TRS Turquesa

We just spent 7 nights at TRS Turquesa in Punta Cana in May of 2024, and I want to tell you about our entire experience. If you are looking for more details about specific parts of our experiences, I will share those in another post.

First impressions: We got a private transfer with Renny Travel, and they were great. Upon arriving to the resort, we were led to the lobby, where we were directed to sit and wait. After a very short wait, we were invited to come to the front desk. We knew we wanted to upgrade to the swim-up suites, which was said to cost $100 per night. They were not interested in negotiating this price, despite my many efforts. It cost us $700 for 7 nights, which is fine (that’s what we expected to pay).

Upon arrival to our suite, we were greeted by one of our butlers, Jesus. Jesus was very friendly, as were the others (Edward and Miguel); however, it became clear later on that he was new to the position. He told us we had time to book our dinner reservations, but that was not 100% true. We proceeded to our room, which was very nice. We had no issues with the room – the doors locked, the water was hot, the a/c worked, and the fridge was cold. If you switched the language on the television, everything was in english, so all was good.

We got a Jr. Swim Up Suite, which was amazing. I would not get anything other than a swim-up suite. I was worried that we would be too far from the beach, but it was a short walk, and it was amazing to have the option to take a dip in our semi-private pool in the morning or late at night. It also felt very private, despite the fact that all swim-up rooms near us were occupied. We never felt crowded and never felt that we lacked privacy in our room or even in the pool.

Once we got to our room (we arrived at 8pm), we ordered room service. The room service was fairly timely – it took about an hour to arrive after we ordered – and the food was good, not great. There was nothing spectacular on the room service menu, but it was all edible and kept us from starving (we ordered room service several times during our trip).

Sunday night, we got out and explored a bit. We went to the Xtra Time Sports Bar for some drinks. They had a small buffet open with some decent snack options, and the drinks were very good. Ramon was a great waiter and we enjoyed our experience there overall.

On Monday, we had lunch at the TRS beach grill. I had steak and the wifey had chicken. Neither of us were impressed by the meal. We had heard that the burgers are very good at this location, so shame on us for trying to get something other than that. I’m sure the burgers were excellent, but we did not go back to try them.

We spent time Monday afternoon exploring the property, seeing the beach, several pools, and many of the restaurants. It is a sprawling property. It took us all day to explore and discover everything we were looking for.

Monday afternoon, we went to schedule our dinner reservations. Due to the fact that we were TRS guests, we were unable to book a few of the Palladium restaurants that we wanted to eat at. We wanted to eat at Sumptori, El Dorado, La Paisana, and Portofino, which were all Palladium restaurants. Our butler was able to pull some strings and get us in to Sumptori on Monday night and La Paisana Tuesday night, but we were not able to get in to El Dorado or Portofino, which was disappointing.

With that being said, Sumptori was delicious and a great experience. It is a true Hibachi style experience. Unlike American hibachi, where you have to choose steak, chicken, shrimp, or a combo, you get all options. They didn’t have noodles, which was disappointing, but everything else there was delicious. We were with an all American table, so it was fun to meet new people and party together during the dinner experience.

On Tuesday, we decided to try Helios for lunch. One thing that we didn’t find in the reviews is that most of the buffets require some sort of cover-up clothing. Helios is very strict, and swimwear is not allowed, so be sure to carry a nice cover-up or shirt to the pool/beach with you if you plan to eat here. The buffet at Helios was small and unimpressive. We did not enjoy the food here; however, they did have a great chocolate cake.

Tuesday, we spent the day at several different pools on the property. The TRS pools were preferable. We really enjoyed the main TRS pool and the Secret pool, which were both adults only. Some of the other pools were over-run with kids, and they were not our vibe at all, although all had a bar nearby for the adults and each pool had it’s own “personality.”

Tuesday night, we ate at La Paisana, which is a Palladium restaurant, which we were able to get into due to a cancellation. The food here was delicious and the overall ambiance was calm, which was nice. We felt like the service was great as well.

