Hi James. It's focus is definitely as a family resort. As an adult I think it is straightforward to either book El Carmen next door, or Excellence Club at Finest - if kids are an issue, the former is definitely the way to go. I would absolutely advise any adult only group to avoid non club at the Finest. As for leaving the French restaurant hungry, at Excellence just order as much as you want. If you want two or three starters, go for it or even a couple of mains - they know the portions are small and are quite used to it :) Room service in my opinion has never been a strength of the brand - it's a shame but generally they have so many dining options for each meal that it has never been an issue for me. As for three breakfasts, you would make a Hobbit proud! Keep up the great work.
Great video James. For two years I've been waiting for a video as good as this of Finest Punta Cana. Keep up the great work. I'm lucky to be arriving at FPC for twelve nights next week!
My wife and I would normally never stay at a resort that would allow families. In May we tried all three Excellence properties. We actually liked Finest the best. The adult section is very separate from the family. You really never have to see kids. The rooms, food and service were better than the other two resorts. It is very quiet and relaxing, kind of like a boutique adults only. The beach and ocean are also better. I would say if you need more entertainment without kids El Carmen would be better. If you just want a quiet relaxing experience it is Finest. We are going back this Sept. for 10 days.
First off I enjoy your videos very much and feel you make a wonderful product with most questions and concerns addressed. I am planning a trip in the next couple months and would like the cost details on the numerous upgrades at resorts. How much is excellence club, unique was another one I recall. How much additional money to upgrade into these clubs, and is it worth the added expense. I will check your library of videos and see if I can find anything on that topic. I would be thrilled if you responded personally to my question.
Just to add, the kids pool being together is actually quite helpful for travellers with kids. It means my wife can be with the kids at the bubble trampoline, while I swim to the swim up bar to get us drinks without leaving the pool. Not sure why you found the setup of the family pool to be goofy, it's awesome. We have a family room overlooking this pool and it works really well. Only thing I'd say is that I wish the plunge pools were cleaned better as they are often full of dead flies.
Good morning, great content. You have shown us some great resorts in Cancun and Punta Cana. I love both locations. September 2023 I went to Cancun. I stayed at the Royalton cheek and you did a review on that resort. Excellent review and you were right on target. Meaning me and my son were doing a 8-day Southern Caribbean cruise on the Mardi gras carnival. If possible if you can do a review on that I would really really appreciate it. Keep up the good work man. Great content.
I booked this resort based on your review. I am very excited to go. I am going with my wife and enjoy a much quieter low key experience so based on your review I think this will be be a good fit.
You will adore it! We went 3 times in less than a year because we loved it so much! If you don’t have kids I HIGHLY recommend upgrading to excellence club. We are booked in the ex. Club beachfront honeymoon private pool suite for October, but as much as I love this place I am trying to push myself to experience a new place. But it’s so hard not to go here lol
Hi James - we stayed here twice in the last year had no seaweed. We are trying FPM later this year but FPC will be so hard to beat its really a great resort.
Hi James, LOVE your reviews, especially about the food, rooms, and beach quality. Do you book through Expedia for the VIP? Have you been to Dreams Royal Beach Punta Cana, if not can you do a review on it, especially the food :)? I am more than likely booking an October trip at the Finest or Excellence Punta Cana based on your reviews. Thanks for all you do. 💯
Nice James! been waiting for you to do this one... I went to finest after watching your video on the original Excellence and had an amazing time! Wish you tried the hydro therapy session, they gave a free session for upgrading to excellence club but don't know if they still do that.
Wow, a 5! From the comments in the video I thought you were going to give a 3, maybe a 4. I..e Which, by your tough grading scale is actually pretty good, and is at least a passing grade, but not elite. I remember some of your Vegas videos, and it seemed like you were a really tough judge, and it was really hard to earn a 5 or higher. But maybe I've just misinterpreted your comments in the video. In any case, love your content, and can't wait until you're back in Vegas - keep up the good work!
Excellent review James as usual! The food did look great in presentation, and I am certain in taste. I like your comparison to Peter Lugar's Steak to the Tomahawk Steak. The Queens location is where I took customers very often!
I am glad you stayed here as it has been on my wish list....but now it isn't. Love your honest reviews. I had peeked into Finest when I stayed at EEC but only saw the Club pool area. LA for the win! What is the mystery of your video being up, then down, then back again? I didn't notice any edits from Friday nights post. Cheers!
