It feels like our long stay at AMResorts, Dreams Dominicus was a dream. Did we actually stay there in paradise for two weeks? Can we go back right now? I spent quite a good amount of time researching resorts for our wedding. I knew it was not going to be possible for my Mom and I to make trips to and from the Dominican looking at different resorts, so let me tell you. I looked at a lot over and over again on the computer. It was important to Pat and I that the overall feel of the resort was updated and newer. Dreams Dominicus is under two years old and as soon as we arrived, I knew we had made the best choice. Every inch of the resort was beautiful. I like white exteriors and teracotta roofs have always been a favorite of mind! This resort also has a lot of exposed wood in its design from pergolas, to wooden ceilings, to wooden accent beams, all things I knew would photograph well for our photos and just overall would be pleasing! For a typical vacation, I don’t normally look at all of these details so exclusively but it was really important to me the resort met my expectations for our wedding and for all of our guests who would be saving up to come! I thought I would break down the post a bit by a few categories and share some photos that I had snapped during our stay! Of course if you have any other questions, simply email me at BrittanyAnnCourtney@gmail.com or DM on instagram @brittanyanncourtney. We had such an amazing time, I highly recommend Dreams Dominicus for a vacation and for a wedding! Wedding photos to come in the next few weeks!
The Pools
Dreams Dominicus has five main pools with one including a large jacuzzi. These pools are quite large and each one has their own little character to it. Immediately exiting the lobby of the resort you’ll be greeted with a large pool that is more rectangular. This pool is the “relaxation pool” with a jacuzzi sitting in the center of it. This jacuzzi was awesome and could easily fit 30 people! No joke! It was amazing! The pool we hung out at the most was this massively large on with an infinity edge to it and a swim up bar. It’s the pool in the first photo below. You can tell it’s super big and had views of the beach, sand volleyball court, the pool with a volleyball net, all the main restaurants and the building where the Spa and Fitness center were located! Who doesn’t love a pool that you don’t even need to get out of to get a refill?!
The second week Pat and I were there, our wedding planner had told us the resort was at near capacity. We did not have to worry about getting loungers everyday, even when the resort was full. This is HUGE for me you guys! I loved that I didn’t have to go put a towel down and hope it was there after breakfast!
There are a lot of rooms that have little swim out pools. They are super cute and quite refreshing! I think it’s always a nice option if you want to head back to the room to get room service delivered, get can deliver to your little personal pool. I think if you have small children or a baby it would be super useful then too! Anyone a night time swimmer? A room with the swim out would be a good option for you as the main pools close as dusk! You’ll see these little pools in the last few images- super cute!
The Beach
White sand and the most turquoise water I have ever seen! The water was more than I could have hoped for! If you are a die hard beach person, solely pick places based off of the beach then I encourage you to do some research if you are looking in the Dominican Republic. This beach was beautiful, however, I was a bit surprised that it was not a flat entrance into the water. From the last main pool on the resort, there was a wide stretch of sand with a volleyball court area, private beach area with tiki huts and loungers for the privilege package, a beach gazebo wedding ceremony site and other lounge chairs before a slope into the water. This means there was not a flat stretch of sand before the water. It was flat with all of the above then a slight slope into the water. You could still easily enter the water but there was not a stretch of flat sand to “walk the beach”. I am only sharing this because I love traveling and want to share all aspects of the places I stay at with you so you know what to expect if you choose to go to the places I have been 🙂 When Pat and I shot with our photographer earlier in the week, he informed us that most beaches in Punta Cana are very rocky. They actually drive the hour from Punta Cana to La Romana to go to the public beach up the road from our resort so they can lay on the beach! Overall, it was absolutely stunning, the water was warm and I mean that water, COME ON!
Food & Drinks
The resort had seven different restaurants including an Italian place (yum, my favorite) and a French place which had yummy desserts! I am not a picky eater so I was able to find plenty of options everyday! Along side of the Italian restaurant, my other favorite was the World Cafe buffet. There were so many options at the buffet that you could honestly eat there every day twice a day and still not run out of options! Their guacamole was AMAZING! So fresh-I may have had it several times! The salad bar was huge and had a million options which I really enjoyed because for most of the trip I tried to stay close to my usual diet and workout plan! I also really loved the Japanese restaurant-Himitsu because their sushi was out of this world! LOVED!
I love going to all inclusive places because you can try a bunch of things your normally wouldn’t! Pat and I aren’t big drinkers so I never know what to order at the bar besides vodka water but on our trip I was trying anything and everything! One Mai-Tai please! One Pina Colada (okay, my go to on vacation) One Miami Vice please! I will say that the drinks were delicious, but sometimes if you ordered the same drink from a different bartender it would sometimes taste a bit different! When you’re drinking something fruity in a beautiful location- does that really matter? Not to me! We enjoyed all the many options the resort had and were able to find healthy options during our say!
