Dom. Rep. cab fare row

My girlfriend and I decided to take a brief vacation to the Dominican Republic, Dec. 6-10, 2013. We chose the Dominican Republic because we had heard that the weather there in December was warmer than Cancun’s.

Our hotel was the Excellence Punta Cana (Playas Uvero Alto, Higüey, Provincia La Altagracia, Dominican Republic; phone, in the US, 866/540-2585, www.excellence-resorts.com), touted as a 5-star resort. It was part of an all-inclusive travel package costing us $2,600 that I saw online; I phoned the number and booked a stay about 1½ months in advance. Airfare cost an additional $1,200 for two.

When we checked in, I told the front desk staff that I was handicapped, with bad legs, yet the room we were assigned was all the way out in left field. Management fixed that by moving us to a room close to everything (restaurants, pool, etc.).

In the new room, every time I sat on the bed, a mattress spring jabbed me. Also, the refrigerator made loud sounds at night, so I unplugged it. The next day, management exchanged the mattress and the fridge.

I’ve been an adventurer all my life (at this writing, I’m 80 years old) and have visited 110 countries. I told the concierge, Victor, that we would take a local bus to Higüey and another bus to Punta Cana. Each bus ride would have cost about $4 per person.

Victor told me that he would get me a taxi for $90 with unlimited hours, even up to 10 hours. He told me he would get me an English-speaking driver. 

It turned out that the driver spoke about 10 words in English. When we got to Higüey, he drove through town and took us to a big church, though I would say St. Patrick’s in New York was bigger and much more beautiful. My girlfriend and I stayed inside the church for about three minutes. 

It was now 11 a.m. on Monday and we had been gone from the hotel about two hours. I said to the driver, “Where are we going now?” 

He said, “Back to the hotel.” 

I said, “What about showing us the sights in Punta Cana and the shopping stores and malls?” 

He said, “Oh, no. That’s another trip.”

I went a little berserk and started shouting. He got Victor on the phone. Victor denied everything he had told me, even though he had suggested the taxi and had mentioned the price and where the driver would take me.

After Victor spoke to the driver, the driver said he would take us to Punta Cana. However, he showed us no sights, taking us only to two small malls. We left there at about 1:30 p.m. and got back to the hotel at 2.

Victor wasn’t on the lobby floor until the next day when we were leaving. 

The evening before we left, the guest services manager, Roberto, told me it all had been a misunderstanding. I told him that I’m a very sharp individual and that I was not mistaken about what Victor told me.

OTTO SCHUMACHER

Wake Forest, NC

ITN emailed copies of Mr. Schumacher’s letters to the
Excellence Punta Cana (punta cana@excellence-resorts.com) and received the reply, “Allow us to thank you for sharing with us the report. In reference to your request, please note that by company policy we do not answer complaints in the media. We look forward to your understanding.” — ELIZABETH REYES, Customer Service,
Excellence Resorts