18.56° N, 68.37° WDominican Republic · 6 min read
Finest Resort: The Best Family Resort in Punta Cana
The Finest Resort Punta Cana is the best family resort we have been to!
This all-inclusive resort is a perfect blend of luxury, relaxation, and endless fun for all ages.
With activities ranging from karaoke nights to musicals and a dedicated indoor play area for kids, there’s something for everyone to enjoy.
Each of the numerous restaurants features child-friendly play zones, ensuring parents can savour their meals stress-free.
While Punta Cana itself doesn’t offer much outside the resort, the Finest Punta Cana ensures your stay is relaxing, entertaining and fun.
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Best family resort they've been to. All-inclusive, 1 hour from airport, 30 min from downtown. Group of 7 including 2 children. Finest Family Suite and Excellence Club Junior Suite — both exceeded expectations. King bed, spacious bathroom, walk-in closet, mini fridge, private balcony. Spotless rooms. Room service takes ~45 min. Book directly with hotel for free airport transfer. Reserve ahead for great discounts.
8 restaurants total, 6 in central U-shaped building. Pan-Asian, Mexican, steak, seafood, sushi, pizza, burgers. Each has unique charm/decor. Recommend: Surf & Turf (seafood), Brass (steak), Insime (Italian). Service was chaotic though — orders often wrong, non-veg served to vegetarians. Every restaurant has 'Imagine Club' kids play area.
Highlight of the resort! Bouncy ball for kids on one side, open swim area and pool bar on other. Morning activities: water aerobics, dancing (parents join more than kids). Plenty of chairs and cabanas. Staff serves drinks and food poolside.
Pristine beach, perfect for SUNRISE — watching sun rise with cool ocean breeze and orange sky was magical. Spacious, clean, chairs and cabanas with tables, beach towels provided. Water was clean, warm, inviting (not crystal clear in November). $60 USD for 1-hour beach massage. Authorized vendors are friendly and non-pressuring.
Shows every night — musicals, dance shows, karaoke. Post-dinner until 11:30pm. Kids section with activities, theater, lounge, water area. Parents can leave kids 6:30-10:30pm for a cozy evening.
Half day private boat. Snorkelling (plenty of fish but only 1 hour in water out of 4). Then sailed to shallow beach — crystal clear waist-level water, spent 1.5 hours. Don't go too close to beach (stingrays). SKIP the dolphin viewing — small enclosure with 17 dolphins and a shark, not free-swimming.
About Finest Resort
Located about an hour away from the airport, the resort provides access to a pristine beach with clear waters and beautiful sunrises. Thirty minutes from downtown, the resort is secluded enough to be not bothered by the city chaos but close enough for you to make a trip if you so choose.
The staff is extremely friendly and welcoming and always have a smile on their face. The facilities and activities can keep you entertained for days on end and the restaurants ensure you never go hungry.
A week is a good duration to experience the resort.
Our Experience
We, a group of seven, including two children, spent a week in Punta Cana and had a blast every minute of it.
Get up → sun rise → breakfast → pool → lunch at the food trunk → beach → room to change → dinner at one of the restaurants → end the night with a show or at the kids play area → Rinse & Repeat!
Rooms
Our group stayed in the Finest Family Suite and the Excellence Club Junior Suite, both of which exceeded our expectations. Each room featured a plush king bed, elegant side tables with chic lamps, a spacious bathroom with premium fixtures, and a walk-in closet generously sized to accommodate clothing from three full suitcases. The well-stocked mini fridge and a cozy seating area with a sofa-cum-bed added to the extravagance, while the private balcony or patio offered additional seating, perfect for unwinding and enjoying the evenings.
The attention to detail from the staff was remarkable, both in maintaining the rooms and in the turndown service. The spaces were consistently spotless, making it an absolute delight to return to after a day packed with fun and adventure.
Food ordered via room service takes a while, so please plan at least 45 minutes in advance.
The Resort
Restaurants
You want to eat pan-asian, you got it. You want to try Mexican, you got it. You want some steak, you got that too. Seafood, sushi, pizzas, burgers, hot dogs… they have it all!
