J
JD
Guest
Greetings to all --
We just got back from 8 days in the DR, and overall had a great time! (even if we did have some serious problems -- see my post below on our rental car being trashed in Santo Domingo). The weather was great every day; all of our 4 hotels were really nice and clean (and affordable!); we ate pretty well (especially on Samana peninsula for a few days); the beaches were gorgeous (even nicer than Maui and Kauai); we were able to drive everywhere (even roads that were supposedly 4WD only); we never spent more than $75/day for room and meals for two; and we didn't get sick (except some minor "Trujillo's revenge", but it didn't affect my ability to do activities during any of the days I had it).
Sosua: we had one night at Villa Los Coralillos, we got a decent oceanfront room with a great view from the balcony for only $40/incl. full breakfast (it was a little noisy since our room was next to the beach parking lot, but other rooms might be quieter). We were expecting to be annoyed constantly by hawkers on the main beach, but they rarely bothered us as we walked along the ocean (only when we walked on the "boardwalk" or in town). The water was clear and nice and there was some decent snorkeling when we swam out 150 feet to the reef. In the morning before 11 the beach was very quiet. Later in the day watch out for the banana and diving boats which zoom dangerously close to swimmers at high speed! At night at the hotel resturant (El Coral) we were treated to a Dominican wedding reception - a surprise for us, and fun to watch. The couple drove up in a 4WD! Meanwhile we ate a great gazpacho and there was only one other couple there (because of the wedding in the other section) so we had the romantic view and the stars almost to ourselves.
Next day we drove to Las Galeras, Samana (stopped at Amazonas 2 on the way -- not really worth it, BTW) and arrived at night (which made driving even more crazy, but fine in the end -- especially since we had bought a great Bachata tape by Antony Santos to make the long ride better). We got a little lost in Nagua en route and got stuck in a carnaval street fest in Samana (roads closed off), but people were very helpful giving us directions so we eventually found our way. (Thanks Gary and Christine for the directions!)
In Las Galeras we ending up at the Hotel Moorea Beach -- an unplanned 3 night stay, because when we arrived in Las G., the place we were supposed to stay at had no water (broken plumbing). The Moorea was really nice and well located and the owners were very helpful and kind. We were the only Americans (most were German or European) but that was good for us!
We loved Cala Blanca beach in Las G. and especially El Rincon, which we were able to drive to in a regular rental car -- 1 hour. (thanks Al for all the driving advice!) The beach was almost deserted and the water crystal clear (though we didn't see many fish, we we did see beautiful purple fan coral). Beautiful, abundant palms everywhere, with little visible hurricane damage. We ate very well every day at Chez Denise -- the cook makes a fabulous fish filet (dorado) with coconut sauce for only 100 pesos.
After 3 nights there we drove to Samana for Kim Beddall's whale watch which was fabulous. We almost missed the boat (15 minutes late) but she actually came back for us! (good thing we had reserved in advance.) We saw several whales up close, next to our boat - wow! Afterwards she took us to Cayo Levantado which was, in our opinion, a tourist trap. But we ate good fish and were serenaded by sweet Spanish songs. Again, the snorkeling was not very good as we had hoped. The beach on the other side (to the right of the dock, take the path through the trees) was better and much less crowded.
After the trip we drove to Las Terrenas (Punta Bonita) -- the drive there was not nearly as bad as we'd heard (the road to Rincon was worse). We found a room at the beautiful Hotel Acaya (even though they were booked when I had called in advance) in time for the sunset from the very nice beach there. We had a lovely time there walking these quiet, unspoiled beaches -- especially Playa Coson, which was almost as nice as Rincon, though the water was murky even at low tide. The food there was great (loved that pumpkin cream soup!).
The next day we tried to visit Los Haitises from Sanchez (from the Malvinas Restaurant; unfortunately the recommended Pierre Fayet no longer works there) but they made us wait around for an hour and then decided not to take us because we were only two (unless we agreed to pay twice the usual cost, which we refused). So we drove to Portillo instead and tried snorkeling but the water was murky. I think there could be good snorkeling there at calmer times because there was lots of coral.
