The Ocean Sand was a great resort that I will actually think about returning to. Myself, my parents, my sister, my cousin and her boyfriend stayed one week (May 17-24) at Ocean Sand Golf and Beach Resort. This is pretty lengthy, but I wanted to give details!!

We have all traveled to Punta Cana on many occasions in the past (have been to Punta Cana Princess, Occidental Grand Flamenco, Punta Cana Grand, Grand Paradise Bavaro to name a few) and we have also been to Aruba, Bahamas, Mexico and other beautiful resorts around the world, therefore we are seasoned travelers.

We are from Toronto and flew with skyservice airlines and booked with signature vacations. The flight was on time and was relatively a short ride (3 hours and 51 minutes).

Check-In and Check-out
We arrived at 10:30pm at Ocean Sand Resort. The bus ride was less than 30 minutes and was bumpy but nothing too crazy. We were checked in very quickly (if you are staying at the Ocean Sand area of the resort, the check-in and check-out area is to the right if you are looking in from the front of the hotel lobby. We received all 3 rooms we asked for right away. (e mail: reservas2@oceanhotels.com.do with room requests). The bell boys brought our luggage to each of our three rooms within ten minutes of checking in. Check-out was very quick, hand in your keys and towel cards and that was that. Our bus came to get us at 5:30pm and we wanted a late checkout (ten dollar per hour), but we were unable to extend it because the resort was booked.

Rooms:
We each received junior suites which were quite large. Each junior suite room has a double sink, large Jacuzzi tub with shower (great water pressure and was good temperature), either two queens or one king. The mini bar was stocked daily and all drinks were kept very cool. We had a great view of the first pool (blue pool). Our hotel villa was number 9. Great location, very central to everything. I would recommend Villa eight or nine; seconds away from the pools, and only a two minute walk to the beach from these villa’s. Housekeeping was wonderful also. The rooms were always cleaned promptly by 1pm the latest. The rooms were all cleaned very well and stocked with drinks each day. We left a gift and two dollars for 6 of the days we were there.

Bugs:
There were a few mosquitoes, mostly at night, bring off! Some dragon flies as well, but for the most part, there were not many insects.

Beach:
Beautiful beach, light waves, clear, white sand and many areas where one can find a beach chair either in the shade or not (at any time of day). There is a beach bar directly on the beach as well as a restaurant that you can eat at for lunch (buffet) in your bathing suit! There is a rock climbing wall and a trampoline on the beach as well.

Pools:
This is the reason why I could not give a perfect score to Ocean Sand. The first three days were wonderful, the pool was clear, clean and refreshing. On the fourth day, we noticed a big difference in the state of the pool. The workers were cleaning and scrubbing the pool walls with people in the pool. The green stuff on the walls made its way into the pool and there was green stuff all around you. Absolutely disgusting! The next day, the pool went back to normal, but the day after that, it was disgusting yet again. We complained and wrote about our concerns on the comment cards. No one ever mentioned the uncleanliness of the pools in other reviews, so I think this was an isolated thing! The pools are HUGE. Both have pools bars. There are many loungers and umbrellas around both pools at all times of the day (no need to reserve early in the am). The pool surrounded by blue loungers and umbrellas is the quiet pool. The pool surrounded by yellow loungers and umbrellas is the activity pool and usually has more people in it. But, because both of these pools were so large, it was never, ever crowded.

Food:
Breakfast, lunch and dinner were all fantastic. No complaints from any of us, no tummy troubles, it was all amazing. Breakfast was great with much to choose from: pancakes, eggs made to order, donuts, crepes, french toast, yogurt, cerial, fruit, nutella, croissants etc. Lunch was also very good: great pizza, made to order pasta, selection of meats, cold cuts, salad bar, french fries, hot dogs, hamburgers and many desserts and fruits. We ate all of our breakfasts and lunches at the air conditioned main buffet (located close to the lobby). Dinner: we never ate at the buffet for dinner. We ate at the Italian (I Mascerati) and the American (Route 66). The Italian was great, antipasto buffet with many items such as: brushetta, olives, bocconcini, mushrooms, seafood salad, rice, pasta salad etc. They have wonderful pasta and their meats are great as well. We are Italian and loved this place! Route 66 was also very good. They have a huge menu including items such as steaks, ribs, wings, nachos, chicken fingers, fries, salads etc. all of which were delicious! Not having to make reservations was fantastic (first come first serve; a la cartes open at 6:30pm) FOOD IS GREAT, cannot believe others have stated anything negative about the food! Oh yes…MIKE’S COFFEE!!! Great place to hang out in, wonderful drinks, Frappucino’s are fantastic and the staff is very efficient! Great desserts too. (Opens from 10am-12pm)

Service and Staff:
For the most part, we encountered very friendly staff and prompt service at the restaurants, buffet, bowling alley, bars and the maids were great. Never had to wait longer than 2-3 mins at any bar. Mostly, our drinks and food were brought to us quickly. The staff were always smiling, it was very nice! We tipped only when we thought it was deserved (which was often). We did not tip much (one or two dollars at some breakfasts and lunches, three or four at dinner and one or two for the bartenders and the workers at Mike’s coffee).

