Just returned from trip with about 40 people, combination of recent high school graduates and parents. Overall, the group was pleased. Put 2-3 kids in regular rooms and parents stayed in Royal Service. Didn't see any Reserve rooms, but since I am a beach person, even if the rooms are newer and nicer, they are too far from the beach. There did appear to be a lot of fun slides and water toys at the Reserves pool for younger children. Regular rooms and Royal Service rooms seem to be same size. Royal Service had larger flat screen tv and chaise lounge and are much closer to the beach. Agree with others' opinions that bathroom door set up is a bit weird (swinging doors) and having to step up and over into tub to take shower is not ideal. Room was very clean, but some of furniture and tile/grout around tub could use updating. Our room was never made up until 3 at the earliest each day. I like to come back mid day and see the bed made with clean towels. Don't know if that is the norm or just where we were in the rotation. I did have to call to ask that it be made up several times. We had no bug issues in the room (although one person in the group did have a cockroach in her room) nor with mosquitos at night outside. Never used bug spray that I had brought with me.

Royal Service - Not sure worth the extra money, but it was nice. Check in separate location. Much more civilized than checking the kids in. Supplied with cold washcloth, glass of champagne and seated in airconditioned room. We ate breakfast there most mornings and it was quite pleasant. Also able to use 3 computers there to check emails from home. They have tea time 4-6 and hors d'oeuvres 6-8. Nice idea, but nothing special food-wise. Separate pool is very nice and has a small pool bar and lots of seating around it. There is a section of beach roped off. Same sand, same thatched umbrellas, basically same lounge chairs as regular beach. Never had any trouble getting beach space. Didn't see any lounge chairs in bad shape. Lots of double mattress type lounges that were most comfortable. There was drink service on the beach and he came around very regularly. Not sure if room service was any different for Royal Service. Nice to use for snacks such as cheese plate, shrimp cocktail, club sandwich. Never really used for meals, although one mom ordered steak and said it was delicious.

Outdoors - Landscaping is lovely and staff is constantly working on the gardens and plants. The beach is very large and, for me, fine white sand is a big positive. There was a delightful breeze the 6 days we were there, but did make the water a bit choppy. Ocean was fun to swim in, small waves, just cool enough to be refreshing. Nice to walk along and lots of people beach walk.

Activities - Used the gym everyday. Might get crowded in high season, but fine for this time of year. Decent equipment. Nice attendant who supplied hand towels and water bottles readily. Husband went horseback riding and said it was lots of fun. Took snorkeling trip which wasn't bad, saw decent variety of fish. However, staff on that trip was less than helpful. We took catamaran out sailing which was fun. Rode a basic bike one afternoon, best way to see the whole place. Walking from one end to the other is far, but good to work off the extra calories. Stopped in to two shows. Nothing special, energetic group of dancers. Band in lobby bar area was lively and got people up dancing. Kids spent time in nightclub which was more their music while lobby band was more island music. All of the above were included. Casino was small but fun and had opportunities for novices and not big spenders to participate. People who had massage at spa and/or at beach said they were good, slightly more expensive than home.

Vacation club/timeshare - Never approached to take tour.

Restaurants - Probably the biggest problem. The reservation system is frustrating. Best advice would be as soon as possible, day of arrival if before 3, or next morning, to get the schedule of what's open on various nights and book all your dinners for your stay. Otherwise it's a hassle. I tried to book in advance because I was trying to book for 15. They would not allow me to do so, but I did email them in advance and it did work out. The consensus of our group of adults was that Gabi's, Vento and El Romantico were the best. None top notch, but very good. Japanese was only open one night and we couldn't get in. Italian was okay, sea bass actually quite good. Decided to go to steak place last night (doesn't take reservations) and besides having to wait long time, that was probably our worst meal. The places that don't require reservations often have very long waits unless you are a small group eating early. The buffet lunch had a great deal of variety, not all of super quality, but there were always enough things that were decent. Only the deserts were uniformly poor in every restaurant for every meal. They often looked pretty, but had no flavor. Drinks were generally good. Had trouble with white wine, no chardonnay or pinot grigio. Most times had to ask to sample whatevery they were serving (never had more than 2 to choose from) to see which one was dry. Kids enjoyed the Chinese restaurant and El Marino for seafood.

Paid $30 each way (plus tip) for transportation to airport We arranged for taxi in advance so don't know how it works if hotel does it for you. Call early to have your bags picked up from your room. Waited almost 1/2 hour. Punta Cana airport was quite busy. Bags are checked initially, then you check in with airline, then customs and then security, each with its own line. So don't cut it short.

With a group like ours, all inclusive was the only way to go. Kids and parents had fun and all came back in one piece! Haven't been to Dominican Republic before or all inclusive, so no basis for comparison, but overall we enjoyed Paradisus.

We stayed at Club Med for a week. Then on the day of our departure our plane broke down - requiring us to stay an extra day in Punta Cana. We stayed at the Paradisus - as it was the first hotel we found where we could stay one night.

