Dreams Macao Beach Punta Cana Resort & Spa

If you have children 18/19 years old I think it is worth going to Dreams Macao. Your children will be in a safe place and can have fun at the hotel with the many late night options ... Disco, Dining ... hang out areas ... without venturing off site. This alone is worth the trip for most parents. It is also very nice not to have to plan where to eat and venture out for a dining experience. The food is good and I would say that breakfast at the World Cafe is an absolute, and dinner at El Patio and Hibachi are the best (although sit down dinner, not the habachi dinner). The beach is very nice and quiet, although there are public areas both to the right and to the left of the hotel but there are no other high rise hotels in the area and the atmosphere is laid back and very beachy. Macao beach is very nice and the further down you walk the less the waves are an issue ... very nice I did enjoy the beach a whole lot and would highly recommend. The propery itself is not in the best condition. So if you are looking for a hotel with luxury... this is not the place. If you go to Dreams ... Go Preferred ... dont even think about the extra cost. The Preferred Adults only pool is wonderful, and your butler will help you throughout your stay. At times, he will be the only person on site that you can talk too!

This is only the second all inclusive I have been to but I was disappointed in having to wait in long lines to eat dinner in the restaurants, Also, not a lot of restaurants open for lunch for nonpreferred members. The pool closed at 6, which disappointed my 10 year old. There were vendors that were in several locations 2 out of 5 days we were there that were extremely aggressive in getting out to look at their merchandise. Room had no robes, no snacks and only one type of beer and only two of them in there each day. Tub would not hold water so it was constantly having the water running. I guess the plug was faulty. Some things that were listed on the activities that my older boys wanted to participate in never happened. All of the staff seemed very friendly and the resort was clean. However, overall I would not stay in this resort again

Great experience overall - beautiful property. Don't let other reviews discourage you - we found the food to be quite good, at least an 8/10. Only once over 5 days did someone in our party have something that was not well-liked, which is subjective. I do recommend taking pepto bismal or imodium - just remember that it isn't always that the food is "bad" but it is different that many are used to and that might make your stomach feel funny. No problems at all for us regarding cleanliness and hygeine with food or rooms/grounds. We liked that it was not too big and was very walkable. It was laid out nicely so that you could choose whether to be in a noisy, lively area or in a quiet area. My 13 year old had a good enough time that he never used the Teen Club. Lazy River could be more powerful but still enjoyable. No need to bring inflatables for the Lazy River but might want to bring them for main pool areas which did not have floating beds provided as we have experienced at other resorts. Was definitely worth upgrading to preferred as the main pool can fill up very early. Internet is fine in the rooms, just OK by the pools. Staff are all amazing and work very hard. Please tip, and don't leave your trash laying by the pool.