Each restaurant offers its own distinct charm, cuisine, decor, ambiance, and overall vibe. Dining here is an exploration in itself, with every venue delivering a unique experience.
We recommend Surf & Turf for some amazing seafood, Brass for some great steak and Insime for some tasty Italian.
The service, however, in most restaurants was a bit chaotic. Our orders were often not taken correctly and sometimes non vegetarian dishes were served to vegetarian folks. If there was one thing that the resort could improve on, it would be this.
Make sure they get your order right and that you get the right order.
Pool
The pool is the highlight of the resort with a bouncy ball on one side and an open area for activities on the other.
Children can spend hours on end climbing the bouncy ball, jumping to their hearts content and sliding down with glee. Watching their pure excitement, we couldn’t resist joining in their fun! For those who prefer to unwind, there are plenty of chairs and cabanas, allowing parents to relax comfortably while keeping an eye on the little ones.
The other side of the pool is equally lively, featuring an open swim area and a pool bar for refreshing drinks. Each morning, the resort hosts poolside activities like water aerobics and dancing in the water; believe you us, more parents partake in those activities than the kids. It’s so much fun!
The staff is very friendly and are available to serve you drinks and food while you enjoy your time there.
Beach
A pristine beach, perfect for sunrise.
The beach strikes the perfect balance—spacious enough to ensure personal privacy yet intimate enough to navigate with ease. Its pristine condition, ample chairs, cabanas with attached tables, and readily available beach towels provided by the resort make it an ideal spot for relaxation.
During our November visit, the water, though not crystal clear, was clean, warm, and inviting. We spent hours swimming, floating, and simply enjoying the gentle waves.
There are authorized service providers & gift sellers at the beach; unlike other places we have visited, they are friendly, courteous and do not pressure you to buy from them. We got an hour long massage on the beach for $60 USD.
The highlight of the beach, however, is the sunrise. Watching the sun rise over the horizon, with the cool ocean breeze and the orange sky was magical. It’s a humbling and unforgettable moment.
If you do just one thing here, let it be catching the sunrise—it’s truly breathtaking.
Family Activities
The best family resort wouldn’t be the best without family activities and, indeed, the resort does not disappoint.
Theater
The resort puts on a show in the theater virtually every night - from musicals to dance shows to karaoke. The shows kick off post-dinner and continue until around 11:30 PM, providing the perfect way to wind down your evening with a mix of energy and excitement. Guests of all ages are invited.
Play Areas
Every restaurant has an “Imagine Club” - a kids play area with balloons and activities for kids to enjoy while the table waits for food. The club is attended by very friendly staff who not only engage with the children but also ensure their safety.
In addition, there is a separate section of the resort dedicated to children - activities, theater, lounge and a water area. Parents can safely leave their children from 6:30pm to 10:30pm to enjoy a cozy intimate evening.
Excursions
Have a chat with the resort about external water and land excursions. The excursions include to and fro transportation from the hotel.
We rented a private boat for half a day for snorkelling and lazing in shallow waters. While we did see plenty of fishes, we wish that we had allotted more time to snorkelling. Out of the four hours on the boat, we spent only an hour in the water snorkelling.
Post snorkelling, we were taken for dolphin viewing. While we expected dolphins to be swimming free, we were surprised to visit a small enclosure which housed 17 dolphins and a shark. We recommend that you skip this part of the excursion.
After spending 10 minutes at the dolphin enclosure, we sailed to a beach where we spent around an hour and a half in crystal clear waist level shallow waters. Don’t go too close to the beach as the shallower areas are muddled with stingrays.
Tips & Mistakes to avoid
Reserve the resort ahead of time to get great discounts
Book directly with the hotel to get free airport pickup and drop off
Room service takes around 45 minutes. Plan accordingly
Try out every restaurant. Each of them offers a different experience
Ensure the servers have the order right and that you get the right order
Go on the snorkelling & shallow beach excursion
Skip the dolphin viewing excursion
Yay or Nay
Yay all the way! An excellent resort and an unbelievable value for money.
Yay or Nay?
The staff is friendly, the resort facilities are amazing and families can spend hours in the pool or on the beach.
This is our travel book — let's explore together. We travel with our two dogs, Naina and Naaz.
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