Entertainment:
The daily activities were okay: volleyball, aqua gym in the pool, beach activities, bikini contest, bingo etc. The nightly entertainment was not that great, but it gave you something to do. They had shows where they would dance and lip sync, same stuff you get at all the resorts! There is a casino, sports bar and bowling alley to have fun in at night. The disco opens at 11pm, the lobby has live music each night. Lots to do during the day and at night!!

Extra Info:
All of the bathrooms are air conditioned (loved that) and are very, very clean. The Casino was okay, some of us won, some lost (it gives you something to do at night). The bowling alley was great, the first game you play is on the house, otherwise it is only 15 dollars a game and well worth it! There is a trolley that comes around every 10 minutes or so to take you around the resort to your villa, the buffet, the entertainment area and the lobby! There is a gift shop close to the lobby and they sell souvenirs, snacks and drinks (very expensive), they also have calling cards (about 30 minutes for ten dollars). When using the calling cards, this is what you do: dial zero, tell the operator you want to make a call using your communicard (the calling cards they have there), type in your code and then dial your number with a one first and then the area code. You will be charged two dollars per phone call to be paid upon check out. The beach vendors have the exact same trinkets as the gift shop and you can bargain with them easily (always offer half or less than what they originally say to you!) Okay, timeshare people! They are the ones wearing white golf shirts and khaki pants. They will shake your hand and say good morning to you before you walk in to the buffet, just say “I have timeshare” and they will leave you alone! They do not follow you, harass you or any of that, just say you have timeshare and they will not bother you! We had to go to the doctor that is onsite at the resort, he was fantastic and very informed and professional. Just good to know that incase of anything, he is just a phone call away and is on call 24 hours (lives at the resort)!!

Overall:
We loved the lay out of the resort. The lobby is at the front, followed by the entertainment area which includes: showtime theatre, sports bar, bowling alley, mike’s coffee, casino and all the a la cartes. These are all in the same area within a two minute walking distance. The Ocean Blue guests rooms are on the right hand side of the resort (looking from the lobby) and the Ocean Sand guest rooms are on the left. To walk the entire resort would take about ten minutes if you are walking slow. The staff were helpful and friendly, the grounds were well maintained, the food was great, beach perfect and pools were huge but not as clean as they should have been! Overall, it was great and we would definitely come back as long as we hear that the pool situation was taken care of! This resort deserves a 4.5 out of 5….I would give it that if I could (not allowed to give half marks lol). I take off only half a mark because of the unclean pool for a few days we were there. Weather was great every day by the way!

Enjoy your trip, Ocean Sand will not disappoint! Message me with any questions!

Julia

Two girlfriends and I recently stayed at the Ocean Sand Resort in Punta Cana, Dominician Republic. Unfortunately, I had forgotten about Trip Advisor when researching my choice of hotel. The website indicated that the junior suite included two queen beds or one king. Being three persons, we opted for the two queens. When our confirmation from our travel agent was emailed, it indicated two double beds - which I requiested be changed to two queens to avoid complications on our arrival. It still turned out to be two double beds which were extremely uncomfortable due to sagging mattresses, resulting in improperly fitted sheets and the feeling of sleeping in unmade beds. The reception staff who were unfriendly promised a change of suite the following day, which never materialized, then promised two days later, which also did not materialize. We were further advised that they only have double and king beds in their suites - a clear case of MISREPRESENTATION. It was only after requesting to speak to a Manager that we were shown another room - which also contained more sagging double beds. The towels were dingy and were extremely rough to the touch - certainly not what one would expect from a 5 star hotel. The room also had an odour of smoke - drapery had seen long gone better days and were not affixed properly on the tracks.

Unacceptable sleeping accommodations aside, for the most part, the resort staff (except at Reception) were very friendly and the resort's appearance was lovely and well maintained. Being in the Caribbean, my friends and I expected more variety in cuisine - there was a lot of repetition in the daily buffet menus.

Would I visit this Resort again? Probably not unless I was guaranteed that they had upgraded their sleeping accommodations.

My Husband and I have just returned from our 2 week Honeymoon at Ocean Sands, I cant believe all the people that give this place bad reports, its amazing, no one can do enough to help you.

We arrived at Ocean Sands on Wednesday 23rd April, having had a vey difficult 18 hour journey from Gatwick after being redirected to Puerto Rico for 8 hours as there was a Death on the plane ( cant commend First Choice FLight Staff enough for their proffesionalism in handling the situation).

