CHIC Punta Cana Trip

This post is a few months late (and back dated) because just thinking about my trip experience has a tendency to make me sick. Toward the start of summer, Brian and I decided to go away for a few days. We considered going to the US for an extended weekend and considered some places like the Pocono Mountains, Niagara Falls, Michigan etc. However when I looked in prices these places were the same price level as an week-long all inclusive vacation. Likely due to summer vacation and the fact that many people prefer island destination travel to take place in the winter and not the summer. It seemed silly to only go for a few days and have nothing included when we could go for a week and be in a tropical paradise with all our meals, drinks, included.

 

So I booked with the "Sunwing Surprise Escapes" which ensured a stay at one of four "five star" resorts. That promotion should have been called "Chic Escape" as pretty much anyone I talked to online or on the plane was heading to Chic. Which makes sense since Sunwing has ownership in it, so I wasn't too surprised that of the four choices it turned out to be the cheaper "budget luxury" brand. When we arrived it looked amazing - beautiful lobby, gorgeous decor. There were cold towels being handed out as well as some pesto-bismol looking cocktail rimmed with colored candy. You could see the palm trees and glimpses of the ocean in the distance. So it seemed like the trip was going to be as amazing as we planned. 

Check in went okay. They tried to up-sell us to diamond which would have been over $1000.00 more for the added benefit of a private lounge, private beach area, butler service, better liquor, a nicer bracelet and a better room. Maybe for a few hundred more I could see the value but not for that much more. Plus all the diamond rooms are right by the pool and either facing the pool or an active construction site which I had read was very loud. I wanted a quiet room so we stuck with what we booked and were at one of the buildings behind the reception. These buildings seem like an after thought and are clearly separate from anything diamond related. It was like they wanted to ensure we knew that our second-class place on the resort. 

Our first room was in building 6 on the main floor. While the decor was nice and the room spacious the smell of mildew was overwhelming. We tried airing out the room and stayed there for about 25 minutes but the smell was awful and making us gag. Considering the resort is less then a year old I was shocked at how repugnant this room smelt. We went back to the lobby and were able to switch rooms - this time to building 7 on the third floor. This room looked the exact same in terms of decor and still had a slight moldy/mildew smell but was much less overpowering and easy to deal with. We found that keeping the AC on high and opening the balcony doors helped limit the smell. The AC would shut off the second the door opened so we made sure we were in the room when we did this so it didn't get too hot. If we left and didn't have the AC on the room became an oven by the time we got back - likely due to the June heat.

It was after 3:00 by this time and everything but the snack bar - Munchies - was closed for food so we went there. My husband ordered a burger which was slider size and when he bit into it, found a piece of bone inside. I had nachos which I ultimately passed on eating as they were covered with this awful fake cheese sauce, think much lower quality then movie theaters. 

The pool area was beautiful - lots of pool chairs, a few umbrellas, a large spacious pool area and shallow areas where lounge chairs could be placed right inside the water. There wasn't really anything shaded (the umbrellas didn't even provide much shade) so my husband knew he wouldn't be outside between 11:30-1:30 each day. One thing I was surprised to notice was the Diamond Club swim out rooms. If I had paid the extra 1000.00+ for this room I would have been very disappointed. The impression I had gotten and the way most swim out rooms are, is that you can leave your room and be directly in the pool. Usually it's done lazy river style which then takes you to the main pool area. That wasn't the case here. The swim out rooms were just rooms with a square shaped small mini pool area attached. There were two chairs in the water and a small area that you could sit, stand, semi-float in. There were all attached in a row but there were walls between each room so you were confined to your space. They backed onto the pool area but the wall was high so you couldn't get to the main pool from your swim out pool without going into the room and leaving from the front door. A few times the waiters were serving people in their room pools but for the most part they weren't in use during the day. I think it was something that people used more at night more and hung out at the main pool during the day. Honestly it seemed like a huge waste of money and something I am glad I didn't upgrade to.

That night we went to the Italian restaurant for diner which again was beautifully decorated with a decent menu. The food was okay - probably the best food of the trip when you look at the overall picture but that isn’t saying much. I had pizza which was decent and Brian had lamb. By this point we were both thinking the resort had some pros and cons, but it was going to be a great vacation.

The next day we went over to meet with the excursion people which was a disappointment. The options were more limited then I had expected and the prices insane. We decided to go into a shopping area later in the week but not bother with any of the tours and just save the money. Breakfast was laughable – I have never encountered such a horrible buffet. The food looked like it had been sitting for days and the overall facility just looked dirty and didn’t make me want to eat anything from them (I opted for a box of dry fruit loops). Same for lunch – everything just looked old, and about to go bad. The pool area was amazing – very beautiful, truth be told any positive experiences I had at this resort were at the pool. But again due to the lack of shade, I was here alone. Brian would have burnt to a crisp if he tried to sit outside with me. Still I spent most of the time here – reading, swimming and trying to make the best of it all. 

