Boca Chica Hotel...Budget-Minded

yaidani

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Feb 23, 2005
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Hello All

I'm traveling to DR next week and I want to spend a night or two in Boca Chica. I will be traveling with my husband (who is dominican, but doesnt know the area.) We spent one night in Boca Chica in May, and stayed at the Hostel Zapatas. It was nice and clean and pleasant, but the management rubbed us the wrong way (free breakfast, not entirely true, and a few other white lies.) We would like to stay someplace new. But we are on a very very tight budget this time around.

I checked out bocachicabeach.net and bocachicaplaya.com, and I only got one postive response from all the queries I sent out. (Los Pinos @ $35/night. Anyone been there?) We would like to stay at $35 and under in a nice clean place with AC and a private bath. Anyone have any info about Tropical Magic?

I also did a search here, but most of the threads that came up were old, and I'm not sure the information is current. (places get run down, management changes, etc.)

If anyone can give me some feedback about some of the smaller hotels in Boca Chica I would really appreciate it. I only queried places listed on bocachicaplaya.com because they had good clear pictures. But on bocachicabeach.net they have a lot more places listed, but in a lot of cases, no pictures of the rooms, and I am afraid to book a room without knowing what I am getting into. I am easily grossed out when it comes to bedrooms and especially bathrooms (and we are trying for romance, and not a night spent scanning the walls for roaches.)

Thank you in advance. :)
 

ricktoronto

Grande Pollo en Boca Chica
Jan 9, 2002
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If you want a pool Los Pinos doesn't have one - it is across the street from Costalunga and the rooms are fine, modern and clean. It is really an apartment building with a few apartments on the ground floor rented by the day. So if it is available and you are OK with renting an apartment with no pool or any hotel services ( I am not too sure how often they change the sheets for example), Los Pinos is safe and OK.

Frankly skip a few Starbucks before you go (e.g. $5 coffees) and spend the money to stay at El Candil, Costalunga or maybe the Garant. You cannot seriously say a vacation hinges on $5 to $7 a day one way or the other. So you pay $40-$45 vs. $35 - get a place with safety, cleanliness and services.

There is a typical local price point in most towns for decent quality and in BC $45 with tax is about the price point.

Note - avoid the Joker if suggested - it is cheap and a huge walk from the town itself and is right on the main highway, a bit noisy and remote.

You may also want to e-mail Perter and Fleming at Playa Vista ( they have a blog on DR1) and see if you can rent the beach apartment for the time - no pool but it is on the beach and has air and periodic cleaning and sheets/towels.

Never heard of Tropical Magic.
 

rellosk

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Mar 18, 2002
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Tamborista said:
Try Palm Beach Resort!
It's directly across from the "Versace looking" Tower just up the hill from Duarte.

Brand new, modern, clean. I have never stayed there, but was impressed with the apartments.

http://www.bocachicaplaya.com/palmbeach.htm
Palm Beach Resort is more expensive than Costalunga or El Candil. Also, I've been told that they don't have a generator. You may want to check the validity of that before you decide to stay there.
 

ricktoronto

Grande Pollo en Boca Chica
Jan 9, 2002
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rellosk said:
Palm Beach Resort is more expensive than Costalunga or El Candil. Also, I've been told that they don't have a generator. You may want to check the validity of that before you decide to stay there.

Ed is correct - at least $40 a day, no generator and rolling blackouts 6 hours a day make for a poor combination.
 

yaidani

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Feb 23, 2005
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ricktoronto said:
Never heard of Tropical Magic.


Sorry, I mean to say Magic Tropical.

Thanks for the great suggestions. I went to websites for costalunga and el candil and they both look like good possiblities. Especially, El Candil, but you have to rent a whole apartment to get AC, and I'm not sure the ceiling fan provided for the "rooms" will be effective enough against the heat.

I hear what you are saying about the budget. Well we will be one whole week in hotels and the budget is finite and small. I remember you (I think it was you) saying something similar to another traveler that was also looking for cheap accomodations. Though, I am not looking for "cheap", just inexpensive. In our case it will be a balance between half-decent lodging and us eating 3 meals a day. Not so much a vacation as a reunion. $50/day, two people, we gotta make it work.:nervous:
 

rellosk

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Mar 18, 2002
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yaidani said:
...and I'm not sure the ceiling fan provided for the "rooms" will be effective enough against the heat.
That depends on the time of the year you will be there. It's probably tolerable in the winter months, but not in the summer.

There is one other place, called Hotel Europa. They used to have rooms for US25 a night including air, but they changed owners about a year ago and I'm not sure of the new setup. The one drawback is that it is located on Duarte and before they closed down all the bars, it was very noisy. The situation might be different now.
 

ricktoronto

Grande Pollo en Boca Chica
Jan 9, 2002
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yaidani said:
Sorry, I mean to say Magic Tropical.


Oh, OK, Magic Tropical. I get it.

Never heard of it. Honestly if I knew the magic Tropical I would have figured out you meant that when you said Tropical Magic. A complete unknown and you don't want to find out why.

