Majestic Elegance Punta Cana - Luxury All Inclusive — Hotel Review Rating: 4.0 Pearls

Oyster Review Summary

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Oyster Hotel Review

Reporter: John P.
Updated: March 10, 2010

 Scene

Just opened in late '08, the Majestic Elegance is the newer, slightly more expensive sister hotel to the Majestic Colonial next door. Because of the beach, giant pool, and reasonable rates, many families are attracted to the Majestic Elegance. Newer is almost always better when it comes to D.R. all-inclusives, and this is a clear example.

By day, the only music you'll hear is the soft Latin jazz coming from the fake-rock speakers around the pools, but at night, there's more live music here than at most upscale D.R. resorts. There's a wide range of enviornments to choose from: A boisterous crowd gathers in the large lobby bar, a younger crowd takes over the nightclub, and more low-key live music can be found at the Plaza Bar.

 Service

The Majestic just opened in late '08, and it seems the staff was still working out some kinks during my stay. Service calls were rarely answered (maybe one out of every five calls), and even simple requests like extra towels went undelivered.

Check-in was a friendly mess. I arrived early but waited until 3:15 p.m. -- standard check-in time is 3 p.m. -- to check in. There was a long line, but the front desk staff worked through it quickly and waiting guests were offered frozen sherbet drinks. I made it to my room by 3:30, but the housekeepers were still cleaning it. I returned again at 4 p.m., and my room was still being cleaned! I returned a half-hour later, and while housekeeping was gone, there was no soap and one bed had no pillowcases. I spoke with another couple who had the same experience -- no pillowcases. At 8 p.m., without my asking, a housekeeper returned and replaced the pillowcases. Of course, all of this was forgiven when I made it to my room and found a bottle of champagne waiting for me by the Jacuzzi.

Room service is available, unlike at most all-inclusives, but the service isn't always reliable. When I called to order breakfast, I was put on a hold for a long time. I later had to call back three times to place an order. One couple from Massachusetts told me their room service order never arrived. However, when I ordered breakfast, it was at my door in 35 minutes.

The bright side: Bartenders and servers at the restaurants were very attentive and happy to give me an impromptu Spanish lesson. Dame una fria (literally: Give me a cold one).

 Location

The Majestic Elegance shares a resort complex with its sister, the Majestic Colonial. The resort is in Bavaro, which is technically the area that stretches north of Punta Cana Airport but is often considered part of the Punta Cana peninsula. The area is primarily covered in mega-resorts, but Bavaro is also home to a smattering of restaurants and nightclubs.

 Beach

The beaches along this northern stretch of the coast generally see much stronger waves and have a steeper drop-off than those to the south, in Punta Cana. The beach here is no exception. It's beautiful but crowded. It has fine sand and clear water. The walk out into the water has a sandy bottom, so there's no need for reef shoes or sandals. The water was much clearer than it was to the north at Sivory but not as calm as it was to the south at the Barcelo resorts.

Staff have quartered off a swimming area with buoys that seems too small for the amount of people on the beach. Signs ask guests to respect the swimming boundary, but no one seems to heed them, and no one seems to enforce these rules either. But be warned that boats taking snorkelers on excursions do blast up and down the beach and come very close to the swimming area. Swimmers should take great caution when going out of bounds.

There are bars near the beach but no regular drink service.

The water-sports center is well outfitted with watercrafts and features a PADI-certified dive center.

 Rooms

The Majestic just opened in late '08, so the rooms are clean and still look brand-new. The sitting area lies beneath a funky, interplanetary art lamp, and the rest of the room is decked out in marble and dark wood accents. And the Jacuzzi, tucked into a nook between the bed and the balcony, begs for a soak.

My room had two full beds, but rooms with single larger beds are also available. The beds are set back far from the door, so I didn't hear any noise from the hallway or adjacent rooms.

The beds come with comfortable pillow-top mattresses, high-thread-count sheets, two pillows, and a basic comforter. They're far better than most all-inclusive beds, especially when compared with the beds at the Grand Palladium Palace, but not as nice as those at the Grand Oasis Bavaro.

Rooms come with modern features like flat-screen TVs with plenty of English-language channels, DVD players, and high-speed hardwired Internet for $10 per 24 hours (no Wi-Fi, though).

There's no wall separating the bathroom and the bedroom. The toilet is behind a glass door, as is the marble rainfall shower, but this lack of privacy might irk some couples or families traveling together. The sinks and vanity are in the open bathroom area, which is part of the larger room.

Rooms have smallish balconies that can accommodate a couple people. The view from mine, overlooking the pool, was great.

The only real problem with the rooms is getting there. Mine was located on the fourth floor, and because the elevator smelled pretty musty, I opted to hike up the stairs, over and over again. It's a good idea to request a room on the second or third floor.

 Pools

I've swam in lakes smaller than the pool at the Majestic. This giant blob spans the main stretch of the hotel, from the beach up to the lobby. It's absolutely giant compared with other pools in the D.R. and is rivaled only by a few gems, like the pool at the Excellence Punta Cana.

Smaller pools and fountains are also scattered around. And when the fresh plantings grow up a little more, it will have a pretty incredible grotto-like feel. It can get a bit hot in the meantime, though, so make sure you go out early to grab a spot underneath one of the few umbrellas.

There's a swim-up bar as well as multiple bars next to the pool. Bottom line: Guests are never far from a cold beverage at the Majestic. Kids hang by the Ping-Pong table and oversize Connect Four game. The scene is pretty quiet. Soft Latin music can be heard from the speaker rocks that line the walkway and the pool area.

