Royalton Bavaro, An Autograph Collection All-Inclusive Resort

From the moment we arrived at Royalton Punta Cana, the friendly staff greeted us with warm smiles and genuine hospitality, making us feel right at home in beautiful Punta Cana. Check-in took a little longer than expected, but that’s completely understandable with the language barrier – the staff were patient and helpful throughout. Our room was spotlessly clean (a huge plus!), and while the decor felt a bit dated, it was comfortable and well-maintained. The real highlight was our swim-out pool access – we used it constantly and absolutely loved every relaxing (and fun!) minute splashing around right from our patio. The pools throughout the resort were impeccably clean, and the food was truly amazing! We didn’t have a single bad meal during our entire stay – from the buffets to the à la carte restaurants, everything was fresh, flavorful, and varied. What made this trip extra special was how safe and comfortable our kids felt. They were able to explore on their own, make new friends, and have the time of their lives while we relaxed knowing the environment was family-friendly. I would recommend Royalton Punta Cana to anyone traveling to Punta Cana all day long – it’s the perfect all-inclusive spot for families seeking fun, relaxation, and great value. We’ll definitely be back!

This resort is marketed as a 5-star property, but in our experience, it did not live up to that standard—especially for travelers who are accustomed to high-end Marriott properties. If you’re expecting a typical top-tier Marriott experience, it’s important to set expectations accordingly. Challenges The biggest struggle was check-in, particularly with the Diamond Club upgrade. The process took nearly an hour and felt disorganized and frustrating. The Diamond Lounge itself was surprisingly inhospitable, and the overall atmosphere was tense—many guests around us were visibly annoyed. Honestly, during that hour, I found myself looking up other resorts in the area, wondering how a stay that started this poorly could possibly turn around. Fortunately, it did improve—but first impressions matter. We also encountered several staff members who appeared exhausted or unfriendly, which impacted the overall service experience. Additionally, food was hit or miss—some meals were enjoyable, while others fell well below expectations for a resort of this price point and rating. Positives On the positive side, the location is beautiful, and the room was clean and comfortable. We really enjoyed the resort layout and loved having free access to the nearby water park, which was a big win for our family. Our kids especially loved the FlowRider, and it became a highlight of the trip. Our butler was very accommodating and helped smooth over some of the earlier frustrations. Dinner improved as the week went on, and the nightly entertainment was fun and well done. Final Thoughts While we’re not sure we’d return to this specific resort, we might consider giving Royalton another try at a different location. As for the Dominican Republic, it feels a bit like we’ve been there and done that. Overall, a decent stay—but not the 5-star experience it’s marketed to be.

Our stay was quite nice overall, food was good, the beach is stunning and the kids loved it. My issue at this time is with the kids club and customer service. We dropped our 4 kids off at the kids club for an hour, at that time no other children were present. They had three staff working. My oldest is 11 and had cer cell with her so she kept me updated the whole time. The staff did not interact with the kids whatsoever, they sat at the front chatting and on their phones the entire time. My youngest cried a couple times and they left it to my oldest to take care of the younger ones. They had time blocks for things like crafts and games on the calendar which did not happen. They wouldn't let the kids play outside in the playground, their reasoning being "there's too many kids to take outside".... there were 4 kids and 3 staff.... absurdly unacceptable. We talked yo guest services and they acted concerned but nothing was ever done. Second, I tried using their ATM twice as the gift shop didn't accept my Canadian debit visa. Both times the transaction didn't go through, with no reason given. When I arrived home I discovered the amounts were taken from my account. I tried to call and was told to call my bank, we can't do anything. Very very unhelpful. I do want to mention, 5 stars for our concierge, Carlos, in building 18. He made our stay so much better and was so helpful and friendly! My daughter's even gave him huge hugs and were sad to say goodbye to him. The spa was also wonderful, very relaxing and top notch massage.

We arrived a week ago and had a great time at the Royalton Bavaro. Check-in was smooth, and the resort had plenty of fun activities, especially around the pool bar area. The beach was beautiful, and all the staff were friendly and helpful throughout our stay. The food was good, and for à la carte dining, we found that if you book any available time and then go down around 6:00 PM, the staff will often accommodate an earlier slot if possible very convenient! Check-out was just as easy as check-in. Overall, we had an amazing stay and highly recommend this resort. We were a family of six my wife and I, our two kids (ages 6 and 2), and my in-laws and everyone had a wonderful time.

We recently spent 7 days non DC in a swim up room and had a phenomenal experience . Towards the end of our vacation we learned our flight home was cancelled and rebooked for 2 days later , we requested to stay in the resort and were willing to pay whatever it cost and recieved no support from the hotel , as someone who regularly stays in the Royalton hotels I’d expect atleast some assistance or help in a time like this. We were forced to leave and go to another hotel and all the staff said they can’t make new reservations and seemed poorly trained to help people in these situations . Better protocols should be in place for loyal customers willing to pay to stay and not be displaced due to flight cancellations.

