Secrets Royal Beach Punta Cana

Marcelo took awesome care of us. Best butler ever !!!! 👍 Even though our trip was cut short because of coronavirus it was fun. The resort did a good job keeping us informed as the country shut down. Can't wait to go back.

The resort is beautiful and sprawling and the recent updates to the Prefered Club are top-notch. The property, as with all AM resorts, is meticulously maintained. What made our stay special though was our butler (you are assigned one in the Prefered Club), Martin. He was there to address our every need and he did so with grace and joy. He's an amazing human being. If you go, ask for him by name. Martin is the man! Additionally, the bartenders in the Club - Jeffery and Magdalena were off-the-charts great!

We stayed here for a week in March 2020 for my birthday, just before the global lock down due to the Coronavirus pandemic. TUI, were not great with their comms, but this isn’t a review for TUI so hey ho……… Firstly, let me say, the staff here are amazing and cannot do enough for you. Unfortunately, the rest of the resort was average at best. If you’re looking for a relaxed romantic getaway, this is not the place for you. Unless you like loud music & parties 24/7. Sadly, we will not be returning to Secrets Royal Beach. A little bit more detail: Rooms: The rooms were large but dated and in need of repair. When we 1st arrived the room smelt musty, this smell did disappear over the coming days but not the best 1st impression. The balcony light did not work and was hanging off the wall, the plug socket in the bathroom was faulty and kept sparking every time it was used and the aircon was loud and clunky throughout the night. The location of the room was not ideal – it served as a walkway down to the restaurants, so any chance of a lie-in was impossible. Mini bar was limited but kept topped up with beer, water and soft drinks. Housekeeping was fantastic. Food: In summary, avoid the buffet at night and head over to the Now Larimar restaurants, especially Capers – this was the best restaurant on site. The buffet for breakfast and lunches was OK. Try the omelette station the 1st evening, my chicken kebab was served raw from the cooking station and I had to take it back to be re cooked. On the same evening I selected some melon and Parma ham, unfortunately the Parma ham was moldy. Generally, across the resort the portion sizes are small, you can ask for a 3rd main and they will happily supply it, but it feels a little awkward. Avoid the Bluewater grill, we may have just picked a bad night, but the food was barely edible and during our 40-minute dinner, 3 couples around us stood up and walked off mid meal.Must try Asian – we pliantly surprised by this place. We went with friends and shared a bit of everything off the menu. Beach: The beach is fantastic, white sands and turquoise sea – we didn’t struggle for loungers, but I believe if the hotel was at capacity we would have done. The beach sellers are polite, a quick no thank you and you are left alone. The trips salesmen however were a little harder to shake off. This put me off going into the ocean as you had to walk by them. The waiting staff on the beach were amazing – lovely to chat to and very attentive. Bars/Entertainment: The bars were plentiful, and the drink choices were good – slightly suspicious of the alcohol content in some cocktails but they were delicious all the same. It would have been nice to have one or two quieter bars to go to, most were packed with not enough seating and extremely loud music – I appreciate this sounds old and fuddy duddy, it’s not I am only 34 and enjoy a loud bar and dancing. I just think the resort could give you more choice in ambience. Pool: I can’t really comment too much on the pool as we were unable to ever get a sun lounger in this area so had to opt for the beach. Beach, Bar, Restaurant and Security Staff: Absolutely fabulous, whether you tip or not. All waiters in the bars and restaurants were polite, friendly and attentive. The security staff were visible and made the resort feel secure (not that we thought it wasn’t). Lastly, watch out for the staff in the lobby who are selling timeshares, the conversation starts off nice enough, but quickly turns into a sales pitch, this made us reluctant to talk to any of the staff in this area.