This is the second time I’ve been here and it was better than before. There are very few cons so let me start with that: the rooms are outdated and need an update. However, you spend almost no time in them and they serve their purpose. There were no washcloths/face towels. Bring one or two if this is an issue for you. If you use cash, charge it to your room and cash out when you leave. If you use a credit card, debit card, or Apple Pay there is 18% surcharge from the machine, plus whatever your bank charges for international fees.
We used the spa services this time and they did not disappoint. I have a serious issue with my shoulder and Keicy was wonderful and accommodating. She did everything to make me feel comfortable. At the very least pay $40 for the day pass.
We took advantage of the entire resort. There are fees for certain restaurants if you aren’t Premium, but when I came the first time I was premium and I wanted to enjoy the other restaurants. The food is great. Even talking to other people, it’s one of the best compared to other all-inclusives. They have a gluten free section, vegan section, and vegetarian section at the buffets. The coffee is addicting and the drinks OMG. Try the Bavaro cocktails but if you want to be on the floor coco loco with chocolate. Each bartender makes them a little different and we thought the lobby bartenders were the best. To each their own. They have updated their cigar lounge, have a separate cigar shop and rum shop as well. This was huge for my family.
Many of the staff are bilingual, but may not speak English. The staff are hard working and my family gave them the most respect (we all work on the service industry). Some reviews reference you are treated differently if you don’t speak Spanish. Learn a little Spanish it goes along way. How we treat people who don’t speak English in the US is the same in DR with Spanish. They just want to see that you try. You will wait longer because like us they have to get another staff that does speak English. You being rude and having an attitude in THEIR country because they don’t speak your language makes no sense.
Our experience with the staff at the resort has been by far the best. I have adult children and we all traveled together. We all speak enough Spanish to communicate with staff. Few people we saw tipped here and it is not required but we went out of our way to tip. The staff are all dedicated and do their job with a smile. We definitely will be back just for the staff and appreciation to Barcelo resorts. Adiós por ahora. Nos vemos luego

Although we rated this place a 3, it was closer to a 3 1/2.
The grounds and facilities were well maintained. What seaweed that did show up was raked up by the staff on a regular basis
We booked the Premium Package. The waterfront room was nice, but I didn't see a lot of value from the Premium designation. Premium is a relative term. The property is not a dump and is fairly up to date.

Pro: responsive facilities department. We had an issue with our bathroom light. It took no longer than 10 minutes from calling the maintenance office before a person showed up to fix things. They ended up changing all of the bulbs in the bath/dressing area. It made a big difference

Cleanliness, the bathrooms in the public areas were cleaned several times a day. The pool was not dirty or dingy. It was well maintained and had several nice features. The grounds were constantly maintained.

The Palace resort next door was good to visit and explore.

The staff that we interacted with were pleasant and professional and we didn't sense any hostility from them. The majority of the staff that we countered were engaged in the task before them.

Neutral: The food buffets - Let us start off by stating that we did not go to any of the Specialty restaurants. So, were not going to comment on them other than to say it's challenging to get a reservation in your preferred time period.

The Buffet- You would be hard-pressed to not find something to your liking. It just gets repetitious quickly. There's an omelet/eggs grill and crepe station. Lots of fresh fruit and salads and vegan options.
The problem we had is that we didn't think the quality of the prepared food was very good. The breads and desserts were so-so. Lots of the food dried out from sitting for several hours. There are some excellent coffee choices available well though.

Didn't Like: How hectic the water off the beach was. There's a marina to the left of the property as you're facing the water. Many excursion tour boats are run from this location. They are constantly cruising to the Dolphin Experience that is located several hundred feet off of the shore. Just about every boat had really loud music coming from them, and each boat seemed to be competing with others to be the loudest. If you're coming here expecting a Corona moment type of beach. you're coming to the wrong place. Quiet, reflective moments looking at the beach are hard to experience.

The Pool: The layout is nice. However, maybe I had the wrong idea of what an adult only resort would be. I guess I was expecting a more chill vibe. What we had was a lot of spring break enthusiasm with folks that seemed unaware or indifferent to the impact they were having on others. More alcohol didn't seem to help. People were enjoying themselves that's great. Other folks that maybe wanted to read or lay by the pool and snooze, that was challenging.
The Beach - yes, it's a decent beach. However, not far to the north you have Arena Blanca beach area, which we enjoy more.

In summary, The Barcelo Adult only property is a professionally operated facility. The management and staff do a lot of good things. We just feel that it didn't meet our expectations for a more subdued environment. I guess we were hoping for a more spa like experience.
We have stayed at a lot of all-inclusive resorts and at several in the DR. Never at an adult only location though. If you want a Viking Cruise type of experience, you'll have to look elsewhere.

Horrible food. Actually lost weight because the quality of food is poor. Buffets only until dinner-in open areas so the flies/ gnats swarming you and your food. Service at buffets for water, coffee, beer was lacking.
There is only ONE a la carte dinner restaurant here and men have to wear pants. All other dinner restaurants are on the Palace side of resort . You must make reservations for any of these a la carte dinner spots no matter what side of resort you stay.

My adult children had a room beside ours and no towels for bathing on day one. Day 2 their room was cleaned but again, never got towels and they had to go get them in lobby.
Day two we were gone from 8-5pm on an excursion and my husband and I came to a room that had not been cleaned and no towels replenished. Called & requested towels so we could shower for dinner reservation. 1 hr later still no towels. Called again asking to speak to supervisor. The woman on the phone asked me what I needed. I explained my room was never cleaned, no towels and need to shower. She said she’s alerting supervisor right away….
Needless to say it was still a long wait, missed our reservation and ended up in lobby for towels. Absolutely unacceptable.

A beautiful beach, they do a great job of cleaning any small amount of sargassum that has come in. No beach service for drinks. No swim up pool bar on adults resort.
Save your money and disappointment and go elsewhere .