If there is a spa in heaven it will be the Hard Rock Punta Cana Spa. We recently returned from our second annual celacation (ie; a trip that we take to celebrate my birthday without the kids). This year we traveled to the Dominican Republic for seven glorious days of sun and relaxation.
I feel it’s my personal duty to share how amazing and wonderful this spa is because reading their website does not do it justice. Not only were the facilities beautiful, the technicians provided the most relaxing treatments. It truly the most unique experience and well worth a trip to the Dominican Republic.
What makes the Rock Spa so unique? For starters it expands 60,000 Square Feet complete with 35 Spa Suites , 11 Indoor & Outdoor Couples Spa Suites and a complete hydrotherapy center with lagoons, two whirlpools, color therapy steam rooms, a clay steam room, sauna, hydro-reflexology, sensory expertise pool and a cutting edge ice room.
I enjoyed three days at Rock Spa, partaking in a deep tissue massage (twice), facial and hydrotherapy treatment. Also, received a manicure and pedicure at Moon Salon.
Hard Rock Punta Cana Spa: What We LOVED!!
- Facility – 65,0000 square feet of pure heaven – one of the most gorgeous and impressive facilities I have ever seen.
- Hydrotherapy Center – complimentary with any service. This is a must -do when visiting. Between the aromatherapy steam room, clay steam room, ice room, sensory pool and lounge area, it was worth forgoing the sun for a few hours.
- Pre Service – after changing into a robe, the staff escorts you to a lounge area near the sensory pool and provides a warm neck pillow. Simple, yet special touch.
- Fitness Center – Hands down one of the most elaborate and expansive fitness centers I have seen at any resort. There was no excuse not to fit in a workout during our stay. Their group exercise classes included Yoga, Zumba, Spinning, Pilates, Kickboxing and Cardio Dance and surprisingly packed.
- Moon Beauty Salon – my nail technician was incredibly sweet and gracious. I opted for this fun deep blue polish by OPI.
Hard Rock Punta Cana Spa: Needs Improvement
- Communicating with technicians was extremely difficult during services. Even basic Spanish was unsuccessful.
- Making appointments was challenging as their reservation system was extremely very slow. Many guests including my husband had trouble arranging services.
- Spa Shoes – not always available and oversized. Recommend bringing your own.
- Resort Credits – our package included $750 in resort credits. Upon arrival we were notified that we could only spend $300 total in the spa. It would have been helpful to know this prior to arrival as we almost purchased a package offering $1500 in resort credits.
- Planning the trip was somewhat difficult as there is limited information on their website. We were able to communicate via email through Palace Resorts.
- The hotel desperately needs an app. There are so many activities during the day at one of the 15 pools and fitness center and the property is massive, it would be extremely helpful to have easy access to this information. There are a few boards throughout the property but who remembers an entire schedule for the day or the locations? I took photos each morning so I could reference throughout the day.
Notes & Tips:
It’s important to know we stayed at the Hard Rock as vacation club members. This means we received access to a few VIP amenities (member concierge service, exclusive pool area and credits for spa and golf). We did not have a problem getting an appointment because of our membership benefits. We also took part in the membership tour and received additional spa credits. Be warned as this took 3 hours on the first day and was a little stressful.
Have you been to the Hard Rock Punta Cana or have plans to visit this year?
Lucy says
This is a great post. I love the photos by the way, they are beautiful. However, the fact that you have also highlighted some of the challenges that one is likely to experience when making plans to visit the spa and also during a visit what makes your post on Hard Rock spa really nice. Thanks for sharing your experience. It is quite informative.