Embassy Suites Dorado del Mar – Beach Resort

Horrible service, as in the waitstaff didnt arrive for an average of 30min at either restaurant or pool bar. Food took about an hour for beer and nachos, which was disgusting. We spent hours at the pool but could rarely get a drink an hour, kinda the point of the trip.
Double charged for parking.
Very loud music was blasted past midnight our first night there. Hotel discourages folks from the pool bar away from rooms instead encouraging the drunks to be rowdy inside.
Came home with sinus infection since the hotel prohibits sleeping with door open and does not have clean air from a/​c.

I traveled with my 3 kids (15, 13, 10) for Mother’s day weekend, which also happened to be my son’s 13^th birthday. We traveled with other family members and had connecting rooms. Rooms were clean. We had the worst view of building rooftops and apartments from our mosquito infested balcony, so unfortunately we were not able to enjoy it at all. Front desk staff was hit and miss. At check in they did see all the kids, it might have been nice if they told us there was an arcade. They did also offer to have balloons and a cake for me to surprise my son the day of his birthday, but then it took 2 hours of waiting in the lobby to actually get them on the day of even thought it was offered at check in on Wed for the following Monday.
Breakfast: you get what you pay for. Oh yes, its free, so don’t approach it with high standards. There are cooked to order omelets which were raw veggies tossed in the middle of a thinned out «egg pancake». Best thing to order is sunny side up where you see them crack and cook your egg. There is no oatmeal. I think there was some yogurt option and some sliced melons as healthier options. Kids enjoyed the pancakes, but it’s not something I would prefer they eat every day.
Pools were nice cleaned regularly. Pool bar had the best food options. Their happy hour rates were not that great, $ 7 for mojito versus the regular $ 10 price.
Beach??? They do advertise beach front and have beautiful pictures of the beach, but this was our biggest disappointment. The beach is gated off from the property giving you a horrible view of the gate from pool area. Not only can you NOT swim, you can’t even use the paddle boats that they rent you for $ 35 hour. We tried and kept getting stuck on all the seaweed. There are several spots where the water is not more than 5 inches deep and we had to keep getting off the paddle boats to push it and get them unstuck. The water is clear, you can see all the way down through those few inches of water to see the miles of green sea weeds underneath. The beach chairs are dirty and torn. They defiantly do not tidy up or care for this beach area. We paid the premium for «beach front hotel» because we obviously wanted access to a swimmable beach.
Dinner: Worst experience and food ever!!! Be prepared to have to drive out every night for dinner. Our first night, we went to the one restaurant on site worried that they wouldn’t have seating for a group of 7 but it was empty. (now we know why) Even though there was no one else except 2 other couples service was horrible. They never stopped by the table except once to take order and once to drop it off. The food was cold and flavorless. Food is priced about $ 25 a plate and they automatically added the 18% tip to tab.
Evening reception: Free drinks — no complaints! You do need to wait in a line and you are allowed to order 2 per trip. You do get tiny plastic little cups which since they are free I still cant complain. They say «light snacks» which is popcorn and chips that they put out daily. No variation. My only gripe is that if they are encouraging everyone to hang out in lobby for this reception, there should be more seating and maybe some music to liven up the place.

This is difficult because there is so much good about this hotel resort but the in house restaurant kinda sucks.
The hotel is great, service personnel are wonderful, the pool and pool bar and food service are very good as is the coffee shop. While the beach will not «wow» anyone, it is very nice.
Now for the in house restaurant. Most of the food is average to poor while some is very good. The Puerto Rican selections are good except for the mofongo which is very dry. The BBQ pork ribs and tostones with pulled pork are Wonderful! The rest of the food is passing and some is gross.
Service is very slow and very disorganized though the servers are very nice. Communication between servers and with the kitchen seems to be s huge problem and no management in sight the last 3 days. Every meal we had was messed up on some level and my wife’s spinach salad was made up of at least 20% rotten spinach though she was so hungry she picked it out and piled it on s side plate.

