Cabarete - more and more condos less and less people

Notwithastanding the somewhat unusual converstation involving only one person???!!! don't worry, the economy will pick up in a year or two and people will be coming down again. Projects of these type typically aren't short term, unless they have a buyer who will take the whole developmnent, which probably isn't the case

windeguy said:

But I am told that the condos are being rented at close to full occupancy. I guess the people must just stay inside all day.

Your point about the changing complexion of Cabarete and what is to come is well made. Cabarete has changed a lot in only the five years I have lived here.

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Not all condos are rented to full occupancy. I have owned a 1 bedroom in Cabarete for 2 years now. my condo rents and less than 30% through out the year. I don't rent for long term. It seems the people who make out the best are the long term renters or those that have 2 or more bedrooms. I think Cabarete needs high end hotels like Hilton or Marriot, in order to make it a prime destination. Having all condos is not a good idea for local business.

DRMpe... you could start your own forum responding to yourself like that

Well less Hotels means less Charter flights , specially from Europe.
Large TO's won't book their customers into Condos , they want the AI style like in PC. Less Charters, higher ticket cost to POP.
Airport Taxes do the rest!!!!!
For example 6 years ago there where 18 flights p/week from Germany now there are 4 , and those 4 lay over in PC first to dump most of the Tourists there. Same from other Euro country's ,hardly any flights to POP available.

DR Mpe said:

This is a very interesting question DRMpe... hmmm I think that in 10 years we might have a Cabarete for the rich...no kite surf buns... no kite beach, a lot of exclusive condos, rich people that can come down often, which will support the local business. It will be more expensive, more exclusive, less young people...keep the riff raff away. Let them live down in Callejon and pay of some security guard to access the beach...

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It seems all the tourist want to make thier are a place for just the rich. Punta Cana, Juan Dolio, Cabarete etc... I just wonder if there is a enough rich people who can and want to invest here.

johnsantodomingo said:

It seems all the tourist want to make thier are a place for just the rich. Punta Cana, Juan Dolio, Cabarete etc... I just wonder if there is a enough rich people who can and want to invest here.

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What do you consider rich? Palm beach Fl. has waterfront properties for $30 million those people are rich. Buying a million dollar property these days is not considered being rich IMHO. It means you are well off but can you afford a yacht...now that's RICH !

I was in Cabarete today and it was dead and the only ones in the beach bars wete tourists who left the all inclusive looking for happy hour all you can drink.

This is the cheapest Island in the Caribbean. Rich people go to St. Barts where you pay $400 for dinner. Antigua, St. Martin and Aruba also come to mind.

I have been to all of those places and if I had $50 million that's where I'd live....strike that I'd live in paridise Island in the Bahamas and fly in all the pretty girls from Ft. Lauderdale and Cartageena.


I am with a hotty from Cali right now and she's a keeper !

I don't think Cabarete's floundering, it's transforming. And don't forget, a $150 a night 2 bedroom condo split 2 ways is still a bargain at $75/night per room. Two couples, 1000 square feet new condo? That's a nice & attractive deal.

This time of year is historically slow... but it seems to me more people than usual are here right now.

Keep in mind, Cabarete has spread out more - especially during the day. A lot of people that 6 or 7 years ago would've been in the center of the bay windsurfing are now out near Kite Beach during the day. They still head into town at night.

This past Monday (or Tuesday night) I went into town for dinner about 8:30pm. Almost impossible to find a parking place. Restaurants had very nice crowds. However... by 10:30, the beach was pretty empty and the streets as well. Had it been a Friday, more would've stayed after dinner.

Last night, good crowds for April on the beach until closing time at 3 a.m. Still a few people in the streets at 4 a.m.

There's a different crowd these days, more families and couples in their 40's & 50's that are coming to enjoy the tranquility & comfort of the new condo offerings. They appear to cook in the condos some, but also go out.

The kite crowd tends to be more affluent also; many stay in some of the nicer condos during their trips. Kiting's not a cheap sport.

Restaurants are probably better and more varied than ever before. More condos, more locals with jobs to maintain them, and thus more money recirculating in the community. There are hotels, restaurants & even kite schools paying RD$40-50,000+ per month for administrators.

Those that come to surf, kite, and live day to day are still able to continue to do so. They're just doing so on 15% tips on a 1000 peso dinner instead of 15% tips on a 500 peso dinner.

palante que vamos

So which one is it? More people than usual for this time of the year or less than usual?

On weekends, there's more people then this time last year. During the week, less. Our condo complex was full all last week. Less this week. But we understand almost full next week. It's going into low season, so it will be up and down. Remember the kite and windsailing championships are comming up so that's 2 weeks for each .

It is my observation after multiple visits over almost a decade--including stays as long as four months--Cabarete is going to be a rich person's ghost town in a few years UNLESS the infrastructure of the North Coast improves considerably. People of some means who want to pay the higher rents that the new luxury condos will command will require far better services and far better infrastructure than what is presently in place. The condo owners will keep coming because they own--it's the incremental visitor factor that will spell the difference. If higher end renters don't materialize, the condo owners will leave them empty rather than accept small money and the renters who only want to spend small money. The local restaurants, etc. will struggle and disappear, and the entire ambience will crumble. I am not wishing that, to be sure, but unless Cabarete in particular becomes more pedestrian friendly, for example, and the main street becomes less like running a gauntlet, the high end renter will not come more than once. As pointed out here, the low end visitor is disappearing and will continue to do so because there are no bargain properties. Perhaps the future of Cabarete is to be like the Yellowstone Club in the West of the US--a core group of fabulously wealthy people pool their substantial resources and buy the whole town, support a "right-sized amenity base" and treat is as a private compound.

i havent been to cabarete since November - mostly due to the state of the road , there are probably a lot of others that live here that avoid it as much as possible - when the road is fixed it may become busier.

You know, John. That's a good point.

I live on the western end of town & when the road in the center was bad, I went into town. I even stopped shopping at Janet's & just made trips to Playero in Sosua.
Now that the road toward Sosua's being torn up, I'm going into Cabarete more during the day to grab a bite to eat or whatever & making fewer trips to Playero.

The road construction has had an impact on where I eat/shop, and quite likely has on others as well.