Third time to the Iberostar Costa Dorada and a pleasure to return. As always all the staff are super friendly and always do their best to help. We were there between 7-21 February. Stayed in a junior suite in block 5 with a sea view room. Having stayed in block 2 and block 3 with pool views previously there isn

We have been back from Doninican for a few weeks now and have been meaning to write a review for a while!! My husband and I spent our 2 week honeymoon at the Iberostar....and loved it!!!

Below I have tried to comment on everything....the trip section may be of interest for anywhere you are staying in Dominican!!!

We met some lovely people, the staff were friendly, the food was fab....drinks were great (especially the milkshakes when you have had enough of drinking alcohol!). The room was nice...bed amazingly comfortable!! The hotel itself was clean, with everything that you need!!

We arrived on 05th Jan...all the xmas lights were still up and we really felt the wow factor that we had been hoping for!! Sadly the lights came down the next day....but the hotel was still lovely!!

The beach was great (and clean) (spent most of our time there as the pool was too hot without the breeze!). Be warned the sea is Atlantic...so not crystal blue...which a lot of people expected...and moaned about?!!!! Pool was lovely....we just prefered the sea breeze!

The Mexican restaurant was great (we would recommend the chicken!), the Brazillian was nice (very filling!). We did not try the fish restaurant as neither of us like sea food! The buffet restaurant was excellent....different food everyday.....massive choice, we didn't eat the same thing once in the 2 weeks we were there and we are both fussy eaters!!!

The entertainment was hit and miss...but I have never been to any hotel were the entertainment was excellent every night!! The entertainment team do their best and most of the shows (Lion King was excellent) were good fun!!

The only thing that slightly annoyed us was the fact that everything is priced in US $.....we were not told this before we went and only had Dominican currency with us....but this only caused a problem when entering the country as you HAVE to pay in $....no problem paying in Domincan on way out!! Take $ for tips...as this gets expensive when using Dominican currency!!

We loved all of the trips we did....but be warned...they are VERY expensive! We went to
* Paradis Island.....loved it....snorkling in crystal blue sea with tropical fish was fab....not long enough though and a LONG day with a lot of travelling (speed boats were fun!)....we thought it was worth it though...be warned...EARLY start (not quite sure why!)!!
*Mega Trucks.....great day out....loved everything....and my husband got over his fear of horses!! Visiting the village was nice....and make you realise how lucky we are with all the comforts we have!!
*Ocean world - READ CAREFULLY!! If you have booked to swim with Dolphins then this is an expensive but amazing experience. If you are not doing the dolphin swim....I wouldn't bother with this trip!! Ocean World is expensive (entry) and is very small...the best bit apart from dolphins is the snorkle pool!! If you do go DO NOT GO ON THE FREE VIP TOUR!!! This VIP tour is basically TIMESHARE!!!!
*Deep Sea Fishing.....fab trip....wish we had booked the full day....but only had a half day!! Captin and crew were brilliant. A couple of people were sea sick....but got over it and we all had a great laugh!! Only caught one fish....which was lost as it was about to be brought on board...but was still brilliant!!

All in all we had the best 2 week holiday that either of us had every had....made even more special as it was our honeymoon!!

Personally we could not fault the hotel, staff, accommodation, food, drinks, entertainment....anything!! Also...hotel is close to airport...so no long transfers. Yes there is not much around....we walked to Playa Dorada (about 15 mins)....which is a big complex...with bars that show the football!! There is a Casino that you can use in the hotel next door...this also has a cashpoint!! But taxi's are not too expensive if you do want to go to the town (be careful of "TOUR GUIDES" just jumping in your taxi!!

We will be going back in years to come......if you want a nice clean hotel, good food and a relaxing time...this hotel is perfect!!

