Modern spacious suites, sumptuous buffets (yes, this is no marketing bla bla – the buffet here is outstanding) and a compact resort with selected activities and entertainment – that’s what you can expect at Paradisus Grand Cana. But there is more that you should know, especially regarding the beach, the amenities, the dinner options and the room categories – and that’s exactly what I am showing you after our stay here in this comprehensive Paradisus Grand Cana review.
- What’s special?
- At a glance: THE BEST of Paradisus Grand Cana
- Location: Where is Paradisus Grand Cana?
- Overview – a virtual walk through the resort
- The beach at Paradisus Grand Cana
- The rooms at Paradisus Grand Cana
- Booking: How to find the best prices for this resort
- Restaurants and bars at Paradisus Grand Cana
- Entertainment and service
- Family Concierge Level (VIP Level)
- Excursions from Paradisus Grand Cana
- Summary – for whom is it the perfect resort and when you should NOT go …
If not sure which all-inclusive resort to book, you can continue reading here about how to find the best all-inclusive resort in Punta Cana.
In case you are looking for some of the biggest water parks in the Dominican Republic, check out the best Punta Cana resorts with a water park.
If you are looking for other family-friendly hotels in Punta Cana, you can see our hand-picked list of Punta Cana all-inclusive family resorts.
If you’re looking for further options with swim-out suites, you can check out this list of the best resorts with swim-up rooms in Punta Cana.
What’s special?
Paradisus Grand Cana is a new and upscale resort that perfectly suits both families and couples looking for a high-quality all-inclusive experience. What truly sets this resort apart is its outstanding culinary offering. The buffet alone features premium dishes such as lobster, complemented by four distinct lunch venues to satisfy all tastes. Usually, most resorts only feature one specific place for lunch. The resort’s compact layout is another highlight, making it one of the smaller all-inclusive resorts in Punta Cana and easy to get around, especially as all amenities are located within a walking distance of 2 minutes – except for the beach, which is connected through an easy and frequent free shuttle train that whisks guests to the beach in just two minutes.
At a glance: THE BEST of Paradisus Grand Cana
I always encourage you to read the entire review, as I am always trying to put as much valuable and helpful information into these articles as possible, all based on our experiences when we stayed at the resort.
Still, if you don’t have a lot of time, here is a quick overview of some of the highlights at Paradisus Grand Cana.
- Best restaurant: Origen, the buffet restaurant (lots of exquisite dishes and ingredients here)
- Best room: Family Concierge Master Swim-Up Suite* (combines the best of both worlds: the best amenities with VIP privileges and direct pool access – 2-bedroom suites are also available)
- The best airport transfer: quick and affordable, this one here has amazing reviews *
- Best on-site hidden gem: The free premium mixology class is a fantastic perk
- Best excursion: catamaran snorkeling tour* (outstanding reviews, personal attention in small groups and visiting the much better Cabeza de Toro reef, compared to the boring Punta Cana reef)
- The best dish: vegetarian Paella at Alula (if you like vegetarian food)
Location: Where is Paradisus Grand Cana?
Paradisus Grand Cana is centrally located along the famous Bavaro Beach, just about 25 minutes from Punta Cana International Airport. The resort shares its complex with the sister properties Melia Punta Cana, Melia Caribe Beach, Zel Punta Cana and Paradisus Palma Real, creating a large resort complex with plenty of beautiful tropical gardens to walk around – you’ll probably find at least a thousand palm trees on the property.
If you leave the resort on foot, you can find small shops and restaurants on the main road. If you want to reach the central Corales area with plenty of restaurants, nightlife and infrastructure for locals and tourists, you just have to walk along the beach for approximately 15 minutes, hence the location of Paradisus Grand Cana is very central.
Regarding your airport transfer in Punta Cana, I’d recommend prebooking an airport transfer for a smooth arrival, so you can avoid the pushy taxi driver who loves to haggle for prices (and/or overcharge you). One of the most reliable options is this private transfer service here* with thousands of excellent reviews.
