I found several tips for Iberostar resorts in DR.
Iberostar Dominicana & Punta Cana
Tip: At the Dominicana they have a little yellow beach bar hut by the beach that often had a line of people waiting. Walking inside to the main bar at the buffet which is only 30 feet away there was never a line.
"Do bring an insulated mug especially if you spend a lot of time at the beach. It's impossible to keep sand out of a small plastic glass, and your drink becomes warm very quickly."
"We soon discovered that reserving a spot and chairs with shade was necessary in spite of signs forbidding it. Each morning before breakfast I (husband's chore!) put our beach towels on our chairs. A tip: we took a couple of cheap towels of our own for marking the spot mainly because it made our location easier to find amongst the sea of hotel blue! We are beer drinkers so took our own mugs for the beach (16 oz. with snap-on lids) to avoid spillage or otherwise emptying the contents on the way to the beach location."
"A few tips. We took a roll of $1 bills to tip with - not that any of the staff expected it for the fantastic service that they provided daily."
"ROOM
a small tip is very much appreciated and they will make sure they look after you for your stay. Please give the star friends a tip as their wage is only $40 a month."
"Other Tips
1) Pack the Imodium and bug spray just to be safe. I’ve never run into any “difficulty” with either issue, but there is comfort in knowing that you are prepared.
2) It is extremely humid at night, so I highly suggest either a manual fan or a battery operated mist fans to help keep things cool.
3) Do your souvenir shopping in the Lobby Shop on the Dominicana side. I don’t like the haggling that you have to do down by the beach area (vendors are very pushy), and you’ll get the same price if not better without the hassle at the shop on the premises.
4) Tipping is not required, but I highly recommend it. These people work very hard, and they take much pride in their work.
5) I don’t recommend bringing “gifts” for the maid. We did it on our first two trips and I can’t say I noticed an appreciable difference in maid service. Greenbacks go just as far so save the room in the luggage.
6) Other than the tours that the vacation reps try to sell, you there is nothing much to see in Punta Cana. Stay on the resort and relax if you want, or party it up as much as you want.
7) The resort has full exchange privileges w/ the Iberostar Dominicana, so book the one offered at the cheaper price. There is no difference."
"Oh yes bring suntan location. It is extrmly expensive in the gift shop. There is a flea market about five minutes on the beach towards the right. remember go there and bargin. you end up paying half of what they asked. Do not be afraid to walk away if they want you to have it they will take your price."
"Tip – give the guy driving the banana boat a tip, you’ll get the ride of your life."
"Tipping the maids, bartenders, wait staff etc a $1.00 or $2.00 is really appreciated."
"A few tips...bring your own bar of soap, their's does not lather, bring some room deodorizer or candles...not that the room smells foul, it just smells somewhat old and a bit musty...but didnt bother my husband only me, so depending on what's important to you! Bring a clock, floats or blow up tubes, dryer sheets to freshen up shelves and drawers, your own blow dryer, sun visors and hats a must"
IB Bavaro:
A tip on the restaurants if you were not able to get into one you wanted, check back @ the early time for cancellations there is almost always a few.
Bring hand sanitizer with you (one with alcohol), 50 plastic cups to brush your teeth and rinse a tooth brush, room clock and strong deodorizer for the closet.
Bring some room deodorizer or candles...not that the room smells foul, it just smells somewhat old and a bit musty.
"HINTS**.
The sidewalks were just painted and are slippery when wet. I recommend that you stay away from high heals and bare feet. Bring large insulated cups and use them at the bars from soda, beer and frozen drinks. The liquor flows and the beer (Presidente) is just fine. Again something for them to complain about as well as the liquor not being top shelf. Drink the frozen drinks and have a great time. Bring an umbrella it rains from time to time and if you have to make a move you might just get wet, but its warm anyway. Bring plenty of US singles for tipping US change is hard to find. ($50 will do) Only buy Cuban cigars at the cigar store at the Dominicana because all the rest are Dominican with a Cuban seal on it. The souvenirs are really garbage and expensive unless you have to bring something home to some one stay away from them."
"The flea market at the right side of the Resort on the beach is a tuff market with them all over you until you buy something, stay away. Take the OutBack Safari it was a blast. Make sure you book your excursions at least the day before. Apple posts their hours from 6:30 to noon and 4pm to 8pm but you can't find a representative before noon and their gone at 7:45pm. Don't listen to the complainers they wouldn't be happy if the vacation was free, this is a beautiful resort, the people and accommodations are great the food is good and we recommend that you book it and have a great time."
"1) Go to the Bavaro, not the Dominicana or Punta Cana. If you go to the Bavaro, the rooms are beautiful, the resort itself is nicer, and you get acceess to all three resorts.
2) Ask for a second floor room near the pool. This is the best location, hands down. If your room is too close to the beach, it will be musty. If it's on the first floor, you may have a problem with bugs. I E-mailed the resort a week before leaving, and we got everything we wanted.. Including rooms right next to our friends.
3) Don't expect gourmet food. Some of the specialty restaurants have very good food, but overall the food was good but not great. The buffets are the same everyday, which the group I was with had no problem with.
