Two months away from everything!

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Sofia&Anders

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Hi! We're a Swedish family of five planning the vacation of our dreams. Two months in the DR, with "chilling" being our primary aim. No luxury, no all inclusive resorts, no fancy plans, just our family, the beaches and a lot of time on our hands. Mainly looking at the North coast, but starting off with a week in Juan Dolio.
Then we'll try to head north towards las Terrenas, or possibly Cabarete or Sos?a. We're on a rather tight budget, but we're also travelling with small kids (4, 4, 6 yrs) so calm waters, ground floor, beach front and child friendly is what we're looking for. Any tips?
Bye!
/Sofia & Anders
 
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Franco 66

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The Best beach i have seen for kids in DR was El Portillo just east of Las Terrenas.
In the morning the water is like a swimming pool and you can see all the reef fish waiting for the bread from the buffet(Bahia Principe).
There is only one resort on that stretch but i also passed the public portion of the beach there too..
 
Africaida

Africaida

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I will be with my children who are about your kids age in Las Terrenas.
There is a bouncing castle on playa ballenas, a little day camp for kids with a pool and slide within town, I plan to try horse riding this time,....but most of the time we just chillin as well, they happy to do nothing and play with other children.

You may consider a sitter (inexpensive) if you want to have time to yourself some evenings.

PM me if you want to meet up and/or more suggestions, I will be there for a month this summer.

My children have a blast, but so do I :)
 
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LTSteve

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Sofia&Anders said:
Hi! We're a Swedish family of five planning the vacation of our dreams. Two months in the DR, with "chilling" being our primary aim. No luxury, no all inclusive resorts, no fancy plans, just our family, the beaches and a lot of time on our hands. Mainly looking at the North coast, but starting off with a week in Juan Dolio.
Then we'll try to head north towards las Terrenas, or possibly Cabarete or Sos?a. We're on a rather tight budget, but we're also travelling with small kids (4, 4, 6 yrs) so calm waters, ground floor, beach front and child friendly is what we're looking for. Any tips?
Bye!
/Sofia & Anders
Click to expand...

I would recommend going to Hotel Colibri in Las Terrenas. This is located on Playa Las Ballenas and they have their own beach on very calm waters right across the street. There is also a beautiful pool on the property. The only negative would be is that you would need a vehicle to drive the .75 miles back into town for restaurants and shopping. If you are looking for something a little less expensive you might also consider Hotel Miraposa. These are small self contained accomodations with kitchen. By the way Hotel Colibri also has a small kitchen in their rooms. For "chillin'" I don't think you will find a better place than Las Terrenas. Good luck. Google lasterrenas.com to see additional info.
 
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No Place Like Home

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WOW 2 months in any place you have never been before with children could be a tough vacation. You need to continue to do more research. El Portillo is a GREAT resort Grand Hahia. The beach is wonderful. Good luck and enjoy
 
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LTSteve

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No Place Like Home said:
WOW 2 months in any place you have never been before with children could be a tough vacation. You need to continue to do more research. El Portillo is a GREAT resort Grand Hahia. The beach is wonderful. Good luck and enjoy
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I don't think they want to spend 2 months at an all inclusive. Grand Bahia El Portillo is a nice location but would expensive for someone who is budget minded. Additionally Playa Las Ballenas is a much nicer beach for kids and adults alike.
 
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donP

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No AI?

Sofia&Anders said:
No luxury, no all inclusive resorts, no fancy plans, just our family, the beaches We're on a rather tight budget, but we're also travelling with small kids (4, 4, 6 yrs) so calm waters, ground floor, beach front and child friendly is what we're looking for.
Click to expand...

Although an AI is not wanted, El Portillo Hotel would be good for you.

donP
 
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william webster

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Colibri is a good suggestion-- the kitchenette will [pay for itself...

and the beach is perfect for children -- calm, shallow + a pool if prefered
 
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vir

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Hej

Swede here living in santo Domingo. Hope you have a great time here but this country ain't cheap. Try to learn some basic spanish as well, it will help a lot!
 
Africaida

Africaida

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If you are on a budget, skip the h?tel and go for a rental in a r?sidencial (if you budget is even tighter you may have to stay off the beach). When you have to cook for a family a kitchenette won't do it. You will need a washing machine too. Trust me, been coming to LT since my kids could barely walk, my budget is tight because I take too many vacations :)
 
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Xavier_Onassis

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In the older part of Juan Dolio, S of the first stoplight, there are some hotels with kitchenettes, the most interesting being (in my opinion) the Fior de Loto, owned by an Italian woman to finance her home for orphan girls in India. The beach is maybe ? a km. W. along the main road that runs parallel to the ocean. Just before that there are several colmados selling food and such. For warm water showers, the afternoon is best, after the sun has warmed the tinocos. Rooms have a stove and fridge.

It will be cheaper to buy a large bottle of water and keep it in your room. They also sell water in bags (bolsa de agua) for less than bottled water, which reduces the amount of trash produced.
 
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Lando calrisian

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Swedes in the DR for 2 months, wow the cultural intermingling should be fascinating. SVEEden a country of like 10 million, great technology, mostly nordic, affluent, colder climes, socially liberal(ish).
Santa Domingo like the gringo's say, a country of like 10 million, emerging technology(?), mostly caribbean mix (black, white, injun), less affluent, way hotter climes and socially....Complex(?).....
Las Terrenas, Boca Chica, Jarabacoa, Barahona, Puerto Plata, Samana....The time will fly by.
You can even go to Haiti and make believe your in Africa hahahahaa.
On a more serious note;
Make sure you bring plenty of mosquito repellent, the CHIKUNGUNYA will definitely screw up your trip.
You will love it, LOVE it, I'm sure you will leave and be fans of DR.

LLLLL Cc
 
Xavier_Onassis

Xavier_Onassis

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I would not worry about picking somewhere not right on the beach in Las Terrenas. It is a small community and distances are short, and of course, there are motoconchos. There are few beaches more beautiful than the beach in LT at sunrise.
 
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Sofia&Anders

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RAAAY said:
You sure you're coming to the right country....??

The DR is not a very nice place on a budget. To give you a better sense, probably better to give us an idea of what you mean by a tight budget.


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burp.

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Well, actually, when looking around on the internet, (and also when talking to people living there), it doesn't seem too expensive. As I said, we're not staying on fancy resorts for two months, we're trying to rent a house, cook our own food, etc.

Two months in a new country? Well, Turkey, Denmark and the Canary Islands are not what we're looking for (these are the countries we've visited as a family) Yet, I've spent three months in Kenya and four months in Peru, so I'm not a complete rookie as a traveler. Neither of those country seem like good alternatives for traveling with kids though. By the way, I do get by quite OK on Spanish.

Also... since I'm new here I'm not sure about how this posting-replying-liking-disliking-thanking-thing works. But a big thanks to everybody for taking your time to write!
 
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