Just returned last night from a week in sunny DR.
The weather was fantastic, hot and sunny all week and not a drop of rain. Average day time temps were 26 - 32 C and water temp was 27 C in the ocean. The pools were a little cooler but still around 25 C.
We flew out of Toronto to Santo Domingo with Nolitours via Westjet. Great flight with lots of legroom, TV's on the back of the seats and comfy leather seats.
The Santo Domingo airport has changed a lot since our last visit 6 years ago. It's much bigger and nicer now.
We stayed at the Barcelo Tanlanquera in Juan Dolio.
This was a family trip, with kids ages ranging from 27 - 2.
We were given rooms in the 200 block which were horrendous. Dirty, smelly and really run down. They were on the ground floor and it didn't take long before the cock roaches showed their friendly faces.
The kids were able to capture one in their ice bucket and took it to reception as a small token of our appreciation for the great rooms. :(
The entertainment staff tried hard to get everyone involved, and they just loved our kids. As a result everyone in our group had a great time day and night.
The boys did the resort dive course and went out on a shallow dive with us. They loved it, and are now planning on doing their certification course .
Overall we had a great week.
The resort is a typical 3 star which means that the service was minimal and the rooms basic, but the atmosphere at the resort was great.