Stayed here with my sister & brother-in-law (their 1st all-inclusive) Feb 5-12, 2013. We've been to Punta Cana 4 or 5 times before, so knew in advance the beach area would be great, and it didn't disappoint us! The resort is quite large, with the property extending well back from the beach. We stayed in the Club Section, which is the furthest from the beach. The advantages of this section are that it is quiet & relaxing, never any problem getting chairs any time of the day, has two adult lagoon style pools separated by a swim-up bar facing both pools, and is close to the next section which has another pool with yet another swim-up bar, a 9 hole mini-putt golf course, an International Restaurant (Manglar), an evening lounge bar good for relaxing or a pre-dinner drink (with a great music track), one of the two buffet restaurants at the resort, and the train station. A train runs a loop 24 Hrs a day from this station to the main lobby with a couple of stops in between. We never waited more than 10 minutes for the train.

The main lobby was where we checked in (there is a Club lobby building but that was closed when we were there). Bell-boys with extended golf carts whisk people & luggage to/from their rooms on check-in and check-out. From the main lobby it is a short walk to the beach, passing two more lagoon style pools on the way. There are also three children's pools, one in the club area and two in the others. The closer to the beach you got, the more difficult it was to find chairs, although we still managed to find the odd one on the beach most days.

The food varied, although overall I rated it as very good. Certainly the steak off the grill, and the house wine was the best I have had at any Dominican Republic resort! Another surprise was on their gala night, where they had lobster on the grill in the buffet! If you like pasta, there is an area where you can have a pasta dish made to order - well worth a visit. The rest of the food was pretty standard resort fare, although I found they fell down on their salad and fresh fruit areas. It seemed limited in selection, quantity and freshness.

We ate at two restaurants - the Manglar restaurant (lamb was overdone, but the steak & fish dishes were good) and the steak house (excellent filet mignons). The buffets were varied and good enough we didn't feel the need to visit more. There is an Asian restaurant that costs an extra $10, so we didn't bother going to that either.

Staff were very friendly and seemed genuinely happy. Frank was our waiter in the buffet (La Palma) and was excellent. Also, the two bartenders at the bar beside the Manglar restaurant were excellent. There were some time-share people about, but we didn't find them pushy nor obnoxious. You're on holiday folks - take the time to talk to them and make your own decision whether to attend their seminar or not.

Accommodation was OK. The rooms were clean, but dated. A bonus though - at most resorts we have been to there is a place to insert a room card just inside the room to turn on the power, A/C, etc. When we arrived, there was already a card in the slot and the A/C was already on, the room was cool, as was the fridge! There was never any problems with water heat or pressure. Some fittings were loose, paint was old, dresser knobs missing, etc. but everything worked. Our phone didn't ring! I didn't check whether the ringer was on or not, nor report it (forgot to). We booked a tour & I called for a wake-up call which I didn't get, likely as the phone didn't ring! Luckily I had set my phone alarm, so we were OK. TIP - check your phone beforehand if you're getting a wake up call.

The girls had a spa - the Valentines special. Was supposed to be 1 1/2 hours, but turned into 3 hours, due to delays, interruptions, and being "forgot about"! Not very organized, so be forewarned.

Overall, I would go back and would recommend this place to my friends. Apparently it is closing in April for renovations, so it will be interesting to see it after the renos are complete.

First time at the Grand Paradise Bavaro in Punta Cana!! It was amazing, went down for my birthday, the best ever... Thanks to Juan Gomez Ramirez booked us at one of the alacart restaurants called Carna it was amazing the fillet minion melted in your mouth the staff was wonderful & thanks to Juan who had a birthday cake surprise for me. The staff at Grand Paradise where all amazing and kept us antertained at all times. When relaxing on the beach... No worries to get up and get a drink, waitress come on the beach to take your order. thanks to the sunwing staff they where all amazing. All the alacart restaurants fabulous... Nothing bad to say about the place. Thank you to Manager Juan, GM Luis, & yohan. Hope to see you all next year. Rita

