El Cabarete Spa Resort All-Inclusive

This is the 8th time we’ve stayed. It feels like our Caribbean home! We enjoy the freedom we have to either cook in our kitchen, eat at the bar/restaurant or go into Cabarete for a meal. The staff here work hard and always greet everyone with “Buenos Dias” We appreciate the option to pay weekly for the shuttle service into Cabarete and have never had to wait long, especially when we give a heads up via WhatsApp. In Cabarete we’ve eaten great food at very reasonable prices! Cabarete Coffee Company for lunch, Bliss (wow!) and Mesa Taina at Kite Beach (LOVE the Godzilla) From El Cabarete Hotel, this time we went to Ocean World in Puerto Plata and Laguna Gri Gri in Rio San Juan for a 1.5-2 h boat ride through the lagoon to Cueva de Las Collondrinas. We will be back to further explore & enjoy the beautiful, friendly Dominican Republic. Thank you to our family at the El Cabarete for a beautiful vacation!!

A hidden gem! I definitely recommend this place! The experience priceless, all inclusive food and beverage package a must. Our bartender Isaiah was the best! All the food for the cook Carlos was perfect

Very high quality experience, with a helpful staff & gourmet cuisine. If you can splurge for any or all-inclusive, I would highly recommend that. Do your research first but definitely take Wilson up on any of his adventures or activities. However, anything you can do on your own in town is preferred. Pray for good sunny weather!! I will be returning for another stay in the future!! : )

We hesitated to write a review for fear that the blame would be put on the staff. I cannot stress enough that the staff is incredibly hard working and does the absolute best they can, under the circumstances. Especially Esaie!! Rather then leave an emotional and dramatic review, I will simply stick to the facts. - We pre arranged and paid for airport transportation with the hotel. We were never picked up and had to take a random taxi, who inevitably got lost. When we arrived, we were told the driver had a family emergency and couldn’t pick us up. - We were told our all inclusive package was drinks from 11am-11pm. We were not told that the bartender/server had to leave for hours on end in the middle of the day to get a break from working insanely long hours. We would not be able to order food or drinks or get bottled water during this time. Every single day. We had to find this out for ourselves. - We were told there was a beach shuttle every hour. When we tried to go to the beach we were told the shuttle was unavailable and we could walk. We tried and got lost in the middle of the village. When we finally got there (after being picked up by a motorcycle) there were no chairs or anywhere to sit and relax. We asked before we went and we were told they would be chairs. - There was no one at the front desk for hours on end and never at night. On our last night, toilet broke and there wasn’t anyone to help. - The pool was cloudy and dirty. There were toys, trash and used cigarettes for days on end around and in the pool. - Esaie (lovely bartender) had arranged for chairs to be brought to the beach on our last day and for the driver to pick us up. He also arranged for our airport transportation on our last day after we realized that there was noone at the desk that last day to arrange it for us. If it wasn’t for him, we have no idea how we would’ve gotten to the airport that morning. - Oh - and we both got violently ill - assuming food poisoning - on our last night. Immediately after dinner until 2am. This “resort” offered false claim after false claim. To absolutely NO fault of the staff. Horrible experience.

This was our 6th time staying at the El Cabarete, it has become our home away from home! The resort was quiet, clean & restful. The staff is like a family, hosting their guests warmly, ready to do what it took to make us comfortable. We always book the shuttle to go in to Cabarete for lunch, beach or groceries. Chef Chiki created a delicious, super fancy Valentine Dinner, Luke managed the desk with a smile, Ramona & her team rocked the daily cleaning routine, Nino & Keto drove us to/from Cabarete frequently & safely! Thanks to the others who I've not named here...you're all part of a hard-working team. Lunch at Wilson's Bar & Grill at La Boca is always a highlight of our time in Cabarete. We enjoy walking to the deserted beach (shuttle is also available) turning right then walking ~ 30 minutes to Wilson's. Miguel provides the river taxi to a delicious feast of fish & seafood along with Cervesa or Piña Coladas etc. Wilson is our favourite tour guide too...see his poster in the lobby. Other attractions we enjoyed this time: - Pottery shed - walking distance, awesome finds & La Cafeteria Maria! -La Aurora Cigar Factory in Santiago (2 hour drive, scenic views!) -Taino Valley Tropical Park (WOW) -Las Cuevas de Cabarete (Thx Lawren!)

