Review of Dreams Onyx Punta Cana Resort & Spa 2024

Looking To Visit The Dreams Onyx Punta Cana Resort & Spa In 2024?

We recently visited the Dominican Republic and stayed at the beautiful all-inclusive Dreams Onyx Punta Cana Resort & Spa.

We liked the Dreams Onyx Punta Cana Resort & Spa online and booked last minute.

I have been to the Dominican Republic before but I have never been to Punta Cana (the most popular destination).

So in this blog post, I wanted to share with you a review of the lovely resort that we stayed in and our experience.

**Please note that this review is not sponsored in any way and all opinions are my own.

FAQs about Dreams Onyx Punta Cana

Let’s start with some of the most common questions people might have regarding the resort.

Is Dreams Onyx the same as Now Onyx?

Yes, the resort used to be called Now Onyx but in 2021 it became Dream Onyx. So yes, they are one and the same, only the name has changed.

Where is Dreams Onyx Resort & Spa located?

The resort is located in Uvero Alto (the name of the beach), Punta Cana about 15 mins by car north of Playa Macao.

In terms of the Dominican Republic, it is on the northeast coast of the country.

How far is Dreams Onyx Punta Cana from the airport?

It is about 30-40 mins (depending on constriction and weather) from Punta Cana International Airport (PUJ) by car or bus.

It’s 40km from the airport to the resort. 

The ride is not too bad though, as you see some of the countryside and what life looks like outside the resorts.

What time is check-in and check-out at Dreams Onyx Resort & Spa?

The check-in is at 3 pm or later and the check-out is 12 pm or before.

You can ask them for an earlier check-in or a later check-out but it depends on if they have availability.

Ask at the reception if needed but keep in mind, that you might be charged for changing the times.

Also, you can leave your luggage and carry-on for free with the bell boys if your flight is later than 12.  

Does Dreams Onyx have access to Breathless Punta Cana?

Yes, you are more than welcome to go between the two resorts as they have the same owner (World of Hyatt).

However, Breathless is for Adults Only so if you travel with children to Dreams Onyx you cannot go to Breathless with them. 

If your group is Adults Only, you can use all the facilities in Breathless such as the casino, the club (there is no club in Dreams Onyx), bars, restaurants as well as the pools and the beach.

You don’t wear a wristband so no one will know which resort you are staying in. The only way to tell is that Onyx has brown towels and Breathless has purple.

There is more information about our visit to Breathless below!

Does Dreams Onyx have WiFi?

Yes, there was Free Wi-Fi in the entire resort, including the beach and it was pretty fast.

How many rooms does Dreams Onyx Punta Cana have?

According to their website, they have 822 suites available in total.

Out of that number 320 are family-friendly and even more spacious. All rooms have a hot tub on the balcony which is super cool.

👉 Click here to book your own adventure at Dreams Onyx Punta Cana Resort & Spa

🦄 If it is your first time in the Caribbean and don’t know what to expect, check out this post: 7 tips when visiting Caribbean countries

The Room In Dreams Onyx Punta Cana

We had the room of the day which pretty much means whatever room is available at that moment.

I was a little worried about what the room would look like because we didn’t know before getting there.

However, we were both pleasantly surprised!

Which room amenities are available at Dreams Onyx Resort & Spa?

The room amenities were outstanding, we had everything we needed.

The bed was huge and the mattress and pillows were comfortable.

There was an area with a small couch and a table making the room extra big.

The mini-fridge was stocked with water, local beer, and a bunch of sodas.

The bathroom was all separated –  the shower was in one room and the toilet was in another.

Outside of them, there were two sinks which made it convenient to get ready.

Did the room have a safe?

Yes, the room had a money safe that was included in the price (in some places you need to pay extra to use the safe).

I highly recommend using a safe to put your valuables in when you are not in the room – passport, credit cards, cash, and so on.

They offered a variety of toiletries such as body wash, shampoo, and lotion which were high quality and I used them the entire trip.

There is also a TV, desk, and air conditioning (which you can adjust from a screen on the wall beside the bed).

One thing I have to say about the room and the entire resort is that everything was extremely nicely lit up.

Our balcony overlooked another building.

Alongside the bottom level, there was a small swimming pool that was available for the people on the first floor.

