Iberostar Bavaro, Punta Cana and Dominicana

Date 06/16/2008

Name of Resort: Iberostar Bavaro, Punta Cana and Dominicana

Location: Bavaro Coast, Punta Cana, Dominican Republic

Agent Reporting: Carolyn Young

Note: We stayed at the Iberostar Bavaro for 10 nights and really loved it. We did not have a formal site inspection visit, but feel of course that we know the most about this resort. We will definitely be returning next year for another visit.

Rooms: All of the 590 rooms at the Bavaro are junior suites and have either been newly renovated or are in the process. Our room was very large and comfortable. It contained a large flat screen TV with satellite channels. The bathrooms contain both a shower and a tub and are fairly large in size. The interior decoration is typical of an Iberostar room, but the beds are very different that the ones in Mexico. The king beds have the pillow top mattress feel. They are firm, but also soft and are very comfortable.

Beach: Even though we have been to Punta Cana before, I had forgotten how totally wonderful the beaches are. They are wonderfully sugar-like, very flat and great for long walks. We loved it!

Pool: The large pool on the Bavaro side was very nice. Also the pools on the Punta Cana and Dominicana side of the resort looked very inviting. Very relaxing and well designed is a good way to describe them.

Food: There is an international buffet restaurant and one grill snack bar. There are five ala carte restaurants: Gourmet, Japanese, Mediterranean, steak house, and a Cajun restaurant. The “Star Rock Café” with a sports bar theme and featuring American food was available. We dined at all of the above and enjoyed them all. When booking at the Bavaro you have “dine around” privileges to the two other Iberostar resorts and this is definitely a plus.

Drinks: The Iberostar offers the following bars: El Cayuco, lobby bar; Bar Piscina, pool bar with swim up bar; La Tambora, beach bar; and the Disco, where you can dance all night in the disco located near the sports bar. In addition you may enjoy the bars that are located on the Punta Cana and the Dominicana side of the complex too.

Service/Staff: The staff was very friendly and we found it very easy to communicate with them. They made our visit very carefree.

Activities: The Bavaro provides all of the typical activities that all-inclusive resorts include. The activities staff are very friendly and made the rounds to encourage guests to participate in all that they had planned for the day.

There are professional shows and live nightly entertainment and the discotheque was available. The complex housed a casino in the Dominicana section of the resorts.
The Mini-Club (4-8 years), Maxi-Club (9-12 years) and Teeny Club offer all types of activities supervised by a professional staff. There is also a playground and mini-disco. There is a Mangrove Jungle Walk for kids.
The Melia Cocotal Golf and Country Club is only 20 km. It includes an 18 and a 9 hole course with driving range, pro-shop, rental equipment and a golf academy.

Spa services are available both in the spa area and on the beach. They are very comparable to most of the resorts visited.

Overall: This was our favorite resort mainly because of the beauty of the grounds. It earned an A+ grade. The plantings and care given to the landscape of this resort is impeccable! We loved the beach, the pools and the general ambiance of the entire resort complex. We will definitely return!

I have placed the resort photos on my personal web page. Please visit www.goaway2getaway.com