4) Get your spot on the beach EARLY. We ended up setting our alarm for 7am, putting towels out on the chairs we wanted, then going back to bed.
Unfortunately this is the only way you're going to get a good shady spot on the beach. Beautiful beach and pools though.
5) Speaking of alarms, bring your own clock. They don't have them there and if you want to tell the time in your room, you will need one.
6) There is sometimes a language barrier. At first it was difficult trying to communicate with the general workers there. However, over the week, we would continually try to speak Spanish. By the end, we could easily carry on simple conversations with them. This made it much easier, and they certainly appreciate it.
7) Bring lots of small bills for tipping. The workers at the resort work tirelessly and they do a spectacular job. If you've gotten great service at a restaurant, maid service, etc, tips are greatly appreciated.
8. Excursions. We chose not to fill our week with excursions because there was so many things to do at the resort. However, we did end up going on the 'Aquatic tour', in which you get to drive around the ocean in 2-man speedboats, then go snorkelling through a reef. We had a great time doing this... Well worth it."
"It rained 6 of the 7 days that we were there. It was really nice in the A.M. then around 2 or so, it got all cloudy and rained the rest of the evening and all night. the walkways are EXTREMELY slippy! BE CAREFUL!"
Iberostar Hacienda Dominicus - Bayahibe
"So for some hints and tips for anyone who’s interested !!!!
1. Don’t bother with peso’s if you can avoid it. We took a pile of US dollars for tips and dollar travellers cheques but you can pay for everything in dollars and get a better rate. You can only change the cheques to peso’s.
2. We tipped our maid a couple of dollars a day and our room was always immaculate but she also refilled our mini bar every day.
3. If you’ve got kids make sure you bring you own high SPF sun screens – the hotel shop did have a good selection but no high factors.
4. Don’t bank on being able to get your high % proof rum at the airport – they don’t have much choice and we wished we’d have bought it from the hotel instead !
5. Make sure you take a $10 and $20 bill for each of your party - Tuck your $20’s exit payment into your passport on arrival along with your visa form. They won’t accept any other currency and you’ll find it very difficult to obtain dollars when you’re there.
6. If you go snorkeling via the Dive Centre at the hotel, they provide the equipment. However, if you go on one of the organized trips via your tour operator or the travel agent in the hotel (ie Saona) they don’t always provide them.
7. If you do want to buy snorkeling gear at the hotel – buy it – and underwater camera’s – from the hotel NOT the Dive Centre – same stuff but much cheaper !"
"A few tips that we picked up:
• Tip EVERYONE. We brought $40 in singles for the week and that wasn’t enough. The island is disturbingly poor and they will appreciate your $1 more than you will know. Leave a dollar for the maid and slide one to every bartender, waiter, bellhop and busboy.
• Outlet extenders. Get them in the gift shop for about $1.40 US • Bring an alarm clock but forget your watch • If you like to swim and like the ocean, bring your own snorkels to the island. Before we left, we picked up snorkels & masks and four underwater cameras.
Collecting seashells was a favorite afternoon activity.
• watch you don't get lime juice on your skin...lime juice+sun = harmless skin discoloration that could give you a good scare. (ie. photosensitivity ...bleaches your skin) • it pays to ask for another room if you are unhappy with the one you get on arrival.
• while you are checking in, ask about the safe right then and there, saves you a second trip."
"If you are visiting the Hacienda Dominicus, then here is some useful tips:
Do not exchange money in the hotel. All goods are priced in pesos but the exchange rate is only 28 to the dollar. In the shops outside the hotel you can get 35 to the dollar. So if the peso price looks cheaper in the hotel, ask what the dollar price is. The hotel has an ATM. Even with the fees charged by the card company, it can still work out cheaper than exchanging money at the hotel.
The reps try to sell you tickets to the VIP lounge at Punta Cana Airport at 23 dollars per person saying that it is air conditioned so you will not have to put up with the heat. If you go directly to the gate for your flight, you will find yourself in an air conditioned area free of charge.
Leave the maid a couple of dollar tips per day and she will always fill up the minibar and leave you beautiful towel sculptures. One day she even made the floor mats into a pattern. We also tipped the waiters serving drinks both in the bars and on the beach. It didn't make any difference to the service we received but as they don't earn much. it was appreciated."
"Don't tip at the end of your week because the maids do change and it's not fair for them."
The sea area set aside for bathing is deep enough for swimming. The hotel has put features in to attract the fish so it is great for snorkelling. It is surprising the amount of fish you will see in the shallow if you stand there with some bread in your hand.
Join Raul at the beach bar for the closing ceremony about an hour before sunset and stay until the sun sets. We all agreed that this was the highlight of the holiday."
"Airport arrival: watch out for the porters who will not allow the airport trolleys passed the reps & try to grab your luggage for tips I just said "No dollars" & they went on to someone else."
"Hints: when booking dinner at the concierge desk in the lobby, make sure you book all your meals for your whole trip that day, because, you may run into long lines if you do them on the days you want to go....and if you book them all at once, you'll only have to wait in line one time."
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