As this was our Honeymoon we had orignally tried to book a Honeymoon suite but this was unavailable, however First Choice contacted the Hotel and arranged for an upgrade to a Deluxe Junior Suite in block 10 (elite club) free of charge. the room was amazing a huge four poster bed, and jacuzzi that you could probably fit four in! We had a basket of fruit and a full fridge. Because of the delay we arrived late at night and went straight to bed, but what a fabulous sight when we woke the next morning, The resort is stunning two huge pools and right on the amazing beach. Yes the yellow pool does get rowdy int he afternoons and busy around the swim up bar but but this is the busiest pool where all the entertainment is, if you want peace and quite all you have to do is go to the blue pool where there is also a swim up bar, or go to the beach, then you feel like you are in a totaly different place.

The buffet restaurant is great you could never fail to find something to eat there - breakfast were my favorite - Champagne every morning then about 3 trips to the buffet!!!! Omlette first, then toast and finally pancakes. We usually went to the beach restaurant lunch time where again there was a wide choice - burgers, pizza, pasta and an amazing Paella. but if you want a more substancial meal you could go to the Main buffet which was generally quite at this time but had a much wider choice. In the evenings we again ate at the buffet most nights which has various different counters - I loved the Chinese where you could pick you ingrediants and have a chinese dish cooked freshly in front of you. The fish section was great they even had whole lobsters one night! You could also pick your own steak and have that cooked the way you liked it. And the deserts were to die for. We didnt really bother with the other restaurants as my Husband is a fussy sod and lives off Pizza and Hot dogs but we did go to Route 66 a few times where I tried the Ribs and the Ribeye steak which is probably one of the best steaks I have ever had. It does get quite busy from about 7.30 onwards but we were on holidays and were in no rush to do anything so were not bothered by the wait (and its a change to sink a few cocktails). As the locals say ' wait one Domincan minute'.

One place you must go is Mikes coffee shop - its like going to starbucks but better cause its free - we kept going back for a Caramel Mocha - iced coffee topped with cream and Caramel Sauce, they were to die for!

The evening entertainment was quite disappointing, as the shows were mimed but the costumes and dancing was very impressive. We went to see the Lion King we enjoyed but I think that once is enough . There is a musician in the lobby bar from around it, its quite cosmopolitan and you could be in a bar in London or New York. The sports bar didnt really kick off until about 11 then they had competions and Kareoke, we only made it here once and ended up singing the Welsh National Anthem and Tom Jones Delilah (made fools of our selves) it was great fun and every one that goes here is in party mode.

The staff at the resort were more than helpful - we tipped the miad $2 per day and she was more than happy ,always singing and dancing in the room! We didnt really tip the bar staff and waiters that much as being an all inclusive resort we didnt tend to carry money with us but the waiters treated us exactly as everyone else. We did here one obnoxious American Guy make the comment 'I tip them 2 bucks a day and they treat me like a king' but they treated you like that no matter whether you tipped them or not, they are lovely friendly people who want you to have a great time and enjoy their country.

We went on a few trips the first was to Ocean World in Puerto Plata to go swimming with the Dolpins- this involved a 45 minute flight in a 19 seater plane which was an experience in itself! It was amazing I have swum with Dolphins before in Cancun but this was much better, you had much more interaction with them we ahve some great photos. The second was Outback Safari and I would say that this was the best - you get to see the real Domincan Rebublic and how the people live as well as being served booze by the guide hanging off the back of the truck. The last trip was Caribbean Festival this was an experience you go snokeling on a reef first and then get to swimming with sharks and rays, I am a qualified Scuba Diver and even I was not quite prepared when an 8 foot shark swan underneath me! I would recommend all of these trips to anyone they were great fun and well worth the money.

It did rain quite a lot during our first week but that didnt really matter as its only for a short while and when it did rain we either sat it out under the umbrella and waited for it to stop, drank too much in the bar or went 10 Pin Bowling.

We loved the Domincan Rebublic and Ocean Sands and cant wait to return

This trip was without a doubt an absolute disaster and we will never ever darken the doors of this establishment again.

We were booked to stay from the 24th April Until the 9th May but actually had to ask our rep to fly us home a week early.

the food is disgusting unless you like all your food deep fried and swimming in grease. The only place to eat that didnt make us sick was the Beach Grill, but this is only open during the day and was closed in the evenings.

Hotel guest services should be renamed, Hotel Guest Ignored unless youre American and flashing your $$$

If you want to see a Good Evening Show dont bother its 1 hour long max and the warm up act is tiresome after the 3rd time of seeing the same routine.

there is no communication between the staff, we were moved to four different rooms on our day of arrival. we were supposed to be on our honeymoon the holiday of a lifetime and a chance for us both to really kick back and relax. the hotel management made our stay so stressfull we had no choice but to leave a week early. something i've never had to do on a holiday before.

The general staff are friendly and about 50% bilingual or better but a smattering of Spanish will get you a lot more.

Room cleanliness varied over the stay, some of the maids did a lovely job and others barely made the bed let alone cleaned anywhere.

If you dont like coffee take tea bags, the local ones aren't very nice and Mike's coffee shop insist on making tea with hot milk!

Best place to spend your evening is in the Casino if youre any good then take full advantage and clean up on the blackjack tables.