We stayed at the Iberostar Grand the 1st week of November 2012. From the moment we arrived until the moment we left, we felt welcome, safe and at home.

Resort/grounds: Amazingly beautiful and always clean, clean, clean. The layout of the resort is great as we never had to walk far for anything. When we visited the other resorts in the complex on foot, the return ride in golf cart was appreciated. The ship is really neat, and the night club below deck is such a great idea. The balconies were nice, especially with the fans and the pull-out dryer racks. Also, can't forget to mention the aroma of the resort...wonderful and refreshing!

Rooms: Gorgeous! The beds were really comfortable and the rooms spacious. The iPod docking station was a nice amenity. The bathrooms are nice...the jacuzzi is great and we loved the double sinks and the rain head in the shower. The towels are thick and long! My only negative would be that there really isn't a good place to put your luggage as we didn't find any stands. Our butlers were so good, I'm sure they'd have gotten us some if we had asked though. We too had to call security one night to open our safe as did other reviewers. Some people think this is ridiculous, I say bravo! I heard several people forget to close their safe only to return and find out housekeeping closed it for them and they had to call to get it re-opened. Not once in a review or in talking did anyone say that something was missing. People need to remember what's most important...NOTHING WAS STOLEN! That is something the resort can definitely be proud of!

Butler Service: PERFECT! Carlos and Gomez, we miss you both. You were a pleasure to visit with and your service was wonderful. Regardless of how many times we asked you about our air conditioning, you always came back to check it out for us. The bath...beautiful and relaxing. The Mama Juana...wow! Please know that everything you did for us was, and always will be appreciated. Thanks for making our stay more memorable with by your presence!

Pools/beach: From the great drinks Leonardo made us (he was always willing to make it stronger if it wasn't enough :) ), to our nice chat with Star Friend Maria, to Boom Boom in the House's offers to join Bingo, the pool was a great place to relax. The hot tub was a little too hot for my liking, but felt good on the feet after a walk on the beach. The beach...oh the beach. No beach shoes needed here...really soft, white powdery sand and plenty of room for walking if you like. The water wasn't clear when we were there, but that comes and goes with the weather. Our trade-off for the sandy water was some FUN waves to float around in. Although we didn't make it out to the pool/beach until early afternoon, we never had trouble getting a couple wherever we wanted them. When other reviewers said there was souvenir shopping on the beach, they were not kidding...it is RIGHT next to the resorts beach. How nice to souvenir shop from these vendors without having to go anywhere. That being said, the jewelry at the hotel store was nice, and reasonably priced.

The food... we ordered room service for breakfast everyday. It was always prompt AND good! The buffet lunch was pretty much average fare in my opinion. We only ate at one a al carte during our stay due to other events going on, but the Italian was awesome!

Transfers/excursions were booked through Amstar...nice job Amstar! It all went smoothly, and the airport transfer was only 20 minutes. Buy your DR Tourist Card online in advance ($10)...VERY quick and easy process getting through immigration with this.
We did the Bavaro Runners excursion (safari). If you want to see/experience the true DR, you MUST take this excursion. Yes, it was 8 hours. BUT, not once did I wish it was over, nor would I have traded any single part of that for time spent elsewhere. The food was good, our driver Adam and guide Willis were FABULOUS and FUN, and the visit to the schools...priceless! It was so neat being able to take toys/games/school supplies for them. You know by the look in their eyes that it is all appreciated.

This place was all-around amazing. It has it all, and then some. For those that complain about the language barrier, I say 2 things... first, when foreigners come to MY country, I espect them to speak MY language. So for me to expect otherwise from them, would be just plain wrong. Secondly, because of the reviews I've read about the DR in general, I fully expected to struggle with a language barrier. I could not have been more wrong in my expectations. In fact, I was blown away by how much English the staff spoke, and how well they spoke it. KUDOS to the staff at the Iberostar for making us feel so welcome AND understood! You did a phenominal job!