travelling with small kids in Cabarete

Stop worrying. The kidnapping has been among the rich in SD, and there is suspicion that even that was not what it appeared to be.

Is the house in a complex or in a isolated location? My question has nothing to do with the possibility of kidnapping, which is slim to none, but of thieves who might target your house if it is isolated.

Assuming there are other owners living in that area, have you talked with them about the security situation. People actually living in the same place that you will be can give you the best information.

There were some problems with robberies several years ago in Bahia de Arena, ProCab and Perla Marina areas. Men with machine guns and big trucks came in to rob neighborhoods. However I don't believe anything of this magnitude has happened in quite some time. I have lived in Cabarete for two years and my boyfriend for 10 years. You just have to be prudent and careful, just like anywhere else in the world. Don't flash money around, whenever you pay workers tell them you don't have money at the house and have to go to the bank, etc.

I wouldn't walk on the beach from your villa to Cabarete at night because of the unlit areas. A friend of mine just thwarted a robbery at gunpoint attempt in front of Velero Beach Hotel wall walking her dog from El Magnifico one street over at 10:30 at night! Some other friends were accosted by a crazy dominican when they were using the stairwell at nanny's to go to their apt at Tropical Goleta. We may be in for higher crime as things become harder to afford and times get tougher for the locals.

I would not worry

Kee, I am one of your neighbours at the Nanny Estate. Bought there early last year and been down 6 times. Never had any problems and we do, both at the Nanny and Bahia de Arena have night watchmen.
My wife and I do walk the beach quite alot and never encountered any problems. That is not to say does not exist. Did hear of people renting at Bahia de Arena and where approched on their way back at night by a odd caracter, that ran away as soon as the guy screamed at him. Things should only get better with time as more places are being built between Cabarete and Bahia de Arena/Nanny Estate. Just in last year you have Viva Tangerine and Caracol kite school that came in that section of the beach. So more lights and guards are coming in.

Stayed at Bahia de Arena over Thanksgiving. No worries. I think this is one of the best projects adjacent to Sosua and Cabarete. It's very peaceful and quiet, and walking distance to Cabarete's bars and restaurants. I walked along the beach many nights with no problems. Just be aware of your surroundings and you'll be fine. Say hello to Yves at Residencia Mariza, the first condo on the right when you past the gate.

How is the renovation going ?

nanny's estate

i too lived in bahia arena for one month. if this isn't the noisiest place around i don't know what is. You also live next to one of the busiest brothels for miles. their idea of fun is to blast the same music over and over till 4 in the morning. if anyone living there can sleep through this my hats off to them. never again.
D

Small kids in Cabarete ..... I have a 2 and a half year old daughter so I'm speaking from experience. Do Not Worry, but keep an eye out. Just like anywhere else you'd go to.
One thing I like about Cabarete beach is that everyone on the beach knows my daughter by her curly golden hair, I go to the beach with her often and have never had to worry about where she is (but I keep an eye out for her). She goes off on a walk down the beach and always comes back a few minutes later with one of the people who work in the restaurants, or one of the shoe-shine boys that she's made friends with.
As for the streets of Cabarete - I don't even let her walk next to the road. I pick her up and carry her myself, this is not due to worry about someone grabbing her and running off - it's the traffic. I've seen about 8 accidents in Cabarete since I moved here (a year ago).
Just use common sense - like anywhere else in the world.


Stay well,
Amy

If you don't cross the main st (so you don't get killed) or eat at a restaurant on Main St (so you don't die of diesel fumes) don't let the kids swim in the ocean (rough surf there most times) you should have a great time

Be sure to watch out for sharks, big hairy tarantulas, shoeshine boys, cambio salesman, sankies, meteorites, sour ex-pats, large red German's in small blue speedos, and Al Qaeda operatives looking for infidels to convert as well.

Cabarete's a great place, nice protected beach, with relatively calm surf for the North Shore. Forget all that and enjoy yourself!

Tom (aka XR)

Like I said ....

Just use common sense - like anywhere else in the world.

Stay well,
Amy

P.S. don't mind XR and Escott - get to know them and you'll understand.

Renting @ Bahia de Arena

Keepark,

My family and I are renting a villa in the Bahia de Arena complex for the month of February. I have very small children as well...one will turn 3 during our stay and the other is 8 months. Just wondering if you will be at your place during the month of February and how old your kids are? It would be great for my 3 year old daughter to have a playmate.

Amy...I will have to search your little girl out as well...I'm sure Megan would love to play with her.

Cheers!
Chalene

Re: Renting @ Bahia de Arena

mum2megan2001 said:

Keepark,

My family and I are renting a villa in the Bahia de Arena complex for the month of February. I have very small children as well...one will turn 3 during our stay and the other is 8 months. Just wondering if you will be at your place during the month of February and how old your kids are? It would be great for my 3 year old daughter to have a playmate.

Amy...I will have to search your little girl out as well...I'm sure Megan would love to play with her.

Cheers!
Chalene

Click to expand...

Chalene,

wow, Hannelie turns 3 at the end of March. I'm sure she'd love to meet your kids - lets set up a place and time to meet closer to the time that you'll be here.

Stay well,
Amy

Get this through your heads

Dominicans love children. Often times they will go way out of their way to insure their safety.

Of course Hannelie-I mean I have met this cutie- she is two and a half foot tall little thing with bright blond hair and a smile as wide as Cabarete Beach- is a traffic stopper. A little flock of these children will gather lots of loving attention.

Things like kidnapping and child molestations are very infrequent, and even more rare on the North Shore. These are for Santo Domingo. And lots of them are "settling of accounts" brouight down from New York.

I can thoroughly agree with Amy and the other posters that say "Just be normally cautious, they are children, after all." Lots of sun screen since they never want to come in from the shore or the water..You'll end up with little pieces of red lobsters!!

For nearly 40 years we have vacationed all over the DR: Samana, Jarabacoa, POP and have never had a problem with the boys or the little girl. Hell, they ran wild in Samana and turned the streets into a scene for X-Games skateboarding. God, there was a lot of blood and skinned legs, but nothing permanent.

When you are there for a week or so and get a nice feel for the place, you will probably "pool" the child care with the other young moms and feel very comfortable doing so. This is a special place for children.

HB, feeling very "grandfatherly"after reading this thread..

grandfathers

and grandmothers see things through different eyes sometimes.

One of my most treasured experiences was when I went for a walk with Hannelie on Cabarete beach on some or other holiday. We came across a Dominican family who had scooped out a big hole in the sand.. big enough for grandparents, parents, kids of all ages. There were a lot of people in this hole in the sand. They were having a lot of fun being splashed by waves filling their family hole with water and the whole lot of them were covered with muddy sand. Hannelie stood around looking at this for a while, and then placed herself right in the middle of this hole, right in the middle of the family and proceeded to make friends. Well, I had to join the crowd - in the muddy hole I went. Some hours of mindless water and sand fun later, I started getting ready to leave to feed my granddaughter and to get her something to drink. The Dominican family would hear none of this leaving business. They took us over to their beach basket and proceeded to feed us and water us and we spent the rest of the day with the family on the beach.

I would say Cabarete beach is one of the best places for small kids to be.

Re: Get this through your heads

Hillbilly said:

Dominicans love children. Often times they will go way out of their way to insure their safety.

Of course Hannelie-I mean I have met this cutie- she is two and a half foot tall little thing with bright blond hair and a smile as wide as Cabarete Beach- is a traffic stopper. A little flock of these children will gather lots of loving attention.

Click to expand...

HB - what a nice thing to say! Thank you.

Stay well,
Amy