Make an informed decision
I booked a day pass through this service at a place called Tan Resort Marina and Villa. It was advertised as fabulous with a 9/10 rating, pictures showed a 5-star hotel, and Google Maps reviews were positive. Unfortunately, the day we booked turned out to be rainy. When we tried to contact the day pass service and the hotel, no one answered. Luckily we had a car, so we drove over to ask what to do in that situation. The receptionist was very nice and explained we could return on another date without any problem.
Before leaving, we decided to look around — and what a disappointment. The hotel facilities looked very run down. There is no beach access, only one small pool with limited seating, and when we stepped into the restaurant, there was a strong smell of chlorine in the air. I would not stay at this place even if it were free, let alone for $80 per person.
I contacted the day pass service and sent pictures of what we saw. They responded promptly, apologized, and said they would resolve the issue. I asked to switch to another resort we had already visited and liked — same price — so I assumed transferring the $36 deposit would be straightforward. They initially agreed, but after days of waiting, and with only two days left before our departure, they refused the switch and would not reimburse the reservation fee, telling us to resolve it directly with the hotel.
We actually tried to do them a favor by flagging that the resort was misrepresented and should not be rated above 3 stars, so future guests wouldn’t be disappointed. Despite that, we were left with no solution and out of pocket.
A few things to be aware of: the rainy-day policy is difficult to use unless you have a car to drive back and forth. There is also no protection if the facilities are misrepresented — even if you are deeply unhappy, you will lose your deposit. Book with that in mind.
For comparison, I had an excellent experience at Club Med near Punta Cana airport. It costs about $20 more but the facilities are fantastic and you deal directly with the resort, with no intermediary that can’t back up its promises. Hope this helps you decide whether to use this service.
Reply from Daypass.com
Hi Angela,
Thank you for sharing your detailed feedback with us. We sincerely regret that the resort did not meet your expectations and that the rainy weather complicated your plans.
We would like to clarify how our service works regarding your points:
Role as an Intermediary: As stated in the Terms & Conditions accepted at checkout, Daypass.com acts as an intermediary. Each booking is a direct contract between the guest and the specific hotel. Because each hotel is an independent business, deposits are non-transferable between different properties. We simply do not have the technical or legal ability to "move" funds from one hotel to another.
Rainy Day Policy: These policies are set directly by the resorts. In this case, we are glad the hotel was flexible enough to offer you a new date, which is their standard way of resolving weather-related issues.
Property Representation: While guest opinions can vary, we take reports of poor maintenance very seriously. We have already contacted the management at Tan Resort to audit the discrepancies you mentioned between their photos and the current state of their facilities. Your feedback is essential for our quality control.
We apologize for the frustration this caused during your final days of vacation. We are constantly reviewing our partners to ensure they deliver the 5-star experience our users expect.
Best regards,
The Daypass.com Team
