Gran Bahia Principe Esmeralda Reviews

A great facility, friendly and accomodating staff and fellow guest as such I would wholeheartedly recommend the island and facility to anyone if asked

This is the best. It ranks right up there with all the other resorts we have visited in the same area. Food and restaurants are very good. Had great time.

Nice resort with great pool and beach area. The food options are good. Take time to try the ala carte restaurants. Service is very inconsistent. If this is the kind of issue that drives you crazy, this is not the place for you. Also, Bahia allows very high pressure sales pitches to be allowed on their property, primarily for a vacation club that works like a timeshare. Beware!

Resort and grounds are beautiful. Very clean! Pools and beach so close to all the rooms with adequate seating no matter what time of day. Food options are good. Not a lot of variety on a day to day basis at the buffet but a lot of choices. I never went away hungry. Definitely worth taking the time to make reservations at the ala carte restaurants. Customer service a little lacking...took a while to get washcloths when we called, hung the phone up on us of they did not understand what we were asking in English and do not take travelers checks. Great place if you just want to relax by the pool/beach, have a few drinks and truly veg out!

We stayed at the Esmeralda in early July 2011 and had a good time with few negative comments. I will try to keep this brief. The grounds are immaculate. Most of the staff is friendly but the expectance of tipping by the wait staff of the restaurants is very unprofessional. Since most of them work almost every day, if you don’t tip you receive very slow service. The food was good. Nothing to write home about but there was always something you could find to eat. The pool is very nice. Some do not like the temperature of the water, which is akin to a warm bath. The beach is average. The resort allows people to “reserve” (with towels, clothing, books, etc.) beach loungers. We saw shaded lounges go unused for hours because someone had put their stuff on them in the middle of the night/very early morning and did not use them. They really need to enforce the no reserving loungers rule they have. Also the amount of seaweed during our stay was at times overwhelming. The resort did a good job every morning of raking the beach but by late afternoon the seaweed returned. There was always seaweed floating on and of course on the bed of the water. Being part of the larger GBP resort has its advantages as well. There are plenty people to socialize with if you like. The shows are on par with what you find at most Caribbean resorts. The drinks are average.

I read tons of reviews but was not disappointed in any way with the Esmerelda. The rooms were very spacious, clean and nicely appointed. The staff was friendly and helpful. The food was sometimes good other times excellent. The Japanese restaurant Maiko was the best! The gounds and pool areas were lovely. And the beach was great! I travelled with 2 girlfriends and all of us would return in a heartbeat!