One of the absolute worst aspects was the “concierge” of our building. You are led to think he’s there to make sure your stay goes as planned, but really it’s a timeshare ploy. We went to the “information session about the resort” after asking 5 times if this was about timeshare and being assured it wasn’t. Yet when we get there we learn it is indeed about Timeshare. Then when we walk out – as we have Timeshare elsewhere – the concierge treats us horribly for the rest of the day/trip. Not very comforting as he is able to get in and out of our room and knows when we have left to go to dinner etc.

We ate at the Steakhouse one night which was just okay. The best part was when I ordered a non-alcoholic drink, and the waiter gave me something with Blue Curacao and told me that wasn’t alcoholic… Yup, the staff were that knowledgeable! The Sushi place was probably the best restaurant in terms of taste and quality, but the Moroccan I don’t even want to think about. After eating there I got so incredibly sick – sicker then I have ever been in my life. Maybe it was the food there (you never know for sure) or maybe it was the bottled water (which never seemed sealed and to which I saw a maid refill from the tap which they tell you not to use). Regardless as careful as I was (only eating fruit you can peel, staying away from produce, cheese and anything else that can go bad, and not drinking anything but water I could tell was sealed) I was violently ill. 

A few days before leaving I had found out I was pregnant (which had nothing to do with how sick I got, a doctors visit home and testing proved I ate something at the resort which caused it). But anyways, because I was newly pregnant I didn’t want to risk staying there and being that sick. I had heard horror stories about medical care in Dominican, so at an added cost to us (since Sunwing wouldn’t let us swap flights and wanted another $1000.00 to get us home) Brian and I left. The trip ended up being a disaster and a complete waste of money – but we got home safely and thankfully the baby wasn’t impacted by the illness.

Below is my Trip Advisor Review of Chic Punta Cana:

“I am still amazed at how awful my trip here was. The resort has put all its money into make sure everything looks beautiful - the lobby, the restaurants, the decor, the rooms, the pool, etc. Any photo will make you fall in love with this resort - but photos don't tell the whole story.

Check in - they tried to upgrade up to a diamond room for an extra $1000.00+ which didn't make sense given the limited benefits. We stuck with what we booked and our room was way at the back --- making sure we knew our place as second class citizens in the resort hierarchy (trust me - we were treated accordingly).

Rooms - first room had an overpowering smell of mildew which made us gag. Second room still had it but to a lesser degree.

Food - was simply horrendous. I stayed elsewhere in Punta Cana a few months earlier, spent less and had much better food. The quality was questionable - bones in a burger, rancid cheese, a buffet that looked like it was seeing the same food from days earlier. The Italian was prob the only edible restaurant and even then it wasn't good. Room service was laughable. Watch out for the bottled water as hardly any of the seals were intact and I actually saw the maid refilling my bottled room in the room.

Staff - some were friendly, others clueless. The worst was when I ordered a non-alcoholic drink and got one with blue curaçao. The waiter told me that isn't alcohol just a coloring product. Then came back 45 mins later to tell me he was wrong and it was alcoholic (which I figured).

The pool was great - but you have to get there early for a chair. The beach was okay - as a lot of Dominican there is a lot of seaweed and such which is to be expected.

Honestly I feel sick thinking about this trip. I got sick four days in and had to leave early - despite the high cost to get home I was glad to leave.

The value isn't there. Considering it's a new resort the facilities look better then they actually are. And the restaurants need a massive overhaul. If you are heading to Punta Cana look into Punta Cana Princess - I had a much better trip there.”

So needless to say I don’t recommend this vacation spot!

