Vik Hotel Arena Blanca

I recently stayed at VIK Hotel Arena Blanca, and even with modest expectations, the experience turned out to be disappointing in almost every way. It was advertised as a 4-star, and I was hopeful that the negative online reviews I read after booking were the exception rather than the norm. I was so wrong. The lack of quality and care was evident from the moment I walked into my room. The paint job looked like it had been done by a drunk or blind man — sloppy edges, uneven strokes, random smudged patches, and areas where it looked like someone simply gave up halfway through. The bathroom was even worse. There was heavy calcium and scum and lime buildup all over the counter, rust on the fixtures and toilet, a shower that barely worked, and the shower drain was literally missing. I had to make sure not to wear any jewellery into the shower, because I knew I would never be able to recover anything that was lost down that enormous hole in the floor. How hard is it to replace a drain cover? The tiles and furniture looked like they hadn't been updated in decades, and my patio doors were hard to open and close. They even wanted to charge me for an extra blanket, LOL. The state of the hotel grounds only added to the disappointment. Floors were chipped, uneven, or cracked, and several hallways and common areas were dirty or clearly neglected. Worn-out lettering all over the place. Many of the structures looked heavily worn down, as if no one had seriously maintained them in years. I even saw rooms where the tiles were lifting, showers leaking, or plumbing barely functioning. Some areas smelled musty or had a damp odour, and I spoke with other visitors who told me their rooms had issues like mould, stale cigarette smells, or clogged bathrooms that staff didn't seem in a hurry to address. The hotel had mismatched chairs, chipped wine glasses, frayed placemats, and so on. As just one random example of the visible neglect the hotel offered in the common entertainment area, the pool table I tried to use was tilted so that the balls would collect along one side, and the pool cues were all cracked and broken to the point of being unusable. There was visible filth built up along the corners and edges of the pool table, and the balls offered were just a random collection instead of a full set, so that I had two 2s, 4s, and 10s, for no apparent reason. I've added photos to this review for illustration. The service didn't help the situation. Most staff members had a noticeably shitty attitude — cold, dismissive, or outright annoyed over basic questions or requests. On one occasion, and I wish I was joking, I asked the snack bar worker if they would be getting new, red tomatoes as the ones left in the tray were all green and yellow, and he made eye contact with me while I spoke, held my gaze for a moment, and then turned back to his cell phone to keep texting without saying a word to me. I should note I am Latina and spoke to him in Spanish; this was not a language barrier issue - he was just a rude man. I had to laugh; it felt like I was on a hidden camera show. We had a power outage - and not a single staff member spoke with the guests, or offered flashlights or direction or any kind of communication about the issue whatsoever. We were just plunged into darkness, confused, and left to chat amongst ourselves in an effort to figure out what the F was happening. Not a single effort was made by the hotel staff to keep us informed or calm, even though no one's room key worked and everyone was wandering the grounds in total confusion. Thankfully, the blackout only lasted for about one hour - it was clear the hotel had no safety plan or contingency plan in place should it have lasted longer. When I needed help, getting assistance was difficult, and in several cases, no one ever followed up with my questions. The staff would just point somewhere and tell me to go ask someone else about it. The vibe wasn't welcoming at all; it felt like the guests were a burden rather than people on vacation. I cannot imagine what the problem was - is the staff woefully underpaid, or being abused by their employer? Why did they all seem so miserable? Everyone I spoke with said they experienced the same. I've never experienced anything like it. The two pools were nice, and I did enjoy them. Unfortunately, the beach was another letdown. It's surprisingly small for a Punta Cana resort, and the beach chairs were old, cracked, or stained. Many loungers were barely usable. The area often felt crowded and a bit chaotic rather than relaxing. The beach didn't seem to be cleaned regularly either — seaweed, debris, and trash were all over the place. I was surprised that the trash was not being picked up. The beach was also full of vendors who would not take no for an answer. The outdoor showerhead, meant for people to rinse off their feet and body after swimming in the ocean water, was falling apart and barely had any water pressure. Entertainment at the resort was honestly embarrassing. The “animation team” looked like they were just going through the motions with zero energy or creativity, or interest. I found it odd that they were not good dancers when their jobs seemed to consist mostly of dancing with guests. The two female team members seemed like they'd rather be anywhere else on Earth, not even smiling as they did the same two-step over and over and over. The music was painfully outdated, and they played “YMCA” every single night, more than once. Everything was streamed directly from YouTube, and we could all hear the repetitive three-note Windows/Microsoft notification sounds over the speakers. The entertainers reused the same two or three songs and routines - forcing guests to do the same, outdated conga line every night, for example. It felt extremely low-effort, unprofessional, and honestly laughable. I saw one "show", and it felt like a high-school talent show dress rehearsal at a non-performing arts school. It would have been more enjoyable if they had just let a Spotify playlist run all night, to be honest. Food was another area where the resort fell flat. For an all-inclusive, the options were extremely limited and repetitive. The quality wasn't good, and there were many times when I walked through the buffet and struggled to find something appealing. The snack bar consisted of hot dogs and burnt hamburgers submerged in water - the burgers fell apart when you tried to pick them up, because of how soaked they were. They also offered fries with no salt and pizzas with maybe one topping if you got lucky. They even put out a pizza with hot dogs cut up on it, instead of salami or pepperoni or chicken or any other regular topping. Had to add salt to everything. Same thing every day. To be fair, I did try a few things I enjoyed, like the fajitas at the Mexican restaurant. The drinks weren't much better than the food — most tasted weak, no matter what you ordered. Small cups, lots of ice. It really felt like the resort cuts corners wherever possible. Overall, VIK Hotel Arena Blanca could be a decent lower-budget resort, but the amount of neglect, lack of maintenance, poor service, weak entertainment, mediocre food, and outdated facilities make it very hard to recommend. Everything feels like it's 15–20 years overdue for a full renovation. Truly a shame - it has potential. Honestly, if you're considering this resort, you're much better off spending a few hundred dollars more for a place that actually delivers a proper vacation experience. In Punta Cana, a bit more money can be the difference between a frustrating week and an enjoyable stay — and after what I experienced here, that extra cost is absolutely worth it. [Details]

