The Traveler’s Guide 

to

Secrets Cap Cana Resort and Spa

Compiled by Travelers Who Have Been There

(Not sponsored or affiliated with employees of the resort or the resort itself.)

Table of Contents:

Map of the Resort

Secrets Cap Cana is perfectly situated on the magnificent east coast of the Dominican Republic, the natural beauty of the island and nearby coral reef nurtures an incredible number of flora and fauna that are sure to nourish your spirit. Visit Altos de Chavón, Saona Island, Catalina Island, Santo Domingo, La Romana, or Higuey for a couple of hours or a day trip and explore this historic area in the Dominican Republic.

Preferred or Non-Preferred...Is It Really Worth It?

How much is it to upgrade?

Obviously when and how and where you ask, it’s going to be different, but here are some of the quotes and experiences from recent travelers:

• The following information was as of early 2019, OBVIOUSLY it’s not guaranteed to be their current pricing - so please email or call them.
• The cost to upgrade from a Jr. Suite Tropical View to Preferred Club Jr. Suite Tropical View is $150 per night per room. (Quoted in an email from the resort.)
• We paid an extra $500 for 7 days to upgrade. (From another traveler)

Being in the Preferred Club will allow you access to the following additional amenities:

· Personalized check-in and check-out

· Personal butler

· Preferred status and amenities

· Preferred Club Lounge

· One private, Preferred Club pool

· Upgraded bath amenities

· Pillow menu

· Upgraded mini-bar menu

· Daily continental breakfast service and lunch at the Rosewater Restaurant

· Pool concierge & bar service

· Afternoon hot and cold hors d’oeuvres, exquisite desserts and fine liquors in the lounge

· Complimentary newspaper in room every day by request

· Oceana restaurant open for a la carte breakfast for Preferred Club guests only.

· Preferred Club private beach area
· 25% discount in spa treatments

Stellar Staff

What is it with the Seaweed?

It seems to depend on the season and seasonal/yearly weather patterns.

Here’s what we can tell you based on what we saw (and smelled) when we were there! (Pictures included when possible!)

Drinks and Dining Notes

• Reservations are NOT required for restaurants but are handy to have.
• Please tip WELL for good service. It’s not required, but you will want to because they are THAT great!
• Types of beers they serve (from travelers’ memories, not necessarily a comprehensive list):

• 100s of beers, including Coors, Corona, Presidente
• We had unlimited Coors light, Budweiser, Heineken, Corona and Miller. Obviously they had Presidente as well. I picked up a case at duty free to keep in room. There is beer in room too but I still like to bring my own, just in case 😁 We were on the non-preferred side as well.

• For more information: http://www.secretsresorts.com/en_us/resorts/dominican-republic/cap-cana/dining-drinks.html 

What to Pack

Based on a One-Week Stay

To Tip or Not to Tip: It’s Not a Question!

Yes, it’s an all-inclusive and “Taxes and Gratuities are Included.” But...come on. You can show your appreciation!

Read this first: https://blog.allinclusiveoutlet.com/tipping-etiquette-at-all-inclusive-resorts/?fbclid=IwAR31YXNpHl1-F2NmELOC_WMI4znzhghLO078RvVpz3koAklaDAlIrFtAyt4 

Recommended Tips for Staff:

(Here’s what other travelers did!)

What I Wish I’d Known…

• The tap water is not filtered. And the lettuce (a.k.a. the lettuce in salads) is likely rinsed in tap water.
• Sunscreen is $30 a bottle at the resort - super expensive - so bring LOTS! Cheaper at the airport if needed.
• You can negotiate a good deal on excursions if you do more than one.
• Packing a Damp Rid would have helped our room’s humidity and smell a lot - I saw some of the other guests had them and we wish we had.
• It can be SUPER windy on the beach, and I didn’t bring enough hair clips
• Use bottled water for everything - drinking, brushing teeth, etc.
• You can ask the butler/concierge for more hangars for your closet.
• Put the Do Not Disturb sign on if you might be getting busy. Nothing quite like getting a knock on the door from room service when...ahem ...enjoying yourself.

Unlimited Connectivity

This is the app that (according to their website) gives you:

The resort app gives you Wifi, but depending on your carrier you may need to sign up for an International plan for the days you need it. The bottom line: Discuss this with your phone company. :)

Laundry Service

• There is a laundry bag in the closet with a pricing list attached.

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Excursions: What to Try and Avoid

For more information:  
http://www.secretsresorts.com/en_us/resorts/dominican-republic/cap-cana/tours-excursions.html 

The Spa

For more information: http://www.secretsresorts.com/en_us/resorts/dominican-republic/cap-cana/world-class-spa.html 

Pricing and Services:

http://www.secretsresorts.com/content/dam/amr/sites/secrets/resorts/seccc/spa/SPA%20MENU.pdf 

The Fitness Center

Tell Me About the Rooms

From the Resort:

Standard units sleep up to 2 or 3 people and have a full bathroom with two rain showers, water closet and double vanities. All guest rooms have a private balcony or terrace with a soaking tub lovely tropical views, 24-hour room service, a 42" cable TV, armoire, sofa, complimentary WiFi with Unlimited Connectivity, a daily refreshed mini-bar and more. Preferred Club units offer all of the above room amenities, plus additional services and amenities. These premium amenities include access to a private pool, preferred room location, personalized check-in & check-out service, a private lounge, upgraded mini-bar service and bath amenities and more. Preferred Club units sleep up to 2 or 3 people.

From fellow travelers:

• The mini bar items are all sealed tightly. Nothing to worry about like at the resorts where people are dying after drinking the mini fridge drinks. At those resorts, they drank from dispensers. Here they are sealed bottles.
• The preferred club bungalow suite swim out oceanfront has the view but not the regular preferred club. We loved our room.
• This is building 7 preferred club junior swim out ocean front (see the 2 pictures below). I believe there are 3 junior swim out suites in this building. The others are swim out master suites.

