“It’s OK, SisterGirlfriend.  No one here really knows you.”

 

This statement was the official motto for the 4th Annual SisterGirlfriend Meetup in July 2017 in Punta Cana, the Dominican Republic where ten women joined to enjoy some free-spirited fun on the Caribbean beach in the sun.

Most of the women that attended were well-seasoned, global escorted-tour travelers but had not tried the lazing on the Caribbean resort vacation experience.  For me, I had traveled to Punta Cana back in 2003 and was curious to see how it had evolved since that time.  So, there was a thread of excitement among us about traveling to the Dominican Republic.

The Resort Experience

Our resort, Majestic Elegance, had that WOW factor that we desired for our sun and beach vacation.    It had an impressive lobby, eight restaurants, and multiple luxurious concierge areas with a full-service deli to munch from while you checked email.  There were beautifully well-flowered grounds with swaying palm trees and a magnificent ocean view.

Upon arrival, our group was whisked away to a private check-in area after we relinquished our bags.   We lounged in this private area eating great food and sipping marvelous drinks while the reception staff checked us into our rooms.

Soon, we met the personal butler for our group, Eriksson.  He gave us a tour of the property and escorted each one of us to our rooms arranging for our bags to be delivered.   Eriksson provided fantastic service for us.   He made dinner reservations for our group; he lit incense in our rooms, sent extras to our rooms, and handled everything we needed.

Accommodations

Most of us had swim-up rooms with patios.   It was wonderful.    I’ll let the pictures speak about those.

The Food 

Here is the most important thing I can say about the food. I ate cake every day.   At the seafood restaurant on the beach, they made an incredible, different, cake every day for lunch.   Judy and I ate it daily.   We also ate Caribbean lobster, steaks, Japanese food, Italian food…anything and everything.   You did not get bored with the food as it was a variety and well-seasoned.   Another favorite was a drink called “The Majestic” which was like a melted dreamsicle with rum.   The second favorite was Mimosas which is how we started our day every morning at our group breakfast.

SisterGirlfriends Keeping Busy

So, how did ten women keep busy for seven days on a beach resort?   Let me count the ways for you.

Activities on the Resort

• Aqua Aerobics in the Resort Pool
• Salsa, Merengue, and Bachata dance classes
• Daily Pool Party in our private pool near our rooms
• Conversational Spanish class
• Local Shopping
• Sand-watching/Relaxing/ChitChatting under a Cabana on the beach
• Afternoon SisterGirlfriend “Chat” Sessions in the resort open lounge area

There were many other activities that we did not experience because we simply ran out of time.

Excursions (Viator)

We did add a mix of adventure in our trip with a couple of great excursions.

• Punta Cana Party Catamaran Cruise (Thomstours S.R.L) – This tour was a blast. We sailed out on a catamaran for a dip in the ocean, to swim with the stingrays and docile sharks, while dancing to tropical music.
• Higuey Cultural Tour from Punta Cana (by Sol Cana Tours) – This tour was very informative as we learned about the culture and economics of the Dominican Republic. We visited one of the oldest Catholic churches in the Americas.  Even though the church was moved to another site in more modern times, the original one, which was built in the 1500s is still open for worship.   The altar still has the original mahogany wood and tiles.  Antonio was an excellent tour guide, and his passion for informing tourists about his country was evident on this tour.

There were many other activities that we did not experience because we simply ran out of time.

Nightly Entertainment

What I loved about this resort was there was a different flavor of after-dinner nightly entertainment.  There was live music on the plaza and a live show in the large open theatre on the property.   Each night there was a different theme for the show in the theatre.   There was a rock show, a Michael Jackson show, a Circus show, a rendition of Broadway musical show and a karaoke show.   I volunteered Judy as our lead singer for karaoke because she is an excellent singer.   I told the others she had sung to her husband-to-be while walking down the aisle at her wedding and they were thoroughly impressed.  We became excited about the performance, selected our song, and practiced our steps.  Judy led our group in “Ain’t Too Proud to Beg” while four of us backed her up as the Lady Temps.    The audience loved it and gave us high-fives.   The next day Judy was approached by a professional singer who was vacationing there and asked if she ever considered a singing career.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Overall, we absolutely LOVED our Punta Cana experience.   I HIGHLY recommend the Majestic Elegance Resort to anyone who plans to visit there.   It has been almost a month, and we are still reveling in our stay there.   I try hard not to compare my vacation experiences, but I have to state that this was the BEST SisterGirlfriend MeetUp yet.