The hotel is modestly okay by its standard. The room service was prompt and did their job diligently. The meals were properly made and tasty. [Details]

Great hotel, safe area far from town so more on uber. Food is great but salty. Tap water is salty. Staff is great, overall experience is great. [Details]

We really enjoyed being here for 5 days - enough time to unwind and take in the gorgeous beach and super weather. We did the Bavaro Runners excursion taking us into the countryside where we visited a farm in the hilly region near Hiquey - beautiful! The hotel was dated but sufficiently comfortable, the food good and the staff attentive. [Details]

The food and the beach were fabulous. The rooms were not nice. The hotel staff was not friendly and treated us like we did not exist when asking them a question. there was no entertainment nightly. no disco. great for kids but not ideal for adults if you are looking for entertainment of some sort [Details]

The staff were all great. Food was Excellant, and pretty much anything you could ask for was there. Beech was great, Rooms were atticate. Grounds and buildings were all well kept. The beach was lovely, We went for long walks on the beach but most resorts didnt even provide umbrellas for shade, but ours did. The rooms were nice, nothing special but clean. We didnt go there to spend a lot of time in the room, so that wasnt a concern. One small disapointment was that the electric hand dryers in the washrooms near the theater didnt work and no backup option to dry hands such as paper towels. [Details]

Small resort (5 buildings), easy to get around, ocean front suite, so close to the sand/water, beautiful view from balcony/room, 2 separate bedroom areas, comfortable beds, older style room but very clean. Beach was amazing, pools were very nice, meals were good, and they had a great drink selection….I wish all staff had name tags, we didn't get to know them as well, especially at the buffet & a la cartes. Free Wifi is only available in lobby/buffet area which was fine. Charge for safe box in room $2/day. Staff were very nice, and helpful with any needs throughout the resort. About 40 minutes from the airport. A nice, relaxing break away! [Details]

Our 4 nights staying at Vik Hotel Arena Blanco were perfect for having peaceful relaxing time by escaping the winter in my home. The staff were very friendly with their great services. We enjoyed good food, clean room, peaceful and fun activities with easily accessible facilities. It was excellent vacation! [Details]

Hotel staff and grounds were great and beautiful beach. Rooms needed some fresh paint but were clean and proper. No evening entertainment worth writing about. [Details]

We had a great time at this hotel. The access to the beach has a little slope so not recommended if you have limited mobility. we were satisfied of the variety of food at the restaurants. beautiful beach and WiFi available on most common areas. [Details]

The VIK hotel is a 3 star at best. Negative comments: Air conditioned barely worked. Beach area was crowded. Lounge chairs old and need to be replaced. 1 of the 2 pools has been out of commission for over a year. Food was acceptable but limited to buffet and 1 restaurant. Positive comments: Staff working their are very friendly and the place was clean. Overall you get what you pay for. So if VIK price is considerably cheaper go for it but if it is comparable to other resorts I would choose them. We managed our expectations and had a good time. [Details]

Frist thing I will say, the staff in the hotel are amazing, gentle, kindn, humble, they are willing to help you. I'm happy to be a pleace where all the staff are working to make the turist fell comfortably on the hotel. [Details]

