Can some one Help Please

Which airport? They have several.

From the west side...............

...........of Santo Domingo, you should count on a 4 to 4-1/2 hour drive to Neyba. It could take you another hour or more to get from the airport to that part of Santo Domingo.

Take the highway towards St. Cristobal..........follow signs to BARAHONA (which will be further than you need to go, but most signs will show Barahona.)

You will be going through towns such as Bani, and Azua along the way. There is really only one route. Once you go through Azua, continue about 1 to 1-1/2 hours in the wilderness and then once you are at a "military" roadblock, ask from there.................you'll be taking a right turn and then "good luck".

We have to make that trip twice a year from Puerto Plata and we call it our "trip to hell and back".

alankurdusa said:

Thank you for your replay, but could you tell me why you call it trip to hell and is it dangerous to travel at night also is safe to stop in the towns and ask for directions

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1. DON'T even think of driving at night.
2. Make sure you have a FULL tank of gas when you leave AZUA cause you won't find much in the way of gas after that.
3. "why you call it trip to hell"...............cause it is.
4. As far as the trip goes...........you'd be better off NOT GOING and say you did.

A. Have a Cellphone with a few key numbers and portable GPS!
B. Hire a driver and not worry about a flat tire in the middle of NOWHERE.
C. Be a hero, and ignore all of the sensible advice you got for FREE on DR1!

When I saw this thread I just knew I had to finally register and stop being a lurker on this forum! The southwest part of the DR has a very special place in my heart. I lived in the village of Mella, very close to Neyba, for six weeks. It was a prgram with my college in the US, and I got to stay with a Dominican family and do lots of volunteer work, teaching English, and just having a blast. Please, do not be afraid to venture to this part of the country because of the remarks about "safety" on this thread. I feel so much safer there than in the capital. This part of the country is one of the poorer areas, but I met some of the nicest people you will ever meet anywhere! Talk about hospitality, I could go on and on but I will spare you the read. We could learn a lot from these people. Far from Hell...although the temperatures may make it seem like you are getting pretty close! Do you really need to rent a car? That seems like a hassle to me. There are busses that go straight from Santo Domingo to Neyba, and leave every hour or so. A lot cheaper and probably much easier on the nerves. Sorry, I don't have recommendations for lodging in SDQ.

Gee, just typing this up makes me want to go visit friends there! Can I come with you?

Jeffreymb, great first posting!

I think the other posters were warning Alankurdusa about the dangers of driving in the DR and not the dangers in Neyba (I'm guessing it's not spelled Neiba). Alankurdusa, you may want to do a search on DR1 for some other threads dealing with driving in the DR.

Your suggestion about taking the bus to Neyba rather than driving sounds like an excellent suggestion. I'm not at all familiar with the area, but I have a feeling that since Neyba is not in the tourist area, and it is where his girlfriend lives, that he may be able to hire a car and driver in Neyba for less than the cost of renting a car.

Here are a few low priced places

alankurdusa said:

Which hotel is safe and clean and not very expensive

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http://www.hotelresidencia.com/index.html

http://hotelmetur.com/index.html

http://www.present-itsolutions.com/esmeralda/index.htm

I haven't stayed at any of them, so don't blame me if the bedbugs bite. They all sound friendly, though, and may be able to help with info on busses or drivers.

Actually, I just remembered that the bus I took was direct from SD to Duverge...which is very close to Neyba. Which reminds me, there is this gourgeous natural springs/pool in Duverge that you just have to check out. Maybe your girlfriend knows about it. You can get there from the central park in Duverge if you ask one of the motoconchos to take you. The pool itself isn't in town, it's probably a 10 minute ride through some of the most beautiful countryside/farmland I've ever seen. And the water is so cold and fresh! Plus for an entry fee of RD $10 (I think, but then again I knew someone that knew the owner ) you can't go wrong. It's just another one of the examples of the hidden jewels in the DR that are off the beaten track. You won't see any white people there! Anyone else on this board ever been there?

alankurdusa said:

Thank you every one, you all being very helpful, I have decided to drive a car down there, but any advice with things not to do there...

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I don't know why you are asking for more advice, considering you ignored the advice about driving.

BTW, assuming you leave the airport at 3:30 and you drive non-stop you will get there about 8:00-9:00 (according to POP Bad Boy time-frame). That means you will be driving in the dark for 1 1/2 to 2 1/2 hours, longer if you make any pit stops or leave the airport later.