La Barcaza- Spoke to Daniel (New Co-ordinator)

[AR-DreamWedding]

So I found out, much like most of you did, that there was a change in ownership only over the last few days. When I contacted Daniel to confirm that the arrangments that were made with Flori would be honoured , I was sent their "policies document" (of which I had never known existed... he explained they were recently set up with the new ownership). With that said I freaked out and decided it was worth my $ to just call Daniel and so I did! He did answer his cell phone and does speak English well. He is not dificult to work with but unless I results, everything is just words to me. I will keep you posted as to whether he follows through with what he has said he would.

 

I definitely asked about his experience and he told me that he has been doing this for years and he kept referring to the La Barcaza as a restaurant. *shrugging my shoulders*.

 

I did make an inquiry about a DJ and was quoted $700 for 3 hours and if you want the additional hour it is an additional $250.

 

I also found out about the additional costs that the new owners have implemented.

 

See attachment.

 

Hope this helps some of you out there. I am to be married this summer and have already paid my deposit. Now I will have to go through re-calculating my finances just in case we have to make an emergency switch.

 

Wondering if there are any brides out there who have used La Barcaza recently and can speak to what's happening and how their experience has been?????

 

Sincerely,

R

 

 

 

 

I received this copy of their policies on January 14th, 2013

La Barcaza Policies for clients.docx

[sdj327]

can you please send it to [email protected]

 

i don't have enought posts to be able to download yet! thank you in advance.

[EJM17]

Hey can you email the new price list to [email protected] I don't have enough post to download 

[sdj327]

just sent!

[heemstrar1]

I too reserved the la barcaza for my June 2013 wedding. The changes are making me nervous. I found this post on here and thought you guys may find it helpful. Let me know if you find out any more information...ahh!

 

 

Hi ladies!! 

 

We live & document weddings here on the island and are so disappointed with the recent changes that have come with the new ownership. Daniel seems like a nice guy, but he has very limited knowledge of the wedding industry or an understanding of what brides' wants & needs are. Here are a few things to watch out for and a few insights, from my perspective of both a photographer AND a recent bride: 

 

- miscommunication regarding travel time: our couple was told that it would take 30 minutes to get from Dreams Punta Cana to the pick-up location … in reality, it took over an hour. As a result, by the time we got on the boat, it was getting dark fast. There was very little time for pictures and the guests had to swim in the dark. 

- the main entertainer there, Jorge, is an absolute gem and gets the party started. Make sure he's there for your wedding!

- cups for beverages are beaten up old hard plastic - they should really invest into something more appropriate for a wedding, it's the little things that make a big difference

- the decor is very poor, if there at all. Bring your own decorations or better yet, hire a decorator. 

- personally, I was mortified by the plastic furniture. Ask for the wooden tables & chair, they are much more classy. 

- food: the seafood dinner pales in comparison to the one served under Flori's management. The portions are smaller and quality is worse, it's obvious they are trying to cut corners to cut down on costs. 

- most disturbing: the 'host' overseeing everything on the boat was Daniel's father, a man who speaks very little English and is extremely confrontational and rude. He knows nothing about customer service and shouldn't be dealing with clients. At all. Aside from being a terrible bartender, he embarrassed us in front of guests when we inquired about potentially changing our order; was confrontational and dismissive with our awesome couple when it came to a question of overtime (because the whole reception was shifted because of their mistake in the first place). 

 

Our couple was SO amazing, generous & laid-back - we all made the most of it! But … I would recommend Jellyfish over La Barcaza any day. It is, however, a good idea for a thank-you dinner for your guests before your wedding day. I really hope they get it together and improve - because there is such tremendous potential there…

 

[sdj327]

from a recent bride

 

 

I was nervous too with the reviews but in the end everyone said it was the best time they had. The coordinator is Daniel , he is the Hungarian son of the Hungarian couple that we believe are the owners. The man and woman at the bar we think are owners. They hired a guy named " George". He comes to get you on the bus, he is super funny and makes sure everyone has good time . Keep in mind the bus drives thru a ghetto area back lane with garbage and people lingering in the trees with old junker cars lol. But once you get off the bus the 3 min walk to the beach is fine. Maybe tell people to wear shoes until the small boat . The small boat was safe they help you on it nicely . We had one child age 2 and you have to demand a life jacket which didn't fit well but the mother was ok with it. You can bring your own life jacket for children if you wish . They just say boat very safe. Only thing I didn't like was the plastic chairs that were set up, I asked Daniel for wood chairs. I saw them on the boat stacked don't know why they did not use them but the food was awesome! Entertainment from George he makes sure everyone was having good time and they have a new DJ that was amazing I didn't even have to use my songs he had everyone on the dance floor all night. It depends on your family no one can expect a luxury yacht for this price . There is a little rust on the boat but otherwise everything else was great. The bathroom is nothing fancy but on the medium floor at least . I managed to take off my wedding dress by myself in there at end of night lol. Compared to classy fancy tables at the wet bar sitting around was boring and my family preferred a party boat for reception rather than a fancy dinner that would have cost triple the price. I paid 300 extra for flower arrangement for bar and table , was not impressed with decorations of sea shells and sand but no one seemed to care. You can bring your own table decoration if you wanted. Bottom line it's what your family and you guys make of it rather than your surroundings, my dad and new hubby went swimming in the natural pool and they threw them a football to throw . I would recommend it for sure but Daniel needs to reply quicker on email , use wood chairs if asked , and warn people not a pretty walk off the bus lol. The jellyfish restaurant is not as pretty as the pics I've seen. That is where you load the boat. George made it all worth it funny crazy guy but he takes care of you!!

[SCameron]

We had an outstanding party on La Barcaza. 

We were thinking a lot on where to hold our wedding and finally we chose the Dominican Republic. We saw La Barcaza on this forum, and thought we give it a go.

Our coordinator Daniel was absolutely helpful and very friendly with us. He took care of our papers so we didn’t have to stress with it. The coach that took us to the beach was great and it came in time.

Our decoration was so beautiful it gave a good atmosphere to the event. They had an animator on the boat who was very charming, he made everybody dancing and drinking . They have quite impressive booze in the bar especially the custom made “fruit rums†which we liked a lot…

We had a great music, the Dj was awesome. If we asked for any music he just played it. 

We had a really good time, we did not want to leave the boat at all. So I can truly recommend the venue for a wedding, reception or actually for anything.

[sdj327]

Hello, I used barcaza as a thank you to our guests at the end of march. we had the best time! the boat is the best looking one there! our group loved the top lounge area until we got the dance party started. the dj was amazing and kept us dancing the whole time. we had fruit and sandwiches-some better than others but the food was gone by the time we got back. drinks were great and free flowing. we did rum and beer and let guests know before hand if they wanted anything else it would be cash bar. daniel was great and i would highly recommend barcaza!

[DR2015]

I will be meeting w/ Daniel to conduct a site visit next week. I would be more than happy to ask him any questions you may have! We will be departing 9/7/13 post all question prior to then!! -happy planning!!

[DR2015]

Hello All! Back from our site visit/stay at NOW and were able to view Jellyfish and meet with Daniel from La Barcaza I will write a review hopefully in the next 2/3 days. If you have any questions feel free to ask!