This hotel is very run down. Repairs are absolutely needed. There were not much for activity. The brochure said disco, karaoke and other entertainment . They had kids disco but nothing for adults. They are more geared up for kids entertainment but nothing for adults.
The food was ok but cold breakfast, every time.
The building needs to be attended to for repairs and paint would help. One pool closed all theme due to that pool needed repairs badly.
Somehow we didn't realize that everything needed to be book to eat Christmas Eve. Therefore we had nothing to eat till the next day. Font desk said to just go to the buffet at 8:30 and they would let you in. Well, they wouldn't.
Very hard to get a face cloth or sometimes had to ask for a hand towel. Towels are very old and need to be replaced. [Details]

Friendly staff, good food , clean rooms
1/2 of the beach and trees were destroyed by the sea water , the beach areas were much smaller then other neighbouring beach, the room's toilet and other toilet in lobby were keeping clean but there were strong smell all the time , the air fresheners Spensers were not refilled, what bothered us a lot was the smell of toilet in the bathrooms [Details]

This is a 3 star hotel at best. It needs a lot of upgrades. The pool is falling apart the ground stones on the walking paths are crumbling. And the shows at night have a lot of effort put in, but are not good or well done. My room had been updated a bit and the air-conditioning was strong. But the wifi is iffy at best and sometimes only worked at the pool. The food was pretty good, especially from what we heard from other guests from their resorts but the restaurants are just one with a rotating menu. Lots of the pool chairs need to be replaced and were broken and left out instead of fixed or removed from the pool ocean area. The staff was really friendly and always willing to help or try and make your stay a good one. But I won't be going back to this resort until some major upgrades are done as better resorts are only $100-$200 more for a much better experience. [Details]

Very outdated, advertised as 3 to 4 stars, barely a 2-star hotel. We had a 480 pixels TV in our room, in 2023. The beach is very close, full of seaweeds for a week, and the smell is horrendous - they could do a better job of cleaning it. Lots of rust in the bathroom, water is smelly and oily. towels smell like chlorine back in the 70's or 80's - doesn't go away. [Details]

Was sweating and dripping whole time there, no a/c in restaurants and buffet or in the shops, almost non existent a/c in room. Broken shower head that was never fixed, a/c was never checked or fixed, room keys kept needing to be changed. Entertainment wasn't great, no music at pool or beach until 3 and stopped at 5, no swim up bar, that really sucked. Toilet so close to wall you have to sit sideways. 1 a la carte restaurant open that changed menu every day, but was what you had at buffet the night before. room was humid all day and night due to lacking a/c so it smelled of dampness. we were with other people, group of 7, and everyone had problems with their rooms and 2 had to be changed because of faulty toilet and a/c not working at all. most boring place i have been to, staff was amazing and friendly, pool was great but with salt water its very warm, beach was small but nice. [Details]

We liked a hotel
We enjoyed our vacation [Details]

Small resort, had a wonderful 10 days with my sister. We were in bloc 4, rooms 4216 and 4215, view of the ocean, pool and snack bar. The à la carte restaurant was delicious, no reservations needed. The restaurant is the same one but changes menus, Italian, International and Mexican. The buffet had a good variety of food, food was hot and tasty. The beach was cleaned almost daily of seaweeds. Bar service was quick. Two pools, one is deeper which is fun to swim. The only hic at this hotel is that there is no air conditioned restaurant. Site was well lite at night, a good point for when travelling alone. Would go back to this resort. Cleaning lady Franchesca did a wonderful job. [Details]

Did not have a great experience at this resort, although they did try to correct issues when we addressed them. First room had 2 small beds, so had to move to another room. Second room (and I'm NOT one to complain) the bed was way too hard, your knees hit the wall when using the restroom and water dripped on you when you sat on the toilet! We moved rooms again the following day. The bed wasn't as bad and the bathroom was better but water still dropped on you from above the toilet and there was a nice rainforest showerhead…that didn't work. It only dripped cold water on you when you were using the other shower head.
There was no AC in the restaurant (which there was only ONE) and I recommend bug spray because we got tore up by mosquitoes.
The pool was nice, but it was aged too.
I hate to complain but I want to make sure people know what they're getting into. We made the best of it, but wouldn't choose this resort in the future.
One plus was the food was really good! [Details]

The hotel at the first look gives you the impression that is old and need some changes, When you start to know it offers a very clean and well kept area. The resort is safe and family friendly, maybe because we were in the end season some more entertainment would be nice . The food towards the end of our week became poor, the fruits were getting poorer and poorer everyday . In general the staff is very friendly. We did enjoy and had a good time . [Details]

Easy access from the rooms to the beach and restaurants, great for families with small kids.
Rooms are a little dated but clean. Buffet is a bit week on choices but everything is very good and fresh.
The beach is the strong point of this Hotel, very nice and almost no seaweed.
Wood recommend for family with kids or people that dont want to walk to much. [Details]

