First, let me say that Iberostar JOIA is a beautiful property with a beautiful beach. The grounds are lovely and well taken care of. My butler Travis is a smart guy who was well prepared and attentive to me. Travis stayed in close contact with me daily to keep me updated on things happening at the hotel.
But readers should pay attention to this and the other reviews that mention mold, mustiness, odor, etc. They are 100% accurate.
I am a repeat guest of Iberostar and I was disappointed in my stay recently. As soon as you enter the building, you can smell a distinct odor that is best defined as a moldy, damp basement. It's in the hallways and in the rooms too. And like other reviews mentioned, the hotel tries to cover up the smell with scents in the room and in the hallways. I got pretty ill. I was perfectly fine before I got there, but once I arrived, I was sneezing, coughing, and had congestion; and my nose and eyes wouldn't stop running. I changed rooms, and that didn't help. I saw the onsite nurse, and she charged me 65 $USD for an Advil (with a side of attitude), which of course, did not help either. I was breathing in damp, moldy air mixed with air freshener. But the instant I stepped outside, my symptoms subsided. So shortly into my stay, I checked out. The Guest Relations manager was nice and refunded me for the rest of the nights I wasn't staying, which I truly appreciate. As soon as I left, I could breathe again and had no symptoms for the rest of my trip. I definitely believe I was allergic to whatever was happening in my room(s) and in the hallways. Guests should exercise caution when considering staying here. The mold/musty odor throughout the hotel/rooms is a huge deterrent and must be resolved.
Another issue with the rooms is that you cannot open the sliding doors to your balcony while the AC is on, or the entire room will fill up with condensation. It will feel like a rain forest. Even when the AC was off, this still happened. The air in the rooms generally felt damp and stale. It was uncomfortable. I have never had this issue at other hotels.
Lastly about the room, the whole water bottle thing is weird. They don’t use plastic anymore. So they have these refillable water bottles in the room that they claim to steam and reuse. They are NOT secure! Anyone could open them at any time and tamper with the bottle. Would you buy a bottle of water from the store that you didn’t already open yourself, that anyone could easily open and close back before you buy it? Didn’t think so. Do not drink from those bottles, it’s not sanitary.
Food:
I thought the made-to-order food was good. I dined at Surf and Turf and generally enjoyed my meal. However the portion sizes have gotten noticeably smaller over the years. I recommend the hotel not use such enormous plates; it makes the portions look even worse. The food that is left out at the buffets is exposed to insects and the heat in general, which can be problematic. But we're in the tropics, so it is what it is.
The beach:
Service has changed since I was last here. In the past, the servers would walk the beach taking orders. It seems that the beach has gotten so busy that now you scan a QR code on your umbrella, place your order, and they bring it over from the bar. The QR code on my umbrella didn't work, but scanning the one next to me worked fine.
Overall service: I think there is more work to be done training their staff. At times service was pretty slow, and the attitudes of some of the staff was unpleasant.
STILL, I would consider returning to Iberostar in the future if they could get the mold/odor issue totally fixed from the inside out. They probably need a massive renovation though.
