TripAdvisor Traveler Rating

Escaped the cold Northeast US for a long weekend in January and this resort was just fine... PROs include the food, which, as we are frequent Caribbean travelers who tend to stick with all-inclusive options, was truly terrific.. don't know what these complainers on TA are talking about in some other food reviews but we're NYC foodies and literally everything we ate here was great! Also, the Iberostar golf course is exquisite, absolutely wonderful! CONs include the rooms, very dated, definitely need updating, and with the exception of the lobby staff, few staffers spoke English well enough to communicate properly, but this is more of a personal preference thing and hardly legit to 'complain' about since the majority of the clients are clearly Spanish and South American.. which leads to the real 'complaint' from this North American.. the clientele are rude, obnoxious, and I guess that's their thing. May not return because of this alone, but the resort itself is quite nice..

Wonderful resort! Travelled with 4 adults and really enjoyed the golf course, pickleball and the beach. Overall, the resort is very clean, spacious and we all thought the food options were terrific. Staff was very welcoming and friendly. Will definitely return again.

We had a lovely family reunion planned for the week after Christmas through NYE, and choose to meet up at this resort. We had high hopes for it based on everything we read and our conversations with the concierge prior to our arrival. However, when we arrived the experience was very very different. First off, my daughter has significant food allergies, so naturally I checked in advance with the resort. I was assured the staff had been well trained on food allergies and cross contamination issues and with the detailed allergy letter we would get upon arrival from Guest Services to show the staff, we would have no problem getting a safe dinner for my daughter. This was NOT the case. The staff begrudgingly accommodated our requests, especially in the buffet and grill areas (the reserved restaurants were fine). Seriously we had to badger them to help us and it was very apparent the staff either had no idea how to avoid cross-contamination or could not be bothered to help us. Very disappointing and my daughter had a hard time getting enough food while there. And yes, I went to Guest Services repeatedly and got the same "show the letter and it will be fine" song and dance - they were NO help. Lot of smiles and nodding, no follow through. Second, we were a large group and were assured in advance that we could get reservations at the reservation-only-restaurants...which we tried to reserve in advance but were not allowed to....anyway spent a rather miserable hour to hour and a half the first night there in Guest Services trying to get reservations for our group. We struck out most nights - we managed to get two; one at the teppanyaki place (which was wonderful) and one at the steak house (also good) but the times were limited (very early seating) and only able to book for two of the six nights we were there. Other concerns: The rooms felt tight for us, we had a junior suite with a rollaway bed to accommodate the 3 of us; got heavily pitched by staff to attend a time share chat to the point of them begging us to go, no thanks; while on the beach many vendors asking us to buy excursions or services. So that was annoying. On a positive note; the beach area had plenty of shaded seats and lounge chairs for which there was not an extra fee, and we could find seating any time of the morning or afternoon; same with the pools. Great bar service, and plenty of bars to choose from. The evening entertainment was fun, but oddly, limited on NYE. Overall, would not go again.