Currently planning our wedding here, I'm hoping with all our friends ans family we can bring a little life to the resort! Everything looks great though. Pretty stoked
James - great review , worth the wait , we were there in October , as a couple and loved it , we booked in as finest but next week staying in the excellence part , we also loved the food , thought for an all inclusive best were found , was really impressed, the rooms and hotel are really 5 star , we also loved the beach had no seaweed at all beack in October , for us everything was a massive positive ( hence going back ), especially for the price ! only small negative yes the service is amazing and friendly , we had an issue with building work at the side of the property on the finest , without going into a long story , trying to sort that out was very difficult compared to other parts of the world we've had vacations, but that hasn't put us off thanks again for the review
I stayed there for 5 days a couple of weeks ago. Have to say your review was right on the money. Looking forward to watching your top 20 resorts in punta cana video. Also take the Google reviews with a grain of salt because the workers there will prompt you to give them a shout-out review. Seems like the owners are pushing that on to them to inflate their Google ratings
Love your reviews. Somehow my comment dropped. Please give us your thoughts between the 3 excellence properties in your el carmen review! We are trying to decide between them! They all seem good but finest with excellence club seems a great value. Would be especially be interested in how you'd rank their food relative to each other.
Hi... so I saw the full video and I did not see or hear anything about Zilara Cap Cana...Not sure if I missed it, but... if you don't mind telling me where exactly in THIS video you talk about Zilara Cap Cana, I would really appreciate it... Also, my original question was actually about a video of your experience at Zilara Cap Cana (in case you have one). Thank you :) @@Coolist
Unless I missed it on the channel have you done or are you gonna do Ibero star grand Punta Cana my wife wants to go there for her 40th (adults only) wanted to know ur thoughts thx
Hi James, We would like to see a review Beloved Playa Mujeres and Excellence Playa Mujeres. We have been to Beloved 8 times and nothing else compares to the couples only experience they provide. It may not be for you as far as action and entertainment, but there level of service makes up for what some describe as boring or to quiet.
James, this latest couldn't have dropped at a better time. We are actively trying to decide between Finest and Hard Rock for our trip in February. If we wanted to avoid kids, which is the better option: Finest with Excellence Club or Hard Rock?
I just came back from Hard Rock July 19 to July 25. It’s huge and it does have families with kids but it’s so big that if you want to avoid a the kids you can…they have like 13-15 pools 😎. The rooms are beautiful and the beach section at hard rock is awesome no sea weed for us…
if you like good food ive heard from various friends the food at hard rock is poor ! people go there for the party vibe I suppose , where as we stayed at the finest , its quiet , but that's what we wanted and the food was out of this world for an all inc. the rooms etc.. are one of the best we've been to.
Hi James…appreciate your reviews and comments. If I can recommend, it would be SO HELPFUL if you can a kettle comment for those who need a handicap room. We have no idea what they look at and don’t know if there is a pathway leading to the beach. Many thanks.
You don’t want seaweed you need to go to the south coast, La Romana and Bayahibe you won’t get any seaweed. You need to do some videos down there. It’s 100 times better than Punta Cana. The north coast can be cool too but the south coast especially Bayahibe is considered the luxury area of the DR
I love this, however seaweed is not litter. I know it looks bad but there are worse things that float in the ocean such as plastic. Seaweed is natural and good for the ocean ecosystem :) #justsayin
IF YOU DONT DROP THAT DAMN EXCELLENCE EL CARMEN VIDEO ALREADY WE ARE GOING TO FIGHT MY BOY HURRY UP GUY LOVE U TO DEATH BUT IM PRESSED RN FOR THIS VIDEO
Hi James Great perceptive review I’m going to Excellence Punta Cana in December. Why I didn’t chose Finest is because it’s too sterile, spread out and has no real personality. Looks similar to a hospital complex Love the rooms a whole lot. I adore modern architecture but I don’t want this on my Caribbean vacation. I can see why some would love it, especially if they have children. Again, simply love your reviews. I base a lot of my travel on your experiences. Thanks again for all your hard work.
Flamingos in hotels of the DR are captive and have clipped wings. They are illegal and in violation of law 54-00, 248-12, and 333-15. Please do not promote captive flamingos in your videos.
The pools are kinda disappointing, one big thing i look at when trying new resorts is to make sure they have a swim up bar and kids excluded. The rest of the property looks amazing maybe once i have kids ill think about this property.
