"A strange feeling descended upon us when we arrived at Dreams Bocayna to an entire complex empty of people, except for one very sweet lady on reception. “Where is everyone?!” we asked, to which she replied “they’re all in their rooms.” Why? Granted the weather was overcast but for the first time ever I had arrived at an all inclusive resort where not a single person was at the bar. Very strange indeed.
We were informed that lunch would be available in about one and a half hours and that snacks were available at the pool to tide us over until then (welcomed after a long day of travel!)
Except the pool bar was empty, unmanned and the 3 door fridge beside it was empty. Instead we walked to the shopping complex to get a coffee, questioning the ‘all inclusivity’ of our ‘all inclusive’ resort as we paid €6 for our drinks.
We returned to the hotel 10 minutes after lunch started to now unsurprisingly, be greeted by an empty restaurant. No guests, no buffet, just a single waiter who looked surprised to see us but who kindly gave us a ‘pool snacks’ menu. “Is this the lunch menu?” I asked. “Yes” he replied. The meals available were very limited - a chicken Caesar salad, a chicken sandwich, a vegetable sandwich, chips and some pizzas. We ordered a chicken Ceasar salad and a chicken sandwich and hoped for the best. They arrived at our table and our heads immediately dropped into our hands. Two of the most thinly sliced pieces of ultra processed toasted bread (the kind that smells of sugar, you know?) sandwiching a breaded chicken burger that resembles a Findos Crispy Pancake and contained very little chicken.
With Dreams Bocayna clearly unwilling to invest in other forms of chicken, the breaded burger (I can’t bring myself to call it a breast or fillet) also appeared on the Caesar salad; this time plonked on a bed of mixed leaves and drenched in a mayonnaise dressing and grated cheese. We didn’t eat either.
As we returned to the reception to collect our room key we asked the sweet lady on reception if the ‘pool snacks’ menu would be all that was available during our week stay. Her face flushed slightly and she admitted that while the hotel had so few guests, it would be all that was offered. Finally it clicked - they weren’t “all in their rooms”, they simply weren’t here.
Our room at least was pleasant. As mentioned in other reviews, they’re a little dated and rough around the edges but they’re spacious, clean and the terraces are private. We laughed that maybe each room has cooking facilities so that you don’t have to use the restaurant…
Dinner was available at 7pm which felt like a lifetimes wait after only having an airport croissant at 5am.
My experience of all inclusive resorts previously has been banquets of food laid out on tiered shelves; colourful salads, cooked-while-you-wait meats, fresh fish and vegetables prepared 5 ways.
At Dreams Bocayna there is a shelf inside the restaurant with 4 dishes to choose from “pork, beef, fish and vegetable”. “What is the fish?” I asked, and to her dismay, the hostess left to find the chef. (It was Sea bass, possibly)
The need to pick one of the 4 dishes was urgently forced upon us while we eyed the ‘buffet’ from across the room. At this point a quick assessment needed to be made about whether you could form an adequate meal from the selection or whether an Al a Carte choice needed to be made. We both chose one of the dishes and waited 20 minutes for it to arrive from the kitchen; luke warm and un-enticing. The buffet selection wasn’t much better. Clearly the previous nights meat/fish leftovers, a pizza and some chips, a few bread rolls and a salad selection that just made you feel sad. The desserts were unlabelled so the only excitement of the evening came from the ‘pot luck’ game of discovering whether “that grey coloured mousse” was chocolate flavoured or not.
Now I realise some holiday makers can make the best of a dire food offering. However in an all inclusive resort, it’s my belief that food and drinks should be offered with enthusiasm and passion - and in abundance. Being unable to get any food and barely a drink between the hours of 10.30am when “breakfast” ends and 1pm when “lunch” begins felt more like being in a detention centre than a luxury resort. After paying £2,000 for a week stay, I needed more boxes ticked than just a large room with a terrace and a friendly receptionist.
It seems Dreams Bocayna are happy to charge guests full price but offer a half service. In my opinion, it is irrelevant whether your hotel is at full capacity or 20%; the service level should remain the same - apparently 4* (it’s definitely not)
With only 7 days booked off of work and a need to make the most of our holiday, we decided to cut our loses and book an earlier flight home. Life is short and we couldn’t bear to waste it at this hotel."
