Hotels Near Iberostate Lake 5 in Bavaro

This review is for the UNIQUE part of Lopesan Costa Bavaro. My wife and I spent 4 nights in May 2023. We had an amazing time during our stay that was nothing short of amazing. Our butler Victor was amazing and made sure no question went unanswered, no request was too much for him. We spent most of our time in the UNIQUE specific amenities (Restaurant/Bar/Beach/Pool) – the breakfast and lunch buffet very tremendous, the food was great and there was something for everyone. We especially enjoyed the fresh passionfruit at breakfast. The service at the beach was great, rarely did we not have a passionfruit margarita in our hands. The restaurants for dinner (We did the Steakhouse, the French restaurant, the UNIQUE only restaurant and the restaurant where UNIQUE members don’t have to pay extra to eat at) where all really good – the food was always very tasty, the presentation was appealing to the eye and service was friendly and fast. The room was clean, quiet and we always came back to a perfectly made room after our time at the beach. We are looking forward to our next stay!

This trip was amazing. The resort was beautiful and easy to navigate. The rooms are quite large and the location is isolated and quiet. The beach is beautiful, the food was delicious, the drinks were wonderful. The staff were all really friendly and the service was generally great. There are a lot of vegan and vegetarian options which was great! All the events were really enjoyable and overall it was a really relaxing and memorable vacation! Shout out to the activities director Miki for making our stay extra special!

This was our first time in Dominicana and we chose this hotel because our tour operator said it was new and we actually liked the pics (they are real by the way, not like in the majority of the hotels where they post only the best to attract guests). First thing that impressed us was that all staff was wearing masks at all times everywhere: inside and outside! No matter if they were showing sport exercises, cleaning or dancing in the lobby in the evening, they were always in masks! Then sanitizers everywhere . Temperature control at the entrance to the hotel and to all restaurants. The staff also makes sure you are wearing a mask and gloves when picking food. Everyone was polite helping and smiling all the time. I will name only some people here just because I didn't take photos of all names, so sorry if I didn't name you. All receptionists were ready to help and solve any problem you have. Bieavenido (thanks for late night talk, now I know when is the Independence day in Dominicana!😊). All our requests were satisfied within 5-15minutes (not Dominican minutes👆🤣). Guys at the restaurant all who were welcoming, thank you for giving us masks and gloves when we were too overwhelmed with holiday activities and forgot to get them🙈. Thank you for always wishing us good morning, nice day and smiling! Guys who take orders inside the restaurants and my Spanish teachers😅 Ramon, Antonio, Wilsoooooon Rincon, muchos gracias! They always ask you how you are, remember your orders and bring them before you think about it. Mariia Soriano and Andy from lobby bar- the smiliest girl and boy ever! Thank you for your Russian and Ukrainian, keep learning, next time I come I will check up on your progress! 🤣 Animation team- you are beyond human abilities!!! Fly yoga, yoga on surf boards, volleyball, water polo(I think it was water polo😅), water bikes in the swimming pool, sexy dancing, jumping on little trampolines..Ruben & Jason, my sister Debora(best breeds from you!❤)and my evening salsa teacher Coca -Cola(don't lose uno in bachata anymore😉). Love you guys! 🥰 I will always remember all of you, how you invited to take part in the activities, how you were showing everything step by step, your patience, your unique personalities. The best chef on this planet Wander Montilla with amazingly beautifully looking and heavenly tasting dishes. 😋 Thank you for your unforgettable dinner at the stake house restaurant! Also, the cooking show in Asian restaurant is worth seeing! The food is amazing and the products are high quality. We are more than happy with our rest!

The cafeteria is very good, there are several restaurants, the service is very professional, I thought the first room had an odor and immediately helped me change to another room. The room is big, but the quilt is too thin, not used to it. Everything else is fine. Quiet and safe.

It’s a good hotel to stay for couple of days also very friendly staff.