Overview – a virtual walk through the resort
Paradisus Grand Cana impresses with its very compact design — all amenities are within 900 feet of each other, except the beach, which is about half a mile away, accessible either by a pleasant 10-15 minute walk through the resort grounds or a quick 2-minute trolley train ride.
Upon arrival, the lobby welcomes you like a large, cozy living room, furnished with plenty of comfortable seating and featuring an impressive bar.
Adjacent to the lobby are all the à-la-carte restaurants, the Circle by Melia lounge, the gym, another bar, and the buffet.
The main pool lies just beyond this central hub, flanked on both sides by accommodation buildings arranged in a circular layout.
If you walk past the northern accommodation buildings, you can also reach the water park of Paradisus Grand Cana, a great option to pass a couple of hours with kids – they will love the water games and the slides.
Once you take the trolley train to the beach (or walk around 10-15 minutes), you’ll reach the beach of Paradisus Grand Cana, consisting of the restaurant Alula (usually open for breakfast and lunch), which also features a full bar, and the beach area consisting of plenty of sun beds. There is a trolley train stop right behind the Alula restaurant, so you don’t have to walk far to get back to your room.
The beach at Paradisus Grand Cana
Talking about the beach, it really can’t get much better than at Paradisus Grand Cana. Yes, the resort is not located right at the beach, hence a quick trolley train ride is necessary (runs every 10 minutes or so), but the beach you have here is one of the best in Punta Cana: Bavaro Beach! It’s 12 miles long, has thousands of palm trees, the finest sand and is one of the widest beaches in the area. It’s more than 350 feet wide – a really impressive beach giving you plenty of space to relax and explore.
Seaweed might be an issue as nearly everywhere in Punta Cana, but luckily Paradisus Grand Cana and the neighboring resorts have a fence in the ocean that keeps most of the seaweed away. If sargassum comes through, it gets cleaned regularly, usually daily.
The rooms at Paradisus Grand Cana
Rooms at Paradisus Grand Cana are very modern and extremely spacious, with the smallest category being the regular Suite at approximately 800 square feet. All the rooms either have a view of the large tropical gardens or the interior of the resort with plenty of pools. There are, due to the distance, no ocean view rooms.
When booking your Paradisus Grand Cana room, you have the choice among the following options:
- Suite
- Master Suite
- Two Bedroom Master Suite
- Swim-Up Suite
- Master Swim-Up Suite
- Two Bedroom Master Swim-Up Suite
The same categories can be booked with the Family Concierge privileges and amenities (see details further below in this review about Paradisus Grand Cana), hence there is a total of 12 room categories available:
- Family Concierge Suite
- Family Concierge Master Suite
- Family Concierge Two Bedroom Master Suite
- Family Concierge Swim-Up Suite
- Family Concierge Master Swim-Up Suite
- Family Concierge Two Bedroom Master Swim-Up Suite
All rooms come equipped with amenities such as air conditioning, flat-screen TVs, minibar, WiFi, seating areas, and a small kitchen area with a fridge and coffee/tea making facilities (though cooking is not possible). The balconies and terraces are furnished with comfy sun loungers and have either a jacuzzi or a swim-up access, or both.
The differences between the suites are not as big as one would expect, except for the space. The Master Suite is slightly bigger than the Suite and especially has a bigger bathroom area with a free-standing bathtub.
Most important thing to book before your trip – what most people forget: health insurance for the Dominican Republic – get prices here*
(gets you covered in case of illness, accidents or necessary medical treatments)
All the other amenities are very similar, except for an additional bedroom for the Two Bedroom Suites and direct pool access for the swim-up suites. This means that the living room in the following photo can be enjoyed in all the suites, including the most affordable room category.
We stayed in a regular suite (but with Family Concierge amenities) and loved the extremely spacious design, the very comfortable beds, the sun loungers on the balcony, as well as some of the thoughtful in-room touches like natural mosquito repellent and complimentary snacks.