• Bldg 4 and 7 are preferred ocean front. There is no guarantee that you’ll get that room. I sent an email two weeks and the week before. I requested buildings 4, 7 & 6. Six is preferred swimout pool front. Here is my amazing building 4 view (picture to the right).
• Building 4 preferred club oceanfront swimout pictured below:

• Preferred Club swim out 4104, ocean front pictured to the right.

Tell Me About the Rooms, Continued

For more information: http://www.secretsresorts.com/en_us/resorts/dominican-republic/cap-cana/accommodations.html 

Weddings and Vow Renewals
(as of June 2019 this is what was on their website)

Note from a traveler: The website isn’t up to date on the wedding packages. Beyond memorable package $7500 for 50 people.

WEDDING IN PARADISE

$999 USD* or Complimentary

SECRETS OF LOVE

2019: $3,199 USD / $2,799 USD (August through October)*

2020: $3,399 USD / $3,199 USD (August through October)**

SECRETS ULTIMATE

2019: $3,599 USD / $3,299 USD (August through October)*

2020: $3,799 USD / $3,599 USD (August through October)**

*2019 - In the months of August, September, and October 2019 the package price will be $3,299 USD. All remaining months of 2019 will be the standard package pricing of $3,599 USD.

**2020 - In the months of August, September, and October 2020 the package price will be $3,599 USD. All remaining months of 2020 will be the standard package pricing of $3,799 USD.

***2019 Wedding Bonus: Only applicable to new weddings booked for a wedding date in 2019. Weddings booked before March 2018 cannot cancel and rebook to earn this offer. Additional guests must be staying at Secrets to be included as complimentary. No cash value or substitution will be granted in lieu of taking advantage of this offer. Wedding date and room availability must be confirmed with the resort in advance of purchasing the package.  Upgrade inclusions subject to change and can promotion can be closed out without notice. Rehearsal or Welcome dinner will be arranged at one of the resort’s gourmet, a la carte restaurants with a set menu. Groups wishing to add additional guests, upgrades and enhancements can be made through the resort’s wedding coordinator, for an additional cost.

For more information: http://www.secretsresorts.com/en_us/resorts/dominican-republic/cap-cana/weddings.html 

Honeymoons / Anniversaries

A small clip from their website:

Notes from those who have experienced these packages:

For more information: http://www.secretsresorts.com/en_us/resorts/dominican-republic/cap-cana/honeymoon-anniversary.html 

The Beach and the Pool

Tips for a Great Time on the Beach and at the Pool:

• The early bird gets the worm...or the best beach/pool spot and the best chair/umbrella spot.
• Re-apply sunscreen OFTEN.
• Consider tipping the beach clean up crew - they work hard!
• Beach beds (the really nice ones that everyone asks about reserving) are available for $100 a day (as of summer 2019).

What NOT to do…

• Don’t be one of those people who steals from other people.
• Don’t be one of those people who claims a coveted spot and then just not be there for hours when someone else could have enjoyed it in your absence.
• Don’t wake up at 10:00 am or later and expect to have a spot on the beach or at the pool guaranteed.

Entertainment and the Night Life

This is not a party resort. There are things to do after dinner, but you’re not going to find “The Spring Break Scene” here.

Depending on the time of year, here’s what you can expect (from their website):

For more information:

http://www.secretsresorts.com/en_us/resorts/dominican-republic/cap-cana/activities.html 

Airport and Transportation Notes

Notes about Transportation Companies:

From one traveler: “Our transportation was with Amstar and it was seamless. We were in van with a few others and it was inexpensive and very organized. Airport is chaotic but they were waiting for our arrival and took us directly to van. Coming home they were waiting in the lobby on time. They advised us to look for them wearing blue flowered shirts and not to talk to anyone else. We had received info with our reservation on where to go to find them. They had big sign with Amstar on it and were right where our directions said. They knew us from a list they had with our flight info.” Picture of blue shirts of Amstar workers here!

How much you should plan to spend:

Notes about the ride/trip to the resort:

From a Traveler: “People concerned for safety: Our van went through a security checkpoint on the highway driving to resort from airport. I asked what it was and he said "This is Cap Cana." He said "rich people" live there and that's why the security! Then arriving at resort we went through security gate, I noticed cameras everywhere outside. As in any country including US, I would never wander around alone at night.” 

From the Resort: “Ideally located only 20 minutes from Punta Cana International Airport (PUJ) with many diving tours and outdoor tourism sites located nearby. **Warning: Do not accept any invitations at the airport or give any cash deposits to solicitors.”

Weather Notes

Here’s what you need to know about the weather when we went:

The Language

The primary language of the Dominican Republic is Spanish. The staff for the most part know polite English (some more than others) but it wouldn’t hurt and would be really awesome if you could learn a little Spanish to help them out and show appreciation for their culture!  From a fellow traveler: “Put an English to Spanish translator on your phone. Most lobby people know English, but if you need something from the maid or anyone that doesn't directly deal with talking to guests all day, it was hard to communicate with them.”

DuoLingo is a cool website/app that you can use to practice your Spanish (or really any language). It’s really fun!

Here are some useful phrases you might want to learn.

Frequently Asked Questions

Reviews

Trip Advisor reviews: https://www.tripadvisor.com/Hotel_Review-g147293-d10175054-Reviews-Secrets_Cap_Cana_Resort_Spa-Punta_Cana_La_Altagracia_Province_Dominican_Republic.html#REVIEWS 

Pictures

For pics and videos on their website: http://www.secretsresorts.com/en_us/resorts/dominican-republic/cap-cana/photos-videos.html