Bahia Principe Explore Esmeralda

Having just returned from this hotel I can honestly say Never again!!! Considering this family holiday cost over £7500 it did not deliver the 5 star treatment it so advertised. The food is mediocre at best especially the buffet which was often bland, repeated items and cold. The variety was lacking, and often the plates were dirty and cutlery missing from tables or tables not cleaned properly. Some staff at the buffet were quite rude and often greeted you with an attitude clearly not wanting to be there. The à la carte restaurants were also a total let down with food often being inedible and not something I would expect from a supposed high end restaurant. During the trip I became quite unwell suffering with diarrhoea for more than 5 days. I visited the medical site and was taken to hospital where I was told I had a bacterial infection in my stomach. I could only have picked this up at the hotel as that is the only place I ate and drank. One evening I witness a staff member top up the slush cocktail machine up with water from a tap at the main pool bar!!! 😱I am currently on two lots of antibiotics and other prescribed medication from the hospital. Thank goodness for travel insurance I dread to think what that would have cost me on top of the holiday price. The staff at the quieter pool bar Elvis and Angel seemed only interested in serving anyone who spoke Spanish often laughing and joking with them and making larger drinks for them. When myself or my child went to the bar we were greeted with rudeness and a lack of hospitality it was very clear there was favouritism of certain guests. The room we stayed in was ok but for two nights had a problem with cockroaches of which I rang the concierge about. Someone came to spray the room but left two roaches there one of which was encrusted on the floor, so had clearly been there a while. Overall I would never return to this resort or hotel again and it has definitely put me off the all inclusive aspect of holidays for future holidays!

We stayed at Bahia Principe Luxury Esmeralda for a 6-day family vacation, and overall, we had a wonderful experience at the resort. However, there were a few issues that I feel are important to mention, particularly regarding the flight package and some safety concerns at the resort. Our trip unfortunately started with a very disappointing and unexpected issue regarding the flight and accommodation package we booked. We booked our flight together with the hotel as a vacation package, but it was not made clear to us that our airline tickets were Basic Fare, which did not include checked luggage or even a carry-on — only one small personal item per passenger. For a family of four travelling internationally for six days, this was a very unpleasant surprise. We only discovered this when we arrived at the airport for our departure flight to Punta Cana. We had four carry-on bags and ended up paying approximately $500 CAD extra for baggage. This was a significant unexpected expense at the very beginning of our vacation. I strongly believe that the baggage restrictions and fare type should be clearly highlighted during the package booking process, so families know exactly what is and is not included before purchasing. Thankfully, once we arrived at Bahia Principe Luxury Esmeralda, our experience became much more positive. The staff throughout the resort were absolutely wonderful — friendly, welcoming, helpful, and always ready to assist. A special thank you to Luis and Alexa at the front desk for their kindness and assistance, and to Victor from Room Service for his excellent service. A big thank you also goes to the Entertainment Team. They brought so much energy and fun to the resort and helped create a great vacation atmosphere for families. Their activities and enthusiasm added a lot to our overall experience. We also truly appreciated the housekeeping team, all the bartenders, buffet staff, and the teams at the à la carte/fine-dining restaurants. I don't want to list too many individual names because I would hate to accidentally leave someone out. Everyone we interacted with was friendly, hardworking, and made our family feel welcome and comfortable. There are, however, some points regarding safety that I believe the resort needs to take seriously and improve. As a family resort, guest safety should always be a priority. We noticed some areas and situations during our stay that could potentially present safety concerns and would benefit from better attention, maintenance, or precautions. These points did not take away from the kindness of the staff, but I believe they should be addressed to help prevent accidents and provide families with a safer and more comfortable experience. Overall, we enjoyed our family stay at Bahia Principe Luxury Esmeralda and are very grateful to the wonderful staff who helped make our vacation memorable. My main recommendations would be to provide much clearer information about airline fare classes and baggage allowances when selling flight-and-hotel packages, and to give additional attention to safety measures throughout the resort. Regards, Mira Nicola

