Ocean Blue and Sand

Ocean Blue and Sand in Punta Cana on the eastern shore of the Dominican Republic is a pastel-hued paradise for the pool-lover in you. While it has some of the more basic rooms we’ve seen at a resort without a lot of added luxury, we loved this all-inclusive for its walkability, just-right size, excellent buffet, and friendly service.

• The resort has an overall homey vibe. There’s a large town square area near the lobby where most of the restaurants are located that gives you a sense of going out to dinner in a small town. Afterward, you can hang out with your neighbors and sip an Irish coffee at the café tables while watching the pink flamingo or the turtles in the pond.
  
  
• There are so many activities at this resort aside from sunbathing and eating! There’s a bowling alley, batting cage, pool tables, ping pong tables, and a rock-climbing wall to enjoy.

• The water at the beach is a beautiful Caribbean turquoise but with some big waves thanks to that Atlantic wind!

• The beach suffered a hit from a hurricane, and the resort is using large sandbags to preserve it. They look like beached whales to us, and other people use them as diving platforms or sunbeds. They make the swimming area feel smaller, but there’s still plenty of room to operate around them.

• The beach area is narrow, so the palapas and sunbeds are placed close together. (Too close for our comfort, actually.) There’s a steep slope in the sand from the palapas to the water in some spots, so anyone with mobility issues will need to enter the water near the dive center, where the beach is flatter.
  
  
• However, because of that sharp drop-off, beach vendors don’t approach you at your palapa. You can gaze out at the water for hours with no disruption!
  
  
• There are restrooms located by either pool, but it can be a bit of a walk from the beach. If those all-inclusive cocktails hit you hard, you may want to sit on the side of the beach away from the dive center for quick access to the beach buffet’s restroom.
  
  
• You’ll be given a towel card that allows you one towel per person. We appreciate the resort’s effort to save water, but we’re two-towel kind of people!
  
  
• There are two large pools, a party pool and a quiet pool. The entertainment, such as fitness classes and games, happens in the party pool, while the quiet pool just has some light local music playing from the bar.
  
  
• There are plenty of umbrellas for shade by the pool, so you can still get one later into the morning, but the beach ones are reserved as early as 7am. Luckily, palm trees and the rock-climbing wall at the beach also provide shade.
  
  
• There’s a kids club, and you’ll mostly see kids in the party pool or the very large spa pool.
  
  
• Both pools have a swim-up bar! But neither the pools nor the spa are heated.

• There’s always some sort of activity happening near the lobby at night even before the official show starts. There’s bingo, painting, dancing, and more, and a lot of people actually go participate!
  
  
• The coffee shop is a standalone café near the lobby, and coffee isn’t served pool- or beach-side, so it can be a trek. However, the array of frozen drinks, handmade espresso, and pastries is impressive!
  
  
• There’s a line of restaurants near the lobby at the front of the resort ranging from steak to Mexican to BBQ to French, a sports bar with late-night snacks, and the buffet. Only the Japanese restaurant requires reservations, and you can eat outdoors at the Italian restaurant.
  
  
• There can be a wait at the restaurants during peak dinner hours, so it’s best to put in your name and hang out in the town square. Those staying at the Privilege Club have the opportunity to make reservations at more than just the Japanese restaurant, too!
  
  
• The buffet is sizeable, and there’s never a wait even at the busiest times. There are stations for grilled meat and seafood, pizza and other Italian treats, sushi and Asian stir frys, salads, charcuterie and cheeses, soups, and all sorts of mains and sides that change every night! There’s also, of course, a huge dessert bar with ice creams, cakes, and cookies.

• For lunch, there’s also a smaller beachside buffet with an amazing view of the water if you don’t want to put on real clothes over your swimsuit! There are burgers, made-to-order sandwiches, salads, grilled meat skewers, build-your-own pasta, fries, and much more. This is also where you’ll find the soft serve machine with ice cream cones!
  
  
• The resort’s rooms don’t have any of the marble and incense you’ll see at other places, but we found that they were clean and got the job done. There are mini cans of local beer, soda, and water in the minibar.

• There are no swim-up rooms at this resort, but some of the Privilege Club rooms have their own hot tubs on the balconies. And even basic rooms have a huge jetted bathtub.

• The rooms have small toiletry bottles, and the shampoo and conditioner is an all-in-one combo. If you’re like us, you’re going to need something stronger to untangle your tresses after a swim.

• There’s just empty beach on the one side of the resort and some local stands for shopping on the other side, so it feels uncrowded and un-touristy.