Catalonia Bavaro Beach Resort

This was not a enjoyable vacation. The food sucked and we had no water for two days. Had to see a doctor for my rash when we returned to the states. Our room was not cleaned up till 6p.m. at night. Anyone who enjoyed this resort had to be drunk or on some strong medicine. The staff did not understand English. The seaweed on the beach was never cleaned up. We had cockroaches, spiders and lizards in our room. A group of people had to go to the hospital for food poisoning. We took cold showers up until the 5th day and then we got some hot water. Apple vacations must of been drunk or on strong medicine when they reviewed this resort as a 5 star, it must be at least a -2 star. This resort would be good for someone who can't see, hear or eat.

Everything about this hotel was terrible. The food got me so sick I spent most of my trip in the bathroom. I actually paid forty dollars for a 40 minute cab ride to BURGER KING after a few nights there. The only thing worse was the casino, what a joke! Some people actually caught a dealer cheating at Carribean Keno, and THEY got thrown out! Beware this hotel!

We are the type of people who tend not to believe all what you hear, but read between the lines and try and make an educated guess. Here is a true view on the Catalonia.Upon entering the resort the Lobby is very impressive, the staff were very accommodating and effective in processing our arrival and departure.Although the resort is large in acreage, it was easy to navigate and get acustomed to( map supplied if needed). Walking is a must! Facility is wheelchair accessible.Our bags were at our room when expected but had heard that some people waited an unacceptable timeframe, the hotel staff are very busy and must accommodate large volumes of new arrivals and if you can't find something to do for a couple of hours your being unreasonable.Rooms were clean and staff again were accommodating when asked for additional items. TIP YOUR chambermaid $2 to $5 USD, this will make your vacation all that much more injoyable. Hot water WAS NOT to our expections, some days there was virtually none.The grounds very very well kept and clean. Walking and taking in the scenery was relaxing. The reviews about the mosquitos SPRAYING are quite accurate, we had to run to get out of the way of the truck that was spraying so that we were not covered and caught in the haze, unfortunatly this is done around the supper hour and compromises the outdoor sitting atmosphere. We did bring mosquito spay and used it a coulpe of times, this item should be a part of your holiday. I know that all hotel were doing the same preventative spraying. The pool was very clean and accessible.Chairs were abundant at the pool and the beach. The beach, sand was as expected but the water had limited area of good swimming(south end only) due to the weeds and rock in the rest of the area. Still a great beach to laze, sunbathe, with beach bar in close proximity with hardly no waiting, tipping again is encouraged. Bring an insulated mug this will make your beverage much more enjoyable.FOOD: Main buffet lobby very unorganized and staff unhappy. Quality of food was acceptable but should have been better but you were not going to leave hungry. Lack of plates, cups, utensils, napkins were an everyday occurence. The beach buffet was the better placed to be at breakfast and lunch in our view. The a la carte restaurants were the place to dine if you could get a booking. The problem lies in that you should book your entire vacation dinners the day you arrive. This presents a problem in not knowing where you want to dine every night and you may change your mine. Believe me you will want to do the a la carte as much as possible. We did not want to stand in line ups but had to, then find out that that there was limited availability and settled for what was left, not when we wanted! sucks!Lobby bar was great with very good bartenders tipping again will get you what you want, when you want it. Conversation was easy to find if wanted. Disco was good, drinks easy to get. Restrooms were very clean and spacious.Water taxis were available to the main strip for $20 USD return per person. Drop off and pick up when requested and very prompt. Snorkeling was excellent and would recommend it, cost was $15USD (a must for all)Overall we would not rate this a 5 star resort, we would give it a 4 star at best due to the remote location, poor ocean floor condition and unorganized main buffet and the difficulity of booking a la carte restautants. Improvements are required ie: 15min grace period at a la cartes then first come, there was always room at the restaurants but staff did not have the foresite to take this responsibility on.We still enjoyed every moment but have had better for less ****Punta Cana has been the best place that we have found in the 20 years we have been traveling.The main strip is the place to be if you want to be in the hub, people and walking.Thanks Maureen & Jody

We were among the 2000 who got stuck in the blizzard on 2/17. We were transferred from RIU Naiboa to the Catalonia. For two nights, I fought with cockroaches in our room and bathroom. The food was abosoultly horrible and the staff except at the front desk were VERY rude and unfriendly!! I was thankful that we did not spend our vacation there. The grounds were quite beautiful, but I didn't sleep outside. We paid half price for both nights, and that was $150 each night. I really would be really upset if I paid $300 each night for that place!! Would not recommend this place to anyone.

We have just recently returned to the UK after a wonderful time at the Catalonia Hotel, everything was perfect. The service was excellent, the staff very friendly and I would be pleased to recommend this hotel to anyone. Magnificant setting so sorry we only booked for 7 days (just not long enough)will most certainly return.

