If you are looking for a modern resort this is not the place for you. It is an older colonial style hotel with great charm. The rooms are large and clean but old fashioned. The staff are wonderfully friendly and accommodating. Meals are taken on a very large veranda overlooking the town. Dishes are cooked to order and I would rate them as good to very good.

Stayed one night with a friend. From what we could tell we were the only ones at the hotel.

Room: Clean, dark, musty. We turned on the AC for a while to get the humid odor out. The room was basic with a closet and TV. Bathroom alright, though there was a leak and no shampoo/conditioner/lotion/body wash. Also the bathroom curtain wasn't large enough for the window, which faced an outside corridor.

Common areas: There is a fountain in the courtyard, which does not seem to work. There are large beige columns covered with pink ribbons. We were excited to use the jacuzzi at night, only to find it full of garbage and murky. When we inquired about the restaurant, the receptionist said, "I can cook something for you if you'd like."

Amenities: Breakfast was OK (again, just us). The 'free shuttle service' consisted of what seemed to be the hotel owner driving us to the airport. Internet is available at the reception area on an old clunky PC.

Location: The hotel is at the end of Boca Chica beach, very close to the Hamaca hotel. (Which is fabulous, by the way). Getting to the beach was a 250m walk.

Do stay here if you are interested in a hotel with huge amounts of character, something between the Great Expectations mansion and Grey Gardens. Don't stay here for amenities, comfort, or value.

When me and my boyfriend arrived to Dominican Republic we stayed at Boca Chica for two nights before spending the New Year in Santo Domingo. The flight from the US arrived around 4 am, so we appreciated the hotel's owner Marco coming to pick us up at the airport.
We knew beforehand that Boca Chica is not necessarily of the nicest of places in DR due to prostitution. Nevertheless the beach was beautiful and Marco gave us valuable tips on getting around whether it was to the capital city or around the neighbourhood.
The spacious and clean rooms have a safe and A/C and for the rainy days (should there be one) satellite TV. The staff is very helpful, and also Nelly at the reception is both friendly and fluent with English and handled the correspondence via e-mail. We booked directly with Astoria, whose www-address is not the easiest to find - though Google does it. (http://www.hotelastoriard.net/)
The garden is beautiful and the property like a safe haven, Marco and staff very friendly and helpful and advice the guests in every way.