Innovative Spaces, Memorable Experiences, Personalized Services
Pristine white sand shores. Warm crystalline Caribbean surf. Brilliant garden and lush greeneries. Emotions Juan Dolio by Hodelpa Resort it's an all-inclusive beachfront hideaway located on one of the of the most privileged beaches of the Dominican Republic.
Location
Near Los Marlins Golf CourseProperty information
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Resort details
Hotel advisories
General policies & fine print
Check-in Policy - Hotel requires a credit/debit card authorization or cash deposit upon check-in for incidentals; this will place a hold on your funds.
Convention Policy - Individuals attending a convention cannot book this property for their stay. If found attending a convention, guests may be subject to higher room rates upon arrival.
Hotel Spring Break Policy - This hotel cannot guarantee a spring-break-free environment.
Transfer Policy - A price may display when children stay free, if your vacation includes transfer to your hotel.
General Information - Room taxes and service fees are included in vacation price. Minimum night stay restrictions may apply. Reservation changes may not be permitted unless authorized by the hotel.
Customer ratings & reviews
TripAdvisor traveler rating
4998 reviews
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Nov 22, 2024Definitely not a 4-Star venue
It's not a 4 Star for sure. I booked this property spontaneously on the same day of arrival with the intent of having a couple of days of relaxation and hopefully good food. Well, the relaxation was mostly possible, but the food was a major disappointment. I'll start with the property. It is beautiful, and I can see how it could have achieved a 4 star rating years ago. But much has not been adequately maintained. The pools are sized right for the property, but they are not heated and were very cold. Decking around the pools are uneven and can lead to injuries. I can only evaluate the room we had, which was the top of the line swim-out in building 1. The furniture was broken, torn, and stained. The water pressure and hot water were nonexistent. The pillows were comfortable as was the bed, but the sheets were thin and cheap. The private swim-out pool was the coldest of all, to the point I couldn't use it. Everything in the room was very worn and dated, and insufficient towels provided. The food was horrible, even at the specialty restaurants. The buffet assortment was limited, and the food quality was poor. Seating at the buffet was on plastic chairs and metal tables with a very cheap feel. The Mexican specialty restaurant had no idea of what Mexican food looks like, and everything was poor quality. The service staff at the buffet and specialty restaurants certainly are not professional food servers. Entertainment at the resort was lame and boring. Every evening entertainment started late with no announcements of when it'd start. The uncharges were everywhere. If you wanted any beer other than Presidente, there was a charge. Ice cream at the coffee shop was $6US each. And, they wanted $150 for a beachside dinner, which could have been worth it, if the food quality anywhere else on the resort had been any good. On the positive side, the property is beautiful, beach clean, and the staff was very friendly. I have been to Juan Dolio several times and will be back again... but until the things I addressed above are resolved, I definitely won't be staying here.