My wife and I stayed at this all inclusive resort for 4 days in late December 2022. On the positive side, the rooms were spacious and clean and the AC worked and the hotel was not too expensive. I guess you get what you pay for. On the negative side: - If you stay at the ”Royal” Hotel--which is the adults only part, and you are driving yourself, there are NO SIGNS indicating where that entrance is relative to the ”main entrance”...so we stupidly waited to check in for 20 minutes only to be told we were in the wrong lobby (which meant getting our bags back into the car and driving to the unmarked separate entrance). We should have known at this point that things would be less easy than we expected. - Their restaurant reservation system is totally screwed up (you actually have to QR scan each restaurant —they have 5— to make your own reservation—so if one is full then you go to the next and if that one is full you go to the next—totally crazy. There is no central restaurant reservation system. - Food is all you can eat but you would not want to. The sushi at the Asian restaurant was 95% rice and 5% fish. The fish offerings are mostly fried not grilled. The vegetables are miserly. Some restaurants simply do not offer a salad or vegetables. At the beach restaurant we ordered Nachos and guacamole and received a bowl full of nachos and one spoonful of guacamole! Water is served in small individual bottles which is so bad for the environment - We humored someone and let them pitch us their “exclusive travelclub”; big mistake, big waste of time, don’t fall for it - No one tells you that there is a check out procedure that is meant to ensure that you did not steal any of their beach towels……so I guess this is the kind of hotel/chain that attracts people who like to walk away with hotel towels….draw your own conclusions. - The staff are friendly but completely un-able to make any decision on their own or that might somehow deviate from their “procedures” (allowing you to sit at a table in a “closed off” area of a restaurant, redeeming your massage vouchers, expediting your check out, etc.

This is our fourth visit this time we decided to do a little bit differently. We love the adults only side but the rooms are a little dated so we booked a room at the Barcelo palace, premium level ocean front in building one, but spent most of our time, in fact, all of our time in the adults only section. The service in this resort is truly spectacular. The ladies by the pool, Belkis, Ava Marleny are truly superb and take care of you with wonderful service. You really don’t need to swim up bar with these ladies George and Marleny from the entertainment team always swing bye have a chat to you very welcome and invite you to do the Zumba etc.. The Buffay at Karibe is awesome. The selection is truly amazing the wait staff from one of the managers, Iris and Maria are such a welcome part to the day. The chefs are more than willing to make anything for you at breakfast not counting salads, cheeses and pastries. I counted 37 options , anybody who complains about this food he’s really not used to traveling I see a lot of mentions about five star you have to understand. This resort is a five star by Barcelo standards not by the international hotel ratings if you would compare this to a four seasons, Conrad, JD Marriott, or Ritz Carlton. Of course it’s not going to measure up, but at 350 at night all inclusive it’s hard to find fault . We met a lot of airline pilots and air crew at this resort. I think it’s fair to say that they are used to staying in pretty high-end properties. All of the pilots recommended Chez gourmet, and we’ve been a number of times. The service is exemplary, and the food is spectacular. My wife could not decide between lobster tail and château Briand so our wonderful server brought her both I must give a big shout out to Mabel and Premium services. She takes care of all our restaurant bookings. Make sure we get the room that we like, and always look out for us having an awesome It is true that the adults only side the rooms are old and in need of refurbishment and the resort is looking a little tired in some areas, but it is spotlessly clean very very well-maintained, and this price point is hard to beat We found our perfect four day vacation spot. We now arrive Sunday leave Thursday stay at the palace side in a premium level, oceanfront Jacuzzi room and spend our time enjoying the beach and the fabulous service at adults only side. I recently read a lot of reviews how people think the staff are surly and rude to be honest with you. I have always found that you get out what you put in , we always make time to chat with the staff. We tip consistently and accordingly and it is very well received. We find the staff at this resort to be exemplary. The lunch Buffay at Las Brisas is truly spectacular. You come ask the chefs to make anything that you like Please, PM me for any questions.