We called ahead for a late check-in and were greeted at the gate by a man holding a shotgun and a beer. He proceeded to show part of our party to their room and stated that he would be back to take the “gordita” to her room, meaning myself. Entering the room, there was no air conditioner running until he turned it on, which was a portable unit and nothing, and I mean nothing, was plugged in. Our welcome drinks were 2 hot bottles waters. The rest of our party came to my room because their a/c was not working in their room and mine was working at a minimum. Early in the morning, we had an excursion pick-up at 7 am. We were unable to address the issues we were having with our accommodations because there was no staff available and to also address that our power was completely out at this time. After returning from our excursion at 5 pm, we packed our belongings and met in the lobby to checkout. Thank God for Luke, who was a Rockstar! Luke handled the situation like a Pro and needs a raise!

All necessities were provided, however, if you’re visiting from America you probably won’t feel very comfortable. A/c was weak, shower was like a hose sticking out of the wall, room wasn’t very clean, and there were a lot of bugs. Overall, the rooms could definitely use more attention. Property is about an 8 minute drive from Cabarete.

The workers and staff at this resort are very nice and professional. Especially Nino, Luke, Tiko, the Chef and his assistant, and the other workers. They were all accomodating and helpful. My issue with the resort is that I feel the owner needs to give it more attention. It needs upgrades and maintenance that he needs to follow through on. He needs to assure himself that his guests are satisfied. I feel the workers work very hard to run the resort but are limited because the owner has the final say. I probably will not return here simply because the owner promises amenities that he doesn't deliver on. The resort is mainly for lodging. There are no real activities to participate in within the resort.

We arrived in Cabarete on a Thursday night with no hotel reservations. Nothing we were finding on the apps looked like a good value. The places we stopped into didn't seem right either. As we left town to the East my son spotted this place on the GPS and we went to check it out. Once we looked around and met the staff we knew this place was for us. The rooms are clean, spacious and secure. The air conditioning was perfect and adjustable by remote, the hot water was hot and there was a full kitchen. The bed was remarkably comfortable as were the pillows. The rooms were above what I expected for the price in Cabarete. The pool area is a very unique rectangular design with an island in the middle and four individual jacuzzies on the side, however the water isn't heated and in December it was a little too chilly for me- but I'm from Florida. The dining area includes a bar and seats located on the island inside the surrounding pool. There is also a pool table with seating next to the dining area. There is a beach you can walk to from the hotel but it takes around 10 minutes, better to drive if you have a car. The hotel is in an area around 1 mile East of the center of town where you'll find the party scene and the beach filled with people. The beach near the hotel was empty, but there weren't any chairs or services and the water was very rough with lots of driftwood- we didn't stay long. We decided to purchase an all-inclusive meal package at the hotel and were very satisfied with the food. Everything was made to order from a very extensive menu. I had a French Onion soup that was delicious, several salads and lots of shrimp cocktails. Main courses included beef, chicken, seafood and vegetarian options. The staff at the hotel were unbelievably professional and helpful. Luke, the Manager deserves a special mention for going out of his way to make sure my family had a great stay. At one point during our stay we had the pleasure of speaking with the owner of the hotel by phone (he was traveling off the island); he also went out of his way to make sure our needs were addressed. All of the other employees were kind and attentive. The power did go out momentarily, but the hotel's generator quickly turned on and powered everything including the air conditioning. No question that next time we're in Cabarete we will be back to stay here.