10 Unbelievable Photo Fakeouts

Imagine setting a date to say your vows—notifying only your nearest and dearest; a handful of your most cherished family members and pals—and running off to the Dominican Republic with your spouse-to-be, dizzy with excitement and drunk on love. And imagine, if you will, that this lovely photo of a beaming just-married couple led you to book this pristine white gazebo at the Riu Palace Punta Cana in which to say your nuptials.

And then imagine that all of this imagining (courtesy of the heartbreakingly misleading photo on the resort's website) carries you on a cloud of delight and excitement all the way to this not-so-awesome reality check at the altar: your wedding ceremony has been crashed by this hot crew of ladies and gentlemen in full-coverage tropical swimwear.

Nothing says elegance like an uninvited onlooker in a leopard print sarong.

Well, we saw lots of people during our visit to the Crown Reef Resort, not only at the pool but also at the beach—simultaneously. Looks like the hotel's photo of a sandy beach that a family gets to enjoy all to themselves is just a fantasy.

In the spirit of pointing out misleading promotional hotel photos, we felt the need to call out some of the beaches that, in real life, don't quite look like they do on the hotel's website. All too often, mega resorts market their beaches as pristine, serene, and romantic; in reality, most are anything but. Take, for example, the above photos of Gran Bahia Principe Punta Cana. Lots of chairs, lots of people—anything but deserted.

This time, the "sexy lady phenomenon" is even more hilarious because she comes with friends, in stilettos, and not in clothing. In one of the most ridiculous photo fakeouts we've found to date, the Artisan Hotel in Las Vegas displays its topless-optional pool as a super-sexy spot with barely clothed, heavily made-up models. In reality? It's a sad, tiny, leaf-filled pool with a garden hose running into it.

That thing came outta nowhere! At the AVA Hotel, the Acropolis is close—but not that close.

The Club Riu Bambu's photo must have been taken during hurricane season or maybe 5 a.m., because this pool is (almost) never that serene. Instead, it's teeming with co-eds, couples, and partiers boozing at the swim-up bar. Hey, we're not saying we mind! But if you're looking for a relaxing pool experience, look elsewhere.

This up-close shot of happy guests (with, we must say, great dental hygiene and impeccable taste in swim trunks), hides the fact that the pool at Dunes Manor has DEFINITELY seen better days—maybe back when the hotel website's photo was taken? Oh, and it's pretty small too.

Proximity to power is valuable currency in Washington, D.C. So it won’t surprise folks inside the Beltway that the city’s prominent players occasionally exaggerate their standing. But we’re from New York City, and we couldn’t help but notice that this photo, which appears on the website of the Hyatt Regency Washington on Capitol Hill, gives the false impression that the hotel practically stands in the shadows of the U.S. Capitol.

It doesn’t. Take a look at this photo that we snapped last week during a hotel-reviewing trip to the city and that, we think, more accurately reflects the distance from the hotel to the Capitol—which is, in fact, about a third of a mile. That’s close, just not reach-out-and-touch-it close.

True, as hotel-related D.C. scandals go, this one doesn’t exactly rank up there with Watergate. The hotel’s marketing photo is probably the well-intentioned work of a skillful photographer using a telephoto lens, not a more devious case of digital manipulation. Still, you don’t have to be too great a cynic to see this as evidence that, in Washington, things aren’t always what they seem.

Update: Since we published this Fakeout, the hotel replaced its marketing photo with a more accurate one. Kudos, Hyatt Regency!

Okay, this is just egregious. Was the photographer for the Sandals Carlyle Inn on a different beach? Maybe a different island? Because that tranquil scene of a crowd-less, sandy beach—complete with crystal-clear waters, luxe loungers, and a perfect-bodied couple—was nowhere to be found when we visited. Instead, we headed down to a tiny batch of public sand right off a busy street.

Update: Since we published this Fakeout, the Sandals Carlyle Inn has removed this marking photo (though there are some others still on their website that we found similarly misleading.)Â

That attractive couple looks like they have plenty of room to invite a few friends to join them in the Jacuzzi—with some champagne, of course—from the Sugar Cane Club's photo. The reality? Not so much. In fact, they could barely squeeze in to the Jacuzzi we discovered when we arrived at the hotel—and we didn't see any champagne on hand, either.

More from Oyster.com

• See All of Oyster.com's Hilarious Photo Fakeouts
• The 15 Most Romantic Hotels in the Caribbean
• Are These 7 Exotic Vacations Safer Than You Think?

This article was originally published by Oyster.com. It is reprinted here with permission.