Hotel / Resort is very small and easy to navigate. This was our first all inclusive so for us this was a bonus. The beach is fantastic although Punta Cana is quite breezy. The resort and rooms are kept very clean. The rooms are dated and there are no dressers to unpack your clothes even though there was plenty of space for more furniture. The bathroom was tight. The water was warm but not hot. The staff are friendly and accommodating. The resort is not busy so finding a recliner on the beach or by the one pool was easy no matter the time of day. Getting a beverage was also a breeze due to the fact that the resort is not busy. The buffet food was OK but not great. The a-la-carte food was better but still not great. Visit limits or reservations for diner were not required at the a-la-carte's so this was a bonus. Entertainment in the evening was great but short. The evenings were generally fairly quiet and low key which is a bonus or not depending on your taste. We found the resort staff in charge of excursions to be annoying as they are standing in key areas you must pass-by throughout the day. They are constantly bugging you trying to book your excursion or trying to sell you an upscale/timeshare to the VIP section of the resort. They were worse than the beach vendors who can be annoying (but courteous) as well. Overall a good vacation but not a resort we would consider returning to. We would return to Punta Cana but just a resort with a higher star rating! [Details]

Everything was perfect. Just having wifi at the rooms would be nice. Great people, food and place plus view. [Details]

The check in time is atrocious . These people move so slowly and they look like they don't know what's going on! The resort itself - lobby has ugly plastic chairs . Wifi is terrible!! Can't even send a photo it's so bad. Room was clean, however looks like the walls and floors are falling apart. Air conditioning worked well. Noise level was great . Food was ok. Most of the choices looked and tasted gross but they had some basic stuff that I could eat. Service at the buffet for napkins and cutlery and the removal of dishes from the tables was really bad! The Italian restaurant—- the service was so terrible !! It took them 15 min to even acknowledge you waiting to enter the restaurant. So many people would just walk past us. Food in the a la cartes was decent. Beach was beautiful and enough chairs pool was great as well. Harassment from the guys for excursions was really bad they stand where you need to get your towels and they're really aggressive! We called it “Harassment Bay”. The worst part is no-one spoke English. I asked for a band aid for my son— no idea what I'm talking about. As for a drink— no idea. Overall wouldn't go back . [Details]

Read the reviews before going and realized this could be hit or miss but budget played a role in our decision. It was ok but not 4 star for sure. Im an avid traveler and usually keep an open mind but this resort definitely needs a lesson in customer service, entertainment and the value in variety of food. We needed a light changed and it took 6 days for them to change the light even if we called everyday and went to front desk. There were aunts in the washroom and again took several days. They did compensate by giving us a late check out but that did not compensate at all for 6 days of frustration. There are tons of people on site constantly trying to sell you something. We would have to go out of our way to avoid them. Theres only wifi in the lobby and beach chairs are set up that you are packed in like sardines. [Details]

the hotel is not maintained front desk area, restaurants, bars, pool etc in very poor condition, broken concrete and sticked steel bars make it very dangerous for kids and adults. [Details]

No locker,no wi-FI in room [Details]

The VIK Arena proved to be a destination, not a vacation, for myself and partner. Disappointing to say the least from the moment we checked in. Not because of WI-FI access only in the lobby and Calypso Bar, or because the main buffet was under renovations during our stay. Poor communication from the front desk, vendors around the pool area selling artwork and jewellery, and poor service from the restaurant and bars resulted in an overall poor experience. We were given the wrong room at first, a double when we ordered a superior, even though we were told that what they had given us was in fact a superior. It wasn't until I had looked up the difference online usin the lobby wifi and showed it to them that we were given the room we paid for. Once settled in the room an unpacked, we went to get towels by the pool and were instantly surrounded by "my friends" selling paintings and artwork. This was from day 1 to day 7 at all times of the day and night. Something never experienced at any other resort, unless your sunbathing on the public beach. They were setup in the main traffic areas, resulting in us carefully planning our travel routes while walking from the lobby to the beach. With the main buffet closed for renovations, the resort made a poor attempt at informing its guests of its substitutions. Although our travel agent had informed us of the renos 3 weeks before our trip( we had booked 2 months in advance) once in the resort it was as if all staff was clueless. Poor signage around the reataurants, no postings of the work being done or the reasons for the substitutions. We met several couples and families during our stay who had no clue about the buffet closure because the front desk never informed them upon check in. Also to note is that if you are expecting for wait staff to bring you a beverage from the bar while lounging on the beach, look elsehwhere. This was not a service provided at this "vacation" destination. On the plus side, the resort is very well kept as well as the rooms. Housekeeping did a phenomenal job, as well as the air conditioning in the rooms. Lounge chairs are overly abundant with a beautiful beach and swimming area. The weather was hot and the drinks were cool, but I believe you can find that at any resort in the Dominican Republic. [Details]

Generally a good value place. Not hyper-luxurious but very nice. Beach is terrific. Food has a lot of variety but quality is only 'fine' [Details]