We just got back from this resort and would have to agree with most of the posts previous.
Check in was fast as there were only 2 of us. The front desk seemed helpful when we needed them.
We were in room 10114 main floor with terrace, steps to pool. It was clean and sufficient for what we needed. TV did work, telephone did not, but we didn't ask for it to be fixed.
Maid service did a good job but there was no set time as to when they came by.
The food was subpar (per my opinion)... although we did manage to get something to nibble on each time we went. I lived on olives and pickles :), spaghetti noodles and a white sauce.
The usual resort foods, pastas, breads, mystery dishes, lots of meat and fish in sauces. Saw potatoes once. A couple days they did have good fried chicken. The snack bar at beach was stocked with weiners, hamburgers, rice and a meat of the day. There were nacho chips but no cheese sauce, I found that odd. There were french fries and pizza but it went fast. Everything seemed to maintain an internal temperature of medium warm to cold.
Breakfast was what you'd expect. Eggs made to order, some bread, limited fruit, sausages and bacon. Lots of 'luncheon meat'. Ran out of orange juice half way through week so there was guava or mango juice only.
The bar service was adequate. I never had to wait too long for a drink. The slushie drinks were hit and miss to the consistency of the slush vs melted. They do pour more than ample amounts of alcohol in cup so if you don't want to be flat out & passed out, watch and say when.
Disco was busy and played techno spanish music. The night entertainers hung out at the disco and encouraged people to dance.
The beach... well... if you want a vast expanse of clean sand and continuous uninterrupted sun, this may not be the place for you. We did go to the beach a few times but had to move our lounger every hour or so. The beauty of the natural pines and palms is the trade off. They also drop baby prickly pine cones too so a few ouchie encounters during the walk.
The beach goes for miles in both directions and was quite pleasant aside from the pesky beach vendors. But I kept in mind that this was their bread and butter so I was polite and said no thank you. They'll tell you they have whatever you're looking for, just to get you into their shops. Barter, barter barter, if you do venture in.
We did meet a vendor right next to the beach that let us borrow his motorbike to tour around. We took him up on his offer and then brought it back within a couple hours as we were terrified driving the streets LOL. We parked the bike in town and walked most of it.
We left the resort at night on numerous occasions and felt perfectly safe. (safe from crime, not necessarily from the dips and chunks out of sidewalks and the aggressive drivers) Went to Danny's Sports Bar and Grill to watch the SuperBowl - - was great.
As said in previous reviews. The vast majority of the clientel is from the eastern block of europe. They don't seem to be the friendliest sort either. A smile would go a long way people :)
We only did one excursion which I will highly recommend, Xtreme Buggy Adventures (this is not provided through hotel).
Unfortunately, I will not recommend this resort. Too many negatives to the positive.
We still had a great time and made the most of it. We found a few other Canadians and yapped it up with them in the evenings.
- Carabela Bavaro Hotel
- Carabela Bavaro Punta Cana
- Carabela Beach Resort
- Carabela Bavaro
