Sanctuary Cap Cana

This was my first trip to Punta Cana but it won’t be the last. We got lucky and our travel agent chose the perfect resort. We booked an ocean front villa. Worth every penny. Our butler Carlos, paid attention to every detail, booked our reservations, rides around the resort and took care of everything we asked for. Our housekeeper Nancy was perfect. She made our room perfect every day and did a lot of small things to make us feel special. Great lady. My favorite bartender was Osvaldo. Such a great personality. The beach was steps from our villa so we saw him every day. All therestaurants on the property are good. But Wok was amazing! Tonight is our last night and we are headed there again. We did not try the buffet during our stay, so I can’t speak to that. The resort is adults only, quiet, pool chairs and beach chairs are available. They have plenty of activities if you are looking for things to do. The staff is friendly and willing to help. We visited the spa twice and it was fantastic. Try it out!

Everything about this resort is amazing! The food is great (definitely recommend Wok), the drinks are wonderful, and the overall atmosphere is peaceful and fun. All of the staff are incredibly attentive and friendly. Huge shoutout to Luis Mario; he always helped us out when we were hanging out on the beach. 1000% recommend staying here. We had such a wonderful time. I will definitely be back!

We’ve just returned from a weeks stay here and all in all it was a good stay. Positives first, the grounds and communal areas are stunning, very chic. ALL staff we encountered were very polite and engaging. I don’t usually comment on staff but having found Caribbean staff on other islands to be surly and acting like they are doing you a favour serving you, the staff here must be commended. Food on the whole was good. The steakhouse was particularly excellent and very much recommend the Ribeye. Very comfortable sunbeds, nice to have cushioned ones on the beach as well as the pool. Very quick transfer from the airport. Rooms were nice and beds comfortable. Spacious grounds so you didn’t feel hemmed in. On Monday 23rd, a duo played in the Love Bar. This totally transformed the atmosphere and amount of people drinking there. This should happen more often. There didn’t seem to be any one area where people gathered at night, therefore a bit too quiet everywhere! Now the not so good. The reservation of half the restaurants available makes dining options extremely limited, especially when couple with a mis-informed app telling us for example Blue Marlin was open when it wasn’t (two nights consecutively and this is a non-reservation restaurant) So we managed to literally get the only available slot in Wok for the WHOLE week and one of only a few left in Capriccios. Having been to the steak restaurant, and waiting for our reservation nights, we then tried to eat at Blue Marlin the next night only to find it shut (despite the app saying it was open). We didn’t want to go to the steak restaurant two consecutive nights, and with a lack of buffet available in the evenings, we found we found we had nowhere to go other than the sanctuary town options which are no longer AI. We went to reception for help and they miraculously got us a table immediately in the Italian! There were lots of free tables when we went in, as with Wok on our night, yet had to wait till 8 30 for a table. This isn’t good enough, reservation restaurants cause nothing but hassle when you’re trying to relax on holiday. Interestingly we found out Wok is an independently owned restaurant so it’s no surprise that they withold availability there so that Marriott has to pay less!! On the subject of restaurants please stop this ridiculous dress code system for the men. It’s hot, you’re on holiday, socks, long trousers and closed shoe is plain daft. My feet were out every evening as a woman! T shirts and shorts were seen in Wok yet the app again incorrectly says formal as there is no dress code there. The beach was not appealing on a few days. Almost impossible to walk in due to rocks and cloudy sea with lots of seaweed. A major disappointment and not the typical Caribbean ideal you have in your head. Food at the burger bar on the beach not good, I sent a raw burger back and the food often lukewarm. However, all in all we enjoyed our stay, very relaxing in beautiful surroundings. No bites and no sickness is always a positive!!