Booking: How to find the best prices for this resort
Paradisus Grand Cana’s pricing varies throughout the year, with the high season (December to April) seeing rates typically between $450 and $600 per night, while the low season (May to November) offers better deals around $350 to $450 per night.
To secure the best prices, it’s advisable to be flexible with your travel dates and compare offers across several platforms. Recommended booking sites include the official Melia website, Booking.com, Expedia and Trip.com.
| Website | Your Advantage | Paradisus Grand Cana |
|---|---|---|
| Booking | Get up to 10% Genius discount on the already discounted rates |  |
| Expedia | Online travel agency with great deals, personal service and good reputation | |
| Kayak | Powerful meta hotel search engine by Kayak | |
| Paradisus Grand Cana Website | Book directly with the hotel (Paradisus belongs to the Melia Group) | |
| JetBlue Vacations | Great package deals and interesting promotions for US travelers | |
| Trip.com | Collect reward points at flights and hotels with this NYSE listed online travel agency | |
Checking for package deals through travel agents or tour operators can sometimes yield additional savings. If you want to check these options online, you can compare package deals with Paradisus Grand Cana here*.
Restaurants and bars at Paradisus Grand Cana
Food is always one of the most important topics in our extensive resort reviews for Punta Cana, hence I also want to have a closer look at the culinary options at Paradisus Grand Cana.
What sets Paradisus Grand Cana apart from other all-inclusive resorts in Punta Cana is the following:
- The main buffet (Origen Gastro Hall) is one of the best buffets we have ever seen in Punta Cana. It combines an intimate vibe with high-quality food, such as lobster, mussels, giant prawns and scallops served, for example.
- For lunch, you have the impressive choice of 4 places to eat: the main buffet, the beach restaurant, the Mangu restaurant and also the sports bar (starting from 16:00, hence a late lunch). Among those 4 options, three are à-la-carte. Most resorts in Punta Cana only offer 1 buffet for lunch and maybe a beach snack.
- You can have dinner at a Peruvian restaurant (Machu), which features delicious fresh Ceviche and other Latin American dishes
When staying at Paradisus Grand Cana, you have a choice of 9 restaurants:
- Origen Gastro Hall, the main buffet (open for breakfast, lunch and dinner)
- Alula, the à-la-carte beachside restaurant (open for breakfast and lunch)
- Karnica, an à-la-carte steakhouse (open for dinner)
- Tori, an Asian à-la-carte restaurant (open for dinner)
- Machu, a Peruvian à-la-carte restaurant (open for dinner)
- Mangú, a Dominican à-la-carte restaurant (open for breakfast (only for Family Concierge guests), lunch and dinner)
- Amor de Mar, a Mediterranean à-la-carte restaurant (open for dinner)
- Canopi, a pool snack outlet next to the water park
- Rubi Rocks, the sports bar with an à-la-carte pub-style menu (open from after lunch)
Furthermore, you have bars at various places throughout the resort, such as the pool bar, the incredibly huge lobby bar, the beach bar at Alula, as well as bars close to the restaurants.
Food-wise, the buffet impressed us most, as you could really see that Paradisus Grand Cana is a premium resort. Excellent seafood, including lobster (at the buffet!), freshly squeezed juice made to order, a large salad and fruit bar with selected ingredients, a good choice of hot food, everything presented in small portions so it doesn’t overcook at the buffet – the Origen Gastro Hall was a great place to eat.
Regarding the à-la-carte restaurants, due to personal circumstances, we haven’t had the chance to try that many of them. We had dinner at Mangú, which was okay but nothing to write home about – even though it probably will be significantly better once you travel and read this review, as they recently (re-)inaugurated the Mangú restaurant with a well-known local chef, Leandro Diaz.
