Hotel Grand Paradise Bavaro

Super, second to last hotel in the row, after this nothing but your very own beach ... Transfer time about 50 min., but it can also take up to 1.5 hours depending on the number of hotels served. Very suitable for a quiet beach holiday, because nothing more is offered outside the hotel. There is only one shopping street right next to the entrance to the hotel. However, it is always the same offer there: coffee, cigarettes, rum, pictures and jewelry. You have to bargain.

Everybody is extremely friendly and helpful: on the first day we noticed a defect in the shower and immediately reported it to the guest service and figured it will be repaired on the third day - wrong - within one hour it was taken care of. So much for the laid-back Domincans. That was faster than in Germany. Knowledge of English would be an advantage, but it will work with a smile and a few gestures too.

The main restaurant unfortunately looks more like a cafeteria. We were there only four times. The food and selection are very good though. The thematic restaurants are highly recommendable, but you have to show up early, preferably right on the first day. This way you can easily use all your vouchers. The Asian restaurant was not that good, but the Dominican restaurant was really good. We went there twice at the very beginning.

The entertainment program might not be for everybody. The instructors are very nice and if you don't feel like it they will leave you alone (I have experienced the opposite elsewhere). The music played at the pool starting at 10 am, which wouldn't have been a problem if it was a different record. 10 days of the only the same music was a bit too much. I feel sorry for the staff too. There are two pools, one quiet one and one with the music. So you can choose where you would like to lay.

The rooms are gigantic, and two more beds would easily fit. It was clean too and there were almost always fresh towels (they forgot them on one day), which is quickly corrected after a call to our nice guest service staff. The rooms can be cleaned up unilt 5pm. So don't wonder if it hasn't happened yet. The bar in the room was always refilled even if the coke was only 1/4th empty.

I had problems with my cell phone because the provider Orange was not available. I had a number, but everybody urgently warns about this. It is apparently very expensive. I didn't try it out either, because my travel partner had Orange. The weather was super - from 17 to 27 degrees celcius, no rain, always sun with a light breeze...