The Finest Hotel it’s beautiful, I was there in 2021, Swim up Room the best
Hi James. It's focus is definitely as a family resort. As an adult I think it is straightforward to either book El Carmen next door, or Excellence Club at Finest - if kids are an issue, the former is definitely the way to go. I would absolutely advise any adult only group to avoid non club at the Finest. As for leaving the French restaurant hungry, at Excellence just order as much as you want. If you want two or three starters, go for it or even a couple of mains - they know the portions are small and are quite used to it :) Room service in my opinion has never been a strength of the brand - it's a shame but generally they have so many dining options for each meal that it has never been an issue for me. As for three breakfasts, you would make a Hobbit proud! Keep up the great work.
Its also for romantic couples I think most couples probably stay around their rooms and such.
Great video James. For two years I've been waiting for a video as good as this of Finest Punta Cana. Keep up the great work. I'm lucky to be arriving at FPC for twelve nights next week!
me too , been waiting for this video for a while , see you there , be there same time !
Very informative and helpful, as usual James. Thx for taking us all along on your journeys. Cheers!
My wife and I would normally never stay at a resort that would allow families. In May we tried all three Excellence properties. We actually liked Finest the best. The adult section is very separate from the family. You really never have to see kids. The rooms, food and service were better than the other two resorts. It is very quiet and relaxing, kind of like a boutique adults only. The beach and ocean are also better. I would say if you need more entertainment without kids El Carmen would be better. If you just want a quiet relaxing experience it is Finest. We are going back this Sept. for 10 days.
Nice, is smoking allowed?
First off I enjoy your videos very much and feel you make a wonderful product with most questions and concerns addressed. I am planning a trip in the next couple months and would like the cost details on the numerous upgrades at resorts. How much is excellence club, unique was another one I recall. How much additional money to upgrade into these clubs, and is it worth the added expense. I will check your library of videos and see if I can find anything on that topic. I would be thrilled if you responded personally to my question.
Excited to go! Booked for 2 weeks starting tomorrow! Hope it lives up to the hype!
Just to add, the kids pool being together is actually quite helpful for travellers with kids. It means my wife can be with the kids at the bubble trampoline, while I swim to the swim up bar to get us drinks without leaving the pool. Not sure why you found the setup of the family pool to be goofy, it's awesome. We have a family room overlooking this pool and it works really well.
Only thing I'd say is that I wish the plunge pools were cleaned better as they are often full of dead flies.
BC he is not their customer base, you are.
Good morning, great content. You have shown us some great resorts in Cancun and Punta Cana. I love both locations. September 2023 I went to Cancun. I stayed at the Royalton cheek and you did a review on that resort. Excellent review and you were right on target. Meaning me and my son were doing a 8-day Southern Caribbean cruise on the Mardi gras carnival. If possible if you can do a review on that I would really really appreciate it. Keep up the good work man. Great content.
This is a terrific video-engaging, detailed, and balanced. It has convinced me to book an Excellence Club room for our winter break. Thanks! 🥂
I booked this resort based on your review. I am very excited to go. I am going with my wife and enjoy a much quieter low key experience so based on your review I think this will be be a good fit.
You will adore it! We went 3 times in less than a year because we loved it so much! If you don’t have kids I HIGHLY recommend upgrading to excellence club. We are booked in the ex. Club beachfront honeymoon private pool suite for October, but as much as I love this place I am trying to push myself to experience a new place. But it’s so hard not to go here lol
Hi James - we stayed here twice in the last year had no seaweed. We are trying FPM later this year but FPC will be so hard to beat its really a great resort.
Great job James- your editing is great! Thank you!
Hi James, LOVE your reviews, especially about the food, rooms, and beach quality. Do you book through Expedia for the VIP? Have you been to Dreams Royal Beach Punta Cana, if not can you do a review on it, especially the food :)? I am more than likely booking an October trip at the Finest or Excellence Punta Cana based on your reviews. Thanks for all you do. 💯
NICE REVIEW
SEEMS LIKE A WONDERFUL
EXPERIENCE
BEACH SEA WEED WELL IT HAPENS ON CERTAIN TIMES OF THE YEAR..
Nice James! been waiting for you to do this one... I went to finest after watching your video on the original Excellence and had an amazing time! Wish you tried the hydro therapy session, they gave a free session for upgrading to excellence club but don't know if they still do that.
We stayed at Excellence El Carmen 4 years ago and it was amazing
Wow, a 5! From the comments in the video I thought you were going to give a 3, maybe a 4. I..e Which, by your tough grading scale is actually pretty good, and is at least a passing grade, but not elite. I remember some of your Vegas videos, and it seemed like you were a really tough judge, and it was really hard to earn a 5 or higher. But maybe I've just misinterpreted your comments in the video. In any case, love your content, and can't wait until you're back in Vegas - keep up the good work!