After 2 nights at the Acaya we drove to Santo Domingo, which only took about 3 1/2 hours (easier than we expected). We stayed at the Hotel Palacio which was lovely and really clean and very Spanish. I loved that place. It was the first room with a TV and we turned on CNN to find that New England, where we're from, had just been hit with 2 feet of snow! Boy were we happy we missed that.
Almost everything was closed because of the Independence Day holiday so we didn't get to see much in Santo Domingo. But we did catch the military parade along the malecon which, for us, was a real laugh-riot (e.g. to see the cops parading down the street in dune buggies was very cute). At night we ate at the Meson de la Cava which had OK food with a great setting inside a cave. (And we actually managed to drive there at night - yikes!) After that we drove to the Guacara Taina, in yet another cave, and saw an exciting merengue band called Sins Fronteras (very sexy male dancers/singers -- wowee).
On our last morning we woke to find our rental car trashed (see post below) and so spent the day in the police station and dealing with AVIS, so we missed out on Boca Chica and Los Tres Ojos :-( But at least it was on the last day and we didn't lose any personal belongings.
Despite the unhappy ending, we nevertheless really had a wonderful trip and would definitely go back (perhaps when Samana airport opens for international flights, or to snorkel Isla Catalina and see the nat'l park of the east). In retrospect it probably would have been better not to go to Santo Domingo in the same trip as Samana, but instead save that for a future trip to the Southeast. But I had really wanted to see carnaval, and even though we were unable to attend the main parade, it was fun to see the military parade and the band at the Guacara Taina (thanks Natasha for the recommendation!). I only wish more things were open.
Overall all the trip was worth the difficulties and the effort. We liked Rincon, Cala Blanca and Punta Bonita/ Coson areas the best and wished we had more time there. They were sooooo beautiful and the children were adorable everywhere we went.
Well, this post is long enough but if anyone wants more details on any aspect of our trip, please just ask and I will post a response in short order. If I get a chance I'll try to post full hotel reviews in the DR1 resort database as well.
Enjoy!
We just got back from 8 days in the DR, and overall had a great time! (even if we did have some serious problems -- see my post below on our rental car being trashed in Santo Domingo). The weather was great every day; all of our 4 hotels were really nice and clean (and affordable!); we ate pretty well (especially on Samana peninsula for a few days); the beaches were gorgeous (even nicer than Maui and Kauai); we were able to drive everywhere (even roads that were supposedly 4WD only); we never spent more than $75/day for room and meals for two; and we didn't get sick (except some minor "Trujillo's revenge", but it didn't affect my ability to do activities during any of the days I had it).
Sosua: we had one night at Villa Los Coralillos, we got a decent oceanfront room with a great view from the balcony for only $40/incl. full breakfast (it was a little noisy since our room was next to the beach parking lot, but other rooms might be quieter). We were expecting to be annoyed constantly by hawkers on the main beach, but they rarely bothered us as we walked along the ocean (only when we walked on the "boardwalk" or in town). The water was clear and nice and there was some decent snorkeling when we swam out 150 feet to the reef. In the morning before 11 the beach was very quiet. Later in the day watch out for the banana and diving boats which zoom dangerously close to swimmers at high speed! At night at the hotel resturant (El Coral) we were treated to a Dominican wedding reception - a surprise for us, and fun to watch. The couple drove up in a 4WD! Meanwhile we ate a great gazpacho and there was only one other couple there (because of the wedding in the other section) so we had the romantic view and the stars almost to ourselves.
Next day we drove to Las Galeras, Samana (stopped at Amazonas 2 on the way -- not really worth it, BTW) and arrived at night (which made driving even more crazy, but fine in the end -- especially since we had bought a great Bachata tape by Antony Santos to make the long ride better). We got a little lost in Nagua en route and got stuck in a carnaval street fest in Samana (roads closed off), but people were very helpful giving us directions so we eventually found our way. (Thanks Gary and Christine for the directions!)
