Dominican Republic Travel
Visit IBEROSTAR COSTA DORADA in Puerto Plata, Dominican Republic
By Yohanna Feron
Apr 9, 2008 - 4:52:01 PM

"One of the many beautiful and colorful sites"

This gorgeous resort is about twenty minute drives from the airport.

As soon as you arrive to the hotel, the friendly staff makes you feel welcome. If your room is not ready, they show you around the restaurant or you can either wait at the bar or take a walk by the beautiful Costa Dorada Beach. The resort is HUGE and it is BEAUTIFUL.

Room: They have different type of rooms with ample space. They can accommodate you as you wish. You may request a villa near the ocean with a king size bed and ground floor were there are no palm trees to block your view. These villas has ample closet storage and hangers; Fine bathroom with bathtub/shower combo and lots of soap, shampoo etc.; TV has some English channels, HBO is one of them; Fan over the bed and air conditioned; Leave the sliding patio door open and the air shuts off; Has a drying rack on the terrace.

Food: Both the q uality and selection of food are very good. The open air buffet restaurant “El Mercado” serves breakfast 7:00am to10:00am. Large variety of food, omelet’s made to order, Oatmeal, Fruits carved into beautiful shapes. They serve lunch and dinner as well. Both lunch (1:00pm to 3:00pm) and dinner (6:30pm to 9:30pm) has at least one carving station. Menu for dinner was posted at the entrance on the right side.

“El Bohio” is the pool side snack bar. They serve continental breakfast (10:00am to 12:00pm). El Bohio also serves lunch (12:00pm to 4:00pm) and then snacks up to 6:00pm.

There are THREE ala carte restaurants.

“El Rodizio” (Brazilian), “La Hacienda” (Mexican) and “El Bohio”, night time (Tropical).
***You must make reservation in order to dine on these three restaurants.
Both the Brazilian and Mexican are air conditioned.

Drinks: There are two bars close to “El Bohio” were you can get your drinks. There is the beach bar which opens from (10:00am to 5:00 pm), lobby bar (11:00am to 2:00am), bar at “El Bohio” by the pool, and the bar at the entertainment area (5:00pm to midnight).

Entertainment: During the day the staff hosts different activities such as dance class, in-pool aerobics, volleyball, etc. They also have kids program if you are traveling with kids. The staff are very friendly and keep the children entertain while you relax and have a good time. You can always check on them at any time, they provide you with a program for the day. At night they had the stage entertainment, Lion King, Chicago, Latin Night, Mr. Iberostar etc. they host party every night for the kids, this is basically having all the kids dancing on stage and having fun…Awesome! Some nights the band would play in the courtyard before the shows started. Once the kids go to bed (you can have a babysitter for an additional fee if you want to party at least one night).

Beach/Pool: The Costa Dorada beach is very wide and the small areas of coral in the water are roped off and visible. Take breaks out to the coral, lots of yellow and black striped fish will start to feed on it. Water is warmer than the pool, nice sandy bottom and the beach is raked every morning. Palapas are on the east side of the beach (by building #5). The loungers are the canvas type and there are lots of them. You can go for nice walks in each direction. Right beside the Iberostar on the west side is the Coral Marien. To the east you can see the point of the Playa Dorada complex, would guess a 35 to 45 minute walk. On the way they have vendors in their stalls with the usual stuff for sale. No shade so take water if you’re going for a while. Lots of people using the sea. Also have vendors walking the beach selling tours, hair braiding, etc. If you just say no, they will go away. Only the two boats from each resorts dive shops out front, no boat traffic like Punta Cana. It is a very relaxing area. The pool is large, around 4.5 feet deep with shallow areas. Also has a kid’s pool. The loungers were plastic, get pads at the towel hut for them, made a difference. Lots of palapas for shade, and never too far from the bar. The white columns with the Jacuzzi in the middle do really look great; view it with Mount Isabella in the background for the best effect. Never ran out of towels and if you’re a pool person will love this one.

"The center of the pool during the night"

"This is just a far view of the pool during the day"

Staff: Excellent. It is the friendly attitude plus the way they did there jobs which stood out the most. They make sure you have a lot of fun during your stay. Believe that there is more to do with the way this resort is run than anything on our part. They are that good.

Tour: You can rent a cab for four hours at a cost of $45 US total. Visit the cable car ride at Mount Isabella ($7 US each) and then to a supermacado (supermarket). At the supermacado you can get rum, vanilla, coffee and coco. Plus you get to see a bit more of the town. They have tours available at the resort, by people selling them on the beach or just rent a cab and do your own tour. Just get a set price from the driver before leaving.

Weather:
February mornings. Noon time temperatures on those same days are usually up to 28C (83F). Thus, you may want to bring a jacket or light sweater if you are traveling to the DR at that time of the year. During these months, expect windy evenings along the East Coast/Punta Cana area.

March-April: Throughout the country are the breezy months, time for flying kites. In fact, kites are sold on major thoroughfares during Easter holiday time.

May-June: Is historically the wettest time of the year. But the El Niño and La Niña phenomenoms have altered these patterns. The most common weather forecast nationwide continues to be “partly cloudy or partly sunny with a chance of a short shower.” Note it is more likely to rain in the afternoons than in the mornings.

August-September: This is the peak of the hurricane season (June 1-30 November) for the Caribbean. Caribbean hurricanes in June and July are rare because the waters are not warm enough to generate the appropriate conditions for these to develop. August and September are also the two hottest months of the year, with temperatures peaking at 32-34C (90-94F).

October-November: Like May-June, these used to be the wettest months of the year, but weather patterns have shifted. Rainstorms in the Caribbean are not like rainstorms in northern latitudes. In the Caribbean, they usually last less than five minutes and then the sun shines again. While many Dominican pedestrians have their umbrellas, Dominicans do not own raincoats.

Conclusion: Relaxing, Enjoyable no matter whom you are traveling with: kids, partner/spose, friends or a family reunion.

"Relax during the day or night in this beautiful jacuzzi"