Thank you Paolo and Alina for making our vacation everything we expected! After being almost two hours late with our arrival call to Paolo, he still greeted us (in perfect English) with a generous smile and took time to tour us around the facility. He provided his contact information and assured us that he could be reached at any time.
The apartment was the perfect fit for my wife and I. The bedroom (great mattress) and living room were spacious, and the balcony (where we spent a lot of time in the evenings) was much larger than pictures had shown. An added bonus was that there was a half bath off the living room. The kitchen was fine, had adequate utensils, etc. The TV had many English channels you would see in North America (big on sports), but screen ever-so-slightly blurry (might be a satellite issue but not sure as channels like ESPN were crystal-clear in the bars). This wasn't a big deal as we weren't there to watch television...There were two air conditioners in the unit (bedroom, living room) but we seldom had to use them. The green spaces were well manicured and there was great security (24/7) for the residents. The pool was very nice (probably around 5' deep with no deep end) and there were no problems getting a chair or an umbrella. The other residents were very friendly and many spoke English.
The walk to the main downtown area (Pedro Clisante/Calle Martinez) was about one minute away, and the walk to either of the spectacular beaches (Playa Alicia or Playa Sosua) was about 4-6 minutes. We also rented a car from the airport and the nice thing about Sosua is you are central to many other great spots for quick day trips (Puerto Plata, Cabarete, Santiago, Las Terrenes, etc, etc)
There weren't many negatives but perhaps one might be the eating area outside. The grill was old and there was no starter (we purchased one and left it in the apartment).Also, we were initially worried about what the electrical charge was going to be but found out it was only $32 US for fourteen days! For future renters, it might be in Paolo's best interest to provide a sample range of how much electricity costs (perhaps provide a range (let's say $15-90 US/week) to allay any fears of potential renters...