Coral Level at Iberostar Selection Bavaro - All Inclusive

We booked about 10 days before we left and I utilized trip advisor and the reviews here to decide which resort to book based on our budget and the reviews. We didn't want to pay more than $5K. We booked on Red Tag and there was a problem with my online booking so Red Tag contacted me and I worked with Elly P (who was excellent) and got the ball rolling. Westjet offered the same trip at $750 more and you had to fly through Toronto...no thanks. The package included return flights with Air Transat and we went to Coral Level Iberostar and had a great week. The flight from Halifax direct to Punta Cana in 4 hours offered an easy check in and on time flight. We left at 630AM AST and got into Punta Cana at 930AM EST. Received luggage and we were escorted to a van to transport us to our resort there were 6 people in the van. All was very slick no hiccups. A man helped us with luggage to the van and the van driver was also great. Once at the resort a shuttle (large golf cart) took us and our luggage to the Coral Club check in area and bar. We were checked in by 1030 and given our bracelets and a place to change as our room was not ready but we were welcome to go have lunch and head to the beach and have a drink (we came prepared with our swimsuit, lotion, beach items as we knew we were arriving too early). The concierge Dario asked us where we wanted to eat for the week and we said we would try everything. Our understanding was that we were booked in for a different restaurant every night but it did not carry over to the Iberostar app so make sure you should check at the Coral Club concierge and bar area or get a print out. That little bar area was a gem with food, bubbly, cocktails, etc. and the staff were so accommodating. Well the beach was amazing and in no time 3PM rolled around and our room was ready! The Coral rooms are close to the beach the Coral Concierge and bar area, ice, water to refill bottles etc. was all in close proximity to our room. The room was clean and had a nice deck area. Every evening we sat out and had a beer before dinner and it was so quiet, just the birds singing. The room was slightly dated, some of the small maintenance fixes were unfinished. The air conditioning and fan were louder than normal resulting in some poor sleep nights. When sitting on the deck you would catch a sewage smell from time to time. Mini bar stocked but we called to change some of the beers for ones we preferred and it was done each day for us. Overall we loved the beach, and the fact we didn't have to run down to the beach to get a spot with a towel early in the morning was amazing. There was always a spot for us with shade. We didn't sign up for any excursions as we were there to rest and enjoy. Staff and service were excellent. We eat plant based and were concerned about the choices for us but there was options for us. They did have beyond burgers and in the Greek restaurant they did have beyond meat moussaka. T

We had such an amazing experience here!! The staff was incredible! Dioris, Vincent, Leo, Ronal, Anderson, Alexander, all the serving staff, house keeping were so kind and attentive! It's a beautiful resort, with great food, entertainment but especially the people!! Thank you for a wonderful family vacation!!

I spent 4 nights at the Iberostar Coral Level. This was part of a weeklong birthday trip, which began with 3 nights at Finest Punta Cana. Coral Level is basically an enhanced version of the Iberostar Selection Bavaro resort. The rooms are closer to the beach, but are otherwise nearly identical. You also get access to 2 additional pools and extra restaurants. My room was spacious, but definitely felt dated. Iberostar is very focused on eliminating single-use plastics, so water and mini-bar drinks are in glass bottles. Pro-tip: the bottle opener is attached to the inside of the refrigerator cabinet (I had to run all the way to reception to find this out). There was a sewage smell that lurked in the bathroom. It only went away when using the shower. Although the two Coral Level pools were appreciated, I loved the main Iberostar Selection lagoon pool. Staff were always trying to get people involved in activities. Food was a mixed-bag, with the Coral Level restaurants having significantly better quality. Dinner at Salt & Soul (exclusive to Coral Level) was outstanding. Perhaps the best meal of my entire trip. The breakfast and lunch buffets at El Faro (also Coral Level only) were very good. Lunch at the main Selection poolside restaurant was decent. The dinners at the Greek and Japanese restaurants were rather poor. The resort grounds were beautiful and it's clear that Iberostar invests heavily in landscaping. The fitness center was well-equipped, but always very busy. There was a very international crowd, with many guests from Europe and South America. This is in contrast to Finest, where 95% were Americans and Canadians. I'd like to commend Deisy, the housekeeper. She was so friendly and sweet. We communicated well in Spanish, despite my heavy Brooklyn accent. I'd consider this to be a 4* resort based on room quality and food, but a decent value. Definitely pay for the Coral Level to be closer to the pools and beaches, and access to better restaurants.

