is it possible? or am I delusional?

Here it is......... purchase a Lonely Planet guide to the Dominican Republic. I've used it extensively and it's bang on. You can have big fun for 2500.u.s. Las Terrenas is a good start. Las Galeras,Bayahibe,Sosua all good. In fact the whole country ,that I've seen, is outstanding.

Buy it.........it's saved me a fortune. I've used their guides for all of central America and Mexico. I've never been disappointed, especially in regards to the D.R.

Although I'm not an all inclusive fan myself, you might be able to find a deal at Casa Marina in Sosua.
It's one of the few resorts that is right in town and could help you make your budget, and be able to walk right out into the land of adventures.
If not, you could get a condo for $500 US, for the 2 weeks, and $50 US/day would feed you both well, making a total of $1,200, leaving $1,300 for adventures, tours, activities, etc.

If you like to eat at local restaurants, use public transport, like to organise trips and tours on your own instead of relying on excursion companies, and do some research to find nice but inexpensive independent hotels, that would be a generous budget. In most places youcan easily find a hotel for under $40. A good travel guide would be very helpful; I think the Dominican Republic Rough Guide is slightly better than the Lonely Planet one if you don't want all-inclusives, but both give you most of the info you need to plan your trip. The best guide however is of course this forum.

I see that you have included only resort areas on your list. You might want to think about a day or two in Santo Domingo so that you and your 11 year old can visit the Colonial Zone and see the remains of a city founded more than 500 years ago and go to the Cathedral where many say Columbus is buried, or at least part of him is. We can direct you to hotels where you will pay closer to $25 than to $40.

You might also want to visit Santiago, the 2nd largest city in the DR, and stay Hotel Colonial.

Also consider including Jarabacoa on your itinerary, a beautiful small town in the mountains. Accomodations there are also in your budget. Lots of activities for both you and the 11 year old, including hiking, horseback riding, and maybe even river rafting.

darkstar68@msn.com said:

I have been daydreaming about DR for a couple yrs now and wondering if it is possible to do for under 2500.

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If this does not include the flights you should have no problem at all.

Id stick to one coast or the other...forget that cross country trip thrown in for the first time there. You will not find sooo much different on one coast VS the other to make an impact on your first trip with just the two of you!

I doubt you could do the AI thing and airfare for two weeks with any side trips thrown in if you went to the Punta cana area. thats just a guess.

Dont get caught up in trying to experience the whole isalnd in one trip...it just leads to dissapointments. Plan smaller scale and have a totally positive experience! It is better to have a little down time for just kick back, than to be under pressure to get back to X spot to catch the bus to Y spot and then huury up see that place and get back to z to see whats going on there.!!!!!!! in the DR everyone that helps you...does it in s l o w motion!!!!!!!!!!! ha ha ha

you have a little time investigate some of the tips you get here. check out the prices and keep us informed!

bob

Darkstar68,
Welcome to DR1. I see you decided to buy the guidebook. If you use that book and this site for answers I am sure your vacation will be fantastic. Our members on DR1 are here to help you with all your questions so please feel free to ask away. Please keep us informed as to how things are going.

I concur with everything that Bob said above. When you get back home maybe you will enlighten us with a report on how your trip went in the "Trip Report Forum". We would be very interested in hearing where you went, how the service and food was all the other items of your trip to our paradise.

Rick

One thing I'm not sure of is whether you have 2500 USD AFTER airfare or does that need to include tickets and if so then where are you flying from, because that will make a huge difference.