The balcony featured two chairs and a small table as well as a large jacuzzi bathtub.

In the closet, there were two lovely bathrobes that you could use during your stay and were actually available for purchase if you decided to take them home.

Was there anything you didn’t like about the room?

The only negative thing I can say about the room was that in the bathroom the water from the shower would spill a bit outside of the door which would lead into the toilet.

It wasn’t a big deal we simply had to keep one towel on the floor.

The only other issue was that we had a hard time setting the thermostat in our room to a constant temperature.

We had to keep turning it on and off which I think was a user error.

🎥 Here are a few videos of our room:
Dreams Onyx Punta Cana Resort – Our Room (Room of the Day).
Day view from our room
Night view from our room

The Resort/Preferred Club

The Onyx offers Preferred Club Memberships, meaning that some of the pools and buildings are dedicated to those members.

So we didn’t have access to those amenities however I did take some pictures so that I can show you guys. 

The Onyx seems to be popular for large groups, large families, and couples with children.

🎥 Preferred Club Pool at Night

There weren’t too many single people or only couples like us.

They also have a bunch of different packages for anniversaries, birthdays, and honeymoons so it is a great place to celebrate an occasion.

Beside the Onyx is the Adults Only resort called Breathless.

They have the same owner so you can go between the two without any problem (children are not allowed) and try their drinks and food.

To me, it felt like both were similar in layout and style.

We went to check it out but did not spend too much time there.

Breathless is where people go to party and drink.

Is Dreams Onyx Preferred Club worth it?

We did not do the Preferred Club so I cannot comment on whether it is worth it or not.

However, we had a great time without it so it is not a must.

If you are looking for a more luxurious experience and to splurge on your vacation (ex: anniversary or birthday) then the Preferred Club might be a good idea.

Alternatively, if you are a budget traveler you certainly don’t need it to enjoy your trip.

If I went back, I would not pay more for the Preferred Club.

The Staff in Dreams Onyx Punta Cana

Everybody at the resort was extremely, extremely friendly.

Whoever we saw while walking around would greet us or nod their head.

All of them were nice, and helpful and went above and beyond to make sure all the guests were well taken care of.

I have been to a lot of places in the Caribbean and I have to say that the staff at the Onyx was top-notch.

Everywhere we sat down a waiter would come around and ask us if we wanted anything to drink.

The staff spoke pretty good English and you can have a basic conversation which was good because my Spanish is not the best (my college Spanish professor is frowning). 

The Grounds

The grounds of the Onyx are absolutely stunning!

You can see people cleaning and working on maintaining the pools and green areas all the time.

Everything was manicured to perfection. The layout of the resort is interesting.

You first walk into the Lobby which was beautifully decorated with a Christmas tree and other decorations (we went at the end of November, beginning of December).

There is a bar, chairs with tables, and a guest services table as well as the reception. 

Outside the Lobby is the Main Plaza – which is an outdoor square.

To the left, you will see the Theatre where they have all the nightly entertainment.

There is also another bar beside it. Along the edge of the Plaza, there are two stores, where you can buy souvenirs, bathing suits, rum, etc.

Also, they have an ice cream shop, a burger parlor as well as a coffee shop, and a sports bar.

The Main Plaza also houses different activities that happen during the evenings such as karaoke or dancing.

Beyond the Main Plaza, are the pools and guest buildings. To the left, you will find the Waterpark and all the Restaurants. 

Waterpark at Dreams Onyx Punta Cana Resort & Spa

I might be over 30 years old but the child in me is still alive. We spent quite a lot of time in the Waterpark.

There are four slides in total – two black and two white ones.

The two black ones are longer and curvier and the two white ones are short and straight.

The Kamikaze is the scariest one because you go directly downwards.

🎥 Dreams Onyx Water Park:
Waterpark
Kamikaze Slide

Where the slides are located there is a round jet pool overlooking the Waterpark pool.

On the ground level, is the Waterpark pool, a small stage, and a pool bar.

Does Dreams Onyx have a lazy river?

Yes, Dreams Onyx has a Lazy River that surrounds the waterpark.

Both adults and children are allowed to use the Lazy River.

There are floaties only for the Lazy River –  they have single and double ones.

