I have a house I rent in El Doral but normally drive to Sousa or Cabarete for the beach. If I want something closer I can go across the street but it is a little windy there sometimes. You can go the restaurant there and i think the 22 oz beer or 140 pesos. or you can rent a chair on the beach and go to the little store and get 22 oz beer for 100 pesos. You can also go to Blue Jack Tar and they have day beds. The sell the small 12 oz beers I think for 108 pesos and you can eat there. You do not have to be a hotel guess and it is also real close to El Doral. It is a little less windy at blue jack tar. there are some trees there.
I can go to Costambar and Cofresi also. The water in Cofresi is nicer in front of the lifestyles. it is a public beach so you can walk in front of lifestyles. but i don't think people rent chairs there so you need to bring your own chairs or sit on a towel on the sand. I have gone there with my own chairs and cooler filled with ice for drinks. ocean world terrace is nice especially if you like karaoke.
I have gone past Cabarete a couple of times. Been to Playa Grande and I think there is a lot of construction going on there. as most people suggest i would rent first and go check out everything. seems like with real estate what people want for their property or house and what they actually get is two different things. i think some list at high prices for a long time. They don't really need to sell but will if someone pass their asking price.
El Doral has some good and bad things. There are a lot of houses not finished with people living in them. There are a lot of vacant lots that haven't been built on. There can be some nice views but you would really need to plan on how you built the lot. There is a golf course, movie theater, gyms, la sierana, ocean world, etc close. But it isn't a gated community like some of the other places. You see horses and cows on the street.
I have looked some but would look a lot more if I was going to buy. One big question is if you want to be able to walk to a beach or just be able to drive to the beach. I checked out seahorse ranch and that is nice but pretty expensive. Besides the house cost you would have to look at their monthly fees and electricity cost. Also you pay extra to use the tennis courts and they don't have a gym. The best think is it is nice a quiet with not a lot of house in a pretty big area. But a lot of money.
cabarete has a lot of nice bars and places to eat. you can walk around on the beach. they have some american live music sometimes and you can find places that show sports. the malecon in puetyo plata has some places to hang out. some are across the street away from the sand. and some are on the beach. some places with sand there and some places without sand. some people kite surf there but not anywhere like in cabarete.