The staff at the Hacienda Del Mar were terrific. Be careful of the rooms. They are very clean but our original room on the second floor had no view. The window was blocked by overgrowth.

The website continues to promote the lazy river and pool with slides. These features were apparently closed in February to make way for reconstruction of the hotel next door. In its place, you get to enjoy the view of a 6' high chain link fence, empty pool and deserted hotel. The Hyatt failed to inform any of its members of the pool closure.

The remaining lap pool is very nice but too deep for children under 10. The only restaurant is the pool bar with very limited menu. There are nice restaurants within a 5-10 minute drive but you should have a automobile for freedom. The hotel store has very limited selection of foods and snacks.

This place was a ghost town. The property was in decent shape but not up to Hyatt standards. The restaurants, snack bar, and most other amenities have been shut down.

If you are looking for a quiet getaway with adults, this is worthy of consideration. If you are traveling with young children, I would recommend avoiding until construction of the adjacent hotel is completed in 2010/2011.

We just spent a week at the Hyatt Hacienda del Mar in Dorado, Puerto Rico. We have been to the location five times before over the past 23 years and have always enjoyed it. Our first visit was in 1985 at the end of our honeymoon, then in 1989 with our then 2 year old, again in 1992 with our then 5 year old (leaving an infant at home) and then in 2001 with our 14, 9 & 6 year olds. My husband bought this week in a 2 bedroom timeshare at a school auction, overbidding significantly with memories of all those wonderful vacations past. Then we started to read the reviews...the adjacent Hyatt hotels on the property were closed, the river pool closed and we started to really worry. Were we off to some abandoned hotel site??? When we arrived we were very disappointed to see the 9 foot chain link fencing and the empty, abandoned river pool. Not only was it spooky but it was very sad, with all our memories! Since this was potentially our last big family vacation now that our kids are 20, 15, & 12 we swallowed hard and decided to make the best of it. So we went ahead and despite all the negatives we had a great week. First of all our two bedroom unit on the fifth floor was all recently renovated, new appliances, new sofa bed, very clean and with a beautiful view of the ocean (although also a view of the abandoned hotel). The one remaining pool that was open was nice and the beach was very pleasant. I did prefer the pool and the lagoon at the adjacent Dorado Beach Club (the former Hyatt Dorado Beach which is also closed) which guests at the Hacienda del mar are also allowed to use. While we were there the surf was very rough for 2-3 days due to a storm out at sea so the beach was closed for swimming. The waves however were amazing!!! The food at both locations was significantly limited, really only the beach bohios at each location. The burgers at the Dorado Beach club were fantastic although expensive $11. We bought groceries and beer as well as cases of water at the "Amigo" so we did have breakfast and snacks in our unit. During the week we ate dinner at the Hacienda del Sol (which was way overpriced and not very good), the Trattoria de Nanda (twice which was pretty good), Applebees and La Terraza, all in Dorado. The best thing about the resort is the golf courses. My husband and two sons played both the Plantation course and the famous Dorado East 6 of 7 days and again although expensive they had an awesome time! In the end it was a great vacation and we are considering buying into this timeshare resort since it has so many memories for us. One very important factor, you must rent a car since the cabs are way overpriced and you do have to drive to restaurants, to the grocery store, to the golf course (which is adjacent but the clubhouse is at least a mile away) not to mention to the airport. Overall we had a great vacatiion despite some pretty significant obstacles.

Before going, we read some negative reviews here and were a little worried. We own at Hyatt (Lake Tahoe, 2 weeks, and Hyatt Naples, 1 week) so this was an exchange. We found the property and the staff terrific. The beach is beautiful and the pools great. Good restaurants within 15 minute drive (and the resort will shuttle you if you have no car). The adjacent hotel IS closed (supposed to re-open in 2010) but we did not find this to be a problem. In fact, it did make beach chairs and tables more available. We will return.

Be aware that if you are visiting the hotel, it is not what it used to be. There are no restaurants on site, only one pool remains. The kids pool with the water slide and the river pool are closed! I did not know this when I booked through Travelocity. However, the existing pool and grounds were still nice and the beach is beautiful. A bit rough for small children but fun for the older kids. All the staff were accommodating. So much is changing with the hotel and the attached property that it is tough to know what will happen with it in the near future.
I highly recommend that if you do go, take a catamaran cruise out of Fajardo - it was awesome for adults and kids of all ages!