JOIA Bavaro by Iberostar: Beautiful Resort and Great People

Recently back from Iberostar Grand Hotel Bavaro. Everything from start to finish was just wonderful. The cold towels on arrival with champagne, the lovely a la carte and buffet dinners. Buffet was our favorite. The pool and activities were great and even won at the bingo. Special thanks and shout out to Hansel, Luisa (our morning maid), Tobias, Hamlet (amazing beach service) and Robert (bartender at pool bar). I would like to thank Jordie for taking time and speaking with us his professiona [... read more]lism and Hansel's were just top notch - great customer service. Shout out to Phil and Felicia (our two favourite pink flamingos) - thanks for the show before we left. We loved the pink champagne and morning fruit and grilled salmon. We were so sad to leave and hope to come back soon. Thank you for the best 50th birthday a girl could wish for :)

Barcelo Bavaro Palace: Amazing Resort- As always!

This was our sixth trip to the Barcelo. On two previous stays we were on the all adult side, This trip we stayed at the Palace side during the first week of June/18. We booked Premium level- well worth the extra dollars in my opinion. Much has been written about this resort so I won't duplicate too much here. ALL staff were excellent: Check-in, restaurants, pool, bars, activity centre etc., The staff- housekeepers, waiters etc, really appreciate a tip- it formally recognizes an appreciation for [... read more] their efforts. I amazed at the generosity of many tourists in this regard. I'm also amazed at how extremely cheap other tourists can be- especially when they ravage the services and attention of the dutiful staff and walk away without even leaving a buck or two- Shame!. The resort and beach were immaculate at all times. The a l;a cartes were excellent for the most part as we did a different one each othe the seven days we were there. Chez Gormet was excellent, but, unfortunately every course we were served that sitting was luke-warm-a bit disappointing as we really enjoyed that one in the past. Must have been just an off day. The only other disappointment we had concerned the disco. Enough Latin music already! We have encountered this complaint several times there. The D.J's just don't get it or don't have copyright to play more North American tunes. I like Latino music- but not to the exclusion of all else. Despite making requests, the D.J's just didn't care to mix it up- even a little- so we didn't really get to enjoy the club to it's fullest because the same old Latino tunes just got older and older as the days went on. Other than that everything was spot-on. Also want to compliment our travel agent Lynne Dixon- Trip Central, Sudbury, Ontario (though we are located in Hamilton, Ontario). We have booked a few trips through Lynne so far and each time she delivers promptly, follows-up questions , researches those questions that she does not readily have an answer for and gets back to us. She is thorough in her documentation, and I have enjoyed her assistance in this regard. I hope you enjoy the resort- and the staff- as we have. We'll be going back again someday as it is a well managed, staffed and resourced resort.

Occidental Punta Cana: Fabulous resort

Paradisus Punta Cana is a beautiful resort and we enjoyed all the activities, food and especially the beach and pool. Friendly and helpful staff made our stay wonderful. It was a destination wedding for our family and the setup was beautiful.

Paradisus Punta Cana: Wedding party

Overall the resort was amazing. Very beautiful and enjoyable stay. There were a few things though that were not so great. The service in the main dinning locations by the beach were extremely slow service and not very friendly. We would go the whole dinner or lunch without getting our water filled up. Also the variety and selection of food was very averge. We were hoping for something better. Also the service at fuego was terrible. We waiting 30 minutes or more just for a drink and our food too [... read more]k over an hour and they only brought out a couple people's food and others had to wait even longer. Also our transit guide Juan Pablo was not very helpful at all. He overcharged us on 2 excursions and refused to give is a refund and just told us to write a complaint. Very poor service.

Secrets Royal Beach: Amazing resort for our honeymoon!

We had the most amazing time at Secrets Royal beach! We loved that it was adults only, had a ton of a la carts restaurants to choose from, cool little coffee shop and lots of entertainment! The staff were also so friendly and so accommodating for our vegan and gluten free dietary restrictions. We will definitely be staying with a Secrets resort again in the future !

Royalton Hideaway Punta Cana: Very nice place

Food was decent but lots of choices. Nice clean pools very friendly staff. Liked the fact that our bracelets opened our door so no worries about losing the key. Would have like to maybe have some music at the pool area

Majestic Mirage Punta Cana All Suite Resort: It just about doesn't get better than Majestic Mirage....

