Bahia Principe Grand El Portillo - All Inclusive

Highly recommend great staff,excellent services and activities for the whole entire family.Night life at this resort is awesome!!

Stayed at El Portillo in August for my anniversary and I wanted to highlight some of the wonderful staff that made my stay beautiful and memorable. Abel at boa Vista Karina check in desk Joelfrid poolside bar cart Anton romantic dinner on beach Yuderka guest service who helped me book the romantic dinner. Things I loved were the cold fruit water and cookies upon check in. The pool side drinks cart so you don't even have to walk to the bar for a drink. The ambiance of the steak house beach front restaurant. The fishes to see in the water so bring your snorkeling gear. The romantic dinner on the beach was the highlight of my stay. The array of food at the buffet was amazing also. Something for everyone.

Just went to the fish market and was very disappointed. First they sat us inside where the air conditioning was quite cool glad I took my sweater. Then we had to ask for drinks.. then they took our order forgot to ask if we wanted rolls which we didn’t get. Our food came and it was very good. But after we had our table cleared nobody came near us until we got up to leave. So we just left we were expecting so much more from this restaurant.. very disappointing!!

The hotel is very similar to other Bahia Principes: the rooms and restaurants could be at Bahia Principe in Mexico or Punta Cana. The room was clean although the bathroom had an unpleasant smell. The food was good at both buffets beach & main) as well as at all the a la carte restaurants. Of the 6 nights we went to the 9:30 entertainment/shows only 3 had outside talent the other nights was entertainment staff and was disappointing. The staff was friendly but we felt they treat Spanish speaking guests better. The best thing about this hotel is the location on the beach: you can walk for many kilometres in either direction!

Here’s a tip when reading resort reviews: always look at the ones written by travellers with many contributions. They tend to be seasoned travellers and provide the most accurate and truthful information. We have travelled to the Dominican Republic many times over the past 20 years. Although Punta Cana is our preferred destination, we decided to try something different and booked a trip to Samaná. Having stayed at Bahia Principe resorts in the past, we chose the Bahia Principe El Portillo. After reading some of the reviews, we were a bit skeptical, but we went in with an open mind. In hindsight, we should have chosen another resort, as this stay was extremely disappointing and unlike anything we’ve experienced before. The beach is gorgeous, and you can walk for miles. The food was typical resort food—nothing remarkable, but you can always find something to eat. Service at the buffet was inconsistent. Depending on the server, you could be served quickly (which rarely happened) or only at the end of your meal. Our room (a superior junior suite), while dated, was better than expected and we didn’t encounter any major issues. Housekeeping, however, was disappointing; we often returned at the end of the day to find the room still not cleaned and the fridge not restocked. As for the “towel game,” reserving huts and beach chairs happens here just as it does at many other resorts, despite signage stating it is not allowed. I’ll admit—we do reserve seats, but only at the beach, not the pool, and we always use what we reserve. We’re early risers who go to watch the sunrise with a cup of coffee, and we spend the entire day at the beach. Where this resort truly fails, in my opinion, is management. One incident in particular made this very clear. A couple with two young children sat near our hut every day. One morning, they left briefly to get diapers for the baby. While they were gone, three women walked up, pushed their belongings aside, and took over their hut. When the couple returned, they were understandably upset. Everyone nearby saw what happened and confirmed the same story to the three security guards who came to mediate. Instead of telling the women they were in the wrong and asking them to leave, the guards removed the towels belonging to a couple who had simply gone for a walk on the beach and gave that hut to the three women. At this resort, it seems that bad behavior gets rewarded. Now for the part that affected us directly. The next morning—our last full day—we followed our usual routine: reserved our hut, watched the sunrise, and returned after breakfast at around 8:30 a.m. only to find our towels had been removed by the security guard. None of the other towels on vacant huts had been touched—only ours. The only explanation we could come up with is that someone either pressured or paid the guard to clear our spot because they wanted that hut. By that time, all huts and chairs were either already reserved or taken, leaving us with nowhere

The music is a bit loud for my liking but other than that, everything about Grand El Portillo was perfect. Good snorkeling, Professional staff, good food & drinks, private and public areas kept clean and manicured. Requests are quickly managed and the atmosphere is great. They even have cats for your entertainment! Sadly, the last two hurricanes blew away a lot of the soft sand but it is still beautiful.