This was our second trip here. What an amazing place with attentive staff. The nightly entertainment was brilliant, the buffet restaurant had an excellent choice of food from all around the world. The a la carte restaurants were outstanding and we never had an issue booking, infact we only ate at the buffet once or twice. Breakfast as the buffet was great, freshly made omlettes, fruit, meats and cheese...whatever your taste there is something for everyone. The beach staff are great, they go of there way to find you a spot, they clean your sunbed and then lay down your towels. Drinks are served to your sunbed, there's a great choice of cocktails etc. The only thing I would give a negative to is the speed of checking in, I'm not sure why it takes so long, but it does get frustrating after you've had such a long journey. Anyway, we've been twice and plan to return, so it hasn't put us off. See you next year you lovely people 😘

I was fine with the experience here. The hotel and everything was fine, but the thing that was bad was mainly the service like when we came here we paid for diamond club which meant that we should be getting expedited check-in, but we had to wait two hours to get checked in. And I feel like that over the trip the staff has been kind of rude to us and did not feel welcoming and another thing that would make this hotel three stars and not three is that we paid for a diamond club room $700 upgrade and we didn’t even get a diamond club room but they ended up refunding asked a couple of days after we left. We couldn’t order room service that was for diamond club because they said our room was not diamond club when we easily paid for it and they didn’t even upgrade us and I sent an email and they never responded even when we ordered room service that was not diamond club. They never gave us a room service like everything is either two hours or you’re not getting it. Another thing is that we paid extra for a room with a pool and it wasn’t even filled to where it was supposed to be so that means it might’ve not been like filtered through the system since it wasn’t up to there and another thing to say is that all of the pools at this resort feel like an Arctic iceberg even the hot tubs they do not heat anything so it’s basically like jumping into an iceberg. Also, it’s advertised as all inclusive, but you still have to pay for some things and the pool that we had in our room was dirty. There was like stuff at the bottom of it. But they’re not only negative parts about this hotel. There are also positives. Why the food options were very nice. They have a flow rider which is very nice two you can have it all to yourself for a private for I think $30 for 15 minutes. You could even do it for an hour and even better diamond club gets to do it like as a group with other people you don’t have to pay for two hours of the day once in the morning and once in the afternoon, and I think that there are a lot of good options and things that you can rent, which yes you have to pay for it but it’s nice so it’s worth it. but the only thing that’s keeping this at two stars is us not getting to be responded in the two things that happened.

We recently stayed at Royalton Bavaro and unfortunately our experience fell short of expectations, especially considering the price point and “all-inclusive” branding. 1. Dining & Diamond Club Upgrade The biggest issue was access to restaurants. On our very first night, we felt pressured to upgrade to the Diamond Club package simply to secure dinner reservations, access food outside limited restaurant hours, and receive the level of service we expected. Without upgrading, it genuinely felt like the buffet would have been our only reliable option. We initially declined the upgrade, but after checking in and being unable to find food or make dinner reservations, we returned to the front desk to upgrade our stay. 2. Restaurant Experiences Hunter’s Steakhouse - served what was honestly the worst steak I have ever had — tough, overcooked, and lacking flavor. The staff, however, was very friendly. Grazie (Italian restaurant) - had extremely poor service. It took a long time just to place drink orders, which were then incorrect. We watched tables seated after us eat and leave while we were still waiting on food. Once our meal finally arrived, no one returned to check on us or offer dessert, despite dessert being included as part of the all-inclusive experience. Zen - was the standout restaurant. The food and service were excellent and easily the best meal of our stay. Unfortunately, reservations there are nearly impossible without Diamond Club access, which again limits the experience for standard guests. Outside of Zen, most of the food across the resort was average at best. 3. Room Layout & Comfort Our Junior Luxury Suite included two queen beds, a pull-out sofa, and a bathtub placed completely open in the room. The layout felt awkward and impractical — not many people want to take a bath in full view of everyone sharing the room. Additionally, the sheets felt damp every night, almost like a constant muggy moisture, which made sleeping uncomfortable. Also, daily room service and fresh towels are only provided with the Diamond Club package. 4. Beach Experience The beach itself is beautiful, but vendors approach guests nonstop trying to sell excursions and merchandise. Even after politely declining, the same vendors returned multiple times per day, every day. It made relaxing on the beach difficult. 5. Staff & Service Service throughout the resort was very inconsistent — about 50/50. Some staff members were genuinely warm, welcoming, and went above and beyond, while others made us feel like we were a burden simply for asking for assistance. That said, there were several individuals who truly made our stay better than it otherwise would have been: - Pedro, our Diamond Club butler, who was attentive, helpful, and professional. - Rayner at the beach bar, who was incredibly kind and provided excellent service every time we saw him. - Alfredo with the spa staff, who was welcoming, friendly, and wonderful to work with while scheduling treatments. Their hospitality stood out and deserves recognition. 6. Family vs. Adult Experience This is very much a kid-focused resort. There are plenty of activities and options for children throughout the day. However, adults looking for elevated dining, relaxation, or consistent service may find the experience lacking. Overall - The property itself is beautiful and families with children will likely enjoy the variety of activities offered. However, guests should understand that dining access, service quality, and overall experience appear heavily dependent on upgrading to Diamond Club status.