What was more impressive was the à-la-carte lunch at Alula, where we had some amazing fresh fish and a super creative vegetarian paella (be careful, it’s huge!!) – and all of this with good drinks and beachfront / ocean view – can a resort holiday in Punta Cana get any better?
Also, the Mangú breakfast (exclusively for Family Concierge guests) was very good and recommendable if you prefer an à-la-carte breakfast over buffet food.
If you’re thirsty, Paradisus Grand Cana offers a huge selection of premium spirits and international brand liquors. Just look at these bars at the resort …
However, not all brands are included for every guest, as levels depend on your room category and member tier:
- All international standard brands for regular rooms at Paradisus Grand Cana (such as the Suite, the Master Suite, or the Swim-Up Suite)
- All international standard and premium brands for Family Concierge room bookings (such as the Family Concierge Swim-Up suite)
- All international standard and premium brands + top-shelf liquors for Melía by Circle members
Sometimes it was a bit difficult to know which brands are included or not, but if in doubt, just ask at the bar. If you love to drink premium spirits, definitely consider booking a Family Concierge room.
The drinks we ordered were very good. It was nice to see the amount of fresh ingredients they use, especially the many fruits they have available (not at all bars). Try the small pop-up bar next to the Mangú restaurants, it’s so beautiful.
Our favourites were the fresh smoothies we ordered during lunch at the Gastro Hall buffet as well as the Mojito (and rum selection) from the Rum / Juliet bar.
Entertainment and service
Entertainment at Paradisus Grand Cana is very versatile and aligns with what you would expect from an upscale all-inclusive resort. The entertainment program is posted in various places such as the app, at the buffet, the gym or other places. Daily activities include Aqua Gym, spinning, dancing lessons, paddle surfing, pool volleyball, fitness lessons, cocktail demonstrations, ceviche workshops or rum and whiskey tastings. Some of the activities are for Family Concierge guests only.
If you want to get active, you can also immerse yourself in non-motorized watersports, yoga classes or beach volleyball.
What’s unique about the entertainment at Paradisus Grand Cana is the kids’ activity schedule. Instead of the typical “up to 12 years” and “12 years and over” schedule, they have different activities for different ages – that’s a true family-friendly resort in Punta Cana. Of course, these activities sometimes overlap, but they’re catering to the needs of each age group.
Here is an example schedule from a random day of our visit:
Kids 3-4 years:
- Water fun, Dancing, Fruits and Chocolate, Taino culture, garden games, mask workshop
Kids 5-8 years:
- Water fun 1+2; Dancing; Fruits and Chocolate; Taino culture, garden games, mask workshop
Kids 9-12 years:
- Kick ball; bracelet workshop; video games; water fun; baseball
Kids 13 years and older:
- Kickball, video games, water fun, baseball
Don’t forget the water park, which was already mentioned above. It’s not the biggest water park in Punta Cana, but it especially keeps kids from 3 to 9 or maybe 10 years old busy for a long time.
Family Concierge Level (VIP Level)
Booking a Family Concierge room grants access to exclusive amenities including personalized check-in, upgraded room amenities, a private lounge, and an enhanced selection of alcoholic beverages. The à-la-carte breakfast included for Family Concierge guests is particularly nice, so are the dedicated concierge services that cater to family needs, making the stay more comfortable and tailored.
However, as always with an upgrade in an all-inclusive resort, think twice if you need this upgrade or if you want to save the money (see this article here for further saving hacks) for some cool excursions or another holiday in Punta Cana. Considering that you get a pretty good service and full amenities when booking a regular room at Paradisus Grand Cana, the upgrade is not 100% necessary in my opinion. Of course, if you enjoy the extra perks and if the extra costs are not too much, booking a Family Concierge room can be worth it.