Extremely Disappointing and Misleading Booking Experience I booked our hotel stay including our flights directly through the Bahia Principe Explore Esmeralda website, trusting that the booking process would clearly explain the conditions and limitations of the flight tickets. During the booking process, I was shown a disclaimer stating that the airfare did not include checked baggage. I understood that and accepted it. What was NOT made clear to me was that the fare also did not include a carry-on bag and that we were only permitted a personal item. This became a major problem when we arrived at the airport. We were traveling for a six-day hotel stay, yet the airline ticket purchased through the hotel booking allowed only a small personal item. A normal carry-on suitcase was not included. This is a very significant restriction, especially for a family traveling for almost a week. The first time I became fully aware of this was at the airport, when we were already committed to the trip. At that point, we had no realistic alternative. We had to pay for the carry-on baggage at the airport, and the additional cost was almost CAD $500. That is an outrageous and completely unexpected additional expense. My issue is not simply that baggage costs extra. I understand that airlines have different fare categories and that checked baggage may not be included. My issue is that the booking process clearly disclosed the exclusion of checked baggage, but did not make the equally important exclusion of carry-on baggage clear enough for us to understand what we were actually purchasing. There is a huge difference between: - “Checked baggage is not included,” and - “You are allowed only a personal item and must pay separately for a standard carry-on.” A reasonable customer would expect that if checked luggage is excluded, they can at least bring a standard carry-on unless explicitly told otherwise. Instead, we discovered the restriction only when we reached the airport, when the decision was essentially no longer avoidable. This turned what was supposed to be a relaxing family vacation into an unnecessarily stressful and extremely expensive experience before we had even reached the hotel. Bahia Principe needs to take responsibility for how these flight restrictions are presented during the booking process. When customers purchase a combined hotel-and-flight package directly through your website, the hotel should make the baggage allowance unmistakably clear before payment, not leave customers to discover critical restrictions at the airport. I strongly recommend that anyone considering booking a flight-inclusive package through Bahia Principe carefully verify the airline, fare class, personal-item dimensions, carry-on allowance, checked baggage allowance, and all additional baggage costs directly with the airline before completing the purchase. In my case, what appeared to be a straightforward booking resulted in almost CAD $500 in unexpected baggage charges, along with considerable frustration for my family. I expected much better transparency from a major hotel brand. This experience seriously damaged my confidence in booking flight-inclusive packages through Bahia Principe, and I hope the hotel changes the way these restrictions are disclosed so other families do not have to learn about them at the airport, when it is already too late.

Our entire family loves going to the Bahia Principe Esmeralda. We have been many times and will continue to go back. The friendliness and helpfulness of the staff cannot be beat.

On July 27, 2026, at 11:30 PM, we booked a travel package for Bahia Principe Luxury Esmeralda via Expedia.ca. We acted under the impression that the "all-inclusive" designation included airfare; however, upon receiving the confirmation and noting the absence of passport verification, we identified the error immediately. Despite our efforts to rectify this, we have faced the following timeline of events: - Immediate Action: We initiated formal cancellation requests to both Expedia and the hotel within 45 minutes of the original booking. - Initial Refusal: On July 29, 2026, Expedia informed us that the hotel had refused to authorize a refund. - Lack of Accountability: For the following week, we attempted to escalate the matter with Expedia.ca, who deferred all responsibility to the resort. When we attempted to contact the resort directly, we were unable to reach anyone authorized to address the issue and were repeatedly redirected back to Expedia. While we acknowledge the existence of "non-refundable" policies, enforcing them under these specific circumstances is predatory. Refusing a cancellation made 88 days in advance—and within less than one hour of the transaction—is not a standard business practice. This rigidity results in a significant extraction of funds for a service that remains three months away, during which the hotel has suffered zero loss of inventory or opportunity cost. As of August 20, 2026, this situation has left us in a severe financial deficit of $2,109.31, having paid for a trip we cannot complete. This experience reflects poorly on the resort’s administration and its willingness to prioritize short-term profit over basic consumer fairness. It also highlights Expedia’s inadequate customer service and a troubling disregard for the spirit and intent of consumer protection principles.