Europa is as expensive as the other ones mentioned. It is definitely not $25 a night. You are going to have to pay at least the $35 for Los Pinos, which is a clean safe bet. Under $35 with taxes, el dumporoonie, if you can find anything frankly. You will find cheap, not inexpensive.

Maybe some of the non A/C ones on the road between the park and the autopista that are Pensions run by the Germans and French might do it but if the interiors are anything like the restaurants I wouldn't sleep in my clothes in there. Do you want A/C? Or just a fan? Hot water required? Minus those two "luxuries" in 35C heat there are some for around $15, with mostly hookers in them.

Possibly El Caucho - no idea if they have rooms that cheap but they may. $50 daily for hotel, tax and food for two is hard to imagine. Really.

Otherwise if you have good shoes you can try Joker - I think it is in the $30 range but you are a couple of miles from Boca Chica and sleep next to the freeway.
 

jrzyguy

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May 5, 2004
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well..i always recommend either el candil or costalunga. for the extra 10 bucks a night i really think it is worth you while. I wouldnt want to stay at any of the places on calle duarte....and wouldnt even think of staying at the place near the highway (you will end up spending extra money on motoconchos there...plus the noise).

My personal fav is el candil. Its just so pretty and well cared for...and mario, guisseppi, maria and sandy always make me feel like i am at my second home.

Costalunga is cool too...and mario the owner and his front desk guy miguel are very cool...but it can get to be more of a frat party (ok..last time i stayed there was over carnival).

OH...and candil will pick you up at the airport in person for FREE! ok..thats 20 bucks savings each way....so if you make up 40 bucks right there!!!!! Oh...and for i think 5 bucks...they will send one of those huge 5 gallon tanks of water to your room.....well worth it as you will be spending lots on bottled water. AND they have a very good pool side breakfast for like 2 USD.

sooooo...you might spend a few extra dollars/pesos for your stay there...but in the long run you end up saving $$. AND their security cant be beat.

I've also met some cool indi travelers staying there. (where other places are overrun with chica chasers. there ARE chica chasers at candil...but working girls arent lurking all around the place...just right across the street LOL)

well...hope that helps. sure i am biased...but i keep on going back and back again to candil
 

rellosk

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Mar 18, 2002
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ricktoronto said:
Europa is as expensive as the other ones mentioned. It is definitely not $25 a night.
Last time I was there, they still had the sign out front that said rooms from $25. You can call and ask them. Make sure to tell them the room is for two people.


Here is a link where you can check out some of the other hotels in BC. The prices shown seem outdated but the descriptions seem accurate.

Keep in mind that most hotels quote prices that don't include the 22% tax. Some of the hotels will waive the tax if you pay in cash (USD).
 

ricktoronto

Grande Pollo en Boca Chica
Jan 9, 2002
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Yes I remember the sign and the small print per person without tax, etc., etc., I bet it will be a cold day in hell it is $30 or less all in there. Also they want a Western Union prepayment for a reservation which is just nuts. I guess it is quieter there now since Duarte has one bar open at night. I think Eurpoa is a bad idea. I think $50 a couple food and hotel is even a worse one.
 

yaidani

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Feb 23, 2005
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Gems

You guys are all very cool for walking me through this.

I sent a query out to El Candil. Their website advertises rooms at $30 minus the AC. My husband says he's ok with this, though he may change his mind if there is no cross-breeze... No breakfast and no free airport transfer mentioned. They say 4 night stay minimum for airport pickup, oh well, we were probably gonna take motoconcho anyway, and I know there is some free bus that gos through Boca Chica, or did they just forget to charge us?

Thanks again for helping me to narrow down the list. I want to do this in advance because I hear its high season now. I already got a reply from one hotel that they were fully booked. Believe it or not.
 

Ricardo900

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Jul 12, 2004
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yaidani said:
You guys are all very cool for walking me through this.

I sent a query out to El Candil. Their website advertises rooms at $30 minus the AC. My husband says he's ok with this, though he may change his mind if there is no cross-breeze...
Splurge the extra dough for the A/C, you are going to be HOT!! and the Mosquitos are going to Eat you alive, since the windows don't have screens. Get the A/C
 

ricktoronto

Grande Pollo en Boca Chica
Jan 9, 2002
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yaidani said:
You guys are all very cool for walking me through this.

I sent a query out to El Candil. Their website advertises rooms at $30 minus the AC. My husband says he's ok with this, though he may change his mind if there is no cross-breeze... No breakfast and no free airport transfer mentioned. They say 4 night stay minimum for airport pickup, oh well, we were probably gonna take motoconcho anyway, and I know there is some free bus that gos through Boca Chica, or did they just forget to charge us?

Thanks again for helping me to narrow down the list. I want to do this in advance because I hear its high season now. I already got a reply from one hotel that they were fully booked. Believe it or not.

You cannot take a motoconcho (which is a motocycle) from the SDQ airport to Boca Chica and even if you could you'd be nuts. Dodgling the maniacs on that highway and you and him with suitacases on a motoconcho sounds brilliiant. True I have seen locals driving on motos on the autopista with propane tanks and once a washing machine but at some point you have to question the safety and logic of such a silly option.

