driving santo domingo to samana please help

cash01

New member
Feb 10, 2011
10
0
0
Im flying into Santo Domingo this march. I was thinking about renting a car from hertz and driving to Samana, Im staying at the hotel Vista Mare. Is the highway safe to drive? my wife keeps reading the roads arent safe that there is crime and even the police will pull you over and rob you. I also keep reading to be careful when highway goes around the mountain, what exactly happens around the mountain ? is the road on the side of the cliff? I keep telling my wife it will be ok but if something happens she will kill me and it will ruin our vacation . Plus she is so worried im actually worried now. How is this drive should i just not bother and just take a taxi to the hotel? if so does anyone know any car rental companies in the samana area

thank you for your help
 

LTSteve

Gold
Jul 9, 2010
5,449
23
38
Driving from SD to Samana

Hi:

I live in Las Terrenas and have made the trip to Santo Domingo Las Americas airport many times. It is not dangerous driving. You are going to Samana so you will not be going over the mountain road to Las Terrenas. This road has many switch backs and some of the pavement is in dis-repair. First of all get a rental car at the airport in Santo Domingo. I have a friend who is affiliated
with a company called C&C Service Car Rental, which is located about 2 minutes from the airport. You can arrange to have them meet you. You can contact this gentleman at 809-646-4674 or edisoncabral@hotmail.com. His first name is Edison. He is Dominican but speaks fluent English. Tell him Steve from Las Terrenas recommended him. What time does your flight land in SD. It is about a 3 hr trip to where you are staying. Vista Mare is located on the other side of Samana about 15 minutes on the main road towards Las Galeras I would not recommend driving this at night, primarily because you are not familiar with where you are going and the roads you are on. During daylight hours you will be fine. When you rent a vehicle get at a minimum a small SUV, such as, a Chevy Tracker or Susuki Grand Vitara. The roads in places warranted this and if you go on any day trips you will be glad you spent a little more for a little heavier duty vehicle. This is for your wife-Relax- This is nice trip and you will get a feel for the area. I can give you directions from the airport to your hotel. Send me a private message and I will reply.

S
 

Bryanell

Bronze
Aug 9, 2005
694
83
48
Im flying into Santo Domingo this march. I was thinking about renting a car from hertz and driving to Samana, Im staying at the hotel Vista Mare. Is the highway safe to drive? my wife keeps reading the roads arent safe that there is crime and even the police will pull you over and rob you. I also keep reading to be careful when highway goes around the mountain, what exactly happens around the mountain ? is the road on the side of the cliff? I keep telling my wife it will be ok but if something happens she will kill me and it will ruin our vacation . Plus she is so worried im actually worried now. How is this drive should i just not bother and just take a taxi to the hotel? if so does anyone know any car rental companies in the samana area

thank you for your help

Rest assured.
The new highway from Autopista las Americas (watch for the sign SAMANA a few kilometres from the airport turn off going west towards Santo Domingo) is a good road for driving in daylight.

Some hints that the earlier posters did not mention:
You will need between 300-400 pesos for the 3 or 4 toll booths along the way (the first is a couple of hundred metres from the turn from the autopista on to the new highway). Try to have this in small bills and coins as the booth attendants like to say that they don't have change, and make sure that you get a receipt (ticket).

Usually there is not much traffic except at weekends, but you might see the occasional cows or horses wandering on the road, so watch out.

From time to time the traffic police AMET have a presence at various and mobile points so make sure you are buckled up and don't talk on the cell phone while you are driving - the fines are expensive.

Coming off the end of the highway you will have a country road of varying quality through Sanchez as far as Samana. Parts of this road have been resurfaced recently, but there are some parts, particularly on the bends, where the camber changes - so watch your speed. After Samana the road towards Las Galeras is of a little poorer quality, but nothing you can't manage easily with a good vehicle and common sense.

Beware of motorcyclists (motoconchos) and minibuses (gua-guas) who rarely obey road signs and have no lane discipline.

All in all, no horror story, just drive defensively, use common sense and you'll be OK,

Good Luck and enjoy the ride
Bryan