Your holls start as soon as you arrive at the airport when you are greeted and shown to you coach a cold bottle of water is at hand which belive me you will need (so hot).Hotel rooms allocated on the coach and wrist bands fitted so as soon as you arrive at the hotel you are welcomed by the porters who take care of your cases and the reception staff offer you a welcome fruit cocktail.The rooms are very clean and come with tv,iron,mini bar (stocked daily).Food is great and lots to choose from,Main resturant food was different evey time we went in to eat,Staff can not do enough for you, Say hello to Joeseph never stopped smiling and great with the kids kept your drinks topped up and would do anything for you.Mexican lovely Brazilian Fantastic but you must be a meat eater as we all are.Entertainment at night was in our opinion fantastic we went as a Family with kids of 10 and 13 who loved every minute of the shows.With a different show every night the star friends were brilliant,Natural the assistant manager and his friends Micky Mouse, Superman Hotchilly Cheeky Monkey and Bossy Boots all worked hard and long hours to make sure you had a great time and even try to learn you how to dance.
All in all would go back to this hotel no problem even in October we had 12 days of red hot weather and 30c
at 8.00am ,2 days of rain and when it rained it came down big time but this did not make i differance to the holiday as it was still very hot.
If i had one complaint it would have to be the weather at night still in the thirties and when your getting up to dance well let me say this you lose a lot of water. But is that a complaint.Dont have to get up at 5.30 in the morning for the usual sunbed race as there are loads of sunbeds to choose from even after lunch.Maybe one bit of advice get a bed with some cover just in case it does rain.
If you go to this hotel you will not be dissapointed get to the beach if its too hot during the day and enjoy the happiness that comes from the staff and people of the Dom Republic.

what can we say that has,nt already been said,it really does live up to the hype,we could not fault the place,food,staff everything spot on....just go and enjoy

Just came back from Iberostar (22nd September) and had a fantastic holiday! Forget all the moaners and whingers if you can't enjoy it here then get a life, this place is outstanding, if you want 5 Star people then pay 10 grand and go to Sandals. Yes we had a few weddings and there was an occasional football shirt but the few kids were well behaved and well looked after, we also had 75 evacuees who came to us from Cuba but they enjoyed it despite some horrendous stories so to all the moaners please don't come back because those of us who will certainly don't want you! The food is the best in any all inclusive we've stayed at (and that's quite a few) from grilled fish to pizza's made in the open oven in the dining room there's something for everyone, we couldn't believe the choice it's so vast and all the Chef's are extremely proud of what they do, the only problem is the amount of weight you'll put on because the food is so good, trust me.
The 3 al a carte restaurants are good but our particular favourite was the Brazilian, beautiful grilled meats served from long scewers straight to your plate, outstanding.
Our room was large and spotless, the mini bar restocked every day with Beer, soft drinks and water, what more could you ask for?
We spent most of our time on the beach occasionally going to the beach bar for a quick top up, have I mentioned the beach bar-b-ques? Superb grilled meats, fish, piella, I could go on, other people we met on the beach used to walk past the Iberostar drooling at the smell, you don't get that elsewhere!
To sum it all up, go and enjoy, forget the odd screwball review, lets face it, how many on this site rave about the place, too many to count so dismiss the glums if you want a good holiday get here now!
All our regards to Gill and Ian, Hazel and John, the Brummies from Cuba and our Geordie Guest House friends, pleased to meet you all, Tom and Shirl.

all inclusive at this hotel meant just that
hotel was clean and fresh location right on the beach what more could you want
also an enormous pool to cool down in
quality ,quantity and choice of food could not have been better
any kind of drink you want anytime including the obligatory holiday cocktail liked the kir royal myself minibar in room was restocked regularly
hotel staff always on hand when anything was needed
entertainment team (star friends) were incredible they never stopped working
could go on about this place forever but dont take my word for it visit yourself

