whala!bocachica

It hard to know where to start with this hotel. I have always believed that the hotel is just a place to stay, and it doesn’t really matter if it’s a bit tatty but this placed pushed me to the limits.|While driving into Boca Chica on the transfer it was apparent that the area was a bit rough and ready. Initial impressions though of hotel were fine and checked in without issue. We were on the 3rd floor and there in not lift so that is something to think about.|Oh boy the room. Nothing good to say about it to be honest. Bad points to note are:|AC cover kept falling off exposing wiring|Weird musky smell|Not enough pillows|Shower was awful|Door cupboards broken and damaged|Half the lights didn’t work|Toilet flush worked only when it wanted|Door keys constantly stopping working||Good points|AC was good||Hotel food was ok but we all got sick but this is to be expected I guess. The mince is best avoided and was rough. Other that its just normal buffet all-inclusive food with some themed nights.||Staff were ok to us and always polite and helpful both the bar staff and the restaurant staff.||The pool area was ok but what saved this place for us was the beach and sea this was amazing. Lovely private white sand beach and Cystal clear waters. You do get hassled a lot by people selling thing but a simple no seems to sent them on their way.||We did a few excursions which were good and we loved the DR and the vibe of the island. If I was to go back I would go I think to Punta Cana and not to Boca Chica. This hotel was really not that great not bar the beach was the location

I spent 2 weeks in this hotel and these are my comments. |The room was ok, air conditioning made the room bearable. |NEGATIVES:|1. You cannot throw the toilet paper down the toilet, you have a bin near to throw it. The bin is emptied every 2 days. Even without the paper the toilet still gets messy sometimes as it doesn't flush properly.|2. The door key is not working most of the time, as they say "you shouldn't keep it near the phone". I changed my key several times a day just because it was in the bag with the phone.|3. The swimming pool is absolutely disgusting. I will add some me photos to prove. Nearly threw up first day passing by the pool on my way to the beach.|4. Flies on the food all the time.|5. One big cockroach in the room, as big as half of my pinkie. Killed it with my slipper.|6. No other staff other than reception speaks English, only Spanish. Spanish people are treated preferential, just so you know.|POSITIVE:|1. The hotel is on the beach.|2. ATM on site.|3. Bar personnel is friendly and treats everyone equally, compared to the restaurant.|As first time in Dominican, I'd say I'm not willing to travel for 9 hours to a 3 or 4* hotel there. So, if you can afford, you better find a 5* or you stay home.

Besides a very limited amount of employees being nice and helpful, I have nothing nice to say about the hotel. First room I was giving, toilette didn’t work, hair drying didn’t work. They have a few policies that don’t really make sense such as having to walk across the street to reception for beach and pool towels. Not only were we told on 3 occasions that they ran out, but a deposit of $20 had to be made. If you need and iron, another $20 deposit. Food is dissatisfying, hotel is run down, and customer service is disspointing. Read all the reviews, they are accurate. My advice, avoid staying here. Try to find a way to scrape a few extra dollars and stay elsewhere. You’ll be disappointed staying here.

Had a fantastic experience as a first timer to the Caribbean, especially as a lone female traveller . Staff were very friendly and attentive. Housekeeping were spot on every day without fail . Location fantastic, just a few steps from the beach , with my room overlooking the beach. Most relaxing holiday ever ! Thank you Whala!Boca Chica

Good location, but service level at a very low level. Need to wait ridiculously long time for drinks in a restaurant during the dinner. Also it was a quest to get a 3rd towel - We visited reception 4 times to finally get it.

Check in was super slow. Bad food. Everything closes at 1am. La discoteca bien pequeña, parece una reunión. Don't recommend unless you want to have an average time.

An incredible experience! We got to the hotel And after checking in, and a very very nice elderly man helped us to our room. Every time we saw him after he had the biggest smile on his face and greeted us with a very kind “buenos días”. Our room had a beach front view and was super clean! The woman who cleaned our room did a spectacular job everyday and also always had a sweet smile on her face. We were a little sceptical about the food as we read some reviews about it but the buffet was loaded with options and each one was delicious! They even had themed nights(Mexican,Spanish, etc) so that we could try their variations of other types of food. The bars were soooooo good. Everyday they have a special drink but they also have a menu of drinks you can get anytime. The beer was very good and if you’re there, try a bachata! The staff, room and food were incredible at this resort and I feel very happy and lucky to have been able to stay here for my vacation at the Dominican Republic

Hotel - the hotel is not gated but there are plenty of security guards around to stop people from strolling around the resort. It is a large hotel with multiple buildings and various floors. The pathways are paving stones but they are very uneven, so be careful with your step! Room - was on the 3rd floor, stairways alright to walk up. There’s no AC in the bathroom, but that kind of makes sense as the windows are horizontal glass panels that work like roman blinds. 3rd floor room so we had the roof space, so the room felt very spacious. Small balcony overlooking the pool and beach, enough room for two chairs and a small table with some moving room. The room in general was a bit tired and could do with a lick of paint and new fixtures. Walk in wardrobe (not enough hangers but two females sharing a room). We had twin double beds which were pretty comfy, the pillows though are lumpy and they could do with being chucked out and replaced for every room (if they have them). Food and dining - certainly wasn’t varied much from day to day and was alright for a 3* hotel. One occasion where ants had infiltrated a salad, but only saw that on one occasion. I’m a fussy eater but did manage to find something to eat for all meals no matter how eclectic the combination was in the end. Beach - the beach is a public beach, however I feel that the hotel must own part of it as there were bollards in the sand that people would claim they are not allowed past. The beach is lovely, generally clean, often saw a team of cleaners go along the beach in the morning. The water is lovely and calm as there is a breaker a way out which stops all of the waves. It is very shallow and you can walk out a fair way without it coming above your waist. Water was lovely and warm, could see lots of fish swimming around. Down side was when we went back to our shaded sun loungers as we were bombarded with locals trying to sell jewellery, cigars, wooden sculptures, medicines, massages and hair styles. There is a security guard on the beach, but they don’t seem to do much to stop these people from coming and disturbing you for a sales pitch. Plenty of police patrolling the beach on motorbike as well. Overall I enjoyed going to the beach, enjoyed the coolness and calmness of the water. There are stray dogs roaming, but they are friendly enough and want to sit in the shade. WARNING about the beach - we came across two men (Luis and Wilson) who convinced us that they were good to do excursions with and not to book with the hotel as they do the same excursion for cheaper. Thinking we had won the jackpot we booked one excursion with them and we spent the day with Luis, was a lovely, lovely day. For our next excursion we did book with the hotel as it was clear he made one of our party very uncomfortable. So we paid our money to the hotel, all booked in and excited to go to Saona Island. We had a very odd day, which wasn’t what we expected and we were quite disappointed with what we recieved. We complained to the hotel excursion rep and we found out that Wilson had basically stolen us as customers and the true tour guide was left at the hotel not knowing where a group of 10 of us had gone. Please only book with the staff at the hotel (Maria - she is lovely). If you book with someone off of the beach you are not insured and if an incident/accident happens you’re on your own. Plus when you think about it truly (and my thoughts are with hindsight) was it safe? No not really, as a tourist your reliant on people over there helping you. It is clear Dominican Republic has real poverty, many people are very pushy and persistent to get you to buy things. The hotel should have more security should be on the beach and need to make it clear to customers that such services are not part of their service and that they are not insured. Staff - absolutely no complaints about staff, all very friendly and eager to help you. Some staff people more English than others, but Spanish is the local dialect. Overall - nice holiday, take bug repellents ( lots of mosquitos)