However, for the slides, you have to go without one.

Having said that as much fun as the slides are, going down them without a floaty can scrape your back pretty well.

The Lazy River was super fun too, my only small complaint was that there were so many instances where you had to pass through a “waterfall” or these buckets that dump water on you.

The amount of water that falls on you is quite a lot and it prevents you from going on the Lazy River with a drink in your hand.

If you like waterparks definitely spend a day enjoying the slides and the Lazy River.

There are plenty of lounge chairs around the Waterpark.

You will also find a place where you can pick up fresh towels.

From the top of where the slides are starting you will see a stunning view of the surrounding area.

🎥 View from the top of the slides

The Pools

Pools, pools everywhere!!

The main pool is all connected to a few smaller pools making it fun to explore.

You will find a pool bar here as well.

There is an infinity pool with glass walls so you can take some cool photos.

Also, there is another jet pool as well as a saltwater pool.

Plenty of lounge chairs are available around the pool area.

They play music and have activities throughout the day if you’re interested in that.

The pools were clean and well-maintained. 

🎥 Main Pool Part 1
Main Pool Part 2
and
Main Pool Part 3

The Beach

The beach was nice, with a lot of shade and lounge chairs (no need to wake up at 6 a.m. every morning to go and put your towel down on one).

There are people that come around trying to sell coconuts, jewelry, bags, etc but they’re not too pushy.

The sand is not completely white like flour but it’s also not too rough.

The water was warm and there were no stones on the seafloor. 

Was there any seaweed on the beach?

There was a lot of seaweed however there is not too much that can be done about that.

The staff was collecting the seaweed that is on the shore and getting rid of it however there is more in the water itself.

The seaweed is actually important for the ecosystem in the area so I wasn’t too worried about it. It wasn’t that much and it didn’t smell bad.

If you visit at a different time of the year, you might not even encounter it.

A bunch of water sports were available however we didn’t do any of them because we were kind of lazy.

You can walk up and down the beach in both directions and you would reach the next few resorts on each side.

Not going to lie based on what I saw, from walking on the beach, ours was the best one.

The water was pretty wavy the entire time we were there.

On the last day, it seemed like it was going to rain, the waves were even bigger and a couple of times I got toppled over.

🎥 Dreams Onyx Punta Cana Resort – Beach

👉 Click here to book your own adventure at Dreams Onyx Punta Cana Resort & Spa

🦄 If you are wondering if DR is a safe destination, check out this blog post: Is The Dominican Republic Safe For Travel

Food at Dreams Onyx Punta Cana Resort and Spa

Let’s take a look at the food options available at the resort.

The Buffet

There is a huge buffet (Carnival) that is open for breakfast, lunch, and dinner every day.

It has a lot of options including a juice bar, vegetarian section, and kids section.

If you are vegetarian or follow some sort of a special diet, you will definitely find something to eat.

Lots of seating is available both inside and outside.

They had a special dinner for Thanksgiving which was fun.

There are freshly squeezed juices, salads, tasty desserts, and so on.

At a few of the food counters, there is a cook who can make whatever meal you want from that station: pasta, omelets, etc.

We ate two dinners at the buffet and almost every single lunch.

🎥 Dreams Onyx Punta Cana Resort – Dinner Buffet

Barefoot Grill

The Barefoot Grill is located on the beach and is open for lunch. We ate a burger with fries for one of our lunches.

Be careful when you take the patties as one of ours was undercooked.

Overall, make sure that any meat you eat is well cooked as you do not want to get food poisoning.

The Barefoot Grill is a good place to stop for lunch if you are chilling on the beach and don’t want to put clothes on in order to go to the buffet.

Coffee Shop (Coco Cafe)

As much as we tried to wake up early every day, we missed the buffet breakfast pretty much the entire time except for two days.

What we did instead is we went to the little coffee shop which is located in the Main Plaza and grabbed a little snack such as a croissant or a muffin that would hold us over until lunch.

We also grabbed coffee, I tried the cappuccino, iced coffee, and vanilla iced coffee and they were all pretty good.

They can also make you a smoothie. We stopped by the coffee shop at least once a day and we liked it.

You can also grab a bottle of water from there (the tap water is not safe to drink).