 Features

The fitness center is big, with many cardio machines, free weights, and spin bikes. There are flat-screen TVs mounted on the wall, and large windows help bring in plenty of natural light. Personal trainers are available. This is definitely one of the nicer and bigger gyms available at a D.R. mega-resort.

Wi-Fi is available in the lobby for $3 per hour. Hardwired Internet is also available in the rooms for $10 per 24 hours. The business center also has Internet access.

 Entertainment

The evening entertainment is popular and includes plenty of kid-friendly nights, like the magic show one night during my stay. Other acts included a dance show and merengue lessons -- all very standard for D.R. all-inclusives.

During the day staff walk around with parrots and take pictures with guests. There's also a Ping-Pong table in the gameroom by the pool, and an oversize Connect Four game, which seems to be very popular.

At night, the disco bar blasts Beyonce and other contemporary dance hits until the early morning. During my stay, though, this room had the feel of a high school prom -- insecure teenagers crowded nervously around the bar while a lonely smoke machine blasted smoke onto the empty dance floor. The disco has great potential, though.

The hotel also offers live music multiple nights a week at the plaza bar.

 Family

The rooms are designed for romance, but that doesn't mean the hotel isn't good for families, too. With a huge pool, a big beach, and lots of kid-friendly shows at night, this is one of the better, albeit pricier, choices for families.

The Majestic even also has an excellent Kids Club. It made this 28-year-old wish it were acceptable to run around a mini-castle and scoot down the waterslide. There's also a game area with billiards, Ping-Pong, and foosball.

The buffet offers kid-friendly food like pizza and fries as well as more mature options (though complaints from adults about the food are common).

 Cleanliness

The Majestic Elegance is incredibly clean. This is partially attributed to the fact that it opened in late 2008 and the rooms are still very new.

The grounds are well maintained, but the plantings are still very young. Guests who walk next door to the Majestic Colonial can get a feel for what the Majestic will look like in a few years. Teams of groundskeepers are constantly working on the place and putting the finishing touches on certain areas, like the tennis courts.

 Food

Overall, the food at the Majestic is fairly average for an all-inclusive in the Dominican Republic, which is to say not great. For those unfamiliar with the all-inclusive dining experience, like Dave and Tanya, a couple I met from Massachusetts, the food might seem terrible at best, illness-inducing at worst. But compared with the other all-inclusives, the Majestic's grub isn't terrible, and some of the guests I spoke to really loved it. Just keep your expectations low.

There are two buffet restaurants on-site: Flavours (the giant dining room) and See & Sea (the beachside buffet). The pizza, advertised as baked fresh, was crusty and looked like it had been sitting out under a heat lamp for hours. I stuck to the salad bar and rice and beans -- always a safe bet. The made-to-order pasta station generated a huge line, which should be telling. See & Sea offers a lot of seafood options, as well as staples like pizza and burgers. And the view cannot be beat.

The Majestic Elegance also has a sushi bar, a somewhat less common sight among the all-inclusives. (The Iberostar and Grand Palladium resorts also offer sushi.) It's not the best sushi, and there are some strange combinations like the roll topped with ham slices (seriously?), but it's a unusual and very popular treat. The restaurant Nine Doors has a sushi buffet and hibachi rooms for larger groups. Reservations are a must, though, as this is easily the most popular restaurant at the Majestic.

Alternative a la carte restaurants include Asadito, an Argentinean-style steakhouse; II Botaccio, an Italian place that got panned by most of the guests I spoke with; and Limited Gourmand, which the hotel describes as gourmet international cuisine.

 Drinks

Name-brand liquor like Jack Daniel's is included in the all-inclusive package, which is not so common among the D.R. all-inclusives. There is a bit of a nightlife scene here, especially at the lobby bar, which starts buzzing at around 5 p.m. All of the giant wicker couch sitting areas are filled by 7 p.m., and the socializing doesn't end until midnight or so, at which point some guests move over to the disco.

 Destination Weddings

• Wedding Size: Huge weddings welcome (no limit to the number of guests); two to four weddings per day

• Extra Fees: $50 day passes required for wedding guests not staying at the Majestic Elegance (same fee for outside vendors)

• Wedding Packages: There are only two basic packages -- one costs $1,250 and the other costs $1,750 -- and the packages include, among other things, a bouquet and boutonniere, services of a civil judge or a priest, a wedding coordinator, and a private dinner for the bride and groom only.

• Ceremony Locations: The beach (no limit to the number of guests) or the gazebo (max 100 guests)

• Photographers: Photo packages range from $550 (two sets of 50 6-by-8 photographs).

• Music Options: $600 for a DJ and a sound system for up to three hours; live bands also available

• Food and Drinks: The beachside BBQ buffet, the standard option for a semiprivate "gala," ranges from $55 to $65 per person (depending on your choice of food) and hors d'oeuvres cost an additional $5 to $15 per person. An open bar costs $25 (generic) to $35 (premium), per hour.

• Spa Treatments: The on-site spa provides massages, facials, mani/pedis, hair, and makeup; complete bridal packages for $300.

• Freebies: The standard wedding package is free if you book 15 rooms or more for at least seven nights.

• Honeymoon Suite: There is not special honeymoon suite, but newlyweds usually choose a suite with a private terrace (most often, however, the hotel will upgrade your room for free, so no need to spend extra when you book).

• Airport Transportation: The resort does not provide transportation to Punta Cana Airport, which is a 30-minute drive away (about $30 by taxi).

 Bottom Line

Opened in late 2008, the 600-room Majestic is newer, cleaner, and more modern than most all-inclusives. Its giant pool, soft-sand beach, great beds, Jacuzzis in every room, and brand-name liquor make it a cut above most D.R. resorts. But the buffet, like anywhere, isn't great -- a bit disappointing for the price.