Ground Transportation SDQ to Punta Cana

[hnf8705]

Hola!

My family and I are headed to Punta Cana next week and I REALLY need help finding CHEAP ground transportation.. Our flight is into SDQ and not PUJ. At the time of purchase, the flights to SDQ were much much less than into PUJ. To the point that ground transfer for the four of us would be less. Our airline also doesn't fly into PUJ so paying a change fee to fly there is not an option.

I also thought we'd be able to take a CaribeTours or some sort of coach bus for about US $10 each but it doesnt appear to pick up at the SDQ airport! I also noticed the last bus leaves Santo Domingo at 4pm. Our flight gets in at 3:30. Then we'd have to get a taxi to the bus station. We wont make it.

I'm trying to find the cheapest/quickest way to get to Barcelo Punta Cana from SDQ. I should mention I'm trying to avoid expensive rip-off airport taxis. I have been researching since i bought the flights a month ago and still don't know the best way to do this! I'm hoping someone with inside information can help me out!

Yo hablo espanol. But my mom and two sisters do not. There are four of us travelling. ANY help is MUCH appreciated!!!

Thanks in advance!

 

[Mcinbrass]

The cheapest quickest way is to piggyback one of the tourist vans waiting outside the airport for ground transfers to Punta Cana, there are always vans wwaiting to take tourists with the prepaid transfers, you can ask the driver if hell take you and negotiate the fare for your group directly with him. I have dont this in the past , once I was able to get a driver to take my wife, my mother and myself for $100 US one way, hes going there anyway usually with just a few people in the van, he take you and its $$ in his pocket,. good luck and let us know how it works out, The same driver even came and picked up up a few days later and brought us to the malecon for $110. so it is possible.

 

[Dolores1]

Excellent recommendation by Mcinbrass...

FYI... The going airport taxi fare is US$175, or more than RD$7,000 pesos. The ride takes 2:30 hours on the toll road. Tolls are RD$300. It is a lot.
If you were to rent a car, say from National, you could get a good car for 4 with insurance and taxes included, for around US$90 per day. Driving to Punta Cana is quite straight forward because it is going East all the time. Bring a compass.
The drop off fee for the car is US$65 if you were to drop it off in Punta Cana, so that would be about the same as the taxi would charge. But if you want to get around, renting the car is the best option because of the high taxi fares in Punta Cana.
To inquire with National, see National Car Rental // Dominican Republic // Welcome

 

[Mcinbrass]

This was before the new highway which I've yet to experience. The trip then took a grueling 4 hours through San Pedro, Romana and Higuey. Since then Ive negotiated taxi fares of no more than $100 from the capital to Punta Cana, but that was a caliente, for $175.00 you should be assured air conditioning!

 

[Dolores1]

The US$175 is the official rate of taxis at the airport. That is what he will be asked to pay. In Santo Domingo, you could negotiate less, but the unionized taxis have their rate. I called the airport for this information. The airport taxis have air conditioning.
Interestingly, I called Apolo Taxi and they said they charge RD$7,000. That is to pick up a passenger at Las Americas to take that person to Barcelo Punta Cana.

 

[hnf8705]

The cheapest quickest way is to piggyback one of the tourist vans waiting outside the airport for ground transfers to Punta Cana, there are always vans wwaiting to take tourists with the prepaid transfers, you can ask the driver if hell take you and negotiate the fare for your group directly with him.

That sounds like it would work.. What do the vans look like? 12-passenger or more like a mini-van? Are they a certain color or labeled on the outside? I just want to make sure I go to the right area. Also, do they have a specific name in Spanish? I'm kinda excited about this option! Gracias!

 

[hnf8705]

The US$175 is the official rate of taxis at the airport. That is what he will be asked to pay. In Santo Domingo, you could negotiate less, but the unionized taxis have their rate. I called the airport for this information. The airport taxis have air conditioning.
Interestingly, I called Apolo Taxi and they said they charge RD$7,000. That is to pick up a passenger at Las Americas to take that person to Barcelo Punta Cana.

Wow. Thanks for letting me know that price quote from the airport.. I didn't realize it was that high! I thought it was going to be under $150 for sure.. Now im even more determined to try to find a tourist van!

I originally thought that their may be more options if we go out to the highway/main road from the airport. But im not sure how safe that option is. I was thinking of maybe a non-airport taxi or a gua-gua bus or any alternatives. Would that be possible as a back-up plan to the tourist van?

 

[LTSteve]

Why don't you call your hotel in Bavaro and see if they can arrange a van from Punta Cana to come pick you up. I'm afraid at this point you will probably have to pay a hefty amount to for the trip. You might want to consider also to rent a car. By the time you pay for both trips you will have paid for one. As I said before, don't fly into an airport 3-4hrs away when you could have been 20 mins. away. Not smart.

