JOIA Bavaro by Iberostar (Formerly Iberostar Grand Bavaro) - All Inclusive

Customer Ratings & Reviews

TripAdvisor Traveler Rating

15992 reviews

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  Our week at the Joia Bavaro by Iberostar 10/10

  We are at the end of our 1 week stay at the Joia Bavaro by Iberostar (formerly the Grand Bavaro). It is a beautiful resort for adults only. The attention to detail from the staff, the out door landscaping, rooms, butler service, food, facilities, activities and entertainment is truly a 10/10!!!! Our butlers Victor and Valentine made sure that we had everything we required from morning until night, and they are kind, respectful, responsive and easily get a 10/10 rating. They take care of approximately 35 to 40 rooms per day and yet made us feel like they were only taking care of us. The sweetest guys ever!!! The drinks at the room, pool, beach, bars and restaurants are 10/10……anything from carbonated water, Shandy, Aperol Spritz, Gin and Tonic…..and Champagne all day long, anytime, anywhere you want…..if you desire!!! The food was a 10/10 both at the buffets and at the a la carte restaurants. We were pleasantly impressed by the authenticity of the cuisine (Italian, Japanese, French, Surf and Turf) I kept busy during the day with the various activities such as: Yoga, archery, and pool classes (boxing, pole, cycling, noodle fitness)…..and Bingo. The rooms are very comfortable, larger than what you normally get, with a large balcony with comfortable outdoor furniture. It felt clean and fresh…….and no bugs not inside or outside…..a very pleasant surprise!!!! Your wrist band is your room key 10/10. Lots of live music in the evenings that was lovely to listen to and evening shows in the indoor air conditioned theatre were entertaining!! This was our first time at the Joia Bavaro by Iberostar, and look forward to coming back again.

  Dec 05, 2025
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  A Good Week but Will Not be Returning

  Our butler, Jesus (heh-SOOS) really made our week as he tried his best to accommodate any requests we had. He was amazing!! He brought the review from a three star to a four star. About our experience at a "5 star resort": The GOOD: -It is the best resort we have been to for being environmental responsible. For example, I did not see any plastic bottles and they save the bees nest around the resort and place them elsewhere and make honey. -The adult only section is smaller and easily walkable. It makes accommodations for those who need it such as having a walkway down to the beach and wheelchair only cabanas. -You could order drinks and food to be delivered to you at the beach or pool. The food menu was limited though. -I liked the configuration of the room. When you walked into the room there was a closet and minibar. You could shut the door to the bedroom which made it quieter. -The beach was pure sand and the surf was not too high which made it easy to get in and swim. We loved that we had our own palapa umbrella. -There were many, many choices of activities during the day such as sunrise yoga, volleyball, and archery. -We checked in online and it was pretty seamless getting checked in at the resort. Our butler, was fantastic introducing us to our room and answering any questions we had about the resort. -It was the first resort we stayed at that you could not make reservations for all the restaurants. It ended up being nice to have the flexibility. We only had to wait one night for about 30 minutes for the popular French restaurant. The resort did not seem to be at full capacity so that may change depending on the season. -We loved having the choice to eat outside at each restaurant. -At no time did we feel that tips were expected for service. -At the pool bar, there was usually only one person in front of you and the service was good. -The resort was only about 30 minutes from the airport. Good/bad -The food was ok. There was less selection at the buffet than we were used to at a larger resort. We did have a really nice meal at the French and Surf and Turf restaurants. The salmon was cooked perfectly. -The replenishing of the minibar and snacks and cleaning of the room was hit and miss. For example, when we returned from supper around 8:30 a couple of nights, the turndown service was not done. -They have a coffee shop that makes great coffee! Lady at the coffee shop, I encourage you to smile at customers and greet them instead of saying "next". The Bad -For a five star resort, this one was the one that we stayed at that was most in need of a facelift. For example, not all elevators were working and nails were sticking out on our balcony floor. -Each day, at breakfast we had to ask many times for coffee which was very aggravating. We did not have the option to get it ourselves. We usually tip often, but I found we did this the least at this resort. -JOIA advertises: "An hour per day of non-motorized aquatic activities (Hobie Cat, kayaking, snorkeling, windsurfing)". When I asked about the Hobie Cat, I was told that I needed a lesson first at a cost of $65= not free. I asked my butler to set up free snorkeling, which he did the next day at 2pm. I went to the dive shop at the appropriate time and was told they did not lend out snorkel gear as they use it on the excursions. I said that was ok because I had my own but wanted to know about the free one hour of snorkeling and the best spot for snorkeling at the resort. They said that they do not do free snorkeling tours at the resort but I could pay to take an excursion=not free. This was discouraging and disappointing as I scheduled my day around the 2 pm booking and had to go to a different section of the resort. We brought this to the butlers attention, whom he said was brought to managements attention. As a woops, sorry we asked for a complementary 2 hour late check out. They gave us one hour late checkout which did not seem like they really cared about the frustration and time lost we experienced. In addition, the resort had no hot water in our room for half a day and took a cold shower to get ready for supper. -Not the fault of the resort, but if you are looking for a quiet/relaxing get away, I feel Punta Cana is not the place to go. There was a constant flow of venders approaching us trying to sell their wares on the beach. They usually approach you twice, once going and once coming back: 3 men selling cigars, 3 ladies selling messages, another sunglasses, another children's toys, another boats from shells, a few selling excursions, etc. etc. etc. In addition, frequently there were boats going by, as close to the buoy line as possible, often playing loud music. Not relaxing. -Although our butler was amazing, for the reasons under bad we will not be returning to this resort.

  Dec 04, 2025
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  Great Experience/ Great atmosphere/ Relaxing

  We had a great and relaxing time at Joia Bávaro. The staff were all extremely nice and accommodating to any needs. Jesus and Reynaldo were our Butlers and truly went above and beyond to make our experience over the top enjoyable!

  Dec 04, 2025
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  Relaxing and fun

  Beautiful resort. Very friendly staff. Very fun at night. Rooms kept very clean. Personalized touches every night, like full bubble bath and champaign.

  Dec 03, 2025
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  Return again to JOIA Bavaro by iberostar

  Frequent guests in Joia Bavaro by Iberostar. Due to perfect location, ocean, beach, also due to famikiar all staff, perfect food and beverages offer we spent our repeated holidays , every time 3 weeks in ocean front room with wonderful view to ocean and beach as well. This November 2025 , even after Melissa huricane was perfect. The level of cleaning processes is super.

  Nov 24, 2025