There is no free bus from the airport. I have never seen any bus from or to it either. You could walk the 2 or 3 miles to the highway and flag down a guagua if you are truly desperate.

Note, I doubt you will have much of a cross breeze at the Candil given it is 500 yards up a hill from the beach where the winds tend to be a little more obvious. I am not even sure you'd have two windows across from each other.

You said you need a week, they are offering $30 a day and a ride if you are there 4 days which IIRC is covered by a week, having 7 days per, at last count.

This discourse is getting absurd as to how cheap this can be done.
 

yaidani

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Feb 23, 2005
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More than you really wanted to know

ricktoronto said:
You cannot take a motoconcho (which is a motocycle) from the SDQ airport to Boca Chica and even if you could you'd be nuts. Dodgling the maniacs on that highway and you and him with suitacases on a motoconcho sounds brilliiant. True I have seen locals driving on motos on the autopista with propane tanks and once a washing machine but at some point you have to question the safety and logic of such a silly option.

There is no free bus from the airport. I have never seen any bus from or to it either. You could walk the 2 or 3 miles to the highway and flag down a guagua if you are truly desperate.

Note, I doubt you will have much of a cross breeze at the Candil given it is 500 yards up a hill from the beach where the winds tend to be a little more obvious. I am not even sure you'd have two windows across from each other.

You said you need a week, they are offering $30 a day and a ride if you are there 4 days which IIRC is covered by a week, having 7 days per, at last count.

This discourse is getting absurd as to how cheap this can be done.

Mr. Ricktoronto

Unfortunately, for some of us, that $10 or $20 really is the difference between making it or not. I am not a cheap person. I am just someone who has to draw very specific budgetary lines in order to get what I need. You are right, I could spend the extra money there, but, in the end, it would mean having to spend another night crashing with family.

I know that I am not the only person who has come to DR1 with real budget issues and hopefully I won't be the last such person who will benefit from all of your generous advice.

Sometimes you really MUST travel, even though finances are less than ideal.

This will be my 4th visit to DR since December and because of the monetary restrictions that we have, I have, by necesity experienced a lot of the "real" aspects of typical dominican life.

I did stay with family during the first two trips, but these trips are times when I really want the privacy with my husband and that is why we are squeezing so tight to get these rooms. (if you can imagine not seeing your wife for three months and then when you finally do get to spend time with her, you have to stay in her mother's house in a room with no door. Come on... I think anyone would try their darndest to get private accomodations under those circumstances, no matter how cash-strapped..)

And I agree with you that motoconchos take ridiculous chances sometimes (ok, ALOT.) When I travel to SDQ, I pack 2 small bags. Then my husband meets me at the airport and we catch a motoconcho (or 2) to the autopista. Then we catch a guagua to La Romana, which is "home."

During my last trip there we spent one night in Boca Chica, which was very cool because neither of us had been there before and it was quiet and the water was perfect. The next day, when I had my flight, the airport was so close. From Calle Duarte we caught a bus that was free and it took us all the way to the entrance of the airport, where we were able to catch a motoconcho. That is the bus that I am referring to above. Maybe it wasn't free, could be I just dont remember paying. But it was not a guagua, it was like a local metro bus.

I haven't seen Boca Chica in full swing, I hope it will be a little more lively this time around. In truth we are going there because it is on the way to La Romana and so close the airport. This will give us a chance to spend some time alone before getting to La Romana (with all of his family and friends.) We will return to BC and stay another night when I leave again. One of these days I would like to take a longer trip to Boca Chica, but the time is too short for that this trip.

Please, what is IIRC? I am due for a considerable raise very soon. I will need to know how to vacation more comfortably for the next time I plan a trip over there, which will be very, very soon.

Thanks again.
 

Tamborista

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Apr 4, 2005
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If dinero is that tight, why not buy a bunch of Cutter's and sleep under the stars on the beach.
 

yaidani

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Feb 23, 2005
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Tamborista said:
If dinero is that tight, why not buy a bunch of Cutter's and sleep under the stars on the beach.

The politur. :paranoid:
 
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Ricardo900

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Jul 12, 2004
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Why don't you stay in cabana? I think its $15 or $20 a night, you'll get a bed, towel, bathroom and fan.
Anybody know the name of that cabana on duarte in BC, I remember you had to walk up a flight of steps, I think its next to Route66 pub.
 

Tamborista

hasta la tambora
Apr 4, 2005
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Have you ever seen the rooms?
I would not suggest this as an option for more than a 10 minute "session".

Casa Coco has tiny $25 rooms without A/C and The best breakfast in BC!
 

Ricardo900

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Jul 12, 2004
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Tamborista said:
Have you ever seen the rooms?
I would not suggest this as an option for more than a 10 minute "session".

Casa Coco has tiny $25 rooms without A/C and The best breakfast in BC!
I've seen the rooms and my sessions were a little more than 10 minutes :laugh: :laugh: