Sun Palace Resort

We just returned from 9 days at the beautiful Sun Palace! So much can be said but it might spoil the surprise for others, so I’ll be brief.

This boutique-style property is great without being overpowering. Interior is well appointed, rooms are perfect with gorgeous views. Recommend taking rooms overlooking the relaxing pool instead of the activity pool, just in case you want an afternoon siesta.

Only 4 restaurants, so you won’t spend time trying to figure out where to eat.

• Italian: Amazing food, portions, ambiance and decor
• Thai: Amazing food, ambiance and decor (you can keep ordering as you dine)
• Mexican: Amazing food, ambiance and portions
• Steakhouse: Amazing food, portions, ambiance (note: open air restaurant so recommend light clothing as No AC)

Yes…similar reviews on food as the food was outstanding, from the sweets bar, to the buffet and everywhere in between..even poolside with their options!

The shows were wonderful but not overpowering and were just 45 mins long.

The staff, or should we say, Family were amazing! Special shout outs to Daniella and Jesus on Entertainment, Jenni & Eduardo at the buffet, Jonathon for excursions & spa and Manuel (Luis) in sales…yes sales even gets a shout out for not only his help, but his kindness and helpful nature too!

We have cruised, been to Europe as well as Sandals and other AI places…this competes with the best of them & we will definitely return, not only to this property but others within the Palace group…soon!

Thanks to all for the amazing vacay!

Transportation - We easily located Marcos y Luis who greeted us at the airport. We waited less than ten minutes for our car and Luis helped us with our bags. Our driver, Marvin, was very friendly and professional. We enjoyed our quick trip to the resort.

Front desk & bellboys - We were graciously welcomed to the resort and our bags were promptly removed from the car. Our bags were delivered quickly upon room assignment. Luis was quick and efficient when gathering and delivering our bags upon departure.

Cleanliness & Turndown - we were very pleased with housekeeping and turndown. All of our requests were met.

Room maintenance - we requested and received a new mattress which was much more comfortable. The original mattress was too soft and lumpy and was very uncomfortable.

Appearance and cleanliness of common areas - all common areas were clean and beautiful.

DC service - we were thrilled with the service provided by our DC, Genesis Pavon. She contacted us early and worked up our reservations and agenda in a timely manner. She quickly and efficiently coordinated any changes and kept us informed about what was happening at the resort through daily visits and communication. She went over and above to help us celebrate my husband’s birthday with room decorations and a poolside visit with cake, decorations and singing. On the rare occasion Genesis was not available, Violeta made sure we were well taken care of. We will be happy to have Genesis as our DC again in the future.

Vacation planners - we did not use the services of any vacation planners as everything was taken care of by our DC. We did enjoy seeing our friend, Jessica Camelo, and getting to meet Chef David Lorenzana, who made sure our special meal requests were satisfied. We also enjoyed talking with Janelis Merida.

App - the app worked well for us.

WiFi - WiFi service worked well for us.

Daytime entertainment - we enjoyed meeting and interacting with Ivan. My husband played blackjack with him every day in the quiet pool. He was very friendly and entertaining. We did not spend any time at the activities pool.

Live music performances - we enjoyed all of the shows. The Rock show was fantastic, the Caberet was amazing and the country band was fabulous. My husband enjoyed the MJ show. We especially enjoyed the pianist at Trattoria. His performance was exceptional. Hope to see him again.

Fitness center - clean and spacious with a good variety of exercise equipment.

O Spa - we were welcomed and checked in to our appointments by friendly staff. Butlers helped to lead us to lockers and then to the waiting area. All of our services were excellent. The spa was clean and beautifully decorated. We did not take advantage of hydrotherapy on this trip.

Beauty salon - I enjoyed my hair treatment from Samantha. The salon was clean and spacious.

Aurora buffet - the breakfast and lunch buffets were excellent. The food selection was fantastic and everything was delicious. We especially enjoyed being greeted by the beautiful and always smiling Jenni and/or Yuri and being taken care of by our favorite servers, Estrella, Eduardo and Juan. We also enjoyed the omelets prepared expertly by Angel.

Trattoria - our favorite restaurant. The food was delicious. Chef Diana prepared a superb birthday dinner and dessert. Our server, Armando was friendly and professional. We were extremely happy to see Mgr Renan who always makes everyone feel welcomed and special.

Aurora Mexican Fine Dining - we enjoyed our special dinner prepared by the chef. The tortilla soup and pollo con mole was delicious. Stev took great care of us. Stev was very gracious and helpful throughout our visit.

Fuego - we loved our dinner at Fuego. The food was delicious and we really enjoyed visiting again with Monica. We first met her when she was at Trattoria and we were happy to see her managing at Fuego.

Thai - we enjoyed this restaurant very much. Laura greeted us and Fran took wonderful care of us as our waiter. Mgr. Angie made sure everything was great. We especially enjoyed the Momoten (shrimp) maki.

Sweet & Coffee - love, love, love this place. The chocolate truffles are amazing. The ice cream is delicious. The coffee is excellent. The staff are all friendly and welcoming. I wish all Palace resorts would have hazelnut syrup. The staff made my hazelnut latte with Nutella but not as good.

In room dining - did not use.

Pool bars - great bartenders, and servers. We had great service from Dino and Filo.

“The Bar” - beautiful bar area with large tv and pool table. The bartenders are fantastic. We especially enjoyed the smoked old fashioneds, the Manhattans and espresso martinis prepared by Juan, Mike and Alfredo. During shows we were pleased to be waited on by Karina who took our orders and served the drinks. She is fantastic.

Impact of our teams interactions - thoroughly enjoyed interacting with all staff, in particular the restaurant managers (Angie, Renan, Monica, Stev, etc.), chefs (Chef Diana, Chef Fernando, Chef Vincent and especially Chef David Lorenzana who ensured our special requests were met - such as coconut shrimp, tortilla soup and pollo con mole), bar manager (name started with an O but cannot remember his name, perhaps Obierto?) and Sommeliers Guillermo (Memo) and Kevin.

Summary/Special shout outs - We appreciate the excellent service provided by German and Ricky, the pool concierges who ensured our pool chairs and umbrellas were set up every day, brought us waters and came around with fruit and special treats.

Kevin and Memo provided excellent service, helping us pick out delicious wines. Kevin led the wine tasting event we participated in which was fantastic. Both are so personable, professional and very knowledgeable.

We’d also like to thank all involved in helping us celebrate my husband’s birthday starting with Genesis and including those who decorated our room, our pool chairs, sang to us by the pool and our fabulous dinner at Trattoria with wine pairings by Memo, and fantastic menu and food by Chef Diana with an amazing fruit and cream tart dessert in the shape of 70.

Special thanks to beach lifeguard, Daniel, who set up our beach cabanas, checked on us, kept watch and gifted me with some beautiful seashells.

We enjoyed a day at LeBlanc with a fabulous pedicure from Karina who painted a beautiful happy face on my husband’s toe, tremendous beach service from Victor and Jesus and a wonderful dinner at Yama. Hostess Jessica and server Enrique were great and Chef Freddy made us a superb dinner. We learned he is friends with Chef David at Sun who contacted Chef Freddy to alert him we were coming so our evening would be amazing, which it was.

Many thanks to resort manager, Heriberto for stopping by to introduce himself to us. We enjoyed meeting him and appreciate his spending some time with us

Survey feedback:

As there was no indication of an expiration date for submission of the survey, unfortunately we missed the deadline. I will note, I had the survey mostly completed, however somehow before I was able to fully complete and submit, all of my input was lost and I had to start again from the beginning. I was very disappointed and frustrated by this.  Ultimately I recreated my comments in a separate document ready to cut and paste into the survey. By this time, the survey link had expired.   It would be very helpful if there was a way to save input after each section of the survey and also if there was a way to go back to make edits.  For anyone else wishing to complete the survey post trip, recommend you learn from my mistakes. Go through the entire survey once (to know what will be asked) and prepare any comments in a separate document to cut and paste into the survey when you are ready to complete.

First the pool side entertainment never disappoints. Jesus, Pedro & Daniella are so much fun. Dinning best 2 options (in our opinion) Trattoria, Adrian is hands down the best server and Thai Gabhy was amazing she remembered our order and help me celebrate by birthday 2 times, she was so sweet. In the spa - Kaliegh (not sure of the spelling) & Veronica were amazing, I would ask for them again and every time either are available. The pool side services were great most days. The servers, Mani, Daniel & Silvio all did their jobs, but the wait time for the food seemed to take too long for the low capacity of the resort and they kept running out of food and beverage items. Not sure what that was all about. For a Vacation Planner, ask for Jonathan, he is an eager young man working his way up the ladder. Our room was clean and cleaned daily amenities brought to us when asked. The beverages in the room were always stocked but the snacks seemed limited this time. Not Impressed. The room service menu was limited and not impressive either. The worst experience of the trip was dinner at Fuego's. This is the second time there and no one in our group enjoyed it.