Iberostar Punta Cana – Dominican Republic

The bus took around half an hour from the airport, and drove us straight to the hotel.

First impressions were good – nicely kept gardens,  people working on them etc…

After arriving at the lobby, we were given little envelopes with our towel cards, door keys (swipe cards) and instructed to stick stickers that were inside the envelopes on our cases.

We were told that things in the mini bar were included! what a bonus! We’ll see at the end of the week though I guess.

We were also told that the safety deposit box would cost $2 a day… not a lot of money, however I’d expect the use of this to be included in a supposedly 5* hotel?

Also, the “introduction meeting” it was announced, would be at 9am the next morning, in the lobby. Early start, then.

We then found our way to our room (5275)

Here’s what we found:

 

[pics coming soon]

 

The bed was huge! And very comfy.
Decent sized bath and shower, and our balcony overlooked the gardens. Very nice.

Now, if only the weather wasn’t so shit, it would be perfect!

However, 2 small things:

1. The TV doesn’t work
2. The bathroom door – once closed, it’s very difficult to open! Essentially, you’re locked in!

Surely, these things will be easy to fix.

As always, when arriving at hotels of this size (and it is huge) we then walked around it, checking it out. Checked out the beach, pool area etc…

Tags: dominican republic, hotel review

Flight & Arrival in Dominican Republic

Although we live a short (45 min) train journey from Gatwick airport, we decided in light of the recent shit weather, to spend the night at Travelodge, Gatwick, to ensure we were there on time.

We booked our all inclusive holiday to the Iberostar Punta Cana, through First Choice (using yourholidays.com)

The flight was ok, nice amount of leg room on the 767 (Thomson Airways)
They charge you for EVERYTHING they possibly could – you can “upgrade” your in flight entertainment system, they charge you for drinks, snacks etc… (although 2 meals are provided…)

After landing in Punta Cana (through a lovely layer of cloud) we were hurried through Customs? where you’re forced to pose for a photo, with 2 girls with an array of fruit for a hat. Initially I thought this was the start of something of a “souvenir” however I know reckon it’s for security purposes… a somewhat “stealth” CCTV like system, as no body tried to flog me the picture of me looking tired and angry after a 9 and a half hour flight.

Oh, you have to pay $10 per person for the privilege of entering the country, much like a nightclub.
First Choice kindly forgot to tell us about this, at any stage of our journey.

As soon as you’re on what you would think is the home stretch, your bombarded by scores of men trying to take your luggage for you – just tell them no – it’ll cost you, and you’ll be walking around 100 metres (if you’re bus is “at the back of the carpark” as ours was)

Dinner!

 

My favourite time at these kind of hotels (just like it was in Egypt) is always the selection of food on offer.

There are several restaurants available at this resort.
2 a la carte restaurants inside the main complex require men to wear long trousers.
Luckily, i brought suitable attire, however I’m on holiday… i should be able to wear what i want!

Back to our selected choice this evening (and I’m sure it’ll be the most common choice) – the buffet restaurant.

There are 2 – one in the Punta Cana side of the resort, one in the Dominicana side. Both are identical.

The dining hall is huge. The food on offer ranges from things like:

• Salad
• Cooked meat
• Cooked fish
• Pasta
• Pizza
• Bread
• Fruit
• Cakes
• Eggs

And much much more!

All of it was so good, it’s hard to write about it!