We stayed from February 25 to March 3rd, 2008. Had the time of our lives. Hotel is reminiscent of Bermuda with it's pastel colours and architecture. Fabulous rooms with four poster beds, marble bathrooms, terrific views from balcony that overlooked Samana Bay and Cayo Levantado Island. We could watch the humpback whales jumping in the ocean from our rooms.
Staff is very friendly and eager to please. You should attempt to learn some spanish to ease communication.
Food in the Buffet Restaurant is better than the A la Carte Restaurants. But service is speedy everywhere.
Hotel is very clean and well-kept. Gardeners and hotel maintenance staff are constantly cleaning and tidying.
We tried to use the equipment in the gym but the treadmill was broken and so was one of the bikes. Spoke to our rep, but don't know whether that has been rectified yet.
Transfer to hotel was speedy. Transfer to Airport at the end was late by 1hour 15 minutes but we made the flight in time. My husband was very happy and trust me, he's hard to please.

Though it's a 3 hour drive from the airport, the route is scenic and it's well worth it when you get there. The resort is beautiful, quiet and very well kept. The staff are friendly and the food was really good. Great for couples.

Transfer to the hotel was easy, lots to see on the 1 1/2 hour bus ride. You stop at two Baha Principe hotels along the way to drop off guests. Check in was done on the bus so when you got to the hotel you went directly to your room. We did not like the location of our room (too noisy) so we requested another room and was accomodated. The rooms are beautiful,,, certainly earns the 5*. All rooms are oceanview and ours faced the sunset... breathtaking. Lots of chairs available near the pool, no need to reserve. Pool bar is great, close and never busy. Although the sand in not white and the water is not turquoise, the waves were great for boogie boarding and body surfing. The ocean was warm, the beach was clean and always lots of lounge chairs available. We did not try the a la carte restaurants, there was always good variety and good food at the buffet (and you get to sit in the open dininning room watching the ocean). The staff was very friendly, but left you alone when you did not want to participate in the activities. The spa is exceptional. I got a manicure and it was reasonably priced and proffesionally done. The gym needs some improvements. Most of the cardio equipment (bikes and treadmill) were broken. And the rest of the equipment was minimal. We had an enjoyable week with lots of sun, food, swimming and relaxation.

If you want a quiet, enjoyable, relaxing vacation this is the place to go.

The GBP Samana is a wonderful hotel to rest and relax. It is intimate because only 108 rooms. But this makes your stay even more enjoyable because there is always room around the pool for chairs, the staff knows you well after a day because not so many guests. Since hotel is small, only 2 a la carte restaurants are available but the buffet is so good, it doesn't matter, even fussy eaters will be happy!

As usual, with GBP hotels, the common areas and the rooms are always spotless and very clean. The rooms were very nice with 4-poster beds and I had a room with a balcony facing the ocean and the sun would set there at night, it was marvelous!!!

The staff whether it be the animation team (Yordy, best bachata professor), the restaurant team (Marisol, hostess with the mostess), the bartenders (Juan, my Capriña especial) or the administration staff (Andrés, the best concierge): all of them are so nice and they want to make your stay very enjoyable!

So the beach is not white sand or the water turquoise but the waves are fun and the sea is great. When you've been all over the islands, this place is special and should not be missed. The hotel's architecture and the fact it is up on a little cliff makes it look so wonderful!

I would back anytime for sure!!!