I have traveled to numerous all-inclusive resorts throughout Mexico, Jamaica, the Bahamas, and the Dominican Republic, so I have a good basis for comparison. Before this trip, I already knew that customer service in the Dominican Republic tends to be less engaging than what I've experienced in Mexico. Staff often don't acknowledge guests with a simple "good morning" or make eye contact the way they do at many other resorts. Unfortunately, Dreams Macao Beach lived up to those expectations—and in some cases fell short of what I would expect from a Hyatt-branded Preferred Club resort. We traveled with three families, ten people total, and all of us paid extra for the Preferred Club experience. One of the advertised benefits is a separate check-in with personalized service. Upon arrival, we were greeted and then walked nearly halfway across the resort to the Preferred Club check-in. Interestingly, Hyatt's website shows guests being transported by golf cart, but that was not our experience. The Preferred Club check-in takes place inside the Preferred Lounge, which also happens to have the only consistently stocked premium liquor bar on the resort. Unfortunately, the lounge was extremely crowded, the space was small, and only two employees were checking everyone in. We arrived around 3:00 p.m., but our rooms were not ready until nearly 5:00 p.m. The entire check-in process took close to an hour and lacked any sense of hospitality. The employees handled the process efficiently enough, but there was very little warmth or customer service. Language barriers also made communication difficult, as many staff members spoke very limited English. Our group had booked two Preferred Club swim-out rooms. The rooms themselves were clean, modern, spacious, and attractive, and the swim-out feature was definitely worth having. However, only one of our two rooms included the advertised Preferred Club welcome amenities, such as the bottle of rum and wine. We were also assigned two butlers, but throughout our entire stay we only ever interacted with one of them. The resort itself is beautiful. The grounds are well maintained, the landscaping is impressive, and everything appeared very clean. It is also a very large property, so be prepared for a fairly long walk between the beach, pools, restaurants, and water park. The food was decent with a good variety of restaurants, but nothing particularly memorable. Ironically, our favorite place ended up being the late-night Snack Shack. Unfortunately, it rarely opened on time. Although it was scheduled to open at 11:00 p.m., guests were often waiting while employees sat on their phones, with no food prepared and no plates available. It became another example of the lack of urgency and customer service that we experienced throughout the week. Evening entertainment was enjoyable, especially the Silent Disco, which was one of the highlights of the trip. However, most nightly entertainment wrapped up around 10:00 p.m., which felt early for a resort of this size. I also think there could be significantly more activities geared toward teenagers after dark. The pools were very nice. There are two Preferred Club pools and one general pool. What surprised me was how the resort manages access. Instead of using wristbands, guests simply provide their room number when receiving towels. Staff are primarily tracking towels rather than verifying Preferred Club access. I have stayed at many all-inclusive resorts and have never seen one operate without some type of wristband, even if only to distinguish adults-only guests or Preferred Club members. The beach itself was very nice. There was some seaweed, as expected in the Caribbean, but by the time we made it down each day, the staff had done an excellent job cleaning it up. The biggest disappointment was the layout of the Preferred Club beach area. Surprisingly, the roped-off Preferred section was actually set farther back from the water, while the general seating occupied the prime beachfront locations closest to the ocean. That made very little sense considering guests pay a premium for the Preferred Club experience. The Preferred beach bar was also located away from the seating area, making it less convenient. We were told there would be dedicated beach service for Preferred guests, but during our entire stay I never once saw our assigned server. It was yet another example of paying extra for amenities and service that either weren't delivered or weren't consistently available. The biggest disappointment by far was the beverage program. One of the main reasons we paid extra for Preferred Club was access to premium liquor. Outside of the Preferred Lounge, nearly every bar primarily served local rum and vodka brands. Beer selection was generally limited to Presidente unless you specifically asked for Coors Light or Miller Genuine Draft. While I don't consider myself a heavy drinker, I do enjoy quality spirits, and this was one of the perks I expected when upgrading. I'm also someone who believes in tipping generously. Throughout the week I consistently tipped bartenders, servers, and other staff members. Unfortunately, unlike many resorts I've visited, tipping seemed to have very little impact on service. I frequently felt like I was inconveniencing employees simply by asking for another drink or requesting assistance. That feeling persisted throughout much of the vacation. Overall, we still had a wonderful trip because we spent quality time with family and friends, relaxed, and disconnected from work. The resort itself is beautiful, the rooms were comfortable, and the property is well maintained. However, the service simply does not match what I expect from a Hyatt all-inclusive resort or the premium price charged for the Preferred Club experience. If exceptional hospitality and attentive service are your priorities, I think there are better options available, particularly in Mexico. While we made great memories together, this will likely be our last vacation in the Dominican Republic.

Aside from our butler, Johanny—who we really only used for making a few reservations—the overall level of service was minimal at best. On multiple occasions, we waited 45 minutes or more to be served at the various pools. It often felt like an inconvenience for the wait staff to even stop by and ask if we needed anything. Compared to resorts we've visited in Mexico, where the staff are constantly checking to ensure your drinks are full and you're well taken care of, the difference in service was night and day. At the Ocean Grill, when I attempted to order a drink with dinner, I was actually told to "drink my water." Throughout the resort, no one at any of the restaurants proactively asked if we wanted anything to drink beyond water—we almost always had to flag someone down and ask. The nightly entertainment ended at 10:00 p.m., and the bars closed at 11:00 p.m. It's hard to understand what adults on vacation are expected to do after that. The resort essentially shut down for the evening. Our arrival experience was equally disappointing. When we checked in, our room was not ready, and after waiting nearly two hours, we were assigned a room that wasn't even what we had booked. We reserved a room with two double beds but were given a king bed with a rollaway instead. To make matters worse, our luggage was never delivered to the room—we had to follow up on it ourselves. We also paid extra for the Preferred Club, which ended up being extremely underwhelming. I never found a Preferred bar that was actually stocked with the advertised top-shelf liquor. The staff routinely apologized and said they were out of stock. Finally, there appeared to be little to no control over access to the Preferred areas. There were no wristbands or any other method of identifying Preferred guests, meaning anyone could use the Preferred pools and bars. I know this because numerous guests openly bragged throughout our stay that they were using the Preferred amenities without paying for them. Overall, the resort fell well short of the expectations set by its marketing and the premium price paid for the Preferred Club experience.