Cabarete Beach House By Faranda

I had a lovely time at the celuisma cabarete. the staff was wonderful. A few problems with the door and toilet but all in all a lovely vacation. [Details]

I had to move hotels - I could not stay here because it is not in Cabarete. It is actually located a 23 minute drive on a highway away from Cabarete. It is in an isolated and depressed region of the county with miles of abandoned resorts. Very sad - very scary.
THANK GOODNESS, a kind SOV Operator moved me to a new hotel before I left for the DR. [Details]

I like the smaller resorts, so I really liked this one. Location is great,it was clean with good food. Staff weere really friendly, although some folks may miss the quality found in other resorts, bring your own facecloths and enjoy this little gem of a resort. [Details]

This hotel is on a great piece of property however it is very dated, there are 2 amazing pools, lots of chairs. The buffet was ok but you have to get there early or you will miss out on dessert, and keep in mind the snack bar does not open until 5pm and they serve only toasted (cold) ham and cheese sandwiches(that taste awful) and hot dogs ocaasionally. During my stay we discovered that the resort has cockroaches (seen them in both our rooms). We had to change rooms due to a leaking toilet. Overall we had a great time but will never go back to that resort. [Details]

Overall the vacation was great, our plan was to relax and that we did. The hotel staff was always very pleasant and assisted you whenever you needed something. The food was warm most of the time. Not overly hot. The room was cleaned every day and the housekeeping staff did an excellent job. The entertainment team did an great job and trying to keep everyone entertained and there were always things to do. The hotel is only a three star hotel and you get a three star experience. The beach is always too rough to swim, so you must go into another beach for swimming in the ocean. [Details]

My boyfriend and I just got back from an extremely enjoyable and relaxing vacation at Celuisma Cabarete. We are in are mid-20s and it was our first time visiting Cabarete. When we first arrived we asked to switch rooms to be by the pool which was smart because or 2nd room had a nice little porch that we took advantage of daily - it was nice to just sit and say hi to everyone walking by and enjoy the weather. Rooms were kept very clean which is all that was important to us. No bugs and fresh towels daily.

The resort was more than we could ask for. The staff was so friendly; from the bartenders to the maintenance staff!! The animation team was a riot. They always tried to engage the guests in games and the nightly entertainment.

The food was great - definitely no complaints. I think if you are very picky or have specific dietary needs then you probably shouldn't be travelling south of Florida... We mostly ate at the buffet which always had good selections. Lunch time was reminded me of very typical South American/Latin home cooking (salad, beans, rice, chicken etc) and it was very tasty. Dinner was always something to look forward to - every night had a different theme (Chinese, Italian, Mexican, etc) so there was always something different. I don't get why people complain about selection either; are their buffets in their kitchens better? Food is meant to appeal to all guests and just certain people specifically. Foods were always prepared differently daily too (fried chicken one day, roasted the next). Overall we were very pleased with the food.

There are 2 a la carte restaurants but we only ate at one which was good but we really just enjoyed the buffet.

We didn't do any excursions as we just enjoyed lazing about on the beach. The weather was awesome. IT would be very sunny and hot by the 2 pools but at the beach it was a bit breezy which was nice. The water was a good temp. and it was clear and very wavy. We had a blast playing in the waves. The lifeguard is always watching out for ppl who go too far and whistles for them to come back as the undertow is quite strong. Throughout the day you could see kite surfers fly by which was really cool.

If you are picky or unfriendly and don't like to smile or say Hola, then you might as well listen to the negative reviews. Or if you are the kind of person who is picky about paint chips or a loud AC then you won't have a good time. Otherwise this place was so quaint and relaxing we will definitely be back next year. PEople need to remember they are on vacation in a tropical Caribbean country and not in a Holiday Inn in Orlando (not to mention this is a 3 star not 5!).. Staff and food was great as was the beach. Keep up the good work Celuisma Cabarete! [Details]

It's a three star, so keep that in mind! Having said that, it is impressive for the money. The food was good, staff was great and the resort had enough things going on. There are two pools to chose from and the beach which is stunning. There is one buffet restaraunt and it runs three times a day,plus snacks are offered in the afternoon. They offer a free shuttle into Cabarette everyday, and you can reserve the other restaraunts for dinner. The thai one was closed when we were there, but the window one was quite good. We met some great people here, and had many good times. It is run down and can use some work, but all in all its clean and has everything one would need for a relaxing stay. BUT becareful, once in awhile someone will try to rip you off and pocket money. Someone at the front desk overnight told a group the key for the safe was 50. It is only 10 dollars! And don't book a tour with Josef across the street from hotel. I rode with a gun under my ass, and we didn't do what the pamphlet said we would. And bring your own water sports equipment. While they say it's great for water sports, they have limited amount for "rent". No snorkel gear or boats, a couple kites and surf boards, and some boogey boards, so you are better off bringing your own. [Details]