We stayed there one night and departed the next day. When my credit card statement came - I found they charged me for 1 additional week - even though we didn't stay there! Total of $1,973.93. I disputed the charge and they sent a reciept for 1 week of stay!

First time stay in June recommended by a friend with (supposedly) good taste for the high life.
Stayed in a Garden Suite. Bathroom does not have a door, they have "saloon doors". A one person jacuzzi is also the shower squeezed in with the toilet. Mold around the back part of tub since the water from shower falls and doesn't drain. Mold spots on the shower curtain.
Mosquitoes bit me every night, even with OFF!! purchased for $15 US at their store. Beds are hard, no washclothes and maid forgot to give us handtowels two days in a row or fill the tissue box.

10 restaurants yes, but only 4 or 5 are open every day and you are required to make reservations with your assigned concierge every morning, fingers crossed that the system is workning and not slow. "Formal" wear is required for some restaurants (pants, collar shirts for men). Lunch and breafast are decent buffets. Some restaurants are much better than others, most of the food is bland. They lack spice or look full of flavor but not really.
Staff barely smile and seem happy. They are horrible horrible in bringing you drinks, even water, during the buffets. I saw staff every where, but not when I needed a drink, or a spoon. I see the congregate and chat. Never saw any supervisor.

Sand is very fine and gets every where! Absolutely NO beverage service on the beach which - in my opinion - removes a star.
A lot of lounge chairs are broken due to fat people plotting their asses too hard on the fabric. Metal on chair is too hot to place your arms on the arm rest. Ok to go topless on beach but not observed at pool.
Pool is nice and calm with lots of shady areas, but too shallow for it to be cool when it was 90 or 85 out with 100% humidity.

Spa is ok. Locker room is VERY small. The hotel uses a combo of golf carts and gas golf Cars to tote you back and forth from the lobby and beach. They claim to be "eco friendly" but not really if they use disel or cas cars for inner transport.

I would not go again and I would not recommend. I went for rest and relaxation. For two days I had convention people encroaching on my beach peace. I did enjoy the beach and pool and it was nice to have food variety included.

First I have to start by saying I was very scared after reading some of the reviews on this site. I booked this trip on a whim, and was horrified by some of the things I heard. While everyone's tastes are different as well as experiences....I can only give you mine.
The resort is wonderful. It is huge, and at first can be a little overwhelming. It does take a day or two to get the hang of it, such as where the restaurants are... things are quite scattered around the resort ground but they provide transportation and you never have to wait too long.
Ok, THE ROOM. Mine was clean; it was nice, not great but good enough. I stayed in a junior suite which is considered a regular room. I was able to get towels when I needed them.
The FOOD. This is confusing because not all of the restaurants were open. The resort was only at about 30 percent capacity, so it's understandable. The food was ok, nothing to write home about. I am Italian, so naturally I didn't expect the Italian food to be like what mama makes.... so I stuck to rice and beans and Dominican dishes which is what they do best.
The hotel staff was nice, yeah, you have a few that can’t be bothered helping you, but that’s anywhere.The majority of them really went out of their way for us. We took a bunch of singles and 5 dollar bills. You don’t have to, but we tipped. It is a poor country they only make about 200 US dollars a month! And the people are appreciative when you tip them.
THE BEACH was beautiful....water was warm, sand was white no complaints!!!!! Wish I was there.
Ok here are some tips for you.

MAKE YOUR RESERVATIONS FOR DINNER AS SOON AS YOU EAT BREAKFAST!!!! THE RESERVATION CENTER FOR THE RESTARAUNTS IS LOCATED IN THE HIBISCUS LOUNGE, SAME PLACE YOU'LL EAT BREAKFAST.

THEY ARE GOING TO TRY TO GET YOU TO JOIN SOME KIND OF VACATION CLUB. IT’S SOME SORT OF TIME SHARE (they say its not, but it is) AND THEY WILL ASK FOR 90 MINUTES OF YOUR TIME. THEY WILL GIVE YOU A FREE GIFT, BUT I COULDN'T BE BOTHERED SO MY BOYFRIEND AND I JUST SAID NO.....FIRMLY.

BRING BUGSPRAY. LOOK, IT IS A TROPICAL ISLAND, AND THERE ARE MOSQUITOS. BUT THERE ARE MOSQUITOS EVERY WHERE, SO WHATS THE BIG DEAL.

THE SUN IS STRONG, WEAR SUNBLOCK AND DRINK WATER!

ALSO, JUST TO BE SAFE, I TOOK 2 PEPTO BISMOL TABLETS AS SOON AS I WOKE UP EVERY MORNING. I DIDNT GET SICK, NOT AT ALL.

AND YES, IT IS HELPFUL IF YOUSPEAK SOME SPANISH, BUT IF NOT, A LOT OF THE HOTEL STAFF SPEAK ENGLISH.We had a great time, don’t worry about a thing. Would go back in a heart beat!