Upon check in i was a bit disappointed with some of the things going on in the room, cleanliness, dusty lamp shades, leaves in the pool, little to no cleaning of the crowded tables at breakfast and debris all in the pools. However, by day two i cane to appreciate the place! By no means is it fancy like some other NYC hiltons but it served our needs and did not have that musty smell like many otherCaribbean hotels due to the humidity and lack of cross ventilation.
Breakfast was the same thing daily, typical American eggs, pancakes, etc. and at times we went elsewhere in search of something more. The grounds were cleaned in the morning (8ish) but when patrons were coming outside and should have been done earlier for convienencs. They never clean the beach and it’s pretty nasty with the washed up seaweed and guests beer cans, etc.
The best time to enjoy the facilities were morning while they were at their best then.
Overall, this was nothing fancy and not even worth $ 230+ daily but we did get a good night’s rest. While the hotel is huge with so much going on the rooms were so quiet. Staff were stellar as well. We Probably would book elsewhere in the future but it suited our needs at the time. Really deserves 3.5 instead of a 3 but not quite a 4.

We came to this hilton embassy branded hotel and resort in the past so decided to come here again from the states. It is no longer a resort. No golf and no tennis yet write up still references tennis. Tennis referenced in write-​up is very misleading. Should read, «two abandoned tennis courts with broken overgrown fences, pot holes and rusty chairs makes for adventure tennis but be sure to leave before dark so you don’t run the risk of cutting yourself on the bokel glass.» If they elect to continue to reference tennis at this hotel please fill in the pot holes before someone gets hurt and put up new fencing.

To call this a «resort» is laughable & deceitful. In town for a wedding– casino was taken down, they failed to mention this on their website. They are midway through their renovation process which means you will experience a lot of banging/​furniture in the hallways along with strange men lurking about at all odd hours. Their «suites» are more of a holding cell & they don’t expect you to actually use the sofa bed provided. Refrain from using room service as the staff is rude & seem bothered to have to do their job. The pool area is alright, the beach could use a good cleaning. Housekeeping stops in whenever they get a chance, there a week & had to request towels/​turn down service 5 of those days as apparently my room was the equivalent to platform 9 ¾. At the end of my stay the bill was outrageous– I somehow rang up 700 dollars worth of resort fees/​room charges and parking charges (although I had no vehicle). Safe to say I will not be booking my next stay at this hotel.
Food:
Eat at your own risk.
Room:
College dorm room with key pieces your mom got you. Smells of chlorine and long ago glory days. Lighting is terrible and the rug has seen better days. Also the dusty brown couch… Jesus!
Pool:
Alright for tanning.

Embassy Suites, Dorado Beach, Dorado Puerto Rico
Stayed at this property from April 27 to May 1^st, 2015. This resort is located in one of the most beautiful parts in Puerto Rico. We were greeted promptly with warm smiles. Our flight arrived to San Juan at 9am. Once we arrived at the hotel, the staff arranged for our room so we could check in and take a most needed nap. Our room was on the 4^th floor with partial ocean views and partial mountain views — just stunning!!!
Our room was a bit dated but spacious! It featured a microwave, small refrigerator, and sink with a dining table and a pull out sofa. There is renovations going on so you might hear some hammering!!!
The hotels offered a daily free hot breakfast from 6:30am to 9:30am and daily happy hour from 4:30pm to 7:30pm.
The pool was amazing, lots of tables and chairs in the shade, swim up bar and the beach was amazing. Totally secluded from the world. The beach was protected from the waves so little ones can swim freely; lots of beach chairs and palm trees!
Unfortunately, the golf course is closed. Daily parking is additionally and the resort charges an 18% daily resort fee. The resort fees gets you two daily free bottles of water and free wifi!
Embassy has it right! Great stay! Definitely, Location, location, location!!!
Would we go back? YES!!!

I booked this hotel (resort) for my honeymoon. They messed up my reservation and did not have the ocean view room that we paid extra for available when we arrived. There was no honeymoon welcome anything in the room. I was told that we would be moved at 11 AM the next morning to the room we were suppose to have and that the first night would be discounted. The next morning at 11:30 I went to the desk and was told nothing was available but that they would notify me as soon as it was. 3 hours later I get a call only to be told that I never reserved an ocean view and that I could get one for an extra charge. (Note that both of the first two people I dealt with confirmed that I did indeed have reservation for an ocean view) The front desk manager blamed everything on Orbitz. Accepted no responsibility and was not nice.
After I straightened them out I was moved into a room that smelled of mildew but at least it was the room I booked.
The food at this «resort» was terrible. The nachos at the pool side bar was something out of a 7 – 11 with squeeze cheese and canned chili. I thought for sure that the seafood would be great considering we were 200 feet from the ocean but alas it was all frozen product. It was a disappointment from start to finish and the kicker was on the last day I requested a late check out due to the fact my plane did not leave until midnight and I was told absolutely not because they were over booked. I asked for a 2:30 check out since check in was not until 4 but still they didn’t budge. I then asked if we could put our bags in our car but still take advantage of the private beach or the pool for the afternoon and I was told that no it was for registered guests only. My last bill also reflected no discount for the first night.
Puerto Rico itself was amazing but unless it is free stay away from this place.
Kevin
Centreville, VA

I stayed here after comparing hotel prices in San Juan. I wouldn’t recommend it. There’s not many good dining options around and it’s about a 35 minute drive to San Juan. What I didn’t know, was they tack on an additional $ 39 resort fee. Ha! That doesn’t cover much. I didn’t feel like I was in a resort. I felt like a was in a just ok embassy suites. If you are interested in the once existent casino, it is no longer operating.
FOOD:
I had breakfast here one day from the included breakfast buffet. It was decent but not good. The salad I had at lunch with Mahi sounded great but was barely edible. The piña coladas served at the poolside bar were good. Service was very slow.
ROOM:
The room smelled like chlorine and the carpets seemed damp. I wore flip flops the entire time.
I had a decent view of the ocean from my 7^th floor room, but didn’t spend much time on my balcony. Not all rooms have a view.
POOL:
The pool area (including a kiddy pool) is nice and you do get beach access straight from the pool, which I did like. You can borrow a towel for the pool or beach. They have one hammock. More would be nice.
PARKING:
You can valet for $ 18/​night or park at the unattached parking structure for $ 11/​night. If you do self parking, make sure you have an umbrella.

This is a very nice hotel. The views are beautiful, complimentary breakfast (also a plus that they make you eggs on the spot, a chef is there) complimentary 2 hours of free drinks in the evening along with some snacks. There’s room service, staff is available 24 – 7, pools, a beach, concierge, a gift shop, bagagge storage. Every room has a microwave and a fridge and all rooms have a sofa bed. It’s amazing. Definitely a beautiful hotel and I would come back. Only downside is that this hotel is far rom major Puerto Rico hot spots. If you are renting a car or not planning to really tour PR then stay away. It’s a lovely hotel, really a getaway especially if you’re like me, coming from busy NYC. But you need a car otherwise you’ll have taxi drivers charging you $ 60 to go anywhere. And the nearest store besides the gift shop is a mile away. I would definitely come back. Just when I’m 25 and able to rent a car.

The other people staying here were weird. There were free drinks and a sub par Chinese food place across the street. The golf course is closed and very overgrown but I still saw one man playing. He wasn’t doing very well but I admired his persistence.

Depends on your expectations and needs in a hotel. For us, our family has tried 6 locations in PR. Only this place has what we want. 1) super close to the ocean with a wave reducing rock line 2) kids for our kids to play with at the pool 3) not too far from San Juan airport. 4) not too pricey and 5) a full kitchen (note we stayed at the Aquarius, Golden Villas part of the resort, it isn’t on Unilocal) and a closed door bedroom and suite set up.
We didn’t care about walk to night life, casinos or golf.
We have been here now 3x and will make this our every year. I think Priceline name your own price, sometimes results in this hotel. But not sure.

Total dump! Staying here now because it was the cheapest option for this trip. I’ve been coming to Puerto Rico now every 7 – 8 weeks for the past 2 years, and this is by far my worst experience. Hotel is in bad need of a renovation, beach is a joke, not to mention a hazard… wear shoes in sand at all times!!! Hotel is located in the middle of no where! Nothing in walking distance, unless of course you count the Oriental place across the street as an option… it was total crap as well! I am so upset & disappointed with Hilton right now… and I am a Diamond member who travels weekly! The hotel listing is extremely deceiving… stay away from this place!!! I tried to leave after checking in, they said No… not gonna happen. Don’t fall into this trap… stay away!

Nice hotel and staff … Prime
Location for dorado… quiet beach and pool… if u want action stay in isla verde !

I really wanted to like this place, but the best analogy I can come up with is that it’s like a cheap knockoff purse from Canal Street. From far enough away, it passes muster, but look a little more closely and the stitching is uneven, the straps are ripping apart and the brand name has an extra vowel in it.
We booked this hotel through a travel agent friend, who told us numerous times and showed us the booked itinerary that he had marked us as a VIP Honeymoon couple. He said we would get special treatment befitting our special weekend, and we were excited.
When we pulled into the location, we were surprised to find a parking garage that was not even attached to the hotel that charged $ 11 a day to park. The elevator in the garage was broken. For $ 11 a day, I should have parking attached to the hotel, and certainly a working elevator. (Taxes pushed it to $ 12/​day)
When we checked in, the staff were personable enough, but we were not wished so much as a happy honeymoon or glad you came to stay with us. Just basic, nuts and bolts, need your credit card, here you go. Oooook then.
The room was clean and fine but very, very cold.
Again, all little stuff. But at around 9:30 pm our first night, the fire alarm goes off. We all walk outside our rooms– no one is rushing out or in a hurry. This was my first clue this has happened before. A voice came on the loudspeaker a few minutes later saying it was a false alarm.
This happened nine more times. To quote Ferris Bueller’s Day Off, NINE. TIMES.
They sometimes announced it was a false alarm. Sometimes they didn’t. Absolutely unreal, and certainly unsafe and annoying.
To top it off, we had our phone ring at 10:30 pm– no one there. Then, at 11 pm, after nothing but disturbances, a knock on our door for room service. Too bad we had our room service delivered an hour ago. So now you’re just knocking on people’s doors, disturbing them, because you don’t know what room to take food to?
No apologies, no nothing, for any of the hours-​long disturbances we encountered. Ridiculous.
Little things just keep happening. The gym had a water cooler but no cups to drink said water. We ran out of toilet paper on day three and no one had thought to provide any extra rolls until the next day when housekeeping came. Old pizza boxes, used cups and dirty plates were stacked by the elevator for two days without being picked up. Disgusting.
On our second night, we come down to go to dinner and it is pouring, monsoon style. I ask the desk to borrow an umbrella. We don’t have any, she says. We used to have some and they weren’t returned.
My thoughts, in order:
1) um, if they’re gone, you get more. You’re a hotel. Hospitality is what you do.
2) you make people sign out pool towels by room number but not umbrellas, arguably more expensive and just as easy?
3) if the damn $ 11/​day parking garage was actually attached to the hotel, I wouldn’t need an umbrella, now would I?
Again, lest you think I’m being ticky tacky, I am a reasonable person, but when you bust your ass to take off work and pay a fair amount of money for a paradise vacation, little annoyances add up. No one from the staff was ever impolite; it just seemed everyone was doing the bare minimum.
They had advertised a casino on the property as well, but apparently that went kaput about a month before we arrived. Ooook then.
They advertised their in-​hotel food as «moderately priced.» Not sure I’d call a $ 7 bowl of soup or $ 13 burger «moderately priced.» Additionally, to rent a movie in your room cost between $ 15-​$ 18. Unreal.
I will say the pool was beautiful and the little beach was nice. All in all, the experience was… fine, I guess, but a let down from what we had expected.

This is by far the worst Embassy Suites I’ve ever stayed at. Keep in mind I may be extra upset as I’m writing this review because the fire alarms have been going on & off for about an hour now & it’s after 10pm. At first they kept announcing that it was a false alarm but then they got tired of repeating themselves & just let it go off. I just wonder what the people getting back to their rooms late are thinking.
There was no shampoo or conditioner when we checked in. We had to go to the front desk to get it & were just given a black stare in return.
The room is disgusting & falling apart, carpet is loose where you trip over it. The bathroom had more pubic hair on the floor than I’ve ever seen & the wall is crumbling. I don’t know if this hotel can be renovated. I think it would be easier to tear down & start fresh. The hot tub water was semi warm & the jets didn’t work.
The elevator in the self parking garage is broken & I have a feeling it has been that way for a few months if not years.
You can not walk anywhere from this shoddy hotel as it is so far away from everything. There is a golf course but it is closed and over grown with weeds & there is also an abandoned casino on the property, thats always a nice view.
We ordered room service & I guess they were out of things so they just substituted for other items without an explanation, what a joke.
Please try to find a nicer hotel if you want to enjoy yourself, like in Hawaii.

I was expecting the worst based on Unilocal and trip advisor reviews but it wasn’t that bad. I liked it. My trip was free though. If you’re paying more than $ 150 per night you’ll probably feel ripped off. The rooms and décor could use a face lift. Service was friendly.
I stayed Aug 25 – 29. Check in was fine, I arrived 2:30am and told the receptionist my friend was already checked in and they’re coming to meet me in the lobby. The front desk guy had no problem with that.
The complimentary hot daily breakfast was great. Eggs, bacon, pancakes, potatoes, yogurt, sliced fruit, bagels. Good variety. There’s also complimentary happy hour in the evening.
Pool was great. There are about three pools. Hot tub is HOT. The pool bar has a special on beer (6 pack for $ 20). I went to the beach once. It was fine but I’m more of a pool person.
We walked to Walgreens. That was torture it was so hot. A hotel employee gave us a ride when we were half way there, he probably saw how desperate we were. We went to Old San Juan one day. We rented a car (the front desk arranged this for us).
My take is the hotel workers can only do what they’re hired for, it’s really up to
the owners and GM to update the place. Overall at the end of my stay I felt relaxed and rejuvenated.