The resort was a little run down. Beds were mattresses on ply wood. The grounds were not kept up. Food was terrible, ate mostly soup and salad (although some nights those weren't even safe). Suppose to be 18 plus... there were children there!!!! They looked to be locals staying at the resort, but the kids were still in the pools, at the buffets, and seen on the grounds.

The staff were wonderful! The beach was amazing, if you walk to your right a bit theres a whole private area where you don't see hardly any people all day. [Details]

I had a great time kiteboarding in front of the hotel and other beaches. I've also done an awesome downwinder from La Boca back to the hotel beach in about 18knots winds, 30C, blue sky, and big waves!
Mike, the instructor based at the hotel beach, is great and highly recommended - he can also help with kite trips to other beaches and downwinders.
There were waves in the hotel beach everyday so not for beginners - you can take a bus/shuttle to other beaches nearby though.
Diving/snorkeling in Sosua is a nice option for no-wind days.
The hotel is clean and safe, room are spacious, and the staff is great.

How to improve:
1) provide wi-fi access at least in the lobby (close to the swimming pools and restaurants would be great too).
2) improve the food preparation/recipes (ingredients are good)
3) have shuttle to/from Cabarete and Kitebeach more frequently (currently just 1x/day: departs 9:30am and returns 1:30pm). [Details]

Simple and amazing! I would go back. [Details]

My girlfriend and I booked Celuisma for a VERY good price, and went with little expectations. We planned to be on the beach most of the time, so the quality of the hotel wasn't a big concern. Having said that, we were pretty impressed with what we got. Rooms were good, not great. The toilet had problems flushing, and the ceiling fan looked like it was about to come crashing down at any moment, but otherwise everything was nice. The two pools are big, clean, and beautiful. Food was buffet, and a bit repetitive, but they did make an effort to have themed nights. For example, mexican, italian, etc. You WILL be eating a lot of carbs. Staff are friendly and enhanced the experience. The odd thing was 70% of the guests were German. Wasn't expecting that, and I suppose it doesn't matter. The beach is clean, and spacious. You can walk west forever and probably see one or two people the whole time. Very quiet. Overall a great experience. [Details]

This resort is a very small resort and perfact for just wanting to get away. the staff is very friendly and try very hard to make sure you are kept happy. It's a great 3 star you get what you pay for so don't expect a 5 star. [Details]

This was our second trip to this resort and it was excellant, the people are fantastic. We went for a family vacation with our 4 adult children and had a great time.
Lots of return quests and we will be going back next year for 2 weeks. [Details]

The Hotel was very nice and the staff were very friendly. The pool is not heated and is very cold as is the ocean. [Details]

The people who work here are great, the food was really good, we enjoyed the Thai restaurant. We also enjoyed the town, the beach at the resort and the activities the hotel offered and evening events. [Details]

