Ocean Blue Punta Cana and Ocean Sands Punta Cana
Ocean Blue Punta Cana and Ocean Sands in Punta Cana are essentially the same resort – they share
all the same amenities, but just have their rooms on opposite sides of the resort. When you walk
into the main lobby, Ocean Blue checkin is on the right and Ocean Sands on the left. Together,
the two hotels have over 700 rooms that cover a fair bit of real-estate. There is fair bit of
walking to do here, but don’t worry there are trams shuttling around the resort constantly – if
you don’t feel like walking just hop on.
Ocean Blue Punta Cana/ Ocean Sands Punta Cana are 4 ½ star resorts that probably deserve to
be bumped up – their service is outstanding! The grounds and rooms are kept impeccably
clean, the staff is welcoming and courteous, the food is great and the beach is spectacular.
You couldn’t ask for anything more.
Rooms
The rooms at Ocean Blue Punta Cana are very new looking and kept impeccably clean. The regular
“junior” suites have either a king size bed or two queens and have a couch and chair in front of
the TV. The bathrooms are clean and well laid out. The rooms also include: a room safe, stocked
mini-fridge (no booze without upgrade), iron and ironing board, hairdryer and a coffee maker.
The “deluxe junior suites” are all located in one villa in each of the hotels – they are a
little bigger (the bathrooms are bigger as well). In addition to the rooms being bigger, you
are giver an upgrade to the Elite Club which offers you 24 hour room service, beer in your
fridge, cigars, complementary dinners at the Bucanero Seafood Grill and at El Bodegon
restaurants. One hour of free motorized water sports usage each day and a half hour of
guided catamaran sailing per day is also included. The Elite club also entitles you to one
free scuba dive with a certified instructor during your stay which I never got around
to.
The extras offered by the Elite Club are very nice - if you get a good deal on the upgrade
then go for it.
Restaurants
There are a lot of places to eat at Ocean Blue Punta Cana, there are 9 restaurants in all.
Except for the beach restaurants, all of the restaurants are side by side across from the lobby,
so you don’t get those conversations about a supposedly great place that you never found during
your stay. We found that the food at the main buffet offered a great selection and the
service was good (lines weren’t too long). Every member of the family was able to find something
they enjoyed at every meal. Ocean Blue Punta Cana and Ocean Sands Punta Cana have the same
buffet, but have different seating areas (not sure why).
There is a beach buffet that we went to for lunch, they have great BBQ chicken! This
restaurant is also open for breakfast, but not until 10:00 – long past when our kids eat
breakfast.
Perhaps the thing we loved most about Ocean Blue Punta Cana and Ocean Sands Punta Cana is
that there are no reservations needed for the a la carte restaurants, you just show up. If
they’re too full you’re given a pager and they page you at the bar when a table’s ready.
Great system.
Margaritas is a Mexican restaurant – the food and service were wonderful and they had great
guacamole and tacos. Our daughter kept dragging us back there.
The Italian restaurant was quite good.
Route 66 is an American style restaurant – we always stay away from those. The food will
never be like it is at home and besides – eat it when you get home!
Mike’s Coffee House is the place to go for coffee and dessert. The coffee at most of the
restaurants isn’t great. Mike’s can get pretty crowded after supper, I usually went and got
us coffees and we drank them by the pool. Unfortunately, Mike’s isn’t open in the
morning.
There are several other a la carte restaurants, but we didn’t get to them.
Extra Charge Restaurants
Ocean Blue Punta Cana and Ocean Sands Punta have two restaurants that are not part of the
all-inclusive that offer a little higher level of cuisine and a great wine list. We had
great steaks at the Bucanero and a phenomenal seafood dinner at El Bogedon. Each of them
will run you between $20 - $30 per person plus your bottle of wine. If you feel like
splurging one night, they’re well worth it.
Pools
There are two swimming pools at Ocean Blue Punta Cana, both of them are huge and have swim-up
bars (a necessity for any decent pool). The pool near the beach seemed to have most of the
activities going on in it, if you’re looking for something a little quieter, try the pool
closest to the lobby.
Activities
You will not run out of things to do at Ocean Blue Punta Cana and Ocean Sands Punta Cana.
Their kids club offers supervised activities for ages 4-12. There is beach volleyball,
archery, a rock climbing wall, soccer, tennis courts, the Metamorphosis spa and golf.
The White Sands Golf Club is right behind the resort. They charge around $75 for 9 holes if
you rent everything. White Sands Golf Club in Punta Cana is a great course to take kids out
on and the staff are very accommodating. If you’re going to golf, I suggest you go early as
it does get pretty hot in the afternoons.
The resort has a “Strike” bowling alley. One game is included with your stay and additional
visits cost $15. I’m sure it would be packed on a rainy day, but is a great activity for
little kids who need a little “cool down time”.
Water Sports
The water sports at Ocean Blue Punta Cana and Ocean Sands Punta Cana are run by Pelicano. Free
water sports include:
- Windsurfing
- Kayaks
- Snorkeling
- Boogie boards
Motorized water sports can also be set up through Pelicano, but cost extra.
Beach
The beach at Ocean Blue and Ocean Sands Punta Cana is spectacular. White manicured sand, palm
trees and you can walk for miles in either direction. You can get some decent waves at the
beach, great for boogie-boarding. There is a roped off swimming area, make sure you stay
inside it as boats fly by just outside of it.
Instead of the traditional palapas, they have put up pergolas that look pretty neat, but
didn’t provide a ton of shade. I’m a bit of a shade junky and love to tuck my chair under a
palapa to read a book. You can’t win ‘em all.
Tips for Ocean Blue Punta Cana and Ocean Sands Punta Cana
- Men have to wear pants to dinner so pack a few pairs - many hotels are starting to do
this now. No big deal, unless you don’t know about it!
- If you plan on golfing consider bringing your clubs. The airlines allow you to bring
them for free and it will save you money at the course. (I’m not crazy about using
rented clubs either)
- If your kids like to snorkel, bring there own equipment – it doesn’t take up much space
and it’s cleaner and easier. They have kids stuff available, but it never seems to fit
right.
- There are lots of chairs available, but you still have to get up early to reserve your
seating.
- Bring a big stack of small bills for tipping
- Gift shops do not take credit cards so bring a decent amount of American cash.
- For more reviews, maps, hotel and pricing information visit our
Ocean
Blue Punta Cana
booking page
Contact Info
Telephone: 809-476-2326Fax: 809-947-0884
Hotel website
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Blue Punta Cana
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