resorts along the way. Other guests told us the drive from Punta Cana airport is just as long. Beautiful beaches, the sister resort (Dominicus Beach) is a 2-minute walk away (path runs along the beach) and between the two hotels there must be over a mile of beachfront property. Entire place is immaculate, not a speck of garbage. Very little English spoken among the staff, only at the front desk. Mostly Europeans at the resort (Italian and French). Topless sunbathing is allowed and seen frequently enough. Rooms were clean and spacious, great showers. Only drawback was the food - buffets were average at best, and the restaurants were good, but required a reservation (best one was Bambu). Beachside grills offer burgers, hot dogs and pizza, which was, personally, the best food going! Drinks were good, alot of selection, small glasses though. Bar staff is great, no long lines. I was there in early April, days were warm and sunny but the nights cooled down significantly (bring a light jacket). Plently of beach chairs available, no need to fight or pay someone off for beach front real estate since there's plenty of it. We were told to stay on the resort, since the small "town" right outside didn't look too safe. Honestly, had a great time, would def. go back - amazing beaches, the best I've seen in the Caribbean and I've been to almost every island!

i dislike the food ( just alwais the same) but i like the last restaurant at the end of the village ( i remember was samethin like " thr grilled") I hope to came back there. Sorry for my English. By By

We travelled to this resort by flying into Santo Domingo (SDQ) airport and were transported to the hotel by their contracted transportation which was on time and reliable. The ride is about 1hr 45mins and we got to see the "real" DR on the way. Transport will run you $52 round trip for adults and $26 for kids. Flights to SDQ are typically several hundred dollars cheaper than flying to La Romana airport (LRM), which is about 30 mins from the resort. We chose the Viva Palace based on a previous visit to the Viva Maya in Mexico, so this review is based on comparing the pros and cons of the two resorts. Overall I should say that the Viva Maya was a more pleasant experience. Lets start with the basics. Do yourself a favor and become a member of Wyndham-by-Request before you book a room at any Viva resort. As members (membership is free) we were immediately upgraded to a junior suite (ocean view) for the price of the basic room. This is done upon arrival, ask to speak to the By-Request manager Jose Luis at the front desk. More importantly, as a By-Request member, you can make reservations for your entire stay as soon as you arrive. This is really a big deal because each morning there will be a long line at Guest Services to book restaurants for that night. Reservations are REALLY limited, in fact by about 9am all restaurants get full, and you will be stuck eating pizza or the buffet. We ate at La Scala (Italian), Bambu (oriental) and Ibiza (temporary venue for Mexican while the original rest. is being remodeled). We highly recommend La Scala. Given that 70% of the guests are from Italy/France, they have made this rest. really good. Good vegetarian choices here good main courses and desserts. Vegetarian choices in the main buffet rest. (lunch) are limited to pasta with tomato sauce, side veggies and fruit/dessert. Bambu is more Japanese than chinese, so be aware not to expect the standard US chinese fare. Also, there is nothing on the menu for vegetarians here or in the Mexican restaurant. Quality of food at the main buffet La Yuca is not great but reasonable. Good chicken and pork dishes and fruit/dessert choices. Overall the biggest complaint we had was the service. Language is a big problem here compared to Mexico. Very very little english is spoken. Because of the guest mix, Italian is fluently spoken by most staff. Even with the little spanish we have picked up living in Florida and Texas, we had a really hard time. Staff tended to be rude and unhelpful, especially when they could not understand you. The resort was completely full, finding seats for breakfast and luch was a real problem. Same thing with the wait at the bar for drinks, because of the crowds. Note that drinks are mostly local brands, poor wine/beer. Tropical cocktails were above average. While most problems we had ended up being fixed, it meant going back to the Guest Service Manager or the By-Request Manager. Rooms are very clean and beds are comfortable. An electronic safe and minibar (free) are available in the rooms. The beaches were really outstanding, and we tried archery, kayaking and went on a snorkel trip arranged by the dive shop. The snorkel trip was really good, about an hour of snorkeling and 15 minute boat ride, + gear all for $10/pp. Beautiful white sand beaches, and palm trees really make this location a tropical paradise. Crowds however detracted from the experience. Overall it was a decent value, but would go back to Playa del Carmen in Mexico rather than here. We felt that the people in general and the staff were more friendly and accomodating in Mexico.

i came here a few years ago and it was awsome, coming back soon. I came with my family, and i loved it, the food was great and the scenary was amazing