Whala!Bavaro

I approached this trip with a simple plan. I wanted an affordable / budget cost. I wanted breakfast and some cheap beer. Anything else was a bonus. I enjoy eating at real restaurants, so I enjoyed the food provided by the hotel and also walked to the Taproom, a few other restaurants, and cafes. For the people who say it isn't on the beach, they are really just looking for anything to complain about. With the same time it would take me to get from my room to the hotel bar, I could just as easily be on the beach. They had excellent service on the beach. Strong wifi. Plenty of seats to be found and shade. It was a great stay. I would do it again. The community is safe. The staff is friendly. The beach was excellent.

My stay at Whala Bávaro Resort was overall very enjoyable. The staff were exceptionally kind and accommodating. As someone with celiac disease, I did face some challenges, mainly the lack of food labeling at the start. However, after speaking with a chef and explaining my dietary restrictions, despite a language barrier, he went out of his way to help, even bringing me individually packaged gluten-free croissants. Although I had to take some risks when choosing what to eat, I didn’t get sick during my stay. By the final night, the resort had added labels to the main dishes, which was a great improvement and much appreciated. I do wish there had been labels on the desserts as well, as that’s what I missed out on the most. If you have celiac disease, I recommend contacting the resort ahead of time or considering paying a bit more for a place with stronger allergen awareness. Overall, the food was very good, the drinks were excellent, and the staff remained friendly throughout. The nightly 9:30 shows were a highlight, very fun, entertaining, and great for all ages. My family and I made great memories, especially at the magic show and karaoke. The host was energetic and engaging, and some shows are interactive if you’re comfortable participating, which made them even more enjoyable. The host really got the crowd laughing and dancing. For the price, the resort was a good value, and the pools were not too crowded. Overall, I enjoyed my stay.

My husband and I booked this trip last minute because we wanted to get away. We checked in with a not very welcoming front desk staff. Our room was small with just one double bed for my husband and I. The bathroom had no hooks to hang a robe or used towel. There was a hair dryer but no iron and no complimentary toiletries. There was a safe and a small fridge stocked with water. We attended the buffet for our meals and the food was typical; rice, chicken, pork, vegetables, etc. It was just okay and everything was always cold. The hotel is not on the beach but on the street, which could be a little noisy and the walk to the beach was just a few steps away. The beach area seating was not very big considering the number of people staying there and it was very close to where all the boats were, which made the area smell of gasoline/fuel. The drinks at the bar were delicious and the bartenders were friendly. We were there for a week and I only witnessed beach activities twice. There was one day where there was no water and the toilet didn't always flush properly. Overall it was okay if you are looking for a short, basic vacation.

Where do I start. From the minute we checked in it’s been one disaster after another. Staff at check-in decided my partners name was hilarious and wouldn’t stop laughing at him. It’s a rather common name and nothing unusual. They continued to laugh at this through the entire check-in process. Speaking to each other in Spanish so they couldn’t be understood. The first room we got was a joke. No room to swing a cat! No luggage storage. No place to put our belongings outside of the cases. Filthy. Noise from the road outside all night. To then go for the evening meal to be met with food that was cold when it should be warm. Most of the food was inedible and looked disgusting. Not covered in the 29 degree heat. Flies and birds all touching the food. Staff continually being rude and dismissive. Will only speak to you in Spanish. When you answer in English they just walk away. Woke up in the morning after a poor first nights sleep because of the noise around 4.30am. Tried to have a shower and there was no water. None at all from anywhere. Not approached by anyone in the hotel to advise there was an issue to only discover ourselves it was a site wide issue. No running water anywhere (this lasted over 14 hours). We saw them filling the gallon water canisters from the swimming pool, so who knows what this water was used for! Got in touch with TUI from the start, which has to be done on their app by the way which initially wasn’t working, and they have been nothing but useless! No rep at all on site. Walking around the hotel it is all rundown. Tiles missing from the pool and poolside. Unclean. Food continues to be shocking. And breakfast was no different. As I’m writing this we have been here since 21.04.26 in the late afternoon. We where moved rooms to a bigger room but this has its own issues, broken shower, bathroom floods when you use the water and the drain doesn’t drain it so you’re stood in a swimming pool, can see filthy foot marks all over the room when feet are wet so obviously not clean, door to the balcony doesn’t shut fully or lock. The list goes on. Food continues to be appealing. We haven’t eaten a full meal since arriving. Last night the fish was raw, yet hard on the outside and it was cold. It was Grouper so not supposed to be served raw. The food at the snack bar is put out at 12pm and left there till 5pm uncovered in the heat, flies and birds again all over. We are supposed to be here for 3 weeks and it’s just not habitable. The hotel was advertised via TUI as a 4* all inclusive hotel. We have since been told by TUI it is a budget hotel, they are removing it from their booking and won’t be using the hotel anymore and that we should expect what we are getting for what we have paid what do we expect? They have so called spoke to the hotel but since this we have been met with hostility by staff, stares and dirty looks, whispered comments in our direction etc. We don’t feel safe or welcomed and this is over raising concerns of health, safety and hygiene. The TUI rep who did end up coming to the hotel, to which TUI have stated this would normally not happen, seems to have made matters worse as she advised that the manager wasn’t happy with a poor review that we had clearly left on Tripadvisor. When we said yes we had she gave the most disgusted look you’ve ever seen. We are starting our third full day and just want to go home at this point. Trying to make the most of a 3 week holiday with this as the prospect is disheartening and worrying. TUI haven’t offered to move us hotel or send us home without us paying for it. They haven’t even given us the options of moving and what the supposed cost would be. The have closed the complaint and communications we have open with them and are actively ignoring messages sent through email and the 24/7 chat which is supposed to be there to help while you’re on holiday.

We stayed at this property for 7 days. Overall not a bad experience but it is a budget friendly hotel rather than a resort. It is not beach front. Beach is across the street through a different hotel. ( it is very close so not a big deal) The beach area designated for this hotel is not very big and therefore gets crowded. The beach bar available for Whala Bavaro hotel guests was constantly surrounded by a bad "dump" smell so we tried to avoid it. The room was OK even though the bathroom, especially the shower area was dated and we kept having issues with the toilet. It kept clogging.