Bahia Principe Grand Samana

I (47) went with my mom (75). We had an absolutely beautiful stay at Bahia Principe Grand Samaná. Our room (220) overlooked the bay, and with my binoculars — once I learned where to look — I could see whales breaching in the distance. That alone was magical. The beach is small and intimate, perfect for relaxing without big crowds. The property is simply gorgeous, walkable — peaceful, scenic, and immaculately maintained. This place has a live show with wonderful singers and a pianist. It's perfect way to end the night in the lobby. The food was delicious every day with great variety and fresh flavors. What truly made our stay extra special was the staff. A heartfelt thank you to my bartenders Fernando, Nilvio and Yacaury, wait staff Jose Antonio Fermi y Jose Antonio David and so many more, Rosa, Domingo, and Shariel kept me company while we charged my phone at the front desk. Also girl at the front desk with the pretty head band that checked us in an out and her tall counterpart I believe his name was Fernando also the porter that took our stuff up, y Medina in the parking lot that help me find my phone I dropped in the driveway came back an hour later and he found it for me — you all made us feel welcomed and cared for. The service always came with a genuine smile and they go out of there way to get anything you ask for I know they're switching over but they need to keep these guys and give them a raise for treating their resort in a way that makes people want to come back and refer friends. They are a wonderful group of people. We will absolutely be back and 10/10 recommend.

Not the first time being to an all inclusive resort, so we do have some standards. I'll make a long story short. We flew into Santo Domingo and it is easily a 2 hour 45 mintue drive. Booked transportation through the resort which uses Amstar. It was $500 USD round-trip for both my wife and I. Not including tip. The beach was clean and small. The view was beautiful. It was nice not dealing with a bunch of other tourist and the guys walking on the beach trying to sell you stuff. Room was decent size and relatively clean. Food was a 2 out of 10. Bland is an understatement. We spent 10 days here. Had 2 decent meals and both were at the buffet. Most staff barely speak English. Food is not served all day. Drinks are mediocre at best. The first night my wife and I went to one of the "fancy" restaurants. When we got our food we thought, I hope its get better than this if this is the nicer resturaunt. Unfortunately, it really didnt. At the end of the day, this was a pricey vacation that really wasn't worth it. Definitely will look elsewhere next vacation. Don't get me wrong though, the Dominican is a beatiful country.

We loved this resort so much that we will be going back next winter. The people there were 50+ and there were no wild parties, over drinking or bubba mugs. The bars closed early which was fine with us.|As for the food, it was great. A lot of choices and they had a chef's grill that would cook different types of fish and prepare pasta for you. I don't know how people can complain about variety as most people only have 2 cereal boxes in their cupboard.|The a la carte restaurants were great! The Don Pablo was amazing and they mentioned formal wear on their website, how people show up in shorts and a t-shirt is beyond me.|The beach is private and very nice, close to 1/4 mile long.|Try a mojito at the lobby bar and the coffee at breakfast is excellent!|All in all it as a great holiday.

This is our 3rd time at this resort (2018/2019 prior). We really loved this resort, so we came back after a 6 year break. Several changes post covid, most not for the better, including a level change from “Luxury” down to “Grand”. We were aware of the changes prior to going this year, so there were not too many surprises, thanks to the reviews on Tripadvisor.|Resort/Rooms:|Place is gorgeous all around with spectacular views, property is well kept & clean. Small, boutique like.|Rooms are nice, spacious and clean, getting dated and the tub area needs re-caulking, AC great.|Food:|Buffet: decent quality & selection, could use a bit more attention during peak times as items were left empty for a while, and it’s not big so when 2 out of 10 are empty, you really notice it. |2 restaurants (used to be 3): 1 was ok, the other was fantastic (Don Pablo). My issue here is that many items on the menus are NOT included are extra $$ (way too many for an all-inclusive!). Do a couple of upgradable offerings for extra $, but not a big chunk of the menu.|No snacks available between dining hours, there really should be & there used to be a great snack area with a small menu & a snack buffet, great service & view, really missed this one !! Did room service late one night, could not find the menu, written or online, had to go to the front desk, in the end it was sub-par and not very warm. |Bars: *weakest link of the property|There are 2 bars (pool/lounge), however only one bar is open at a time (day/night), there is a beach bar, but it is never open, The 2 bars are unable to handle the peak times which makes the process long & unpleasant, rarely ever help at the pool bar and the person was often not there getting supplies. My biggest issue with the lounge bar is that 50% of what you see behind the bar in NOT included and is extra $$ in an all-inclusive, most of what is included is “house brand/no name brand” with some base name brands, but often when I asked for bev I was told it was not included & handed a booklet with a list & prices. I understand charging for top shelf items which is & has been a common practice, but not for mainstream liquor and not for so much of what would normally be included at any/all other all-inclusives.|Pool/Beach:|Pool good. Beach great, small but clean, no seaweed, all sand in water, no peddlers, could use some more shade areas (huts/umbrellas) and more chairs, shade areas were in high demand mid-day and there was never enough. |Service:|Great in almost every situation.|Entertainment:|No entertainment or activities, there was a lounge singer nightly for 1hr.||In the end, some changes would be a big plus, switch back to truly all-inclusive with few upgrade exceptions, have more help at the pool bar, or overlap the 2 bars for some time, open the beach bar with a limited offering or just for a few hours in the early afternoon as the long hike from the beach to the pool bar to wait in line is not favorable. The resort itself is stunning and with great views all around the property, the beach is lovely, and the service is really good at all times and areas, this is why we love it and will likely return, but with some improvements back to how they operated would take this place from overall good to great.

This place is something else. I would have to advise for the people coming to visit this resort who are American it is quite the adventure to get to this side of the island. You either fly into Santo Domingo or Santiago and have to either take a cab 3 1/2 to 4 1/2 hours to this side of the island. Or you can rent a car if you want to be bold. Just to let you know the lines on the pavement are only suggestions. Nobody really follows them. Other than that, the room, the food, the service the employees everything was amazing. I will definitely be coming back to this resort just for the friendly employees and amazing hospitality. Only cons that I have are the rooms are a little dated. They are not very sound proof as we could hear everything from the street and our tub had allot of chipped paint and bare metal was very apparent.

Just got back and a couple notes. On your way there get a bottle of Pepto and/or any meds you might need. I paid $28 US for a bottle of Pepto at the hotel market. Same for sunblock. We paid $45 US for sunblock. Not criticizing... just making a point. The hotel was great. Insanely clean. We opted for the romantic couples dinner out on the deck for $110. That was worth it. The gym was nice. Bring binoculars if you are there during the whale season. We watched whales with binos from our room. Bring a pool/beach bag and tervis/insulated cups.

Absolutely amazing place. The food is pretty good, the rooms are good but could be better. Overall I really really enjoyed my time here. The staff are amazing people. For an all inclusive it's BEAUTIFUL and I love the architecture of this place. I actually want to go back!! If anyone goes I'll say try to get the upper level rooms

This place has ZERO accessibility for handicaps on a wheelchair. Too pricey for the average food and almost ZERO entertaintment. They can only offer outdated rooms with a nice balcony view but you could find somewhere else much cheaper. Service personnel at the bufet are really nice. The counter personnel would not do much to accomodate or solve issues unless pressured. The beds are uncomfortable. I came here in 2023 and it was much better. They have downgraded almost everything they used to offer before.