Here are a few of the amenities you enjoy when booking a Family Concierge Room:
- Destination Concierge service
- Destination Inclusive experiences (workshops or excursions)
- Destination Inclusive Activities & Amenities (in-room amenities)
- Access to the Premium Lounge
- Private check-in
- Turndown service
- Premium Liquor
- Á-la-carte restaurant Mangu for breakfast and lunch
Excursions from Paradisus Grand Cana
Like most resorts in Punta Cana, you have easy access to a variety of excursions from Paradisus Grand Cana. Popular options include snorkeling tours to nearby coral reefs, catamaran cruises, visits to the Indigenous Eyes Ecological Park, and cultural excursions to the countryside. Adventure seekers can also explore zip-lining, dive trips and off-road buggy tours, all within a reasonable distance from the resort.
To help you book the right tour, I have compiled a list of the best excursions from Paradisus Grand Cana. Those are the top-rated tours with thousands of reviews, visiting some of the coolest places Punta Cana has to offer. And as the reviews are outstanding and constantly above 4.7 or 4.8 (out of 5 points) for all those tours, they (unofficially) all have a satisfaction guarantee.
| The best Punta Cana Excursion | Review Score (as of February 2024) | Duration | Price (as of February 2024) | Further information |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Isla Saona Premium Tour* | 4.95/5.0 | 9 hours | 165 USD | |
| Private Boat Snorkeling & Catamaran* | 4.93/5.0 | 4 hours | 800 USD (per group) | |
| Small Group Snorkeling & Catamaran* | 4.91/5.0 | 4 hours | 89 USD | |
| Jungle Buggies + Zipline Combo* | 4.91/5.0 | 6 hours | 184 USD | |
| Lux Coral Nursery Snorkeling* | 4.91/5.0 | 4 hours | 109 USD | |
| 4×4 Dominican Experience* | 4.88/5.0 | 4 hours | 64 USD | |
| Punta Cana Ziplining* | 4.84/5.0 | 5 hours | 90 USD | |
| ATV & Snorkeling Combo* | 4.81/5.0 | 8 hours | 129 USD | |
| Montana Redonda + Playa Esmeralda* | 4.79/5.0 | 4 hours | 95 USD | |
| Snorkeling Cruise + Dune Buggy Adventure* | 4.75/5.0 | 8 hours | 129 USD | |
Summary – for whom is it the perfect resort and when you should NOT go …
Paradisus Grand Cana is an upscale resort that shines for its excellent food offerings and compact, convenient design. It is ideal for travelers who
- Appreciate high-quality buffets and diverse dining options
- Prefer smaller, more intimate resort settings
- Travel as a family and value family-friendly services and amenities
- Seek spacious, modern suites with a separate living area, not just a room
- Don’t mind a short trolley ride to the beach
However, it is not recommended for those who
- Want their room directly on the beach (have a look at neighboring Melia Punta Cana or Paradisus Palma Real in this case)
- Are looking for an adults-only atmosphere (better book one of these mid-price adults-only resorts)
- Desire a lively party scene or constant entertainment (in this case, one of these party resorts in Punta Cana would be your best bet).
Overall, Paradisus Grand Cana offers a refined and comfortable stay with a focus on quality and relaxation rather than nonstop activity, even though the activity schedule and included workshops are a nice add-on to an overall very pleasant all-inclusive stay.
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CHRIS
Author, Travel Coach & Industry Professional (Bachelor’s degree in tourism)Hey, I am Chris, a born and raised German, travel-addictive and Caribbean soul, who has been living in the Dominican Republic for 6 years. I’d love to be your Punta Cana expert, as I have stayed at more than 45 all-inclusive resorts in Punta Cana and the country, visited more than 70 beaches, explored more than 40 waterfalls and have seen basically all the attractions Punta Cana has to offer. I have also studied tourism for 3 years and worked in the tourism industry my entire life, which is why I am not only giving you recommendations and tips as a traveler but also the best secrets and travel hacks as an industry professional.
Do you need more information? Read more at my About Me Page, send me a travel coaching request or Contact Me here.
ALSO WORTH READING:
The 15 best Punta Cana adventures – tours, activities and DIY adventures
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