We went to Agua for our honeymoon. While the ammenties were excellent and the room that we got was about 10 feet from the beach, we did have some issues.

We booked a package that included a private plunge pool that was part of our room. When we got there they said that the plunge pool was not working. After we were there a few days we realized that they had overbooked the rooms. The plunge pool was one of the main reason we choose this place.

We stayed at the resort for 11 days. The restaurants do not change their menus ever and the basics certainly were not on the menus. For exmaple, for breakfast they have tons of salmon but no bagels; and when asked they look at me like I have two heads.

I must admit thought, that the resort itself is awsome! They gave us a moonlight private dinner, which was really romantic. In addition, they do have special dinners on certian nights and the amount of food that is servied is huge!

Other than the booking issues, that we are STILL trying to get a credit on, the resort was perfect. If you want activities thought, I would go to Excellence. Agua is meant for realxation, and 11 days of relaxation is a little long. There are no activites (including water activites) so it is pretty much eating laying in the sun, eating more, playing board games, and eating more.

Just returned from a 7-day stay at Agua. We decided to try it despite reservations after reading some Tripadvisor reviews. We were happily surprised. There are definite pluses and minuses but this is a new resort and management really tries. In our opinion Agua has what it takes to become a 5 star resort.

Pluses: Beautiful, open layout around a meandering pool complex. The landscaping was thoughtful and made nice use of the local flora although a few plants looked unhappy. The rooms were very large, well laid out and beautifully appointed with local stone, woods, and thatched roofs. The beds and linens (Frette) were extremely comfortable and the bathrooms w/outdoor showers and tubs were really luxurious. All of the staff was genuinely kind and considerate and we never felt pressured in any way. The spa with its unique pools were an oasis of tranquility; soothing music, refreshing healthy drinks and lovely indoor/outdoor lounging areas. We didn't partake of any of the spa services but used the pools, baths and lounges everyday. The gym was perfectly adequate with a decent mix of cardio and weight machines. The Front Desk was always attentive and helpful, all our taxis and scheduled activities were exactly on time and follow up phone calls to confirm were made. Since Agua is so small (55 rooms) all of the guests there were friendly and there was a congenial sense of shared pleasure. Most of the guests were from Europe or So.America and all (except for 1 very unhappy lady) were well mannered and relaxed.

Minuses: It's true that the food is not up to par but it is definitely edible. Breakfast (included) was a buffet selection that was more than adequate; eggs any style, yogurts, fresh fruits and pastries (not so good).It was the same everyday and by the time we left we had it down to eggs, yogurt and fresh mango. Some days we went to the restaurant but most days we ordered in as our villa was so huge and comfortable. Lunch ended up being tuna fish salad sandwiches (Very good) We tried the burger (too spicy) and the caesar salad (too much dressing)and were enticed by the smell of the garlic shrimp (never did try them). For dinner we went next door to the Sivory for some very good food. Its a 3-minute walk on the beach; totally safe, romantic and worth it. They have 3 restaurants: Gourmet, Asian and Casual. I did partake of the special de gustacion dinner o the beach at Agua on Thursday night and it was very good. I was told they are adding another restaurant soon.

The weirdest minus at Agua was the agua. On arrival we were upgraded to a huge 2-bedroom villa w/2 living rooms and private plunge pool. It was amazingly spacious and sophisticated.. The only problem was that we couldn't get the water temperature to work in the bathrooms and we had to take scalding hot showers. The outdoor bathtub kept beckoning me but it took hours to fill and would have cooked us alive. We didn't complain and made good use of the spa facilities which had better temp controls. I stayed on an extra 2 days after my family left and moved to a regular room (also huge and lovely). In that room I couldn't get much hot water...definitely some kinks to work out there.

Despite these minor things we would return in a heartbeat. Yes, the 1.5 hour drive on crummy roads was annoying and the food is not great but Agua's proximity to NY, overall physical beauty and excellent service makes it worth a return visit.

Definitely go horseback riding on the beach and ask for Fausto. My 13-year-old daughter just wanted to gallop full speed on the beach so that's what we did for an hour. It was fantastic! Even the horses are happy and relaxed. We also walked south along the beach to the mega hotels (Excelence and Sirenese) just for fun and some shopping. There are lots of little shacks along the beach selling the same over priced trinkets, paintings and mamajuana (a local, herbal aphrodisiac...)It was fun to look around and the shopkeepers were friendly and not pushy or aggressive. But we really appreciated the serenity and natural beauty of the Agua and couldn't wait to get back to our intimate oasis.

The good: The Agua is a stunning and beautiful resort. The rooms are wonderful. Housekeeping is excellent. The staff is very nice. The beach is great – you can walk for miles and miles.

The bad: The main pool had no water and they tried to keep it a secret and so did not inform our travel agency! There was only one restaurant open and the food was not very good.

This resort has the potential to be a Four Seasons, but it needs at least one additional restaurant (and more guests). Basically, the management does not seem to be capable of making the Agua the luxury resort it could be.

As as the amenities of the resort are concerned, Agua is a great resort. Think Aman-Light. The rooms are very large and well designed. The public areas are also very nice. The beach is beautiful. But...there is a very big but. 1) The resort is very far from the airport and the road to get there is terrible. 2) Only a handful of the resort' 50+ rooms were occupied so the place was Deadville 3)The food was disgusting, primarily because there was no volume of visitors 4) the spa services were lame 5) the service was well-intentioned but very clumsy. In addition, there was no attention to details. For example, the music was a short list of 15 merigue-like songs that kept playing over and over and over... It was really attrocious. But on a positive note, if Agua gets any significant levels of business and becomes more professional at hosting premium visitors, it could become a fabulous destination.