The beach and pool at the Coral section are amazing! Be sure to look up Angelino for your beachside drinks! He does an amazing job. The restaurants are ok, you can always find something you will like. The rooms are decent. We had to call maintenance 4 times with issues with our toilet not receiving water to flush properly. The shower is either scalding hot or ice cold, unless you wait 7 to 10 minutes of running, then it is bearable. We had numerous lights with burnt out bulbs or just wouldn't work.The Iberostar App they tell you to download is a joke! Don't waste your time. We tried watching a few shows but they were terrible. We are a very laid back group (12 of us), but we all were amazed how rude the majority of the guest were. You would stand in line patiently waiting your turn for something and have one or more people jump in front of you like you were never even there. This seems to be a big European resort. We will look for a bigger American/Canadian presence on our future trips.

This resort is pretty nice for the price point! We loved the room situation with our kids being in a connected room. It didn’t feel like a typical connected room though honestly, it felt like we had one big room with separate bedrooms. We went with another family and they had the one right next to us so we basically had the whole floor to ourselves. The Coral level Lounge is a really nice perk, it was right next to our room so we would pop in for snacks or drinks whenever we wanted. The breakfast buffet on our side was actually very good. They’ll make eggs for you anyway you want them, there’s tons of breakfast meats and fresh fruit & then there’s also waffles, french toast, bread, cereal, I don’t really eat lox, but I did notice them. The lunch buffet here was also pretty good, burgers, chicken, salads, soup, pasta. My oldest daughter is pretty picky, I thought this would be more of an issue, but she always found something to eat. The restaurants for dinner were hit or miss, some were very good (Mediterranean & hibachi were our two favorites) and others weren’t the best (Italian & Steakhouse were not our favorites). The reservations are hard to get though so try to make them for the entirety of your trip as soon as you get there. And keep checking back if there’s something you really want, someone may cancel. My only other complaint was the kids club area. We did not do the day camp at all, we did see them around and the kids did appear to like it, but I can’t comment on that further. But the kids club areas were really spread out. I have a 13 year old, 12 year old & 7 year old. The 13 year old area is in an entirely different area than the 12 & 7 year old area. We were really just looking for them to do something while we sat at the nearby bar or the show (they tolerated the shows, but didn’t necessarily love them). I wish they were right next to each other. We also did go to the Magic/illusion show at the adults only hotel for an extra cost. It was fun and entertaining, and a nice break from the regular nightly shows. We didn’t do the dinner there so I can’t comment on that.

This was our 3rd Iberostar vacation (Grand Bavaro and Selection Paraiso Maya) and 8th all inclusive so we have a pretty good idea of what to expect. Overall, it was a great experience and, according to our family of 3 teens, on par, if not better, than Beaches T&C which has held our top spot of favorite family vacations. We would definitely return again. Here are a few highlights and tips. Coral Level: This is a no brainer. For us it was about a 20% premium over the Selection and worth every penny. I suspect that Iberostar will start charging more of a premium. The villas style rooms create a laid back tropical a**osphere. Plumbing at this kind of place is usually suspect but ours worked well. The family suite was great for us. Each kid has their own bed and we had a room to ourselves. Both rooms had their own entrance, bathroom, patio and mini bar set up. We arrived early around noon and were shocked that our rooms were ready by the time we finished lunch. We spent the majority of our time in the Coral section. The vibe at the Coral is very relaxed and boutique. You will not find a party a**osphere. Nothing (beach, pools, restaurants, etc.) is ever crowded. The service, drinks and food are leveled up and the facilities right down to the faucets were nicer and newer than elsewhere. I witnessed some staff in training and it was clear that management is setting a different tone with Coral. The team goes out of their way to make you comfortable and get to know you. As an example, a senior staff at the coral beach bar (outside El Faro) noticed us get up to leave mid-cocktail due to a brief rain storm. He asked us if we wanted to be seated for dinner and we told him our reservation was an hour later at Il Forno. He said no problem and escorted us directly to the restaurant and had us seated immediately. On another day, we had some rain and were rushing back to the room. A cleaning staff member reached into a closet and handed my daughter a large umbrella. Neither of these moments were prompted by us. The staff is just that attentive. Beach: This was a concern of ours due to the increased sargassum over the last few years and due to a not so great beach experience at the Hard Rock several years ago. The beach was beautiful. There was some sea**** in the early AM but it was removed daily before most were on the beach. It sounds like sargassum is very much a seasonal thing. You have a constant wave in Puna Cana and we were present for some windy afternoons but the water remained clear past the break and of course was the most clear during the least windy conditions. The sand was soft without any rocks like we encountered strolling to neighboring resorts. Mornings were best for enjoying a peaceful ocean. We did not encounter any of the sand bugs we read about. In fact, we didn’t experience any bugs and perhaps this was somewhat due to the wind. Activities: We used the gym a few times and as expected was pretty crowded i

Another great stay at the Coral Level. Food was fantastic, beach was clean, service was on-point in every way. Shout out to Big J and Big E at the front desk and Leo our concierge. Edwin the bartender was anxious to please as well as all the staff. Iberostar knows what they are doing!