Everything was very good including the food. Natives are friendly, a tip goes a long way. Very clean, entertainment was fair, mosquitoes after it rains come out in the evening. Local shops very expensive. Bring alka-seltzer and immodium. We had NO problem but others did. Fantastic beach and pool. Nice room. Stuff towel under bottom of door at night if on the ground floor. Didn't see any bugs. If you have a problem they will try hard to satisfy you and fix the problem. Don't like to walk? Tip Francisco or Domingo or one of the others and they will transport you with golf cart. Many Europeans, topless beach, a little Spanish goes a long way. The buffet in the main restaurant has many options and you will find something you like. They cook Dominican style so don't expect everything to taste exactly like your favorite restaurant back home, but we were pleased with the selection. Good quality. Great desserts. We will most likely return. Good val! ue.

I think a lot of these "raving" reviews for Catalonia that people are writing here are fake, either that or a there are a lot of anonymous people in Canada. To the young lady who wrote: "we're adventurous--we don't draw the line at goat" I don't know how you can even begin to think that food was ok down there. it was horrible! especially the "mystery meats" (if they were meat at all). goat was just the tip of the iceberg! watch out for the grey blocks with purple veins running through them! also, watch out for the eggs that are cooked in 10 tons of grease. i wasn't that upset with Catalonia, but now that I see they're putting reviews out there that aren't real under the guise of "anonymous" it ****** me off. >:(

I found this website the day before we were to depart. We had originally booked at the Bavaro Princess, but were bumped to Catalonia by our travel agent. Not knowing anything about the resort, I was really worried after reading all the bad reviews posted here. There were five of us vacationing at Catalonia, including an almost two year old, and we would all welcome the opportunity to return. The service was great, the food was better than expected. Anyone that complained about the food has got to keep in mind that this is a totally different country. Not once did we go hungry. The food was presented tastfully and might I add, the brownies were to die for! We just used our better judgment...if the chicken was pink, we didn't eat it! We spent most of our time at the pool, which was clean and very entertaining! To sum it all up, I would totally recommend Catalonia Bavaro to anyone looking for a sunny getaway!

First of all, I have to say a few good things about this resort; 1. The grounds are gorgeous- well groomed and alive with birds and fish. 2. The rooms are very nice complete with balcony and hammock and a fantastic soaker tub. 3. The beach is good and there is an effort made to keep seaweed on the shore to a minimum. BUT, this is what I will remember.... 1. The food sucked. I have no idea where they get off calling this place a 5 star when all of the food is fried in some kind of disgusting oil. Even the so-called lobster is fried in this crap. I was completely put off by the lack of quality food. PLUS the overall quantity of food was low (this is a huge 700+ room resort) If there was anything appealing you had to get there early to have any! The restaurants all sucked except for the French and there was a cockroach on our table at the Japanese restaurant! 5 Star? Give me a break! 2. Both my fiance and I were sick by the third day and I am still sick today- 3 days after our return. I spoke to others on the way home and many had similar complaints. Understand this- I am not some sickly, whining wimp who can't handle a change in climate nor am I a guy who drinks his face off all day and night and then wonders why he doesn't feel well. I am a healthy 33 year old with plenty of travel experience and have been to the D.R. before with no bad experiences. In other words- it is this resort NOT me that is the problem. Four words of wisdom- DO NOT GO HERE.

After reading the reviews i see that i must have good timing because every time i have gone it has been great the food at luch leaves something to be desired but you can find some good stuff if you look and as for the reservations for the specialty restaurants planing ahead of time is key and anyone who has travelled frequently to the carribean knows book the key items whn you first get there an just relax an take things as they come(noting comes fast in the carribean...except storms) i go end of april every year and the resorts are not crowded so the service gets better and the people are friendlier....as for the entertainment you cannot expect it to be las vegas caliber these are students or young professionals...not high paid stars...and if they got the high paid stars you wouldn't pay the great prices fo these all inclusives. as for the drinks if you get friendly with the bar staff you can get the good stuff. in response to the people who complain about bugs..this is the tropics..need i say more.... i guess attitude has a lot to do with having a good vacation...making the best of every day an situation makes for a good time.. all due respect to those who did suffer from food poisoning and parisites from the water....these things happen when people travel....but i agree that the tour operators ... which are canadian and american ... need to assist more as they have the power to get a response from the resorts if the managment don't respond to individuals.... overall i have had great times there and will go back again this year....i look forward to have a great laugh at the people who go down and rant and rave at every little thing that is not to their liking and only make things worse by yelling screaming or complaining negatively to management......you get better results with honey than vinegar....