would def revisit hopefully nxt yr

1st Visit to the Dom Rep, good flight with Thomsons, we were in Premium which I had got at a good price only downside was one of our suitcases being smashed by handlers UK end and having to buy another one in resort. Very short journey to the hotel during which we were given our allocated rooms. I had previously e mailed the hotel requesting a seaview and was pleased to be given 3 ground floor rooms in Block 5. Other than the fact that I found the room to be quite dark there were no complaints and the maid service was excellent. The hotel is set in lovely surroundings with some very nice features and even though it is a large resort you soon get the hang of where things are located. One thing to note is that if it rains and you are in the furthest block away from the restaurants and reception then you don't get wet because all the walkways are covered over and you could even get a lift from one of the staff in their buggies. There are 3 speciality restaurants and we thought the Brazilian was the best. There were several beach barbeques during our stay which made a change if you didn't want to eat at the buffet or snack bar. Good idea getting your own drinks and ice cream from the dispensers although wouldn't have touched the left out wafers as people were manhandling them and putting them back! We found all the staff to be very friendly and helpful and the 'star friends' do a brilliant job although the activities are not personally my cup of tea. We only saw 1 show but other members of our party were there every night and thoroughly enjoyed them all. Quite a few of the organised trips were taken and the favourites were Ocean World and the Monster Truck. We got a taxi from the lobby on 3 days and visited Puerto Plata, Sosua and Cabarete the latter 2 I thought were both OK. Must say that I was pleasantly surprised with how clean and well kept the areas we visited were. Overall we had a good holiday and the hotel was excellent but if we returned it would be a different time of year as it was just too busy and at times didn't feel like we were in the Caribbean at all.

No way is this 5 star 3 at the most maybe.

We arrived on Jun 20th after an hour delay at Manchester because a stewardess had hurt her leg and had to be taken off. We were kept waiting for an hour with no air-conditioning and no water while her bag was off-loaded.

Very nice landing with panoramic views. Check in on the coach nice and easy although the hotel representative expected us to fill the form in while standing on the coach steps with hand luggage etc.

We had requested a quiet room with non-pool view blocks 7 or 8. We were given block 7 but with a pool view as a result this was noisy from 7am to 7pm and we could not sit out on the balcony. We decided it would be quieter at night and so stayed put. The pool was meant to shut at 7pm but muppets were still in there at 7.45pm with no intention of going. Imagine if someone came into your work at closing time and stayed for 45 mins would you like it

We have just returned back from the Hotel for the 3rd time. As always the Hotel is excellent. The Hotel is clean and spotless and if you drop anything the maid is behind you cleaning it up within minutes. The rooms are cleaned daily and the fridge is replienished with water and pop daily. The grounds on the Hotel are still breathtaking and the Garden staff are always very busy cleaning it up, picking up leaves and taking down cocunuts etc. The 2 beach staff Tomas and Co are great. They make the time and effort to come over to you and assist you in anyway if you need it.They do get very hot and work long hours so a drink is appreciated! The Hotel food. Well what can i say. It cannot be faulted in anyway. They have such a large selection of everything for everyone to eat.You have such a large choice of different meats on the cavery everynight and the menu is different each night. The Hotel staff are still great and cannot do enough for you. Especially Cesarin and Jorge in the restaurant, Santo the Public Relations manager and not forgetting Gabrielle manager of reservations at the Hotel. The entertainment at the Hotel was still great. The entertainment team work so hard and deserve a great deal of credit. The shows at night were still breathtaking and the daytime entertainment you can take it or leave it. They only ask you once and if you refuse they do not ask you again! This Hotel is definately recommended and we will be returning back to the hotel again at the same time next year!!.

We stayed in the hotel for two glorious weeks and found the facilities superb! the Restaurant food was great with a constant supply of drinks and ice cream for the kids during the day. pepe giseppe in the restaurant was always on hand to clean up when our 3 year old threw his food around as he was when our friend Gary also threw his on the floor! only trouble is Gary is 40! Serge in the bar made an excellent cocktail with a lemon twist!!! you should try it! We found the health centre excellent with plenty of extras on offer from the attentive staff. The grounds of the hotel are stunning and the rooms very spacious!
We went on several trips while we were there and found most to be very well organised however the Dolphin trip was a little expensive. one trip we found a disaster was the buggy experience! The cars were less than roadworthy and kept breaking down. We were stranded at a beach for several hours while replacement vehicles were found and then on the way back two more vehicles broke down in the middle of a sugar can plantation! the sun was beating down and we had no refreshments and to make it worse our friend kev has a wooden leg and could not make it back unaided. We had to make a makeshift stretcher out of sugar cane and tshirts and literally carry him home to the Hotel!! We look back now and laugh at the experience but at the time Kev was hopping mad!!