We had high expectations of Punta Cana. Everyone was pumped about going because we had booked it several weeks in advance with a local travel agent. We got a great rate and was promised free green fees for certain time stayed and $1000 credit to be used how you would like. The resort was beautiful and very clean upon arrival. At check-in we were given $1000 worth of coupons to be used at the resort. Useless. Every single one of them had a underlying condition which made it almost impossible to take advantage of. The casino was ridiculous and totally empty 99% of the time. They only paid out in pesos. Green fees were paid but the cart rental and club rental made up the difference. The staff at the resort for the most part seemed indifferent to our needs and borderline rude. We wanted to shop in town and the only place they would take us was to an affiliated shop (notice I said shop, not shops) which had absolute junk. All-in-all I would not recommend this resort to anyone. Although we had a lot of fun it was because we made it ourselves. This would be a wonderful place to vacation if the staff and resort management would take lessons from other, more established resorts.

I have been coming to Barcelo Bavaro Caribe, Beach,Palace Deluxe for 6 years and now is even better with all the renovation done and especially the staff at the hotel, all of them at the reception, restaurant, activities, bar, discotheque and the staff at the premium is so excellent how can you not come back. especially: Aracelis, Leidy, Miriam, Julio, Vianny, Amalfi, Adalgisa, Roxana and great thanks to seniora Caminito
Christian I will be back and recommend strongly

My boyfriend and I stayed in the Panoramic Suite from Nov 26th-Dec 1st and LOVED every minute of it! GO CLUB PREMIUM! Check in was a breeze and Wimmany in the Club Premium lounge was so pleasant and wonderful during our stay!

The room had a jacuzzi on the balcony and in the bathroom. We had 2 bathrooms. The balcony was huge, the king size bed was comfy and our room was always cleaned with fresh new shower towels and beach towels. Hint: leave the housekeeper $5 tip a day and she will take care of you!

Grounds were beautiful, beach was beautful, weather was perfect and the drinks at the bar were always a good time! We didn't really hang out at the beach, we mainly hung out at the El Cielo bar since it was in front of our room! We would rent a cabana for $10 a day and relax, swim and drink! The bartenders Mayra, Victor and Ray at El Cielo were awesome! Mayra makes a delicious drink called "Sammy Sosa" and we highly recommend it! Hint: tip every few drinks, they appreciate it and just because it's "all inclusive" doesn't mean you shouldn't tip. Don't be a cheapskate.

The breakfast buffet at Miramar was amazing, didn't eat any where else for breakfast. They have everything so if you can't find something you're just a complainer and need to learn to relax a little. The fresh watermelon juice was amazing. For lunch, we never ate in the buffet we always ate at Hoyo 19, which was amazing. The gazpacho soup and El Pepito were wonderful! For dinner, we missed our reservation the first night at the French restaurant due to drinking too much "Mamajuan" the first day and oversleeping heehee (you'll understand when you drink it)! We ate at the Japaneese restaurant (pretty good), Santa Fe Steakhouse (enjoyed it), and La Fluente (the red snapper was superb!). We ordered a bottle of wine every night with dinner! You're on vacation, live a little.

Do go to the market down the left side of the beach. Just haggle with them and they will easily cut a ton of deals! We bought a box of cuban cigars and a huge bottle of Mamajuan for $60....trust me you can talk them down for a hour!

We golfed one day too! What a beautiful and challenging course! If we had stayed a few more days we would have golfed again!

As for no one speaking English at the resort, here are some helpful tips:
Hola = Hello
Come esta? = How are you?
Muy bien y tu = Very good and you?
Mucho gracias = Thank you every much
Uno, dos, tres = 1, 2, 3
Mucho gusto = Nice to meet you
Buenas dias = good day
Buenas tarde = good afternoon
Buenas noche = good night

Just try speaking those basic Spanish words and phrases and you will be fine. They appreciate it when you try and speak Spanish and smile doing it. I saw many Russian people VERY rude to the Dominican employees. The Domincan people we encountered were friendly, always greeted you with a smile, and made your stay at Barcelo Palace Deluxe a trip you will always remember! Can't wait to visit again!

We have stayed at this resort for many years and always enjoyed ourselves. We haven't been there in 2 years so we decided to go and see the new renovations over Thanksgiving. It is absolutely fabulous. The staff is friendly and accomodating. The food was excellent with a large variety of choices. The resort even had a Thanksgiving celebration for us at the buffet. We really appreciated the recognition given to our American holiday. Thank you! Our favorite restaurant was the Kyoto, Japanese food. We had a show as well as good food. The beef was tender and seasoned to perfection. The theater for shows is wonderful and we enjoyed the nightly entertainment there. The only negative is the chair backs in the theater could use a cushion but this is minor. This has always been our favorite area because the beach is so beautiful. We are enjoying watching the resort grow. Our first visit was when the resort first opened as Bavaro Beach. We were sold right from the start. I wouldn't listen to the negative reviews. Our room was comfortable and if anything was missing that we needed the staff was very accomodating. We stayed in Room 3401. It has a great view! As for language difficulties, well, you are in the Dominican Republic where the language is Spanish. For the most part most of the employees had at least some English but like I said this is not their native language.