Rooms & Other Amenities
Pat and I were upgraded to the resorts Preferred package. At most all inclusive resorts, you can upgrade to a “Preferred” or “Privilege” package. This give you access to a private beach area, higher end alcohol, different locations for breakfast, private pool, etc. Half of our wedding group had upgraded, the other half didn’t. Pat and I thought it was totally worth it, our room was more centrally located, we had a personal butler on call, we enjoyed the Preferred breakfast and so on. For our guest it added on about $30 a day per person and so those who did upgrade thought it was worth it, our friends who did not didn’t really have an opinion on it so I think it all depends! We did have access to a private bar which we got drinks a lot faster during the day so that was a huge plus!
Pat an I stayed in a Preferred Suite. We had our own massive living room, separate his and her closets and the most massive marble shower I have ever seen! We had a balcony that overlooked two swim up pools which was just pretty! Our room was most certainly the most convenient to the main pools, the beach, all of the restaurants and the disco!
The resort had a disco (dance bar) that opened every night around 1030 pm. We went a few times and it was a great place to keep the party going! After the wedding all 24 of us went there and danced for a few more hours! I had changed to a short little white dress because my second wedding dress was a bit heavy with its beading-more to come on my dresses!
If you follow me on instagram and watch my stories then you know Pat and I were at the gym quite a lot! We love going and working out together, it makes both of us feel productive and we enjoy it! Off of the gym was the prettiest terrace. It had the most beautiful pink flowers surrounding the entire thing! I can’t wait to share an entire post I shot on that pretty terrace-stay tuned!
There were so many extra things to do at the resort. There was some form of entrainment each night. A few nights there was a dance show, karaoke (my Dad got up and sang, Mom calls it liquid courage!) a fire show, dance party on the beach, and so on! There was always something to do every night which all of us really enjoyed!
The resort also had partnerships with several companies that could take you on excursions. We did a sunset cruise one night and it was literally way too much fun! You can just always speak to the front desk and they can assist you with booking excursions and other extras!
The Wedding
After much research we had decided a Dreams Resort would be the best option. Dreams are known for their weddings and after hearing a personal reference through a family friend who had just been married at one, we ended on choosing Dreams. I had mentioned above that we went with Dreams Dominicus because of how it was newer and had the look we wanted! The wedding without a doubt was absolutely beautiful. Our wedding planner, JoAna literally did everything and anything she could to make the day special and to what we wanted.
I want to take a moment and really speak from the heart. I spent so much time planning all of these tiny little details and while the wedding was beautiful, it was going to be beautiful regardless. It was a day centered around mine and Pat’s love and having our family and closest friends there to support us. There were small things that happened that I didn’t plan a certain way but looking back, I am not sure why I had spent so much time planning all of those tiny details. Only you will notice the small things and if I had to do it all over again, I wish I would not have sweated the smallest details and had just enjoyed the overall planning process a little bit more! Some of us are perfectionists (I am always trying to “let go” of things and relax more) and I encourage those of you who are similar to me to relax, and just let go. Your day is going to be beautiful regardless of the tiny details, it’s a day built around you and the commitment you and your love are making! I have received so many comments, messages and emails from all of you on tips for planning a destination wedding, so I plan on creating that soon!
I am still pinching myself because I can’t believe I am so lucky that God has placed such an incredible man in my life and I get to share the rest of my life with him. I also can’t believe how amazing the day was, how beautiful everything was and how amazingly lucky Pat and I are to have such supportive family members and friends who traveled the distance to spend this time with us and to celebrate us! I literally can not wait to share more and more with all of you! We won’t be receiving our actual wedding photos for a few more weeks but here are a few snaps from the trip! I will share an entire post on our Dreams Wedding so stay tuned for that!
All in all, we had a wonderful experience with our wedding planning and stay with Dreams Dominicus. Pat an I couldn’t be happier and I am so thankful for how beautiful everything was on our special day and how much our guest loved the resort and being there with us! It truly feels like a dream that came true. I can’t think of a better way to start our marriage, amazing friends and family members in complete paradise celebrating us!
I can’t wait to share more with all of you!
xx, Brittany Ann
Remember you can shop my outfits here and always feel free to email me for specific items I have worn (brittanyanncourtney@gmail.com)!
Can't wait for you to post more about your wedding! I am getting married in Dreams Dominicus in November and this just made me even more excited! AHHHH!!