30 Things before 30: The Grand Canyon

The Grand Canyon has always been a place I have wanted to see and I am extremely happy that I got to see it as part of my 30 things list. Since we were doing another Las Vegas trip this year, Uncle Beau suggested we leave a day early and fit in the Grand Canyon since we hadn’t had enough time last year to do it. Everyone agreed to this except for Adam and Amanda who decided to fly directly into Las Vegas and meet us there. When we were making arrangements I suggested that we fly into Phoenix, Arizona so that we could see different scenery on our drive. All of us (Beau, Honey, Mom, Dad, Amanda. G and I) were on the same Toronto-Phoenix flight which left Tuesday morning. The flight was okay – it was on Air Canada Rouge, which to be honest is a crappy air carrier. It’s Air Canada’s discount brand and the service, seats and experience match the cost. When we got checked in we were told our seats had been changed despite having paid extra to select the ones with a little more room (when I mean a “little” more room I truly mean it). When we got to the gate we were called again to ensure we knew about this change. Finally just before boarding Dad and Amanda were called up that their seats were changed to ones at the very back because their seats were needed for someone with accessibility issues. These new seats were at the very last row and not part of upgrade we paid. When dad asked about the payment being refunded the woman at the gate blew him off. When we went to ask her name she refused to give it to him stating rudely that he had no right to that information. Seriously?!?!? Using twitter I contacted Air Canada about this and did get the refund for the seats but they completely ignored my question about her attitude and the fact that apparently paying passengers aren’t entitled to know the names of employees who treat them with rudeness and disrespect. This is the third trip in a row that we have encountered issues with the attitude of Air Canada staff either at the gate or on the plane. Trust me, if possible I plan to never give this company business again unless it’s absolutely necessary – especially considering the amazing service we had returning on West Jet. Dad and Amanda ended up being moved again to a row in the middle of the plane whereas Mom and I had our original seats a few rows ahead. The flight attendants were not very friendly and made it seem as if we were inconveniencing them by being there and there was no entertainment offered unless you had downloaded their app on your own tablet or paid to rent one. Needless to say we were all happy when the flight was over.

We grabbed a late lunch in Phoenix and then began our four hour drive. The scenery was great – especially when we got to see all these different cactus’s. We planned to stop for some photos but put it off not realizing that the landscape changes the further you go. By the time we got to a certain point there wasn’t any cactus’s around which was sad. It just means I will have to go back to get my cactus photo!

We arrived at the Grand Canyon entrance just as it was getting dark and decided to wait until morning to go in. We stocked up on some snacks and drinks at a nearby store and went to bed early since we planned to leave by 3:30am. The hotel wasn’t the nicest – it was an older Holiday Inn – that clearly over charges and doesn’t care about upgrading because of the high volume of tourists in the area. It was really worn out – peeling paint, stained floors, cracks in the bathroom – but the beds were comfortable and we were only there for the one night.

The next morning we were up long before sunrise and piled into the van. By 4:00am we were parked and outside waiting for sunrise. We had thought sunrise was earlier then it was – or it was obstructed by the Canyon – but either way we were outside in the dark for a while waiting for sunrise.  Something I hadn’t realized was how cold it would be at this point. With the sun only just rising, it was freezing cold. I had a sweater on and that wasn’t nearly enough to keep me warm. A piece of advice to anyone traveling there – bring warm clothes! Despite it being May with the Daytime temperatures hitting 80-90 degrees – you will definitely need warm clothes for the early morning Canyon visit!  

The scenery was amazing and wroth the visit. It’s so impressive to see these massive rocks and their formation – it really makes you think about the history and the fact they have been here for so many years. I would love to go back at some point and spend more time there – visiting other parts of the Canyon and maybe some day being able to afford a trip down to the ground. There are helicopter tours that will take you right into the Canyon and allow you to see it from below. I think that would be amazing. Until then, I am glad that I was able to see it and am thrilled to have shared that experience with some of my favorite people.   

Afterward we made the drive to Las Vegas stopping along the way at the Flintstone Park – which was so silly but fun, and the Hoover Dam. The Dam was interesting, but of the two stops Flintstone Park gets my vote. It was so random and bizarre – just a really fun memory. Mom enjoyed it as she loves the show the Flintstones. Everyone else but Amanda opted to wait and drive around, but I think they missed out!  

Punta Cana Princess

Ever since our last all-inclusive vacation Amanda and I had been making plans to take another one. We had been keeping an eye on various places and prices and decided to book last minute because we were flexible in terms of dates. The only plans we had were to find someplace hot and sunny that had a beach, and that we would go sometime in January. Once November came around Amanda had a few things pop up around that month which narrowed down our timeline considerably meaning we needed to make our decision sooner.

While I was open to going any place, Dominican Republic was at the top of my list as it’s an island I had never been to. I loved last years trip to Ixtapa, Mexico but wanted a beach that was more on the Caribbean side then the rougher Pacific Ocean. Cuba is an island that I would love to visit but they get very similar weather to Florida and beautiful sunny days aren’t guaranteed in early January. Mexico was another option however there were a few travel advisories issued which made us leery. As we started seriously looking we both decided we wanted to spend the extra money and pick a place that was adults only. It’s not that either of us have anything against children but the idea of a week away without any families and small children running around was appealing. Around Black Friday Sunwing had a relaxation package for some of their adult only properties. Of course some of these were a bit out of our budget (the amazing ones with 10+ restaurants, swim out rooms and amazing amenities) but there were some nice-looking mid-range options. One of these was the Punta Cana Princess, a resort that I had looked into a few times.