Wednesday, we went to Caribbean Lake Park on an excursion. This was the most disappointing day of our entire trip. We left the resort at 10 am and chose to return at 1pm, despite the excursion technically lasting until 5pm. There were lots of things to do at the park, but there was nobody else there. We were the only 2 people at this location, and it just felt awkward. Also, the water there is truly a lake, which means that it does not look clean and pure like the pictures online show. We were concerned about the cleanliness of the park, as there were things floating in the water and it smelled of sewage. We were also concerned about swallowing too much water while doing the water activities, and we were concerned about the quality of the food/drinks at this location. The pool was very nice and we got lots of great pictures, but I would not recommend this excursion for other guests.

When we got back to the resort on Wednesday, we went to Poseidon for lunch. It was by far the best buffet restaurant that we tried on the property. They had numerous options for food, and the food was kept warm and fresh. They also had the least strict dress code of all buffets, and were located perfectly between a pool and the beach on the Palladium property, so it was very nice.

After Poseidon, we went to the pools and hung out. We visited a couple of pools on the Palladium side of the property, but there were a lot of kids splashing around, so we ended up back on the TRS side of the property. Despite the fact that we didn’t enjoy all pools equally, they all had swim-up bars, so we were able to have some drinks and enjoy the sun for the afternoon.

Wednesday evening, we had dinner at Tentazione, which is a TRS restaurant. Tentazione was phenomenal. Every dish we had was delicious and the service was amazing. Our waiter, Arcadio, was great. We were so impressed that we gave a great tip and decided to book Tentazione again for the following night.

Thursday morning, we ordered the floating breakfast. This was such a cool experience. They brought us eggs, toast, fruit, yogurt, bacon, and our butler threw in a bottle of champagned and orange juice as a complimentary addition. The breakfast was delicious, and the experience was even cooler. They delivered it right to our swim-up and we were able to eat while we hung out in the pool that morning.

After breakfast, we spent the majority of the day at the beach. There were plenty of chairs available, and we were able to find a good spot in the sun or shade, depending on our preference at any point during the day. The water in the ocean was calm and warm, and we were able to enjoy the beach from several vantage points throughout the day.

For lunch Thursday, we ate at El Arricife buffet. It was good and came highly recommended from a guest at Sumptori; however, it was very far away from TRS. It was quite literally on the opposite end of the resort, so it was not easily accessible for us, and we felt that Poseidon had better food options. El Arricife did have the barbacoa, which we heard great things about but didn’t try, due to time and location constraints.

After El Arrecife, we explored a couple of pools on the Palladium side of the property and had some drinks while hanging out in the pools and relaxing. While these pools are all kid friendly, and they were not our favorite, we were still able to enjoy our afternoon pool-hopping while we made our way back to the TRS side of the property.

Thursday night, we did Tentazione again, and it was just as delicious this night as the night before. This was by far our favorite restaurant of the week, and Arcadio was a bright shining spot of the resort as a whole. When we arrived Thursday night, he recognized us immediately and created a cute table setting upon our arrival. The service, combined with the quality of food, made us feel extremely special and like VIP’s for the entire experience.

After Tentazione, we attended Bingo Thursday night. It was $15 per person per card, but the prizes were great. We did not end up winning anything, but we had a blast. We got called up on stage several times to dance and sing with the entertainers, and it was just an overall fun experience!

Friday, we did ziplining through Adventure Runners. This was an amazing exursion. Our tour guide spoke 6 different languages, and he was a phenomenal personality. Once we arrived, the instructions were very clear and to the point, and the instructors were all very friendly and helpful. These are not your touristy ziplines, where they clip you in and let you go. You have to actually control the speed, brakes, and direction you face. While it was a lot of fun, it was not as leisurely as it sounds; however, it was very fun! There was also a really cute gift shop, where we bought some souvenirs, after you finished. Be advised – this excursion is hot and physical. Do not go on this excursion expecting a leisurely, relaxing afternoon.

Friday, we arrived back at our resort around 3pm and ordered room service, while hanging out in our swim-up. The food was good, not great, and kept us alive while we waited to attend our dinner. It was so nice being able to just hang out at our swim-up suite Friday afternoon and relax together.