First time in Punta Cana and I can't say anything bad ... Grand Paradise Bavaro was a great place to stay just like the name it was Paraidse on Bavaro beach... the white sand, crystal clear water. The resort was amazinig and the staff was amazing aswell always smiling ..but I guess I would be also when you work in a place like this. They were all so helpful and curtious we met Yohan at reception and he was funny and pleasant we wanted to be as close to the beach as possible and we were, everytime he saw us he took time to say hello. We flew Sunwing and the group of guys were incredible Thonny, Luis and Julio welcomed us and made sure to explain everthing so our trip would be memorable.... and ladies if you want some eye candy Thonny is your guy especially with the UK accent.... We then met Juan Gomez Ramirez he was so sweet and made sure our week was memorable, we felt like celeberties he made sure our room was ok and we received everthing we needed and always checked on us to make sure we were enjoying ourselves ... he took extra time in his busy schedule everytime he saw us to say hello and ask if we needed anything, he also introduced us to the GM Luis Alfonso. Juan made us feel special and recomended the al la carte restuarants which he made sure we tried them all... they were amazing the filet mignon melted in your mouth, and the sushi was top notch. I recomend you try at least on of them the chefs really take pride in their creations.
The Grand Paradise is a beautifuul resort palm trees everywhere the landscape was picturess. They make sure everyone is having a great time... the Animation team was wonderful always trying to get participants and making sure everyone was having fun... and the late shows were incredible the MC of the show was so funny. I can go on and on about this place and people it was that good so if you are planing a trip to Punta Cana I recommend the Grand Paradise Bavaro
you will not be disappointed...

First of I have to say that before booking I too was a bit worried after reading some reviews. Thankfully I went with my gut instinct and booked at the Grand Paradise Bavaro. I think some people are just never happy but for everyone else who wants an honest opinion please listen up.
I as well as some friends are in our mid 40's, we wanted to relax, eat, drink and get some sun like many and thats exactly what we got and more. Our room was in the select section which I recommend its close to one of two buffets, main lobby, pools, beach....you get my drift.
At our check-in we were greeted by a young man called yohan and he was so nice you can't help but think he`s a cutie, shortly there after we ran into Juan Gomez Ramirez, I didn`t know who he was at that time but is one of the managers. We first met him as we were pulling our luggage up a ramp and as soon as he saw us he immediately came over and grabbed them from our hands and brought them to our room .He would check on us to make sure we were enjoying the resort and we were. He really wants you to feel special and well taken care of and believe me, you do. It was also nice to meet the gm Mr. Alfonso Onate who also would always come over to us and ask how we were enjoying our stay.
The next morning was our meeting with our sunwing rep's, Thonny, Luis and Julio which helped us with all our excursions and questions we had....wonderful group of people. They are around daily and are happy to help you out....Thanks guys!! The animation team, the dancers that put on the shows everynight are amazing. You will also see them throughout the day around the main pool area entertaining everyone. I don't know where they get they're energy but they are great. The host who is also one of the dancers is so funny, you'll get a kick out of him. Food, a very important one for me. The a la carte restaurants are really good, I would rank the Asian first, italian second, la cana (steak) third, there is also a dominican, seafood and I think one more. There are 2 buffets, one at the main area and one at the other end of the resort if you are in the club section but they are usually serve the same food. There is a buffet at la cana from 12pm till 5pm before it closing to flip over to the steak restaurant in the evening, its close and convenient if your on the beach and don't want to head over to the larger buffet....a tip for you, you can ask for a paper plate and grab what you like and bring it back to your lounge chair, I usually grabbed pizza. They will also cook up a jambalya or something close to one of the bars, they put on a late day tea with some croissants or crepes in front of the main lobby....you will find things by just walking around periodically thru the day.....a nice unexpected treat before dinner.
To sum this up in a nutshell, if you want a great location, beautiful beach at a great price this is the one for you. Looking forward to a return visit.
Lastly, I just want to thank all the great staff for making our vacation a happy and memorable one.
See you next year!!
Gabriella