Lets get one thing straight: in the dominican republic, they certainly know how to treat tourists as tourism is such an important part of the economy. The people in general are very friendly and happy (why wouldnt you be in such a beautiful country!), and very willing to help.

The resort was excellent. It was the right location for us. Punta cana is on the east side of the island, actually on the atlantic ocean side, which offers some good points, for instance there are waves, and a constant sea breeze, meaning you can actually keep relatively comfortable in the heat when sunbathing. We visited the caribbean sea on the south of the island on an excursion, even thought it was beautiful and the sea seemed warmer - it would have been more uncomfortable to sit in the sun, and the lack of breeze would have made the humid and warm part of the island and ideal mosquito area. in any case, the sea remains at swimming pool temperature in the mornings, upto warm bath temperature in the afternoon.

We were on a two week all inclusive: the food and drink were excellent, in my opinion the meat was slightly over-cooked i.e. not rare or medium, but the seafood was ALWAYS fresh and delicious. there was an excellent range of foods, and you would have no trouble eating as a vegetarian or anything else. The buffet was extensive and varied. We have been on all inclusives before and by the 10th day the buffet was beginning to get repetitive, but this was not the case at the iberostar dominicana.

On the grounds there is a casino, a cigar rolling shop where you can pick up some fantastic dominican cigars, and the general everyday needs such as pharmacy, shop, bank, restaurants, bars are open everyday and on the grounds, with english speaking staff.

the excursions were excellent, and well priced, i would recommend snorkling in the coral reefs, where you eat bbq on the beach, and get the chance to swim with puffer fish, rays, sharks, etc. this was a very interactive experience in terms of touching fish and plants, and i would recommend anyone to see the reefs before they all disappear!

season wise, july through to august is high summer, and winter is only a few degrees cooler than in summer. it does rain occasionally, but only for a few minutes at a time, and is usually welcome! so a rainy morning doesnt ruin a whole day.

because the dominican republic is so close to the equator, the days start early, say 6am you have sunrise, and you have 12 hours of daylight and 12 hours of night, so by 6.30pm it is dark. this sets a nice pace for the holiday as you get a lot of relaxation time in the evenings, which are obviously cooler, but be prepared to start the day early if you want to catch maximum sun!

having said that, regularly they offer champagne at this time in the morning on the way to breakfast, which was a real luxury.

we had no serious problems in terms of health, apart from a little underprotection from the sun one day, and a little stomach upset after i ate far too much sugar cane. i would recommend stocking up on suntan lotions before you get there and get surplus aftersun! as the shop sells international brands of lotions, but also at international prices.

i would rate this resort in terms of accommodation, food, location, amenities as 4star+. all the staff were very helpful and friendly and we had no major problems. i would definately recommend this resort to any party, young couples like we were, families, older couples, larger parties. the grounds are big enough to accommodate all, and the atmosphere is always very relaxed.

any questions: stas.kuba@gmail.com

A group of 8 of us stayed in the Dominicana from July 14 to July 28, joined by another 6 on July 17. In addition another 6 came on July 17 staying in the Bavaro. Ages ranged from 14 to 56. The 8 of us had an unfortunate start in that we were delayed for 12 and a half hours at Gatwick and eventually flew out on a Tristar charted from the Portugese airline LuzAir - not the best way to travel!! However, this did not spoil our holiday.All 20 of us could not speak highly enough about this resort.. The adults were able to relax and the younger members could do their own thing with a Rock Cafe and night club and very good entertainments team.

The rooms, gardens, pool and especially the beach made for a fantastic experience. The food was very good with plenty of choice and availability. The beach was just awesome, best I have ever seen. The staff were so friendly and helpful and couldn't be faulted - even with sweat dripping down their faces the bar staff were still smiling and joking. The beach bar was a must at any time of the day, situated right on the beach!! I found the beer and the spirits more than acceptable.

I was a bit worried about the weather before I left, several different forecasts talked about rain and thunderstorms every day but how wrong they were. For 14 days we had clear blue skies and temperatures above 35C , very, very, hot. There were a few torrential downpours during the night. You have to be careful in these temperatures because on the beach there was always a nice onshore breeze. I burnt the first day and had to be very careful in the sun each day between midday and 2pm. The beach was and is mind blowing and allowed for endless walks in both directions. The sea was lovely, fresh to get in because of the breeze but very warm once your in. The sea was very clear and had lovely turquoise blue colous. We spent most of our time on the beach. My wife spent endless hours snorkellig just off the beach and was able to see lots of coloured tropical fish.

The restaurants were good and the Steak restaurant was superb, we went there twice. I don't understand people saying they couldn't book up these restaurants - 3 days before leaving we booked the steak house for 14 - no problems and yet both hotels were full!!

