This was our 4th visit to the Grand (now called JOIA) since 2016. We love the staff and we always have a great time, and this was no exception, but we happened to stay during the week they reopened after a month-long closure for renovation in August, and it just seemed like they weren't ready to reopen. By the time we left, most of the facilities were open, and maintenance was wrapping up, but we paid full price for what seemed like half the facilities, and a lot of construction.
Staff: This is the best part of the resort and the only thing that would make us consider coming back, so I'll say it up front. They really are wonderful. The staff at the bars, restaurants, pools, beach, and the cleaning crew are all great and super attentive. Many of them remember my wife and I by name from past trips, which is remarkable considering how many people pass through there.
Check-in / Sales Pitch: Check-in was straightforward. You'll immediately get asked if you'd like to receive a "no-commitment" sales pitch for the Iberostar Club membership in exchange for some free stuff (excursions, massages, etc.). After previously refusing every time, we decided to do it this year. We got 1 massage and 2 tickets for the snorkeling boat. If you do it, you can probably negotiate one more item into the deal. Just know that you're in for a minimum of 2 hours. The check-in rep at reception will tell you its 45 minutes. This is a lie. The sales pitch is extremely aggressive. Bogus math, special manager's deal, decision has to be on the spot or offer goes away, etc. Once you've finally turned down the last proposal, the smiles will turn to scowls, and then the guy pretending to do a survey of the experience will try to offer you one last proposal. I'm pretty even-tempered and I was pretty annoyed by the end, but the snorkeling trip was great. In my opinion, unless you're visiting an Iberostar property multiple times a year, it doesn't make sense.
Rooms: Clean, spacious, modern. Comfortable bed. Huge bathroom. Mini-bar always stocked. Nothing to complain about.
Restaurants: Disappointed. For an all-inclusive resort, the food quality is excellent. I wish I could tell you all the restaurants were great, but unfortunately, only about half of the restaurants were open the entire time we were there (6 nights). The themed restaurants used to require reservations, but now have a first come, first served policy (except Haiku). The buffet, Italian and French restaurants were open for the week, and the Hibachi restaurant opened mid-week. The Mexican, Surf & Turf, and Steakhouse never opened.
Beach: Plenty of umbrellas and chairs. Sand is pristine, and the staff does a good job maintaining the seaweed that is typical of the region.
Pools: There's a lazy pool and a main pool with a swim-up bar, which is where we (and a huge percentage of the guests) typically spend a lot of time during the day. CLOSED when we got there. By day 3 it was finally open, or at least half open. One side remained closed and sectioned off with a construction crew working the whole week.
Entertainment: At 9:30 every night, there's a themed show. A mix of musicals, circus acts, fire-dancers, etc. They're fairly entertaining. During the day, your typical pool games. It seems like the day entertainment has dropped off considerably compared to years past.
Bars/Liquor: Selection of liquor is great. Don Julio, Woodford, Tito's, etc. Daniel at the lobby bar is great. The lobby bar is where we'd wrap up most nights and is a great place to mix it up with the other guests.
Off site/Excursions: Can't speak to this. The only thing we did off-site was a snorkeling trip, which was nice. The resort has plenty of activities to keep you entertained, and staying at the Grand you're able to use all the facilities of the adjacent properties, so we rarely venture out.
Fitness Center/Gym: Really disappointed. My wife and I are gym rats at home, and we like to exercise in the morning while we're at the resort to offset the effects of drinking at night and keep the wheels from falling off. The Grand has a great gym. Too bad it was CLOSED for our entire trip to redo the floors. Instead, they moved a few pieces of equipment and cardio to 2 rooms in the Convention Center and made a makeshift fitness area. The entire resort was closed for a month but they waited until it reopened to change to gym floors. To make matters worse, the fitness center staff is terribly unprofessional. They're either standing around doing nothing in particular, or worse, using what little equipment there is to get their own workout in. They are the one exception to the otherwise exceptional staff.
All in all, we had a nice time, and when everything is open, the Grand really is a great value, but all the closures left us feeling a little cheated.