The price was good and the dates matched so we went with it and booked. The resort is a smaller property with just under 300 rooms – all of which are billed as suites. The resort had one large pool, was right on the beach, had five restaurants on-site as well as a small market. Almost all of the reviews were positive with previous guests raving about how amazing the manager was. Plus, it was part of a larger property meaning that we were able to visit/eat/spend time at the two sister properties.  

We left in the morning of January 2^nd excited about getting away from the freezing cold Toronto temperatures and arrived at the resort by 4pm. The flight was okay – mostly smooth with friendly staff. The man next to Amanda talked to us – well mostly her – the entire flight, but he was sweet. We had the priority package which made getting our luggage a breeze and Amanda had pre-paid all of our arrival taxes which made it great. Once at the resort check in was easy but we requested a room change as we wanted to be in the building closest to the pool/beach. While we were waiting the assistant manager came over with champagne and introduced himself to us. He made sure that we knew he was there no matter what we needed and to answer any questions. Once our room was ready, he actually walked us to it pointing out all the features of the resort. I found this to be an incredible gesture and he really went above and beyond for us.

The room was nice – it was on the ground floor with two double beds, a couch, an outside sitting area, fridge and a large bathroom. The bathroom however was clearly designed with couples in mind. First, there wasn’t an actual door. The bathroom had a large Jacuzzi tub at the entrance and a sink/counter area. To the back there was a toilet and a shower both with stall-like doors. This allowed some privacy but not much. It meant Amanda and I had to ensure coordination when the other was showering/getting ready. We made it work, but it’s the only thing I disliked about the resort.

Our vacation was exactly that – a complete vacation. We actually never left the resort and spent the entire week either laying by the pool or beach. I had wanted to do an excursion or two but we could never decide on which one so we ended up passing on them. Our days followed the same pattern – we woke up, ate breakfast, laid by the pool/beach, hung out with the friends we made, had some drinks at the pool bar, ate lunch, did more of the same, went in, showered, changed, ate dinner, watched TV and were sleeping by about 9pm (we are such thrilling 29 year olds huh?).

The staff at the resort were amazing – we loved the daytime pool bartender who took great care of us all week and any time the manager saw us he made a point of coming over to talk with Amanda and I to make sure everything was going well. The food was wonderful – we loved our dinner at the Mexican Steakhouse which had excellent beef fajitas. The Italian restaurant was nice but wasn’t one we were in a rush to return to. The fondue restaurant was a unique choice for the Caribbean but was very well done with great food – we ended up eating there twice.  The buffet was also decent – we absolutely loved their seafood night!

While we had a low-key vacation there was a lot to do around the resort. The activity crew always had fun games and contests going on and we made a lot of great vacation-friends from around the world that we spent time with. There was a super sweet older Canadian man from Saskatoon as well as a group from Oakville/Burlington. Some of my favorite people were a group of English tourists who were on their second week of their vacation. We had a lot of fun times with them and still keep in touch via Facebook.

It was a wonderful vacation and a great mix of sun, sand and relaxation. I loved spending a week with my best friend and look forward to future vacations! Also for anyone heading to Punta Cana this is a place to stay!

Vermont Trip 2014

I have to admit that visiting Vermont never interested me. Maybe because I never got into skiing or snowboarding or perhaps because there’s a million other places I want to visit. Or maybe because I didn’t know too much about Vermont. Either way that all changed when Brian and I traveled there for our first anniversary back in 2011. I fell in love with Vermont! We stayed at Smugglar’s Notch Resort which is part of my dad’s timeshare and had an excellent vacation. We went the last week of October and had great weather (cool autumn days where you only needed a sweater or light jacket) and only had a little bit of snow towards the end. We used the outdoor heated pool everyday, walked around the forest areas and did a lot of sightseeing in the Stowe/Burlington area, at places like the Vermont Teddy Bear Factory and Ben and Jerry’s. The resort is located around the mountain from Stowe and there is a SUPER SCARY overpass road that connects the area in about 15-20 minutes which we used daily to visit all the nearby towns and attractions. Overall it was a wonderful trip.