LTSteve

 

[Mcinbrass]

You never mentioned how many are in your group, from there Ill tell you how much is fair. You will need to expertly negotiate with the van driver. Remember his job is to extract as much money from tourists as he possibly can, you will need to be firm and not budge , eventually he will meet your price but not until after perhaps some ugliness.

 

[Mcinbrass]

The idea of going out to the main road is one I have thought of many times, however I rejected for a few reasons. Now there is a new highway and any bus you catch will take you to Higuey first and then transfer to Bavaro. Which is a long 4 plus hour odyssey. Also the safety factor waiting for a bus with your valuables, cash, luggage etc. And lastly the availability of a bus. Many are full by the time they pass Las Americas so your wait could be long. Renting a car is a headache plain and simple. Gas is expensive. And almost always, with the condition of the roads in DR you will return the car with "damage" so be prepared to pay for it when you do.

 

[hnf8705]

You never mentioned how many are in your group, from there Ill tell you how much is fair. You will need to expertly negotiate with the van driver. Remember his job is to extract as much money from tourists as he possibly can, you will need to be firm and not budge , eventually he will meet your price but not until after perhaps some ugliness.

There are four of us.. My mom, two sisters, and myself. What would be a good price to start with? And i'm nooot sure im good at being "firm w/ ugliness." Have some practice lines for me? Lol.

The idea of going out to the main road is one I have thought of many times, however I rejected for a few reasons. Now there is a new highway and any bus you catch will take you to Higuey first and then transfer to Bavaro. Which is a long 4 plus hour odyssey. Also the safety factor waiting for a bus with your valuables, cash, luggage etc. And lastly the availability of a bus. Many are full by the time they pass Las Americas so your wait could be long. Renting a car is a headache plain and simple. Gas is expensive. And almost always, with the condition of the roads in DR you will return the car with "damage" so be prepared to pay for it when you do.

Thanks for an answer to this.. I know for sure we wont be renting a car for those very reasons. AND because although im "used to" the driving in Latin American countries, my mother is NOT. She would not be comfortable with that at all. I told my mom and sisters that it would be better to take DR money from an ATM at the airport than bring lots of big bills in $US. For luggage we are sharing and will only have 2 bags for the four of us, and a personal item. But on a crammed bus, it would be hard to do i'm sure. Are there taxis on the main road that would go to PUJ for less than the ones at the airport do?

 

[hnf8705]

Why don't you call your hotel in Bavaro and see if they can arrange a van from Punta Cana to come pick you up. I'm afraid at this point you will probably have to pay a hefty amount to for the trip. You might want to consider also to rent a car. By the time you pay for both trips you will have paid for one. As I said before, don't fly into an airport 3-4hrs away when you could have been 20 mins. away. Not smart.

LTSteve

I didnt really mean to either "like" or "dislike" your post. I was on my phone at the time and not sure how to undo it. Anyways, I did indeed already talk to Bavaro and they said we'd have to take a taxi. I somewhat explained in the post above why i wont be renting a car. I did look into this before i bought the tix. At the time of purchase, the PUJ tix were $150 more p/person and there are FOUR of us.. The only mistake i made was assuming the bus would be catchable from the airport.

 

[hnf8705]

Hey everyone! So I'm back from P.C. (sadly). It was a GREAT trip! We ended up confirming transportation with IBK services (index ) It ended up costing $135. Our driver , Angel, was amazing! He truly fits his name as he is one of the most kind-hearted, thoughtful people I have ever met. I speak Spanish so we talked a lot or I interpreted for my family. He does know some English as well. We talked a lot about God (as we are both Christians), his wife and two children, and the beautiful Dominican Republic! He picked us up in a gray mini-van with A/C. Plenty of room for the four of us to stretch out and relax on the 2.5 hour drive. We also stopped at a place in La Romana to buy souveniers and snacks.

He was such an exceptional driver and so admirably considerate that we decided to hire him again for the ride back to the SDQ airport instead of taking the bus. We figured it would be better since we'd have to take a taxi on both ends of the bus ride anyways. In return, we stopped at an orphanage that we had an opportunity to bless financially and be blessed by some of the sweetest children. The return cost was $140.

So even though our ground transport cost a total of $275.00, we still came out cheaper since the flight to PUJ would have been $600.00 more for the four of us. AND we had the benefit of learning more about the place we were visiting, give back to the country, and make wonderful new friends. I'd say we definitely came out on top! I really hope to return soon to the D.R.!

Anyone needing transport from the SDQ airport to the Punta Cana area: I HIGHLY recommend Angel from IBK services! Tell him Hayley says hola and ask him to play the Pollito Pio song!

