I recently stayed at an all-inclusive hotel in Santo Domingo, and my experience was disappointing due to what seemed like a discriminatory room assignment process. Upon arrival, I spoke Spanish with the front desk staff, and I believe this led them to assume I was a local tourist. As a result, I was assigned a room in a building that was in poor condition—unclean, with a moldy bathroom, no hot water, and overall worse than a budget motel.
The next day, while walking to breakfast, I noticed that another building on the property was significantly cleaner, more modern, and in far better living condition. The main difference? This section was occupied primarily by foreign, English-speaking tourists from places like the U.S., Italy, and Russia, whereas the building I was placed in seemed to be reserved for Spanish-speaking or Latino guests.
To make matters worse, the room I received did not match the one shown in my Expedia booking, and for the $150 per night I paid, I could have stayed in a much higher-quality hotel, such as the Marriott in the Dominican Republic. This experience raises serious concerns about how this hotel treats guests based on language or nationality, and I would not recommend it to others.