Hotel Barcelo Santo Domingo^{(4.5 stars)}

Size of the bathroom

6.0

Cleanliness & linen change

5.0

Size of the room

5.0

Atmosphere & furnishings

3.0

Quality of food and drinks

4.0

Variety of food and drinks

4.0

Competence (handling complaints)

1.0

Reception, check-in & check-out

1.0

Friendliness and helpfulness

2.0

Staff's knowledge of foreign language

2.0

Condition of the Hotel

4.0

General cleanliness of the different areas

4.0

Disabled-friendly

1.0

The showerhead did not work. The carpets were slightly moldy near the window. Otherwise the room was clean. The mini fridge was not stocked at all. The bed was comfortable enough and the satellite television worked though the connection broke down a few times. During the frequent blackouts, the hotel’s generators kicked in within thirty seconds. The water was hot and the toilettes flushed. It had the feel of a two star euro hotel with much more room.

The first morning breakfast was disgusting. The buffet eggs were cold and things tasted off. The buffet has choice but aside from the pastries, it all tasted cold, sour or just plain weird. The second morning we had them make omelettes (included in price) and this was much tastier and it seemed that the options had generally improved (no more cold food). I would suggest arriving early. Desperate for water at one point, we had to buy a small bottle of water at the cafeteria for 81 pesos. Keep in mind you will need lots of water and stock up on it at a store (ask your taxi driver to pull over for a second) and buy it at the normal price of 20-40 pesos per bottle. Because no restaurants were near and we did not feel like venturing into the rainy Santo Doming night (involving bickering with taxi drivers), we ordered in room service. Not bad. For $30 we ordered four appetizers and cheesecake, using softdrinks bought at the deli at Caribe Tours and making coffee in the room. The appetizers were from the menu at the famous Gran Lina restaurant. It was admittedly very nice to dine on nice food without having to go to the restaurant. The prices were not exorbitant either. This was a highlight of our second night in Santo Domingo.

They weren’t very professional. Check-in was curt and no one could make change. They acted put out when asked to do normal things and what friendliness there was, existed out of an expectation of an eventual tip. The hotel is meant for Western and Dominican businessmen or athletic groups. Tourists were a rarity. Everyone’s English is very poor (an excellent opportunity to practice Spanish!). Further, they seem in cahoots with the taxi drivers.

The pool was not that bad but we couldn’t go in because they told us the wrong hours. On the roof they have al these special features but it all costs extra. We did not check out any other features, nor did we venture into the casino. It looked very smoky and like an old Dominican boy’s club.

At $115 a night including taxes and breakfast, I was not entirely thrilled with the Barcelo. We stayed two nonconsecutive nights when in Santo Domingo traveling across the country. As background it should be emphasized that Santo Domingo has little infrastructure. It is a real and lively city but does not lend itself to tourism outside the Zona Colonial. The city was very polluted and made us miss the stability and presence of Mexico City (the only other Latin America city we have visited – an amazing metropolis). Blackouts were frequent, and there is a sense of dismalness. This disappointment with the city might have reinforced our disappointment with the hotel.

The hotel lies ten to fifteen minutes from the colonial district and the hotel taxi drivers will not negotiate below 200 pesos. On the street, if you dare venture outside into the uncertain heat (we did) you can call for a taxi that might give you a ride for 130 pesos. Thus, with respect to location, the hotel is not the greatest for independent travelers. We chose this location because it was close to Caribe Tours (departure point to other points in the country) but because of the horrible sidewalks and dubious characters, we ended up taking a taxi instead of walking it. Taxis wanted 200 pesos but we got it down to 150-175. Finally, there were no restaurants, delis or grocery shops near the hotel.