In Las Galeras we ending up at the Hotel Moorea Beach -- an unplanned 3 night stay, because when we arrived in Las G., the place we were supposed to stay at had no water (broken plumbing). The Moorea was really nice and well located and the owners were very helpful and kind. We were the only Americans (most were German or European) but that was good for us!
We loved Cala Blanca beach in Las G. and especially El Rincon, which we were able to drive to in a regular rental car -- 1 hour. (thanks Al for all the driving advice!) The beach was almost deserted and the water crystal clear (though we didn't see many fish, we we did see beautiful purple fan coral). Beautiful, abundant palms everywhere, with little visible hurricane damage. We ate very well every day at Chez Denise -- the cook makes a fabulous fish filet (dorado) with coconut sauce for only 100 pesos.
After 3 nights there we drove to Samana for Kim Beddall's whale watch which was fabulous. We almost missed the boat (15 minutes late) but she actually came back for us! (good thing we had reserved in advance.) We saw several whales up close, next to our boat - wow! Afterwards she took us to Cayo Levantado which was, in our opinion, a tourist trap. But we ate good fish and were serenaded by sweet Spanish songs. Again, the snorkeling was not very good as we had hoped. The beach on the other side (to the right of the dock, take the path through the trees) was better and much less crowded.
After the trip we drove to Las Terrenas (Punta Bonita) -- the drive there was not nearly as bad as we'd heard (the road to Rincon was worse). We found a room at the beautiful Hotel Acaya (even though they were booked when I had called in advance) in time for the sunset from the very nice beach there. We had a lovely time there walking these quiet, unspoiled beaches -- especially Playa Coson, which was almost as nice as Rincon, though the water was murky even at low tide. The food there was great (loved that pumpkin cream soup!).
The next day we tried to visit Los Haitises from Sanchez (from the Malvinas Restaurant; unfortunately the recommended Pierre Fayet no longer works there) but they made us wait around for an hour and then decided not to take us because we were only two (unless we agreed to pay twice the usual cost, which we refused). So we drove to Portillo instead and tried snorkeling but the water was murky. I think there could be good snorkeling there at calmer times because there was lots of coral.
After 2 nights at the Acaya we drove to Santo Domingo, which only took about 3 1/2 hours (easier than we expected). We stayed at the Hotel Palacio which was lovely and really clean and very Spanish. I loved that place. It was the first room with a TV and we turned on CNN to find that New England, where we're from, had just been hit with 2 feet of snow! Boy were we happy we missed that.
Almost everything was closed because of the Independence Day holiday so we didn't get to see much in Santo Domingo. But we did catch the military parade along the malecon which, for us, was a real laugh-riot (e.g. to see the cops parading down the street in dune buggies was very cute). At night we ate at the Meson de la Cava which had OK food with a great setting inside a cave. (And we actually managed to drive there at night - yikes!) After that we drove to the Guacara Taina, in yet another cave, and saw an exciting merengue band called Sins Fronteras (very sexy male dancers/singers -- wowee).
On our last morning we woke to find our rental car trashed (see post below) and so spent the day in the police station and dealing with AVIS, so we missed out on Boca Chica and Los Tres Ojos :-( But at least it was on the last day and we didn't lose any personal belongings.
Despite the unhappy ending, we nevertheless really had a wonderful trip and would definitely go back (perhaps when Samana airport opens for international flights, or to snorkel Isla Catalina and see the nat'l park of the east). In retrospect it probably would have been better not to go to Santo Domingo in the same trip as Samana, but instead save that for a future trip to the Southeast. But I had really wanted to see carnaval, and even though we were unable to attend the main parade, it was fun to see the military parade and the band at the Guacara Taina (thanks Natasha for the recommendation!). I only wish more things were open.
Overall all the trip was worth the difficulties and the effort. We liked Rincon, Cala Blanca and Punta Bonita/ Coson areas the best and wished we had more time there. They were sooooo beautiful and the children were adorable everywhere we went.
Well, this post is long enough but if anyone wants more details on any aspect of our trip, please just ask and I will post a response in short order. If I get a chance I'll try to post full hotel reviews in the DR1 resort database as well.
Enjoy!