Our friends in the Bavaro spent a lot of their time with us at the Dominicana - as stated previously the Bavaro is a lot quieter and the Dominicana is busier and at the centre of things.

The only slightly negative points I have is that the beach bar closed at 11pm - a bit early - and you needed to be up early to get a palapa/shade on the beach - 6.30 to 7am. However, there were always plenty of beach chairs available. The beach bar was nice in the evenings with the breeze. It does take a few days to feel comfortable evening time because of the humidity.

Most evenings we visited the Casino - good fun even just watching and air conditioned! I didn't see much of the entertainment but those that did said it was good. Very nce bar called the Piano bar next door in the Punta Cana.

We went on the Saona island trip - a very good all day trip and worth every penny - the island is very idyllic. Mind you the 2 hour bus ride each way is like a roller coaster ride - pot holes and bumps everywhere - not much chance of a nap! Some of our younger party thoroughly enjoyed the speed boat trips.

As I said earlier a superb holiday - best for us yet. Suoerb location, ecellent layout and beach and a very friendly people. Certainly better than Cuba and Mexico. How anyone could not enjoy this place is beyond me - perhaps they shouldn't be holidaying in this part of the world! I would certainly return and probably will. I would reccomment this hotel to anyone!

What a wonderful vacation for the entire family. We booked our vacation through a travel agent and went through Apple. If you have never taken an Apple vacation, you have to do it. Everything is taken care of. Carlos our Apple rep at the hotel told us everything we need to know about how things worked the very first day and after that we simply enjoyed the beach and pool with out problem.

Our family went the second week in July. My wife and two daughters arrived at the hotel lobby 2 hours before check in. We were greated by a cocktail waitress with drinks for everyone in the family. Rum punch for my wife and I and Non alcoholic drinks for the kids. We were told our room would be ready early and that we were going to be upgraded to a junior suite. While our room was getting ready, we left our luggage to be watched by the staff and we went to the beach. We were happy when our room was ready early and the staff picked us up along with our luggage and drove us to our room in their golf cart. Everything about the resort was nice. The grounds are spectacular, the beach is by far the best I have ever been on and the service was good. While I had read a lot of poor reviews about the food, My family found the food to be good. The buffet style restaurants had so many options that if you couldn't find something you like then you are just being too picky. We were able to get reservations at three restaurants of our choice and really enjoyed the sea food and steak restaurant. The mexican restaurant was the third that we were able get, and while everyone said it was the best, It is the one that we enjoyed the least. Nothing bad, although it was the only air conditioned restaurant, just didn't enjoy it as much as the others. We walked throughout the three resorts the Iberostar has and the Dominicana which is in the middle between the Bavaro and the Punta Cana, seems to be the place where all the action is. The Bavaro is more laid back, and had far less people in the pool and on the beach. The Punta Cana had basically the same amenities as the Dominicana but without all the games and activities. I was glad the we chose the Dominicana. It is the central hub for all the activities.

The pool area was well kept and we never had a problem finding an umbrell on the beach for shade. You have to have shade between 11 an 1. We went in July and it is hot and the sun will burn you up if you stay out in it too long. We went through 3 bottles of spf 30 sunscreen in a week. The weather was perfect. it rained twice. both times at night . Both times for about 10 minutes. If you like it hot, this is the place to go. You had to be in the pool or ocean during the afternoon. In the evening it will cool off a bit, but the humidity is soooo very tropical that it is still hot even at night.

The one thing we didn't like about the resort were the drinks. While you could drink unlimited amounts, they just never seemed to get you going. Even after we found out on the second day, if you tip your bar tender and asked for top shelf liquour, you would get a better drink, the drinks were just not that good. The beer is El presidente, it is OK. You have to drink everything so fast because it gets warm. We found a good Dominican Rum called Barcello and stuck to drinking rum and coke.

We found everything about this resort to be enjoyable. Negative reviews come from negative people. If you can't have fun here then you can't have fun anywhere.

My family and I went for a vacation and had a splendid time. The grounds are stunning, very well kept. Rooms are spotlessly clean and the beds were glorious! However, there was no clock radio in the room, so having no music for an audiophile was just a bit of a letdown. And the only reason you really need to know the time is for activities and dinner reservations, which were a little hard to get when you first arrive. The food was, at best, just okay, the buffet got tiring after awhile and some of the food the restaurants offered wasn't as good as advertised, but I didn't get to go to all of them, so I can't speak for them. Drinks flowed aplenty, seemed to be extremely watered down, but I guess that's a good thing, as no one needs to see lushes stumbling about! The staff is pleasant, fun and hilarious, not to mention extremely hard workers. Poolside activities were great, don't miss them! A pointer, if you choose to do step aerobics, don't do it in bare feet, that resulted in blisters! I cannot stress enough how beautiful this hotel was, I would highly recommend it for the value!