Hilton La Romana, an All-Inclusive Family Resort

Emma Smith

The location and resort are beautiful and it’s one of the cleanest locations I have ever been to but that’s where the good points end. 2 members of our party had food poisoning along with over 40 other guests. We upgraded to enclave but after our first day we requested a refund due to an incredibly rude member of staff at the grill. The refund was agreed on the 6th July and as of today’s date I am still battling to get my money back and I have had to raise a charge back through the bank. There was a small amount of entertainment each evening but for a hotel of this size it’s definitely lacking in games, entertainment and activities. We spoke to quite a few other families who were not only sick from the food but also agreed that there wasn’t much to do at all on the resort. I think that waiting 2 months with no sign of my refund is unacceptable… I wouldn’t be allowed to check out without settling my bill but you can leave me without my money for months on end. This has actually put us off ever using a Hilton resort again. We were told 4-5 times during our two week stay that the refund had been processed. We were then advised when we got home that it hadn’t been processed because our card details had been taken down incorrectly. An all round disappointing stay and disappointing service. Not what you’d expect from a 5 star resort.

Erica Hoffmaster

My fiance and I are planning our wedding here and although we had booked it before visiting the resort, we recently visited and are very excited to return for our wedding. Rooms are modern and clean. We found the pools to be nice although more crowded in the family side. We thought the food was very good for a resort and did have a few stand out meals at Chinola and the tasting for our wedding! The hibachi is also great! Drinks are generally very good, especially the frozen ones. We loved the beach, water is clean and calm. We rented a paddle boat for an hour as a fun excursion. The staff was lovely and we enjoyed every second of our stay. We can’t wait to return next year!

C Elle

Definitely a pass. Lots of things broken in room including the phone connection to the wall and they did not fix it for 2 days. Not all staff was friendly and had to wait long sometimes to get drinks/service. Food is super salty and had the SAME food selection every day for breakfast. Lunch had a bit more variety but since you had to be served, u had to wait a while sometimes. Drinks are very limited to basic ones. Edward was amazing at the French restaurant. A lot of staff do not speak English well. Terrible experience with Yesika who was a server at the beach. Told my child no when he was throwing sand during a meltdown because he got sick there. And stared at my son with so much attitude. I called her out on it and she hid from us when she realized I was not going to stand by and let her treat guests so poorly. Manager Carlos handled it well and we got a forced apology from her the next day with zero sincerity. Need to train some staff better. Overall would never come back. They only have the Hilton name but does not live up to the name at all.

Jordi Heilbron

Review: Stay at the Family Section of the Resort We stayed in the family section of the resort, which turned out to be the perfect choice for us. If you're 18 or older, you have access to both the family section and the adults-only resort. We initially considered booking a room in the adults-only section, but it would have cost us almost €800 more per person. After our stay, we can confirm that the family section offers more restaurants, pools, and the rooms are exactly the same. It was also surprisingly quiet, which was a pleasant surprise. The restaurants at the resort were all very good. Unfortunately, the buffet in the family section was temporarily relocated, and the quality was quite poor. Luckily, we were able to enjoy the buffet in the adults-only section, which was excellent. We assume the lower quality in the family buffet was due to its temporary closure for renovations. On the other hand, all the à la carte restaurants were fantastic. Availability was good, but for The Grill, it's recommended to arrive early (around 6:00-6:30 PM) if you want to enjoy the sunset. Otherwise, you might have to wait for a table. The service in all the restaurants was excellent, and the food was truly top-notch. We had breakfast and lunch in the adults-only buffet, which was always of high quality. In the evenings, we mostly chose à la carte restaurants, which were a cozy experience. Throughout the day, there were plenty of snack options like pizza, ice cream, fruit, BBQ, cocktails, and burgers. The cocktails were delicious everywhere, and the service was excellent. While there's a standard cocktail menu, you can order pretty much anything you want—they have it all! One concern we had before arriving was tipping, as it's not customary in the Netherlands. We wondered if tipping would be expected at the resort, but fortunately, it wasn’t. Tips are appreciated but certainly not required. The staff is just as friendly to those who tip as to those who don't. We traveled in September, even though many travel agencies advised against it due to the rainy season. However, the weather was perfect: 32°C (90°F) and sunny every day. Occasionally, there was a short rain shower, but it never lasted long. Interestingly, online weather forecasts were completely off, and it seems that predicting the weather in this area is quite difficult. Don’t let the forecast deter you! The rain was never an issue, and I would definitely recommend September, as it’s quieter and more affordable. The pools were very clean, and we alternated between the adults-only and family pools. Both were quiet and beautiful, and the swim-up bar was a great feature. We booked a tour through TUI, and we can definitely recommend it. The tours offered by TUI are less crowded compared to the local tours you can book, and the price is the same. A visit to Saona Island is a must—it was stunning! Tip for your stay: Request a quiet room and double-check the restaurant opening times. The times listed in the app were incorrect, and unfortunately, we missed out on the Chinola restaurant because of this. We were really looking forward to it, so this was quite disappointing. This is also why we’re giving 4 stars instead of 5—the inaccurate opening times were a real letdown.

Puja

We stayed in the family side of the hotel and had access to Enclave. The hotel itself was pretty nice, clean and modern. The gardens and beach were beautiful. The aqua park and Enclave pool were lovely and we had a great time there. Where this place falls, is that service is terrible, the staff are rude, slow and look like they don't want to be there. The main pool was nice, but it had swirls of yellow oils near the cabanas, I think the pool needed to be cleaned better. The Jacuzzi was so hot it felt like it burned when you walked into it. If you are on the family side you cannot go to any of the restaurants on the adult side. The buffet is in a hut that is dingy and as there is no A/C it feels hot, humid and there were flies. Whilst I think the food I tried was lovely, it was hard to determine what I was eating as the labelling was on a board rather than next to the food. As the Staff serve you food rather than taking it yourself, queues for food were long. Although the hotel itself is lovely and the location is great, ultimately I would not stay here again.