The Ocean Club, Costa Norte, a Luxury Collection Resort

We stayed at the Ocean Club in February and while it wasn’t a “bad” experience it ended being quite negative because of expectations. Topline is that at the end of the day this should in no way be part of the Luxury Collection. It just isn’t up to par…it’s nice don’t get me wrong, but not part of the collection. OC should be part of the Autograph Collection as that is what it delivers upon (upper mid-range properties vs 5 star luxury). This hotel is just run down. I have a list of issues a mile long driven by the fact that I was expecting a LC property so it fell significantly short. Room: we had to change rooms because the first one just wasn’t acceptable…dead bugs on the floor, broken cabinets, open toothpaste tubes in the bathroom, towel holders falling off the wall and someone’s hairs all over the couch. The room was also very “cold” and uninviting which one can still achieve (warmth) with modern decor. And yet when we switched rooms there was only 1 robe in the room, no body lotion, body wash/shampoo bottles were filled with water, and the espresso machine was missing so I had to carry the one from the original room. Not to mention the power kept going on and off for no reason. It has a very “IKEA” feel to it. Food wise, a buffet was offered a couple mornings during the stay and the food was ice cold…the burners were out under the food pans so I had to ask them to prepare me food that was edible. The gym is very small for a “luxury” property and was stifling hot…almost no air con in there at all. Many elevators are in complete disarray with mold on the floors and barely working lights. Service at the pool was very slow…45 min for gazpacho (it’s cold, how long does it take to bring it over) and others noted coconut water and ice cream served during the day but that never happened over the 5 days we were there. We always had to flag someone down…no one ever came up to ask if we needed anything. One day, at the adult pool a woman fell when the wooden chaise under her completely snapped in half (and she was a tiny lady.) We ate at a couple restaurants around the hotel but the area has a very sketchy vibe to it. Also we were there Sat-Thurs in the dead of winter and the weekdays were empty…a handful of people were at the pool so we have no idea how this place stays open. The staff tries, but in the end, it’s a fine hotel to relax by the pool, sit by the beach and chill out, but DO NOT expect a luxury property in either service or construction.

Just landed after a long weekend visit but the experience was far from “luxury”. I’m very surprised at the 5 star rating this place has. It was a nice looking resort from afar but the cons overshadowed any positives about this resort. Pros: -Received a free room upgrade (resort seemed fairly slow/empty but it was still very appreciated) -Live DJ at Veuvet Clicqout Sun Club -Close to Airport -Resort was empty so no fighting for pool/beach chairs Cons: - Service was slow and just terrible throughout the resort with the exception of one waiter our entire stay even though the resort seemed empty. Expect to ask 3 or 4 times if you need anything. -Limited dining options (plan to find dining options elsewhere if you stay more than a weekend) - No walkable beach- Beach was extremely small and located to the side of a concrete dock and giant rock wall -Extremely overpriced menu for what they serve. The menus are a hit or miss mix of average to downright bad dishes. - Many items on the menu are unavailable (one day they didn’t even have a basic burger) - out of group of 7, 4 of us got some type of stomach issue after dinner -the rooms are poorly constructed and certain areas were worn (in our room there was errant paint marks on the blinds, sliding glass doors didn’t lock, leaky faucet, clogged drains and the floating staircase in our unit had loose stairs) Given all the other Caribbean Islands (or even other parts of DR like La Romana) you could visit that provide better amenities, beaches, and food options, it would be hard to justify recommending this resort.

A beautiful resort with a private small beach. Lovely staff with regard to courtesy. We were upgraded to a Suite with full kitchen, LR, and patio. Bed was very comfortable and bathroom was spacious. They welcomed us with birthday balloons and a cake which made my day very special. Food in the lounge restaurant was very good, although a bit pricey. The occasional coconut by the beach was very much appreciated! Some great staff we encountered were: Nelfie, Franklin, Jose Luis, and many more. There are several options outside the resort if you want to explore local eateries. Waterfront Alicia is excellent for any meal overlooking the bigger beach. They offered one yoga class during the week.

our experience at this hotel was horrible, i advise anyone to stay away, far far away. the hotel is very dirty and never organized. the rooms are smelly and falling apart! there is mold in every room. the food is very bad and the showers don't have hot water! this hotel should be a 1 star.

We had a lovely, very relaxing visit with another couple at this resort. We stayed in a three bedroom, 3 1/2 bath suite with a full kitchen, facing the ocean. The greatest asset this resort has is its people. EVERYONE was very friendly and did their best to make us feel special. One of their guest relations managers, Agustina, was a fabulous hostess. She made sure we were taken care of. Agustina is a wonderful ambassador. The quality of the food also exceeded our expectations. We dined numerous times at both restaurants. One of our friends has quite a list of allergies and rarely travels because of that. She gave Agustina a list of her food allergies and we had no trouble finding her a proper meal. The only reason I didn’t give the resort a “5” was due to a number of maintenance issues with the suite. However I should add that every issue was promptly taken care of once we brought it to management’s attention. The beach has ample shaded lounge areas as does the pool. It was another thing we didn’t have to worry about, getting up early and running down to secure a spot at the beach. If you are looking for a quiet place where you can relax, this resort is for you.