Congratulations on the video. What month did you stay at the resort?
Im there September 17 for one week❤❤. I always stay at Excellence properties. Always classy!
How did you like it?
@TommyTurner69 I loved excellence el Carmen much better. Food was meh, service was spotty. I wouldn't stay there again.
Excellent review James as usual!
The food did look great in presentation, and I am certain in taste.
I like your comparison to Peter Lugar's Steak to the Tomahawk Steak. The Queens location is where I took customers very often!
Hey James I just shared this video with my wife and I got the go-ahead to book the first week of December. want to say thank you
Hello James. Glad to hear the audio is back to spot on. Also, where did you find that awesome black shirt?
That shoji decor for me is kinda similar to Edition Hotel at Tokyo. I Like the simplicity
I am glad you stayed here as it has been on my wish list....but now it isn't. Love your honest reviews. I had peeked into Finest when I stayed at EEC but only saw the Club pool area. LA for the win! What is the mystery of your video being up, then down, then back again? I didn't notice any edits from Friday nights post. Cheers!
Thank you. This changes my thoughts. I love your reviews
Currently planning our wedding here, I'm hoping with all our friends ans family we can bring a little life to the resort! Everything looks great though. Pretty stoked
Have you had your wedding yet? We are booked at Hard Rock PC but we are looking at changing to here or Dreams Macao
James - great review , worth the wait , we were there in October , as a couple and loved it , we booked in as finest but next week staying in the excellence part , we also loved the food , thought for an all inclusive best were found , was really impressed, the rooms and hotel are really 5 star , we also loved the beach had no seaweed at all beack in October , for us everything was a massive positive ( hence going back ), especially for the price ! only small negative yes the service is amazing and friendly , we had an issue with building work at the side of the property on the finest , without going into a long story , trying to sort that out was very difficult compared to other parts of the world we've had vacations, but that hasn't put us off thanks again for the review
This review is really helpful as I will be there in October this year. Excited to explore around this time. We went about and booked Excellence Club.
@@mjunior4316 we’re here now loving it , btw james the seaweed is bad they are trying to clear it up but it’s obviously very heavy this time of year !
I plan on going here in July for my birthday and want the upgrade, which is better excellence club or finest club upgrade ?
Great elements to this hotel. It just a little spark!
This new style of resort with zero tropical vibe is killing my wish to return to the DR.😢
The market is the best breakfast ever. Go to the souvenir house right near there. $40 for massage and great cigars.
I stayed there for 5 days a couple of weeks ago. Have to say your review was right on the money. Looking forward to watching your top 20 resorts in punta cana video. Also take the Google reviews with a grain of salt because the workers there will prompt you to give them a shout-out review. Seems like the owners are pushing that on to them to inflate their Google ratings
Love your reviews. Somehow my comment dropped. Please give us your thoughts between the 3 excellence properties in your el carmen review! We are trying to decide between them! They all seem good but finest with excellence club seems a great value. Would be especially be interested in how you'd rank their food relative to each other.
Having kids around isn't a big deal. Place looks amazing
Odd that I didn’t get a RUclips notification since I have your channel set to All notifications. 🧐
Hi James... Have you stayed at Zilara Cap Cana? I would love to see your review on that resort....
Did you watch until the end? 😊.
(Your answer is in the video)
oops... thanx for replying... saved the video to watch later... hehehe will check it out thank uuuu@@Coolist
Hi... so I saw the full video and I did not see or hear anything about Zilara Cap Cana...Not sure if I missed it, but... if you don't mind telling me where exactly in THIS video you talk about Zilara Cap Cana, I would really appreciate it... Also, my original question was actually about a video of your experience at Zilara Cap Cana (in case you have one). Thank you :) @@Coolist
Hey buddy I’m traveling there with my wife in September. Trying to decide overall between finest and excellence
So my surf and turf with lobster an rib eye steak at Iberostar Grand Bavaro was no extra charge as well.
Was great and is absolutely recommendet
Is Dommo exclusive to Club guests? Also did you get to try their Korean BBQ venue called Melting Pot?
I love your channel. We’re staying next door at Excellence El Carmen later this year. Have you stayed there yet?
not sure if you mentioned it but how is the layout there? is it easy to navigate around?
Unless I missed it on the channel have you done or are you gonna do Ibero star grand Punta Cana my wife wants to go there for her 40th (adults only) wanted to know ur thoughts thx
excellence resorts are probably 2 tiers above iberostars
Be visiting that resort in several days. 😃
What month would you suggest going here?
