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Published: February 10th 2009
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Putna Cana Beach
The beach outside of our Moon Palace Resort Last weekend I had the fantastic opportunity to travel to Punta Cana in the Dominican Republic as part of a (complimentary!) leadership retreat for my local chapter of MPI. We stayed at the Moon Palace Casino, Golf & Spa Resort, a brand new property which is still in the process of being finished and just had its soft opening a few weeks ago. This was my first time to the Dominican Republic and though I had heard various reviews from friends and clients, I always try to travel with an open mind to create my own impression of a new destination.
After temperatures in the high teens and low 20’s here in Philadelphia, arriving at the open air grass-hut-looking airport in Punta Cana where the temperature probably hovered around 85 degrees was a wonderful way to start off the trip. When our transfer team from Connect Travel Services greeted us with cool towels and cool drinks, we knew we were in for an enjoyable weekend. I am not sure if this is how they greet every guest or if we got the “royal treatment” because our retreat was arranged by one of our members that works with Palace Resorts, but
Mountain Region
The mountains surrounding the area where we did the zip line. it certainly made a good first impression on our group. After approximately a 40 minute bus ride, we arrived at the Moon Palace.
This is my third visit to a Palace Resorts property, with both of my previous experiences having been nothing short of incredible (I visited the La Blanc in Cancun two years ago and the Vallarta Palace in Mexico this past November). As I mentioned, this Punta Cana resort is very much a work in progress in that it is not finished and there is still obvious work going on at the property. That being said, the parts of the resort that are completed are beautiful and I am convinced that once finished, it will create a wonderful all-inclusive experience, particularly for families and groups. The rooms are large, airy and bright and for me the two best features were the in-room Jacuzzi tub - which sits in the middle of the room, not in the bathroom - and the large balcony where I was able to relax on the cushioned chairs and read while catching some sun. The service at this resort was top notch. The staff was friendly, helpful and appeared sincerely happy to serve
School Children
One of 'thank you' performances by the school children. us - personality traits that seem to be innate in Dominicans, or at least all that I encountered. When completed, the resort will have fifteen restaurants (not counting pool snack bars), twelve pools (including two kid pools and four swim up bars), fitness center, spa, nightclub, casino, two tennis courts, an amphitheatre and plenty of other entertainment. For the time being, we had 5 restaurants, one swim up bar and free massages - no limit on the number you could receive per person - and two lobby bars.
Despite all of the sun and sand, my two favorite activities included neither of these. Instead, the highlights of my trip were the team building zip line experience and our trip to a local one-room elementary school where we brought donations of school supplies and helped to clean up the grounds (our organization also donated funds to buy the school toilets and the necessary materials to get running water there, which they previously lacked). The kids came in on a Saturday just to thank us and entertain us with various song performances. These children were so happy and thankful to see us, even with all of the material things that they lacked, that it made the experience even more rewarding.
A few last thoughts about Punta Cana and my particular experience here:
• The poverty level can be alarming, so be prepared, but the people are incredibly warm and welcoming.
• The home grown coffee, cocoa and produce are all delicious! Best to experience fresh fruits at your resort where they are more likely to “agree” with you.
• The sand on the beaches is the softest I’ve experienced, almost as if it’s been sifted to eliminate anything harsh (it has not, to my knowledge).
• If you are looking to leave the resort, take a tour or hire a private guide. There is not much to do in the areas nearby the resorts.
Overall, my experience was a good one. I don’t know that the Dominican Republic would be on the top of my list to revisit (I tend to like to be able to explore an area comfortably on my own and did not feel there was much opportunity to do this here), but I would definitely like the see the finished result and I wish that more of the hospitality back home was as happy and welcoming as that of the Dominicans.
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Upbeat
It sounds as though this is the ultimate in relaxation. I enjoyed the picture you posted, especially the school children. I did hear that some of the rooms there had a little "key" issue though.