I have traveled all over the world for business and vacations. I am absolutely stunned at how well this hotel makes its customers feel in just about every aspect of what people expect when they go on holidays. I will not mention names of the people that worked for this hotel because its pointless. The management have done such an incredible job of training monitoring and respecting each other so they all deliver service consistently well, politely, immediately, respectfully and effectively. Not  [... read more]a single person expressed any sort of attitude and laziness. From a senior manger's perspective at a very large Canadian Corporation, I tip my hat the the management at this hotel. Everywhere is immaculate & spotless and you never see things getting done but they get done on time, every time. The place makes you relaxed and comfortable. Rooms are as good as can be expected and twice the size of any other room I have stayed at in the Caribbean... 1,000 square feet or very close to that. Doors work, sliding doors work, pool is crystal clear, grassy areas are like fairways at high end golf courses. Gardens manicured at all times. Ashtrays (yes, unfortunately I smoke) never have more than one cigarette butt in it, because its only going to be your cigarette butt. Everyone you get in contact with speaks English well. All the staff have a sense of confidence when they talk with you, unlike many other hotels where they have more of an intimidated approach....again, management is educating, regularly training and respecting their staff who feel empowered and proud to serve clients. The food...exceptional...lots of variety...good portions...elegantly presented...makes you feel that you order a very special dish and they ensured it was going to be presented that way for you to enjoy. I always had Cuba in 3rd place, Dominican Republic in 2nd and Mexico & Jamaica tied for 1st. At this very moment, no 4-5 star hotel that I ever visited over the past 30 years is better than this hotel, from end to end. The drinks...perfectly made, extremely refreshing and delivered right away. One dark spot was the seaweed....it came in and it came in heavy almost daily. So what did the hotel do? put a dozen guys on it starting at 3:00AM to pile it up and take it off the beaches as fast as they could. Did they win and beat mother nature every day? Heck no....but they did win a few times though and cleaned up the beach before we got there in the morning. NOW THE BAD STUFF: I do have a few problems with my stay here: 1) I really doubt I will ever learn about new hotels in the Caribbean because I fear that no other hotel can deliver as much value and joy like this hotel... 2) The price I paid was too low for this place and I am certain they will raise their prices in the future....I just hope they don't! 3) The level of professional management, quality of the hotel and the food and drink is realistically not sustainable... Overall it was all just too perfect. I must have caught the week that everything and everybody was on point every single day. I am a realist and know you cannot maintain such a high level forever...something will have to eventually give. I just hope somehow they can maintain everything for many years to come at the same level and only increase pricing to match inflation!! It was a real joy for myself, my wife and my daughter. TO MANAGEMENT AT THE MAJESTIC MIRAGE: I don't write good reviews just to be polite. In fact I rarely write reviews as I can't be bothered. But when I think something is extraordinarily good or bad, then I have to share my views so others are forewarned. You guys have done an incredible job. You should raise a glass of your finest at your next management meeting and toast your genuine team success to be so organized and committed and deliver exceptional customer experience and value. Best Regards, Ray

Bahia Principe Explore Punta Cana: Beautiful resort!

The grand lobby was impressive! The rooms were spacious nicely decorated and very clean. We were accommodated with adjoining rooms for our kids. We liked the higher floor too as the villa was right beside the pools but high enough for privacy. The room was always perfectly made when we come in to rest and get ready before dinner. The family liked to have drinks after dinner at the beautiful lobby bar while watching / dancing to the live music and activities in the courtyard. The buffet is near b [... read more]y with endless selection of delicious choices. The shows were entertaining at the theatre next door. The kids also liked the pool table by the theatre. There are A LOT of activities including scuba diving lessons, water aerobics and out favourite beach volleyball at the beach. The pools are huge and swim up bar was nice. The property is enormous!! We took the shuttle to the beach which came every 5-10 minutes. It was ok because it was very hot to walk far when we were there. I probably want to have a villa closer to the beach next time. The restaurants were great. Again the buffet had a lot of selections, the Pisces restaurant had very good grilled food and the paella was delicious. We enjoyed the mikado tepanyaki table but our favourite was the Garden Grill restaurant for their ribeye steaks and tenderloin. There was a large amount of seaweed in the beaches BUT the staff did an incredible job in constantly cleaning the weeds out. We walked down the beach to other properties but we couldn’t continue far because the other properties had a lot of died up seaweed all over the sand that it hurt to walk barefoot. There was a lot of mosquitoes but the resort sprayed once in a while to control it. It was difficult to control when it rained for a couple of nights. I think it helped bring on a higher floor so there was less bugs compared to being on the ground floor. Overall it was an amazing family vacation and looking forward to go back again!

Royalton Bavaro Resort and Spa: Such a great place, especially for the kids!

The resort was excellent and very beautiful. The evening entertainment was amazing! The dancers! The kids had an absolute blast in the kids pool area, lazy river and other pools and they danced their nights away every night! would definitely go back and cannot wait!

