We just returned after 1 wonderful week at the Holiday Inn Golden Beach. We are sad. We just did not want to come back. Our Agen told us it was geared towards family and she was on the dot. Our kids 8yrs and 3 1/2 yrs and for the this was paradise. Our kids loved the room and the buffett especially Maria our wonderful waitress at the Topaz Restaurant. She took care of their needs as if they were her own. Mirele the other staff came to know that my husband wanted Mango and Sugarcane juice and one afternoon when we were at the Topaz he surprised him...the look on my husbands face was to die for. Yes the only thing I would recommend at the Buffet is to change the desserts....and Pancho Villa needs to change their menu food was quite bland and I think it needs some more authentic Mexican Food. The Lotus was fabulous...especially the Decor.
We took the Safari tour..thanks Junior. The Half Day city tour was great..thanks Chuky.
Crowsfeet Island was good for the kids even though did not register at any of the programs they had fun on the stage with Belinda,Stephanie,Adrianna,Jonathan,Ronan....Overall we had an amazing time and are already planning another vacation with our friends.

Hi this is my 1st ever review so here goes!
Booked with 1st chioce prem and flew from Bristol via manchester.(needed a bigger run way with full fuel on board) the flight was the best ever ive been on great staff ,9inch Tv/games console bags of room and well looked after.
Short transfer 15mins to Holiday village from airport.

The hotel is no way 4 star its more like a 2+ but dont be put off,the staff are very friendly and cleaner ect ect all work hard.
The food in the main Buffet restaurant did get a bit boring after staying 2 weeks but the dinner restaurant were a great bonus, italian 9/10,lotus 9/10,Mexican 8/10 (why they never done chilli!)
beach front 9/10.also birds kept coming in and pecking the bread , leaving droppings on the table ect wasnt very healthy say the least

We made friends with a couple of parties the Canadians are friendly we also met and made friends from our town Cwmbran hi Dave Tracy & Kelly.

we went out on an out back safari it was brill, others said the ocean world was good too.

If you have children the kids club is 10/10 we have a 6 and 10 yr old, never seen them for hours at a time they loved going to it,it also gave us a break too.

the beach is clean and the sea was choppy but again great fun.you are given cards which you can trade in for clean towels every day,take the wet towel back and you get your card back.

The rooms were the main let down, very poorly lit and small,only one small wardrobe for a party of 4,the air con keeps you up most of the night, being a poor country i wasnt expecting top notch but you are misled by 1st choice 4 star rating!

I became ill and so did my daughter 2 days at the end of our holiday,
Wave pool was great for the kids and a bonus of 2 slides and a small ship in the pool,it rained for 3 days and it hammers down, take a light weight waterproof rain coat just in case,
Overall great relaxing holiday just dont let the negitive bits get to you and you will enjoy.
will i go again yes but we will try another hotel and area!

Our family of five (three boys & two adults), have recently returned from a fantastic two weeks at the Holiday Village Golden Beach complex at Playa Dorada, Dominican Republic.
The facilities were brilliant as were the friendly staff, from the maid who came in daily, to the restaurant & bar staff. They all greeted you with a smile and did everything they could to make our stay relaxing and enjoyable.
We went on three trips during our stay and they were all very well organised and extremely interesting.
The food was excellent and so much choice. The rum based cocktails went down very well too!!!
I am now saving madly for us to go again next year.

Thank you

Sue, Mick
James, Thomas & David Nicholl

The resort is ok. Except we were surprised by a few things that the website didn't really explain. Like #1, you can only eat at the a la carte restaurants once a week. The buffet food is ok, but after eating it a few meals in a row it gets old, so we were dissapointed by the fact that we could only eat at the japanese, mexican, italian, and carribean restaurants once. #2 the swim-up bar is only in the royal suites area and you have to pay extra to stay over there. Me and my husband are in our early 20's and the resort is really based around entertaining kids. So because all of the pools and entertainment was for kids, it was a little tough. Plus the weather wasn't that great so sitting on the beach was out of the question. The Dominicans are all so friendly though that they make it worth it. The main pool bar doesn't water down drinks at all and pretty much can make what ever you ask them for, so thats really great. DO NOT GET A TAXI FOM INSIDE THE RESORT!! Walk just outside the Playa Dorado Resort and you can get a local taxi for WAY cheaper, and always barder with them for a better price. Al in all we still had a great time, but I would not stay at this resort again. Its great if you have a family and are going with your kids but if you are younger and single, its a little too cheesy for me.