HEADLINE: GREAT PLACE AT A GREAT PRICE! / OVERALL RATING:🍷🍷🍷.7 (3.7 OUT OF 5)
SUMMARY:
Our friend was getting married and like any good girlfriend we wanted to throw ourselves a proper bachelorette party, ahem, I mean, her, we wanted to throw her a proper bachelorette party. We decided to have a Beach Day Away in nearby Juan Dolio and after having visited Club Hemingway last year, I knew I wanted to stay close to that part of JD. Unfortunately, many places in that area were either booked, waaaay out of budget, or required a 2 night stay. I came across Costa del Sol. It seemed to be right near Hemingway’s but I had never been before so I was nervous to book it. I revisited the page on Flipkey several times but time was running out so I pulled the trigger and hoped for the best. I’m glad I pulled the trigger. The Costa del Sol first floor condo with 2-bedrooms slept 5 comfortably and with the large living room and comfortable couches could have easily slept more.
PRICE:
From $200-$250/night (depending on season)
PET FRIENDLY:
I found the listing on Flipkey which says they are not pet-friendly but I’ve learned it never hurts to ask. I have two small, quiet, trained poodles which I was told were ok to bring. Just make sure to always keep up and clean after your pet so that you don’t ruin it for the rest of us.
ABOUT GROUNDS:🍷🍷🍷🍷 (4 OUT OF 5)
Costa del Sol is a luxury condo community. Each condo is privately owned so others might have a different experience based on where they rented and the owner they rented from. It is a simple, oceanfront complex with a pool and on-site gym. The overall complex looked a bit more dated than its neighbors, Club Hemingway and Marbella, but it was well-kept, clean, and secure… and half the price! There is no on-site restaurant or bar but with it’s prime spot location, I don’t really think you need one.
LAYOUT: 🍷🍷🍷🍷.5 (4.5 OUT OF 5)
2BR / 2Bath / Sleeps 5 / 1st floor
The first thing I did when I arrived was find the switch for the metal storm shutters and boy was that an unveiling! The storm shutters gave way to the ground floor terrace that looked onto the beautiful Caribbean Sea. The terrace had a small gate that opened directly to the lawn which was my FAVORITE thing about this apartment; it’s like having the beach resort be your backyard. Imagine, waking up and grabbing a cup of coffee and walking right out of your terrace to the pool. Or better, going to the beach with your beach booze and walking right back to your breezy, ground floor condo for a refresher. No elevator, no hallway. I tell you, I’m a first floor convert.
The terrace also made the already large-feeling kitchen/dining room/living room area seem even bigger. The space is as pretty as it is cozy with modern, comfortable furniture, and after staying at a number of vacation rentals that do not have comfortable furniture I could tell you that this is a major bonus.
The bedrooms are down the hallway, away from the living room, which is great for when you have kids that go to sleep early or when you’re at a bachelorette party and want to pass out earlier than everyone else. The two bedrooms are fine both in size and “wow” factor. Nothing spectacular. Pretty basic. The one complaint I do have is that the master bedroom has one very small and high window and the second bedroom has no windows. The darkness can be a bonus for sleeping in but I like natural lighting so that was my only bummer.
LOCATION: 🍷🍷🍷🍷🍷 (5 OUT OF 5)
Costa del Sol is on the same road as Club Hemingway and Marbella which is the perfect location, especially if you do not have a car or transportation. Beachfront aside, the surrounding area includes a small grocery store, Guilia’s – a yummy breakfast spot, Pekara – a coffee shop/bakery around the corner, Paladart – an Argentinian restaurant, a ton of colmados, and a bunch other drinking and dining options – all walkable. This beach area has become my favorite spot within an hour of Santo Domingo. (The coffee shop Pekara has since moved to the main highway; a little further but well worth a visit.)
SERVICE: 🍷🍷🍷🍷 (4 OUT OF 5)
(+) Most of staff was pleasant and helpful.
(-) As was the case at Club Hemingway, one of the security guards dropped the service rating for me. We walked over to the pool with a drink which we did not realize was not allowed – and if you’ve lived in DR long enough would know that “rules” here are suggestions anyway. He stormed over, screaming and pointing at the sign. I know the language so I could understand him but other visitors would just see a guy with a uniform yelling and flailing his hands. It was waaaay too much but we told him we understood and placed the drinks outside of the pool. He continued to yell at us that the drinks have to be put on the table! I told him he needed to calm down and didn’t have to yell so much, that he could simply talk. He was agitated for a few more minutes and then called for “backup.” “Backup” came in the form of another security officer that was sort of confused as to why he was there since there was no rowdiness. For the rest of the day, he stared at everyone in our party like a grumpy, intense laser beam.
RESPONSE TIME: 🍷 (1 OUT OF 5)
For this particular trip, the response time and help booking was good but I have since tried to book again and it has been a horror. The first few emails weren’t bad but when it actually came time to book and I was waiting for the link to deposit, I heard nothing for over a week. When I did finally hear back, she had bad news. My dates were flexible so I sent back two further emails to let her know I was open and got no response. If you are looking to book right away, are in a bind, or just like an efficient process this isn’t a reliable rental – otherwise it was a great stay.
OVERALL RATING:🍷🍷🍷.7 (3.7 OUT OF 5)
Overall, the experience at Costa del Sol surpassed my expectations. I went from being completely unsure about booking this place to being quite glad I did. Unfortunately, the response time bombed the wine glass rating for this rental.
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To contact Martha about this rental, click here.