We wont stay here again. It wasn’t gross, it’s just not up to par. We stayed for a whole week, which was a mistake, couldn’t eat the same breakfast every day for 7 days, we had to stop (at least change it every other day or SOMETHING). Alarms went off a few times from which we were absolutely traumatized at 11:40pm (we had just experienced the Napa earthquake and couldn’t believe this was happening to us again, then it was just false alarms each time). The night staff, don’t bother asking their help, they don’t know anything and just tell you everything’s fine.
Meh, the food is great, the rooms are what’s expected, it’s cheap. They probably lose money with all the free drinks and breakfast anyway so… «it be what it be». Don’t expect a romantic place, kids are every-​frickin-​where puking in the pools.
Enjoy the free drinks, it’s the only way you’ll get to sleep.

More like 3.5 stars.
The good:
Housekeeping staff did a lovely job every day, they came back after we left to clean.
I was brought towels and water pretty much immediately upon request every time I asked.
We were given partial ocean view even though I booked standard.
Property feels safe– I liked how much of a pita it was to get in and out. I felt like it would be too much trouble for someone with ill intent to make it to the hotel because of guard shack and about a mile of speed bumped roads to make it to hotel.
When we had a problem with free wifi– they gave us a special access code.
The kept my son supplied with maraschino cherries any time I asked and made him happy.
The beach is fine, the hot tub is hot. Other reviewers complained about this.
The food from restaurant in hotel was pretty good.
Good hotel for families with young kids. Pool is 3’6″ at deepest.
Breakfast is decent for free.
Happy hour drinks are nice and snacks are ok– popcorn, pretzels
We saw iguana and beautiful flowers all over pool area.
The bad:
Décor is old, and some linens and furniture is worn and stained– I always placed a towel if I sat on couch to feel sanitary.
Elevator buttons don’t always work, or may be working but you don’t know it because they don’t light up like they should.
Trash left in atrium, pool area, and grounds should be picked up daily. There were straws sunk in atrium in same spot during my 4 day stay. Really downs the look of the hotel.
You need a car to stay here– and they charge for parking on top of resort fee.
A lot of things like doors, wash machine, coin changers are out of order. Makes it seem like staff needs a pep talk to keep up appearance of hotel.
The pool towel older gentleman could use a but more tact while informing guests of unwritten rules about towel privileges ;)
It’s not the ritz– but has more potential than they are currently exercising.

I redeemed a lot of Hilton HHonors points to get two nights of «oceanview unobstructed» and I was quite pleased with the room. Up on the 7^th floor, my suite (same layout as every other Embassy Suite where I’ve ever stayed) had a super balcony with a great view of the ocean and the pool area. Quiet and with no noise from the atrium or the neighbors, I can not complain about the room at all.
Where the hotel let me down was…
— The «welcome gift» that I had ordered to the room on the Internet was not there when we arrived at the requested time. It was another hour.
— Breakfast was awful. If you want to wait in line for the cooked-​to-​order omelet, great. Otherwise, scrambled «eggs», bacon, sausage and fried potatoes. I would say that I’ve had better at most hotels.
— Room service was slow. It took over an hour to get two sandwiches, which arrived barely warm.
— We went out for two hours from 11:00 AM to past 1:00 PM, but when we returned out room had not been cleaned. We decided it just wasn’t worth it and went without.
— The fridge was very cold. In the morning, my bottle of water was an ice block.
Parking is available on site, either self-​park in the large parking deck or the valet will do it for you for about 50% more money.
As a Hilton «Gold», my Internet was free.
But my complaints might not be your complaints. If you just want a nice room with a nice beach, you might find this to be a five star property.

El hotel está muy bien, un poco masificado.
Frecuentado por la clase media americana; eso significa niños gritando todo el rato por todo el hotel.
pero el precio lo compensa.
El resultado final de pros y contras, es positivo.
Hotel recomendado.