A La Carte Restaurants  

For the A La Carte Restaurants, you did not need to make a reservation (most resorts require you to).

The only place you had to make a reservation was the Asian restaurant if you wanted to do the Teppanyaki dinner.

The rest of the restaurants were on a first come first serve basis.

For some of them, we had to wait 15 to 20 minutes before we were seated.

🎥 Teppanyaki Dinner Part 1
Teppanyaki Dinner Part 2

This was not a big deal because there is an area right outside of the restaurants where there is comfortable seating and a waiter comes around and brings you drinks.

They do give you a pager that stars flashing when your table is available.

We tried the restaurants in this order Mexican (Tamarindo), French (Mercure), Asian (Spice), Italian (Capers), and North American (Bluewater Grill).

The only one that we were not able to try was the Mediterranean (Cin Cin) one as my partner did not feel well one of the nights.

The food in all of them was incredible and honestly, I cannot decide which one is my favorite.

Don’t forget that for the A La Carte Restaurants you would have to dress up a little bit more as you would in an actual restaurant.

There is no limit as to how many of them you can visit. If you like the Italian restaurant, you can go to it every night.

Bar and Drinks 

The drinks were good except for a few of them that were a bit too sweet for me.

They make interestingly flavored mojitos – passion fruit, watermelon, mango, and a few more flavors.

I highly recommend them but keep in mind that not all the bars can make them (Prelude Bar has them).

My partner usually drinks rum and coke so that was his drink of choice most of the time.

I drank whatever caught my eye but I couldn’t drink too many sweet cocktails.

During lunch a cold beer was great.

At the A La Carte Restaurants, I usually went for wine – the white one was good but a bit too sweet for me (I like dry wine), the red one was okay and the rose was a bit too watered down for me.

I recommend trying coconut rum and pineapple juice!

Entertainment 

The entertainment was brilliant as well. Some of the dancers and singers were so talented I was speechless.

There was a different show every night and we saw most of them.

These are the ones that we saw in order: Madonna Impersonator, The Greatest Showman, Beach Party, Music Trivia Night, Hollywood Show, Pop Show, and Dominican Show.

Here are some of the performances. Only included Part 1 but you can see the rest on my YouTube.

🎥 Madonna Impersonator Part 1
The Greatest Showman Part 1

On some nights they had Karaoke or dancing after the show was done at the Main Plaza.

On other nights they had a singer singing around the bar areas.

Once there was a man drawing upside down to reveal these stunning portraits once he turned the canvas around. 

🎥 Pop Show Part 1
Hollywood Show Part 1
Dominican Show Part 1
Singer

Other Amenities at the Dreams Onyx Punta Cana

There is a spa in the Onyx however we never check it out.

There is no disco in this resort (you will need to go to Breathless), there was a beach party on Saturdays and they played some music in the Main Plaza a few times.

If you are into working out, there is an awesome gym facility available.

Weddings are popular at the Onyx, they have a whole team dedicated to wedding preparations.

Excursions

It is safe to go outside of the resort but I would recommend going with the tours organized at the hotel.

They might be a bit more expensive than what you will see people offering you on the beach (they don’t work for the resort) but I have had some pretty bad experiences with booking trips outside of the resort in the past.

So if you want to go on a day trip, book it with your representative.

Some of the trips that you could do are to Santo Domingo (the capital of the Dominican Republic).

Keep in mind that driving to Santo Domingo will take you over 2 hours one way.

So if you want to see Santa Domingo it would be wiser to do that trip if you are in La Romana (another area with resorts) then the drive will be way shorter.

There are tons of catamaran, zip-lining, and beach excursions. Most people do a trip that goes to Saona Island.

The only one we did was a dune buggy excursion.

🦄 If you want to learn more about that trip, check out this blog post: Dune Buggy excursion in Punta Cana

Conclusion: Review of Dreams Onyx Punta Cana Resort & Spa

Well, there you have it, my honest review of Dreams Onyx Punta Cana Resort & Spa.

We had a wonderful time – the weather was perfect, the service was outstanding, and our room and the entire resort were extremely beautiful.

This is probably the only resort that I have been to in the Caribbean that I would actually consider coming back to.

👉 Click here to book your adventure at Dreams Onyx Punta Cana Resort & Spa