This letter is to inform you on my horrid vacation experience, booked thru CheapCarribean.com .
On 08/21/2010 I arrived at The Coral Costa Caribe resort, Dominican Republic rated as a Three star by CheapCarribean.com. After our arrival we were informed of check-in at 3pm after a 5 hour wait we were given our room key, soon to find out that the bathroom facilities in the room were not working. After informing the reception of the issue, they stated that the hotel was full to capacity and cannot give us a comparable room until Monday 08/23/2010. They offered us a room with no windows down the hall to use the bathroom facilities until they had a comparable room to move me to. On Tuesday 08/24/2010 we were moved to room 1517, even though this room was in a better working condition as per Coral Costa Caribe standards the condition were deplorable and not hygienic. I have attached pictures of the room issues for your viewing. I have included pictures of the bathtub conditions, the mold growing near the bed, and the buckling ceiling.

This has been a learning experience, and judging by the many complaints online for CheapCarribean.com others have had the same experience with other facilities that you rate. I suggest that CheapCarribean.com explain to customer what the rating scale is before they complete their reservation. A three star in the U.S is a holiday inn, La Quinta, and this hotel was not even a One star. Here is a link to a complaint were the CheapCarribean.com sun rating is misleading to other customers as well. http://www.complaintsboard.com/complaints/cheapcaribbeancom-c360158.html

On Wednesday 08/25/2010 I became very ill and there was no doctor on call at the hotel either. I had to be moved to a family home to be cared for and the cause is still a mystery many of the symptoms were those of food poisoning or Salmonella . Once I recovered enough I returned to hotel on Thursday 08/26/2010 all to have to call security over drunks screaming in the hallway and knocking on the walls of our room at 3:45 am. After calling security I waited over 20 minutes and no one came to help, so I opened the door and advised them cordially to please keep it down, and they became confrontational. I called security again an no one showed up. Friday morning I went to the reception and informed them of this, and requested to speak with the head of security, he was not available at the time. Nor did I hear from him at all


I contacted cheapcarribean.com customer service via email on 08/22/2010 and explained what we were experiencing. I followed up with a call upon my return on 08/29/2010, and left a message for Alisa Shipok at Ext 7115. I did not receive a call until 2:30 From Melanie who is now looking into this issue for me, and I appreciate her time and effort. To give you the readers digest version of this experience, the hotel is a decay, and in need of a complete remodel. I believe they don’t have enough security guards to patrol the entire property. It a shame because our room maid, Antonia, and our bartender Cesar were amazing people. I also would like to add, that Eddie from the reception tried his best to help us in this situation, because the guest services representative did not set me up for a room change as she stated. I believe they deserve the credit for trying while the General Manager ignores the complaints of the guest. I will be forwarding a copy of this letter to American Express as I have opened a dispute with them as well.


Thank you for taking the time to read this letter.