 

[CaptnGlenn]

glad it worked out so well for you. You had an adventure along with your vacation. I think the taxi back, (instead of the bus), was DEFINITELY the right choice.

 

[Mcinbrass]

$135.00 for 4 people not bad! And it didnt even need to get ugly. Remember Dolores called Apolo and they quoted $175 for a taxi. Well done!

 

[Riva_31]

Hello, there is another option depending on what time arrive your flight to Santo Domingo, arround Super Mercado Nacional in Maximo Gomez Ave. there is a Bus Company with buses to Punta Cana Express, think now the ticket will be arround 300.00 pesos likw 8.00 Dollars, they have departures at 7:00 am and 10:00 am in the morning and also in the afternoon at 4:00 pm, so one taxi from the Airport to the Bus Stop will charge you arround 40.00 Dollars + 32,00 Dollars (4 tickets) + another taxi in punta cana from the bus stop to your hotel that will be arround 15 dollars will be 87.00 dollars, so is better to make a deal with the taxi drivers from the airport and try to get it on arround 100.00 dollars or 115.00 and you will save a lot time and will enjoy the beach.

For the way back is better to take the bus, you can take a taxi from your hotel to the bus stop, find out about the hours of the express to Santo Domingo from Punta Cana, tell the driver to drop you in front of the taxi company at the entrance of the airport and they take you to the airport for no more than 10 dollars, so will be like 15.00 from your hotel to the bus stop + 32 for your bus tickets + 10.00 dollars for the taxi at the airport entrance and you will have 57,00 dollars, do this if your flight is on day time.

Make sure you will get the express to Santo Domingo from Punta Cana., if you dont get this bus then they will take your from punta cana to higuey and overthere switch bus at the bus station and then to Santo Domingo, like that will be more complicated and if is the 1st time you come maybe you will be scared.

 

[hnf8705]

$135.00 for 4 people not bad! And it didnt even need to get ugly. Remember Dolores called Apolo and they quoted $175 for a taxi. Well done!

Yes, I did remember that! I'm very thankful for how everything turned out! Thanks for your support!

 

[hnf8705]

glad it worked out so well for you. You had an adventure along with your vacation. I think the taxi back, (instead of the bus), was DEFINITELY the right choice.

I'm so glad too! The adventure was well worth it and thanks also for your support of my decision! It was a GREAT trip!

 

[hnf8705]

Hello, there is another option depending on what time arrive your flight to Santo Domingo, arround Super Mercado Nacional in Maximo Gomez Ave. there is a Bus Company with buses to Punta Cana Express, think now the ticket will be arround 300.00 pesos likw 8.00 Dollars, they have departures at 7:00 am and 10:00 am in the morning and also in the afternoon at 4:00 pm, so one taxi from the Airport to the Bus Stop will charge you arround 40.00 Dollars + 32,00 Dollars (4 tickets) + another taxi in punta cana from the bus stop to your hotel that will be arround 15 dollars will be 87.00 dollars,

Wow! This is all the bus information one would need in a nutshell! Do you use this route regularly so as to verify the prices are recent? I was originally hoping to take the bus out to Punta Cana but our flight landed too late in the day. We couldnt even make the 4pm bus.

so is better to make a deal with the taxi drivers from the airport and try to get it on arround 100.00 dollars or 115.00 and you will save a lot time and will enjoy the beach.

I'm curious about these taxi prices from the airport out to P.C. Another member on here said they called the taxi service at the airport and were quoted $175 for a taxi because of the taxi tariff book and they are unable to accept any price below that. However, I believe the price points you provided about how one could take the trip cheaper would be great references to use for bartering with a taxi driver if necessary.

For the way back is better to take the bus, you can take a taxi from your hotel to the bus stop, find out about the hours of the express to Santo Domingo from Punta Cana, tell the driver to drop you in front of the taxi company at the entrance of the airport

I was totally trying to find out if it was possible for the bus to drop people off somewhere close to the airport. Is that only possible on the express bus? Because i found out that the busses are direct and only go from bus station to bus station. THIS would have been nice to know! Although, i dont regret my decision at all of going with Angel from IBK.

and they take you to the airport for no more than 10 dollars, so will be like 15.00 from your hotel to the bus stop + 32 for your bus tickets + 10.00 dollars for the taxi at the airport entrance and you will have 57,00 dollars, do this if your flight is on day time.

If these prices are correct and recent.. This option is considerably cheaper! This info may help someone in a situation similar to mine. Its a better option for smaller groups too. We had 4 people so splitting the taxi was still reasonable. With fewer people and fewer luggage, this is an option that seems worth considering. Thanks for the information! If i return to the D.R. with my boyfriend instead of my family, I will definitely look into these options.. But I think i would still prefer to call up Angel from IBK!