It was supposed to be an unforgettable tropical bachelorette trip for nine female friends, two of whom were getting married. It may indeed be unforgettable—but for all the wrong reasons.
TikTok creator Nicole (@niche_nicole) says the Royalton CHIC Punta Cana, an all-inclusive resort in the Dominican Republic, essentially ruined their experience. It was so bad, she says she “hope[s] to never see” the hotel again.
Her slideshow has over 9.4 million views. Judging by the comments, she’s not alone in her grievances about the Royalton.
Nicole and her friends decided to take an excursion to Punta Cana for a joint-bachelorette trip to celebrate two different marriages. She says things immediately went south upon their arrival.
For one, the Royalton CHIC Punta Cana upgraded everyone’s rooms on the trip except for the brides. The brides ended up in a room that didn’t have a full door to its toilet.
Commenters suggested that the other women on the trip should have switched their rooms with the brides.
But that wasn’t the only thing that went wrong—far from it.
Nicole claims they couldn’t make dinner reservations together because the hotel couldn’t accommodate a party of nine. Halfway through the trip, however, Nicole says found out that the resort actually did have the ability to accommodate group reservations. They had dinner reservations the entire time.
That’s when Nicole says she realized that their travel agent failed to tell them about the group reservations already made on their behalf. The travel agent also didn’t tell the women about the hotel’s app for check-in, which resulted in some of them staying on opposite sides of the resort..
Issues with communication weren’t the only grievances Nicole had. She says that the rooms had dirty sheets and broken phones, alongside painfully awful amenities and morning procedures. The entire hotel was essentially under construction when they stayed there, which meant that almost all of the usual amenities were closed. Every morning during the trip, she says a fire alarm went off. It was apparently being tested.
The poolside amenities also left a lot to be desired. The women had to consistently share spots on furniture because the pool was so packed, Nicole says. On top of that, Nicole claims the water turned her bathing suit bottoms yellow because of how dirty it was.
The pools also had a “flea market” nearby and its vendors were constantly approaching the guests. Anytime Nicole didn’t gravitate toward the pool, a vendor would try to make a sale.
Then there was the room service. It reportedly took 110 minutes for an order to arrive. Nicole added that it was awful and ended up making her sick. Dinner at the resort made two other girls sick on the trip, Nicole said.
When Nicole and her bridesmaids tried to discuss the issues they were having with hotel staff, she says they ran into a roadblock. At first, staff told them that they would fix many of the issues in their rooms, like the stains, broken appliances, and general uncleanliness. But even after several attempts, Nicole says many of their complaints weren’t addressed.
Plus staff purportedly told Nicole and her group to “watch [their] tone,” when they were trying to get help.
The women seemingly had hope when their travel agent reached out to apologize. The agent said they’d receive something to compensate them for all the issues they’d been having. That turned out to be “slimy” fruit with visible mold on it and a bottle of champagne that none of the women really wanted.
As a final cherry on top of their experience, the hotel shuttle almost made half of the bachelorette party miss their flight home.*
That’s because the hotel made the party split into two groups. One group’s shuttle picked up guests at a second hotel. They sat there for 30 minutes finally going to the airport, Nicole says, causing them to almost miss their flight.
The experience was proof that Nicole and her friends can “rally through anything,” but it was so awful that they never want to go back again. Nicole wrote in comments she wishes the travel agent had never recommended it.
When they got back from the trip, Jenna, the other bride, sent a long email explaining all of the issues during their stay to their travel agent. They expressed dismay that Marriott Hotels did nothing to make things right.
Other commenters expressed concern that it is a “Marriott property,” as they expected better from the company.
The Royalton CHIC Punta Cana isn’t fully owned by Marriott, however. The resort is included in Marriott’s international portfolio of Autograph Collection hotels. Many Autograph Collection hotels are independently operated, however, so Marriott likely does not have direct control.
In Nicole’s update, she sarcastically wrote in the description, “Big thank you to @Marriott Hotels @Marriott Bonvoy for nothing.”
It’s unclear whether Nicole orJenna contacted the Royalton.
Commenters shared similar reviews of the Royalton CHIC Punta Cana.
“[As] soon as I read Royalton Chic Punta Cana I knew… ruined my 30th bday trip” one commenter said.
Another added that the “ROYALTON PUNTA CANA WAS THE WORST VACATION” they had ever taken.
While viewers said the Royalton CHIC Punta Cana has terrible reviews online, multiple prominent review sites give it favorable reviews.
Tripadvisor has the all-inclusive resort listed at a 4.4 star rating. Travel blogs and booking sites have similar reviews. Many Reddit threads, too, echo that the resort is supposed to be “exceptional.” Nicole and her friends probably agree that it’s exceptional—exceptionally horrible.
We’ve reached out to Nicole via TikTok direct message for comment. We’ve also sent a press email to Royalton Hotels and Marriott Hotels for more information. We’ll let you know if they respond.
