A year ago at this time, we were spending a week at the Paradisus Palma Real in Punta Cana in the Dominican Republic.  If you get the chance to travel to the “DR” as it is often called, you should definitely do so.  The beaches were amazing and the resorts are spectacular.  The only downside to our visit was that it wasn’t really close to any local towns, so it was a rare trip where we didn’t get out of the resort.  Needless to say, that didn’t stop us from having a very relaxing and enjoyable stay.

The resort offered royal service, which apparently is quite common in Caribbean resorts.  It entailed us getting a beach front room in a private, all adult, area of the resort, with a private concierge.  We were able to eat at any of the restaurants on the vast compound, which is really three different resorts in different areas of the overall property.  We were given a cell phone with a direct dial number to our concierge who would make reservations for us to any of the restaurants or various shows.  We were quite spoiled.  It was an all-inclusive resort, but based upon the research that we had done prior to choosing this resort, it seems that pretty much all of the resorts in the Caribbean are all-inclusive.

Probably the best part of getting the royal service was the staff in our private area.  On our first day, we picked out a cabana on the beach where we could sit in the shade and they brought us a couple of lounge chairs for sitting in the sun.  That became “our” cabana and chairs and every morning Pedro would put towels and magazines out so that our spot was reserved.  No reason for us to rush to get a prime spot on the beach.  We had a private, secluded pool and we also had our own pool bar where they took very good care of us.

We will definitely try some other resorts in the Caribbean, but Punta Cana, with beaches that face both the Atlantic and Caribbean, is definitely worth a visit.  We would also recommend the royal service to anyone who has the opportunity.  It is a bit of a splurge, but truly worth the extra expense, especially if you’re not travelling with children.