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Nov 18, 2024Honest review of Emotions by Hodelpa
First and foremost, I cannot say enough nice things about the staff at the resort. They were all amazing. Upon our arrival (1:45 pm, Saturday the 9th), we were greeted by our Concierge (Rafi #1). He asked for our names then brought us to be checked in immediately at the Essentia desk. We received our bracelets and key card, then went back out to speak to Rafi. He told us about the "free package" we were to be given. He asked us to meet him at 8:30 Sunday morning. When we got to the room (Essentia Swim Out 1110), it was stuffy and very damp, but clean overall. The room is comfortable but needs a paint job. The drawers are cracked from the humidity and nothing shut well. We unpacked and just relaxed for a little bit as it was raining. Around 6pm, we went to the buffet. The food there isn't great, but we found enough that we liked. We went back to the room around 7 to just relax. We turned the TV on and we got nothing but lines. We flipped through the channels and nothing. Later that evening we turned it back on and after leaving it some time, it finally "warmed up" and worked. We watch TV to fall asleep so this is important to us. Around 8pm, we were able to make our reservations for the Dominican restaurant. Later that night, we were woken up many times by yelling in the hallway by drunken locals. Around 2am there was a fight and door pounding. Just as I was about the call the front desk, it calmed down. It seems that locals frequent the resort on weekends. It's very noisy and loud Fridays through Sundays. Sunday it rained most of the day and we didn't do much. Rafi knocked on our door around 10 to meet him, but since it was rainy, we didn't want to go out. As nice as Rafi was, he bothered us a lot and tried to guilt us into going to a quick meeting. We knew it would be a members pitch and we told him no. My husband wasn't feeling that great from the flight and barometric pressure change (common for him when we travel). I guess Rafi took that as we would do it Monday. He tried to get us to go multiple times throughout the week and it wasn't until we told him flat out that we weren't interested, in front of an important looking man in a white shirt, that he stopped bothering us about it. We went to dinner that night at Oregano (Dominican). We both loved our dinners, the restaurant atmosphere, and the staff. When we got back to our room, we were locked out. I went over to the Essentia desk and had them reprogram the card, however that didn't work. Some maintenance guys were walking by and we told them. They called another man who came with a laptop and let us in. We got locked out a second time during the week and they had to send him again to fix it. The weather the rest of the week was hit and miss. We had some really heavy rain some days and nights, and some really sunny days with intermittent hard periods of rain. We alternated between the Essentia Pool and the beach during the week. Samir was awesome and she brought us drinks at the pool every half hour and Cesar did the same at the beach. We only drank every second day lol The ocean is gorgeous and warm. We had no problems finding chairs in shade at the beach any time during the day. The vendors in the blue shirts are relentless. We told them no every time but we're friendly and polite. We did end up purchasing a few things from them towards the end of the week. Throughout the week we dealt with a lot of negative things. No hot water from day 1 (barely warm enough to shower) . Two days, we had no water at all for 5-6 hours each time. That means no toilets anywhere on the resort. We lost cable twice as well for hours at a time, both times, overnight. Plus, our TV being messed up so it only worked intermittently. We lost power many times, however we know that wasn't the fault of the resort. We know the DR power grid is glitchy, but also want people to be aware. Overall, we went to the buffet twice for dinner, once for breakfast and once for lunch. The food isn't great, but we aren't super picky, so we found something good each time. The fruit salad is AMAZING. I have IBS and a sensitive digestive system, and I didn't get sick. The a la carte restaurants were easy to make reservations for on the app, however be aware that, depending on the time of year, they are not all open every day. Amici (Italian) was very good. Again, we were both impressed. Bambu (Asian) was our least favorite. Lolita (Mexican) was by far our favorite and we went there twice. In my opinion, the only reason to get the Essentia would be to be closer to the beach and further away from the main pool, where it was quite loud. I wouldn't recommend the swimout because it was cold. We used it twice for very short periods. It gets absolutely no sun any time of the year. The bartenders were all great and the alcohol was STRONG AF lol No worries about watered down drinks! I will say that we didn't see any other guests tip ANYONE, the whole time we were there. It was mind boggling to us, as Canadians. It was pretty disappointing to be honest. We will go back to DR, if for nothing more than the people, the beaches and the weather, but definitely not to this resort.
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Nov 17, 2024Terrible and old hotel
Old and tired resort. Terrible food and cheap drinks. Hotel had no running water, that they said will be fixed soon, waited for hours until decided to go to another place. Onlt positive side is that there were some nice and friendly hotel staff.
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Nov 11, 2024Perfect beach holiday
The hotel is fabulous for 3 stars. The staff are extremely friendly and accommodating, making all feel like family! Would definitely recommend for the service alone. Great location next to the beach and lots of pools on site to cool off in the sun! Susan especially was a great help in hand during our visit, thank you for a wonderful trip!
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Nov 11, 2024
Exceeded expectations, would return and recommend
Fantastic hotel, great service and friendly staff Plenty to do, rooms are clean and well kept. We felt very safe and looked after here. Excellent location to the beach, bars and toilets at every point and staff are always happy to help and understand. Susan and Yuleidy was very helpful and friendly but all staff are great!