Occidental Punta Cana: Very good hôtel

L’hôtel est super beau et propre! Le personnel est courtois en général! La nourriture est très bonne! La plage est ok mais trop d’algue certains jours! Pas assez de serviettes de plage on devait toujours y retourner et attendre! Ils manquent de rhum et là boissons et le vins est dilué! Décevant Le guichet automatique à garder ma carte Visa! Du trouble car j’ai dû annuler ma carte de crédit! J’ai acheté des bijoux à la boutique à l’hotel Et la bague est déjà briser [... read more] ! Pas en argent du tout! Arnaque! Achetez dans bijouterie! Plus de peso au guichet d’echange de devise de l’hôtel ! Un verre d’eau pour le retour Air transat! Voilà

Grand Sirenis Tropical Suites: Ok resort lots of improvements needed

Réception 4 of 5, room service 2 of 5, food 3 of 5, entertainment 1 of 5, beach 3 of 5, swimming pool 0 of 5 (my son got infected from the pool). Aqua park 3 out of 5, restaurants 2 out of 5. Overall I gave this resort 3 of 5.

Ocean Blue and Sand: Great Family friendly resort!

The grounds were well-kept, the employees were courteous, friendly and helpful. The pools were amazing and the amenities were great for the entire family. The grounds were large, with a frequent shuttle to take you from the front to the beach in minutes. The variety of restaurant options gave a different flavourful option each night, with the Japanese restaurant, only one requiring a reservation, the best. A wonderful family-friendly resort.

Sunscape Bavaro Beach: Beautiful Resort

The resort was beautiful however the beach was full of seaweed. The pictures of the beach prior to the trip did not capture the truth. I was very disappointed with this however the rest of the resort was amazing!

Dreams Onyx Resort and Spa: The perfect resort for a family of four!

We had such a lovely stay at the Now Onyx. It was especially perfect for our 6-year-old and 21-month-old: we had a junior swim-up suite which they really enjoyed, and 24-hour room service meant we could have our meals in the room when the kids were too tired/cranky to make it to the buffet. We also enjoyed the a la carte restaurants and appreciated the fact that reservations weren't required - it's been difficult in the past to enjoy a la carte restaurants with set reservation times since a chil [... read more]d's schedule/mood might change and could throw off dinner timing. At the Now Onyx, we enjoyed three a la carte dinners (a staggering record for us!) because we could go when it best suited the kids' schedule. The grounds were so clean, the food was great, the staff was incredibly friendly and accommodating, and there were no mosquitoes! We'd love to come back again - it was the best resort we've been to so far.

Bahia Principe Explore Esmeralda: Nice resort

3rd stay at the Bahia, first time at Esmeralda! The resort is beautiful, extremely clean and grounds well maintained. The food is excellent as always. The only thing I was a bit disappointed in was that Esmeralda was not adults only as if once was and I was not aware of this until after I booked it. The tram system was also a bit difficult from Esmeralda. Anybody with a disability and that cannot walk easily will find it difficult as there is no pick up from the lobby. A person has to walk [... read more] to the main road. All in all though, the resort is definitely a 4.5 resort.

Sunscape Coco Punta Cana: Great pools and great food

We really loved the various pools and were able to eat vegan no problem at the buffet (lots of variety of veggies, rice, beans, potatoes, pasta with vegetables). However, we went in mid-July and were surprised to learn that during the summer the beach is covered in a gross brown algae that is in the water and piled up on the beach. They say that it is like this between May to October. It was fine for us as we didn't care too much about the beach, but it meant we actually never swam in the ocean  [... read more]at our resort, nor did we lay on the beach at all. The other drawback was that when we first arrived, it took us over 40 minutes in line to check-in. The rest of the week the service was a bit better and we didn't see any comparable lines at reception, but we were a bit taken aback that no one even apologized to us for the wait or asked if we needed anything while we waited.

Bahia Principe Explore Legend: What a resort!!!

This place is fantastic! Could not have asked for better service, food or amenities. There is plenty to do for the kids. The grounds, rooms and restaurants were always clean. The drinks were always great too! We will be back in the future.

Iberostar Waves Punta Cana: 1st time

The hotel was amazing. When we first booked in it was a long wait and when we finally registered we did not receive a lot of info so we had to go back twice to get all the instructions, but the staff was ok once we got it straightened around. The rooms themselves were clean, spacious and cool as soon as we entered. The food was plentiful, well displayed and delish. The ocean was a bit disappointing as it was rougher than I expected and the seaweed was overwhelming. The pool was fantastic and w [... read more]e enjoyed the whole week lazing about dreaming.

Royalton Punta Cana Resort: Amazing Resort

Everything was excellent. Only neg comment is the restaurant Under The Sea was really bad. It was at the other resort location. We walked out the food was so bad. Everything else was outstanding. Thanks.

Bahia Principe Escape Aquamarine: Great service and clean resort

Great food and great service. Resort was clean and room was spacious. It's nice that they have internet access throughout the compunds. Food was good too, with the exception of one of the Japanese restaurant (we only tried that one). It's just not authentic enough for us. The buffet restaurant is great, and they apparently have a different theme every night, which we didn't know, but wish we had. So do check that out before booking the other a la carte restauarants. The beach was a little disapp [... read more]ointing as there were seaweed on the shore every morning, but that was apparently due to hurricane Beryl? Otherwise the sand is nice and white and soft. All in all, a great resort.