If you love men who love banana hammocks and speedos, you'll want to head to the Barceló Punta Cana Resort. The Dominican Republic hotel will be full of hard-bodied, tan men when it hosts the finale of this year's Mr. Universe pageant.

You will be able to see the ripped guys flexing their muscles and strutting on the catwalk at the all-inclusive hotel from May 10 to 14. Given that the Barceló Punta Cana sits on the water, you may also be able to "accidentally" run into a few of the muscular contestants at the beach.]]> Jennifer Kester 2011-04-19T11:32:01-05:00 http://www.hotelchatter.com/story/2010/12/27/10716/092

If you thought you had a crappy Christmas, you don't have anything on guests at Costa Rica's Barcelo Tambor Beach. The hotel had to close after a nasty diarrhea outbreak last week.

The health ministry shut it down after 150 people reportedly sought treatment late last week at a local clinic after suffering from such symptoms as nausea, cramps and vomiting, though the hotel only reported 37 cases of the runs.]]> Jennifer Kester 2010-12-27T11:51:00-05:00 http://www.hotelchatter.com/story/2009/11/9/35830/0320 <![CDATA[<img src="http://www.hotelchatter.com/files/3873/Pillow_Talk_Barcelo_Campaign.jpg" class="top"><p> <p>Talking pillows. Of course. Obvious candidates for a big hotel promotion campaign. Or have the <a href="http://www.hotelchatter.com/tag/Barcelo%20Hotels"><b>Barceló Hotels</b></a> group simply gone completely mad?<p>If only for novelty value alone, the new campaign from the Barceló group, "Pillow Talk", wins big points. It features six videos of two talking pillows, Sophie the Softie and Drew the Dreamer (who incidentally have their own Twitter accounts), as they dream of a better life. Spoiler alert, in case you want to watch all six videos and enjoy the suspense: Sophie and Drew end up finding this better life at the newest Barceló hotel in Mexico, the <b> Barceló Los Cabos Palace Deluxe</b>, which will open up on December 17, 2009 (or December amandak 2009-11-10T08:59:25-05:00 http://www.hotelchatter.com/story/2007/8/21/102530/394 <![CDATA[<p><b>[Ed. Note: Welcome to our Good Rate/Bad Rate feature where we look at hotel prices in the same city and decide which one most deserves your hard-earned benjamins. Rates quotes here were captured August 21, 2007 and are subject to change. Enjoy.]</b> <p><img src="http://www.hotelchatter.com/files/3930/barcelo_pv.jpg" class="imgborder"><p> <p>The <a href="http://www.hotelchatter.com/hotel-reviews/BARCELO+LA+JOLLA+DE+MISMALOYA/ian/116923"><b>Barcelo La Jolla de Mismaloya</b></a> near Puerto Vallarta is known for some common themes. The small beach <a href="http://www.hotelchatter.com/story/2006/12/15/14028/646/hotels/A_Big_Hotel_Doesn_t_Always_Equal_A_Great_Beach">completely disappears</a> some months of the year, service is indifferent at best, and you're more liable to get sick eating here at your hotel than you are eating at the taco stand in a van down the road. <p>Perhaps the last trait explains the odd pricing policy currently posted on the hotel's website. Go all-inclusive Tim L. 2007-08-21T10:57:37-05:00 Search HotelChatter string http://www.hotelchatter.com/search/