Title- 2,3,4, & 5 stars POV- we are active 65+, non-drinkers, extensive travelers. This is a LONG review. This was our first trip to the Dominican Republic and are so happy we went. 5 Stars- Without a doubt the Dominican people are some of the most kind, genuine, and friendly people we have had the pleasure to be around. Everyone in town and at the resort was so accommodating and we could tell that this was more than training, it was who they are as people. Shout out goes to our Butler Eric who was always there for anything we needed during our stay. 5 stars also go out to the Pool, Servers, and Beach team. These folks work 12 on and 3 off (some work 24 on & 6 off!) and all we saw were smiling people with a desire to provide us with great experiences. 5 stars -to the grounds as they were kept spotless and teams always around to keep the trees and foliage in top shape. As advertised, it is a smaller resort with limited acreage. 4 stars- the Beach. What is there is kept incredibly clean with teams combing the beach throughout the day to ensure its cleanliness. It is small but there are plenty of beaches off property on either side for those long walks. Gym - 5 stars- everything you need from Barbells and plates, machines, dumbbells, cardio and even a smaller glass stretch/yoga space. Pics attached Spa- 4 & 3 stars- One of the best deep tissue massages I have ever had but their water experience area needs some TLC. Room- The resort is split between the castle and the traditional resort. All the newer amenities (Spa, Gym, etc.) are in the castle, while the traditional side includes a villa section which is where we stayed. Villas – Some of these are on a secluded part of the resort and the villas 2001-2005 face away from the main activities. We were in #2003 and our porch sat directly over the ocean with the added view of the off – property beach. It was our own simply amazing dream spot. No noise from the resort and just the sea to keep us company at night. Location was 5 stars BUT the room was a 2 star! I had mentioned to Eric if it had not been for the location, we would have asked for another room. This room has been band-aided so many times and at this price point, guests should expect the best this resort can offer. Marriott can & should do much better. Finally, the restaurants- My mistake when reviewing the resort I spent more time on videos and reviews than I did at their website so on our arrival tour is when I learned that as of February 2026, Sanctuary town was no longer part of the inclusive package. Not a huge deal but right off the bat felt like a corporate move. That leaves only 4 dinner restaurants, two of which require dinner reservations. 1 star to the Blue Martin- I don’t know how such a beautiful location can provide such food. We ate there twice and the only thing that was passable was fish and chips. 4 stars to the Wok. We ate there twice with one a 5 star and one 3 star experience. Vibe is great and beautiful restaurant. 2 stars to Capriccio – our pastas were dry, service was slow, appetizers uneventful. Location is very nice. So sad as we had heard great things. 4 stars- The Steakhouse- Ribeye and the salmon with the tomato tart tar. Steak was better than most, and the salmon was incredible. Best desserts in the resort. 5 Stars to Casa Bella- I can’t believe I am giving any buffet 5 stars, but this is the place where you will have most of your meals. You are served by stations rather than open service and it really keeps everything fresh and safe. The employees have great attitudes and really take the time to get to know what you like. There's always a section with local favorites so make sure to give them a try. The desert and smoothie station were a hit. My last mistake was deciding to stay for 7 nights due to flights. With the limited dinner options and the size of the resort, I would say this is a 4–5-night experience. We will visit the Dominican again someday, but we would only come back to the Sanctuary if the food and the Villas received a serious upgrade.

We spent a week at Sanctuary and had a fabulous time. The thing we were most impressed by was the staff and would like to mention a few individuals that always went above and beyond to make our stay perfect. Our Butler Alex was the very best. He was at our beck and call 24/7. He checked in daily and took care of our every need. At Bella, Maria and Belen always greeted us with a smile and took us to "our" table daily and had our usual drinks waiting for us. Glory was excellent at the salad and fruit station. Pool helpers Felix and Elvi checked on us often every day to take care of towels, umbrellas etc always with a smile, Ricardo at the Wok was the perfect server and the food was exceptional. Chavaleen (sp) was our hostess at different restaurants and she always had a smile and was so friendly. Billis at the lobby coffee shop had our coffees ready the second she saw us walk in. This may be an unusual review but we have been to many all inclusive hotels and we feel the thing that makes our vacation special is the folks we interact with. Sure the room is nice, the food is good etc but an exceptional staff is key to a great stay.