This year Brian and I wanted to get away someplace and the resort had availability. Smugglar’s Notch is busy in the Winter and Summer but not as much in the Spring/Fall. Many of the resort amenities shut down (restaurants, spa, entertainment, activities etc) so it is easy to get a unit at a discounted price. Unfortunately we had to go after our anniversary which changed the trip a bit. Brian’s permanent residence came through at the end of April and one condition of his health card was that he couldn’t be out of the country for more then 29 days in the first 6 months. We didn’t know this beforehand and had booked our 25 day Europe trip, which meant once we were back Brian couldn’t be out of Canada until after November 7^th.   So that’s when we booked for.

The inside of our unit 

The outside of the unit 

We had a nice drive to Vermont and our unit was incredible. Unfortunately the two-week’s made a difference and the overpass road was now closed. At first I was happy about this, but soon realized how much easier it made everything! Day trips now took an extra 30-50 minutes, as we had to cross around the base of the mountain to get anywhere. It was also much colder with frequent snowy days, meaning we were bundled up in jackets, boots and mitts. Still we had a great time seeing new places and going back to others.

We spent a lot of time at the Cabot cheese outlet sampling all their delicious cheeses and trying to decide which ones were worth bringing home – for the record their Habanero cheese is the best in my opinion! (If you ask Brian it’s their super aged cheddar). And they have the best cheddar popcorn topping I have ever tried – heck, I don’t even like cheddar popcorn topping and am obsessed with this one. We also spent a day in Burlington where we wandered in this crazy antique shop which was packed to the brim with things. You name it, it was likely there – Christmas ornaments, furniture, toys, records, books – so many cool things you could barely move. It was called “Shedsales Antiques” and was located on the main road in Burlington – Shelburne Rd. The owner was an interesting man who I spent some time talking with as Brian browsed the record selection. I enjoyed hearing about how he got into this and the various ways he collected the items. On one hand it was a little overwhelming just how much stuff there was but then again its nice to think that he’s helping to give these once-beloved items a new home. A much nicer sentiment then hauling them off to some garbage dump when people tire of them or pass away.

Being silly at Cabot 

While in Burlington we also stopped at the BEST Christmas store ever – The “Christmas Loft”. This store is Christmas heaven with displays, ornaments, decorations, everything Christmas-related. I could have spent hours and hundreds in there – but instead only spend one hour and only bought a book and some Christmas jewelry. I wish I lived closer to this store because it is one of my happy places. I remember visiting Disney with Aunt Honey and Uncle Beau the first time they brought the kids there and the second we walked through the gates Aunt Honey began to tear up for many reasons - one of which was just being so happy to be there with her family. While I don’t have the same emotions and connections to the Christmas Loft, I get the same sense of sheer happiness at just being there. I know it’s silly since it’s a store in the middle of Vermont, but it really is a special place. If you visited the store and knew me – you would likely understand.   

We made a few trips to my favorite local chocolate place – Lake Champlain Chocolates –, which to this day still makes the best hot chocolate. It’s their Aztec blend and is an amazing mix of sweet and spicy.  We also returned to Cold Hollow Cider Mill, which is an adorable little cider place near Ben and Jerry’s. It had changed a bit in the past few years (they added a restaurant and a few other things) but they still have a cute shop, amazing cider doughnuts and the best apple cider ever!

We drove to a few of the covered bridges in the area and walked around a few of the small towns. We only went into Stowe once and didn’t spend anytime looking around. The weather was cold and many of the businesses were closed for winter-prep. I guess the first few weeks of November are a good time to do any repairs and close down for employee holidays before the winter rush begins. Which makes sense if you think of how popular the area is in the fall for the Autumn Foliage and then jumps into ski season. That was definitely a bit of a downfall to our trip. The main reason we went into Stowe was so that we could have dinner at the place we celebrated our 1^st anniversary at… this little Mexican restaurant. Sadly when we arrived it too was closed for renovations so we ended up at this strange Bennihanna-type knock off up the mountain. They had a special on so the food was really reasonable and the taste/cooking show was enjoyable.

The indoor pool closest to our unit was also undergoing repairs and we didn’t have access to an outdoor one this time. There was another indoor pool but we would have had to drive to it since the shuttle wasn’t running. Still we made the best of everything despite these little things. We had a fondue night and made really great cheese and meat fondue based off of Melting Pot recipes. We had chocolate fondue the following night – since we had been too full for it on the fondue night! We made a few other dinners and had a movie marathon where we watched all three Lord of the Rings Extended Edition DVD’s.

It was a relaxing trip and one that we both enjoyed but we decided that November isn’t a time we would return to Vermont in. Either we would go in September/October or at some point return for the winter ski season. The resort seems to have some amazing amenities during that time and it would be fun to check out. Either way, Vermont remains one of my favorite states and I recommend the area and resort to anyone traveling out that way.