Hi James it looks for me boring this resort I booked in lopesan and live aqua adults only to experience both of them thanks for the great videos
Is this right next door to breathless? Think I saw it being built when I was there last year
Hi James, We would like to see a review Beloved Playa Mujeres and Excellence Playa Mujeres. We have been to Beloved 8 times and nothing else compares to the couples only experience they provide. It may not be for you as far as action and entertainment, but there level of service makes up for what some describe as boring or to quiet.
Don't forget the pastor tacos at the Beloved food truck!!!!! DELICIOUS! I am sitting at the Finest Playa Murejes as I type!!!😊
do the rooms here or in any resort have a iron to steam clothes?
Any plans on visiting Secrets Cap Cana? Heard great things.
James, this latest couldn't have dropped at a better time. We are actively trying to decide between Finest and Hard Rock for our trip in February. If we wanted to avoid kids, which is the better option: Finest with Excellence Club or Hard Rock?
I just came back from Hard Rock July 19 to July 25. It’s huge and it does have families with kids but it’s so big that if you want to avoid a the kids you can…they have like 13-15 pools 😎. The rooms are beautiful and the beach section at hard rock is awesome no sea weed for us…
@@mariogutierrez5185
if you like good food ive heard from various friends the food at hard rock is poor ! people go there for the party vibe I suppose , where as we stayed at the finest , its quiet , but that's what we wanted and the food was out of this world for an all inc. the rooms etc.. are one of the best we've been to.
Definitely go to Finest excellence club over Hard Rock of you want to avoid kids and just have a better overall experience with much better food.
I love this resort ❤
Love your video's man, great job
Another great vid , shame these amazing looking places spoil themselves by allowing kids there , adults only for me
Hi James, have you ever featured the Iberostar Bavaro Grand adults only.
I have, not in the same league with Excellence properties, but still decent. Water filtration a little unusual.
How much does it cost to do an upgrade at finest punta cana?
Does anyone know the smoking policy? Thanks
Thanks!
Hi James…appreciate your reviews and comments. If I can recommend, it would be SO HELPFUL if you can a kettle comment for those who need a handicap room. We have no idea what they look at and don’t know if there is a pathway leading to the beach. Many thanks.
If James was running things there would be a backup for the backup
What time of the year was this stay?
Like! (for sideways pool jump!)
@Coolist when we’re you there?
How much was the Excelense Club?
Nice!
You don’t want seaweed you need to go to the south coast, La Romana and Bayahibe you won’t get any seaweed. You need to do some videos down there. It’s 100 times better than Punta Cana. The north coast can be cool too but the south coast especially Bayahibe is considered the luxury area of the DR
This seems very paid for. No negative things at all. Just raving about the resort. Felt way too much like an ad, not a review.
I love this, however seaweed is not litter. I know it looks bad but there are worse things that float in the ocean such as plastic. Seaweed is natural and good for the ocean ecosystem :) #justsayin
IF YOU DONT DROP THAT DAMN EXCELLENCE EL CARMEN VIDEO ALREADY WE ARE GOING TO FIGHT MY BOY HURRY UP GUY LOVE U TO DEATH BUT IM PRESSED RN FOR THIS VIDEO
Finest Punta Cana Excellence club was the closest the Beloved Playa Mujeres experience we have had.
Are you saying finest excellence club is similar to the Beloved experience?
breh .. are you done with vegas? can you try macau next?
Hi James
Great perceptive review
I’m going to Excellence Punta Cana in December.
Why I didn’t chose Finest is because it’s too sterile, spread out and has no real personality.
Looks similar to a hospital complex
Love the rooms a whole lot. I adore modern architecture but I don’t want this on my Caribbean vacation.
I can see why some would love it, especially if they have children.
Again, simply love your reviews. I base a lot of my travel on your experiences. Thanks again for all your hard work.
Flamingos in hotels of the DR are captive and have clipped wings. They are illegal and in violation of law 54-00, 248-12, and 333-15. Please do not promote captive flamingos in your videos.
No El Carmen review?
How much weight have you lost ?
Go back to Vegas,your the only one I can trust on food!
The pools are kinda disappointing, one big thing i look at when trying new resorts is to make sure they have a swim up bar and kids excluded. The rest of the property looks amazing maybe once i have kids ill think about this property.
The Excellence Club pool is amazing. Why is it disappointing?
@@antjones21 because you have to pay extra for it :/
I heard a lot of people come home with diarrhea.
too many kids, too much seawood. Pretty grim
No to kids for me😢
Dude you complain alot
Punta Cana is a Dump.