We have just arrived back from 10 days at this hotel and we had a great time. There are a lot of reviews that seem overly negative, however I know people have different opinions on standards so I thought I’d give my opinion from a first time visitor from the UK who speaks very little Spanish. 1. Cleanliness acres the hotel was impeccable- including restaurants, our room and the grounds- I never saw any rats, cockroaches etc. 2. We stayed at the Selection Bávaro, however we did not upgrade to Coral as it didn’t seem worth it for 2 extra restaurants and another pool. 3. The hotel is family orientated which was a compromise for us as we prefer adults only, however we found the quiet pool was great and Natalya at the Cool Wagon bar at this pool made the best cocktails out of all those I tried. 4. We picked this hotel due to the golf course for my husband- he said it’s a good course and in great condition. He says it’s short off the whites so good for higher handicapped players, however also 2 tees further back so great for lower handicapped players like him. We booked the tee times before we went out and were glad we did as it’s quite busy and slightly chaotic if people all turn up at the same time and trying to get the buggy etc for the game. He was picked up for free every morning and given free drinks and sandwiches as you play which was a great extra service- he would play here again. 4. Check in at the hotel wasn’t great, rushed and the guy was extremely disinterested- we didn’t have a clue what we were supposed to do or were to go, however I would put that down to the particular member of staff who checked us in because every time I had a query after that throughout the holiday the reception staff were very helpful. 5. I agree this is a Spanish resort, however we never had 1 problem with being treated differently because we were English and couldn’t speak the language well- I would say 95% of the team were extremely friendly and always helpful. 6. Was the hotel 5*? No but it was a good 4* 7. Our room was very spacious, i agree with lack of draws- there is only 1 and the shelving in the wardrobe area but this was more than enough space for us and as I was forewarned I took some small luggage bags to keep smaller items together. The room was thoroughly cleaned everyday, there were clean sheets and I didn’t not see any bugs at all. 8. The main buffet area was really good- a different theme every night and the food was very, very good. To be honest I preferred this section more than some of the al a carte restaurants we tried- Japanese- really good, we both really enjoyed the food here. Italian- I liked but my husband didn’t Mexican- not good and we would not go back, we didn’t even eat the full meal. Greek- lovely meze starter and desserts, I had to ask for my main meal to be cooked more as was a little too pink for me. We didn’t have time to try the French or steakhouse but those people we spoke to said they loved both restaurants For the hotel team- I would say your buffet areas are fantastic, maybe try to improve the à la carte restaurants more this year. 9. Beach area, sunbeds etc were fantastic- seaweed was cleaned so well and quickly every morning- really impressive. 10. The gym was fantastic, lots of classes and a good free weights section, there was also a running track so if you like your fitness you won’t be disappointed. 8. Lastly the hotel is geared for families, my one request to the hotel team is please create a quieter bar area for us adults there without kids or keep one of the fab beach bars open later so adults can go on there own and not have to be round all the craziness of the shows Tips I hope help 1. Take drinks bottles with you, 1 for water and 1 for cocktails that will keep your drinks cold, as the hotel is against any plastic you are given 2 large glass bottles to fill at various water stations placed in the grounds- having your own bottles helps. 2. Take some washing up liquid for the bottles otherwise they will be washed in the water by the team. 3. Do book your restaurant reservations quickly- I used both the app and the guest services team behind the glass doors at reception. 4. Don’t get sucked into the free breakfast and tour..you will waste vacation time, a firm no and the staff don’t press you anymore to do the tour. Would we revisit? Definitely ??

stayed here Jan 8-15th for a family vacation. This was our fourth time to the DR but first to this Iberostar location. We booked through our travel agent and planned on having an ocean view room, but were surprised not to when we checked in. Pros: -beautiful, well-maintained grounds -stunning beach that was consistently clear of seaweed. - kind and hardworking staff - well-maintained pool area Cons: - language barrier: a few of the staff spoke good English, and I felt like this resort was meant for Spanish-speaking guests. - saw one of the waitresses at the main buffet taking shots with a group of visitors. - Our room was comfortable but dated - The A/C did not work very well in the room -Our hotel room lost power on three separate occasions. Each time I called the front desk, I was told they were sending a technician up, but no one came. The lights came back on their own, though. - Our concierge tried to get us to go to a special breakfast at the Coral section. He was not up front about the fact that the breakfast was for a sales pitch for their vacation club. If I hadn't been suspicious and asked, we would have lost precious vacation time sitting through a sales pitch. After this, we never heard from the concierge again. - The App was completely useless when it came to booking restaurants. I had to go to guest services and book through them. - The buffet food was better than the restaurant food. The Mexican restaurant was appalling. Bland food and no decent guacamole. The margarita was good, though. - The drinks were watered down and bland. -stained pool towels. - The smoking in public areas was terrible as well. Especially since there were children in the area. My conclusion is that if you want to stay on this property, it's better to pay a little more for the higher-end sections. Or go to one of the higher-end resorts on Bavaro Beach.