Friday night, we went to Chic Cabaret. We had not initially planned on attending the show; however after attending Bingo Thursday night and having so much fun, we decided to give it a shot. We were so glad we did! (**One thing to note – you have to have a physical ticket to enter. We booked through WhatsApp with our butler and didn’t get physical tickets, so we got held up at entry until our butler could bring us our tickets**) The show was extremely long (4 hours), but it was so entertaining and we had a lot of fun. The food is a tasting menu, and some of the options are not good for everyone – so be prepared to order room service or go to the sports bar afterwards. I liked most of the food options, but my wife was not a fan, so she ordered room service to end the evening.

Saturday morning, we ordered breakfast through room service – chocolate chip pancakes, fried eggs, scrambled eggs, fruit, bacon, and french fries. After breakfast, we spent the majority of the day at the beach. We felt that we had spent several afternoons in the pool, and it was a lot of fun, but we wanted to have one more day on the beach. We were able to find great seats near the Butu bar, with Clara (the best bartender we met during our time here), and we just hung out in the water capturing content, tanning, and swimming in the ocean.

Saturday night, we had a romantic dinner on the beach to celebrate our anniversary, and it was a great experience. The menus are pre-set, so Kelsey did not love all of the food, but the experience was very cool. We sat on the beach, near the TRS heart, and we were treated exquisitely by our waiter throughout the evening. After we finished eating, we walked along the beach and took some pictures together.

Sunday, we had to check out by noon, so we spent most of the morning relaxing and packing. We stored our bags at the lobby and hung out at the bars while waiting for our car to arrive at 3pm to take us to the airport.

Overall, I don’t think we could’ve asked for a better experience. There were certain things that went wrong and were disappointing, but we had beautiful weather, edible food, and great drinks. At the end of the day, any experience like this will be what you make it to be, and we definitely made the most of our experience. The butlers were great, the food was good, the drinks were awesome, and the views were incredible.

A few notes to consider before booking your trip:

1: The waitstaff operates on island time. Do not expect to be treated like VIP every time you approach the bar. You will have to wait and they will not always greet you with excitement.

2: Research your excursions thoroughly. If you are going to leave paradise, make sure it is for something worth leaving for.

3: Try to learn a little bit of Spanish before going. While most of the staff speaks some English, it is not their first language, and it will be much easier if you can also speak some Spanish.

4: The sun is hot. Like, really hot. I don’t care if you are from “the south.” So am I. You are not prepared for that sun until you get there and experience it. Pack extra sunscreen.

5: The sand fleas are no joke. Pack bug spray and put it on if you are going to the beach. They will eat you up and they itch *way worse* than mosquitos. Do yourself a favor and use the bug spray.

6: Don’t be prepared for great food experiences outside of dinner. The dinners were great but the buffets are just average. We recommend Poseidon, but if you don’t like it, try the other buffets and find one with options you can eat. You don’t want to be bloated running around the beach anyways, so eat well at dinner. Eat enough to survive during lunch.

7: If finances allow for it, get a swim-up suite. You will use it more than you think. It is our favorite upgrade of the entire trip and we would not do it again without the swim-up!

8: The drinks are good, and they are not weak. Prepare some different drinks to order, and find bartenders that you like. Every bartender makes drinks differently, so if you don’t like a drink, order a different one.

9: Don’t be scared to try different things. If you don’t like something, you can always get something different. You paid for it. Order everything you want and use this as an opportunity to try new thing. Who knows?! You may discover something new that you love!

10: Tip the workers. Don’t be egregious, but tip where deserved. I saw so many people not tipping at all, while I saw others tipping modestly. Don’t feel like you have to tip if you aren’t satisfied with the service, but it is appreciated and the workers truly do try to make sure you have an amazing time. If you get great service, please try to give a dollar or two where you can.

Bonus Tip: The beach shops are not scary. The people are pushy, but they will listen if you say no. Don’t be too scared to go explore IF you are able to negotiate or say no. They will try to overcharge you, but they also need your business, so if you have the ability to negotiate a price you agree to, OR say no, go meet them and enjoy your time exploring their shops.