We arrived late at night according to our schedule. There was no receptionist, but a security guy who acted as one. We were informed that there was nothing to eat at that hour and we better hurry if we wanted to have a drink becasue the bar closes at 1 o'clock AM. I have been in so many 3 star places where they leave sandwiches at least, because they knew you were coming. The bar was a big disapointment. There were few bottles of alcohol. They didn't have rum nor vodka, nor any other hard liqour. I was offered amaretto with cola. When asked the girl who served me a drink if it was going to be better next day she said NO. She was right. They kept 4-5 bottles in both bars through my entire stay. Lucky me, that I am not a serious drinker.
The room I got was nice and big. Bed sheets looked like someone had slept in them already and they were dirty. In the bathroom there was a pool of water and all the faucets were faulty and could not be slosed so they were dripping constantly. Air conditioner was working noisy like a tractor so it was hard to fall asleep with all the noise. Ceiling fan wasn't attached properly and wobbled with tendency to fly away on its own. The lights were of low wattage, more like night lights to help you not to stumble on something. There were two lights on the night tables, one did not work and the other was emanating light like a candle. There was no way to read something in bed. You can improve that slighltly by removing the shade from the lamp, but not much. In the bathroom there wasn't anything where you can put your toiletries, nor glass for toothbrush. Not to mention poor lighting under wich you couldn't even shave or put make-up for the evening. My guess is that management thinks that you should do those things during the daylight.
Next day I changed the room. It was the same as the previous one, except it had dry bathroom floor and faucest weren't dripping, but the air conditioner didn't work. I complained about it, and as expected nobody in the resort cared. Later I found out that other guests had a same problem with air conditioners.
Showering is and adventure. It is very hard to adjust temperature of the water. So many times I had cold water, followed by hot water, then cold again and so on. It might be good for your skin to have sudden changes in water temperature, but somethimes the water is so hot that you need to run away from it which in itself proved to be futile because showerhead was so clogged with calcium deposits that it sprayed all over the place.
The food in a restaurant was the same everyday. Not much of a choice. Often there were empty trays wich get replenished after 20 -30 minutes. Fruits and sweets don't get replenished. Once they are gone, they are gone.
Entertainment is at kids level and resort is Adult Only. Animation staff is very loud, going around yelling 'hola coca cola' or 'hola teqila' which took away half of my intelligence and I felt very dumb. The night show was terrible, full of old jokes. Also, they take guests on the stage and make fun of them. Very borrrrring.
The beach was dirty, as nobody bothered to rake it. Waves were high and it was windy everyday. That is the part of the coast with constant east-north-east winds. You have to be very careful when in water because there is a strong undertow. Don't risk going far, no matter how good swimmer you are. If you got pulled away from the shore, they don't have anything to help you. Not even a small boat. Because of the wind you have to cut short afternoon stay on the beach. Wind gets stronger and colder.
All in all I will never go back there. The company that runs the resort is cheap to invest in repairs and service. [Details]

Unbeliveable deal -- new renovations/great room /great staff /will be back again at that price! [Details]

It was simply the best vacation, clean quiet .The most beautiful beach ever seen. Staff was superb in their dealings with guest. The first destination I would and will return to it was that nice. [Details]

When I arrived at 10:30pm, I brought my luggage to my room, went to look for something to eat and was told I could not get food or snacks or water until the morning.Went back to my room and could not open the door. The staff tried to open but had to give me another room. I checked two other rooms and both had cockroaches, the 3rd room was ok. No water or snacks provided in the room. Two days after my bag was stolen on the beach with my safe/room key inside. They wanted to charge me to drill the safe but after 5 hours waiting in my room I was informed they had found my bag with all its contents. Only about ten people on the beach, not sure why it took so long. Had asked to have AC checked in my room, No one came by. Had asked for a wake up call, did not get that either. Overall terrible resort and very low level of service on all counts. Should never be rated a 3 star resort, more like a 1 1/2. [Details]

This little resort, while off the beaten pass was everything one would expect in the price range it was offered at.In typical D.R. style the food was adequate though repetitive. The staff where excellent but their jobs made more difficult by shortage of supplies(housekeeping needed to take towels and wash them before replacing etc.) The activity crew worked very hard to entertain guests and although limited in stage props and such, managed to put on entertaining shows nightly. All in all this was a great value for the money and the only truly bad experience was overly aggressive timeshare salesmen who worked within the hotel structure to brow beat people into joining the"Celuisma VIP club" We witnessed this ruining more than one seniors holiday! That said, at this price and knowing ahead about Timeshare I would return to this resort again. Thanks [Details]

The location was perfect, staff was more than cordial, wonderful people, the food was average, but the resort itself needs a good updating as it is starting to look run down. [Details]

the hotel was what we expected. We paid the cheapest amount possible so we could afford to stay 2 weeks, and we basically used the place as a room to sleep in. The room was clean and bright. The food was terrible, but we went to the town for meals a lot anyways. Great location for kite surfing! the animators at the hotel catered to older travelers. the beach at the hotel had a lot of vendors bothering you every 2 minutes. [Details]

I went to Cabarete to Kite Board. Turns out the Celuisma Paridoso Cabarete has a kite school/retal store right on the beach (wind bay kite school, check out their website). Which was great. As far as kiteboarding goes it was an expert level Beach with great wave riding. Beach conidtions were decent, however the sand and water quality was no where near the quality of say Varadero,Cuba (washed up debrit, garbage, cloudy water on windy/wavy days, ect)

[Details]

The Celuisma Cabarete may not be the most luxurious all-inclusive, but it is very good value for the money. The rooms are a little long-in-the-tooth, but the beach is clean, the pools are sparkling, and the sun shines the same there as anywhere. If you are super-picky, pass on this one. If you would rather spend your money on doing stuff in DR, this is a good bet. [Details]