Need Recommendation on D.R. Vacation

[Lucas61]

Hello All,

I hope you are safe and happy.

LOL! I'm not talking about a vacation TO the D.R. (where I've lived for 14 years) but a vacation FROM the D.R.
For my world travels in years past, I always used Lonely Planet publications. Now, a newish game in town is superlative, allowing you to drill down to all manner of detail in every conceivable category and that is wikitravel.org

My wife (dominicana) and I will spend one month in Medellin, Colombia. I anticipate much vicarious enjoyment as she has her first experience entering an airport and flying at 61 years of age. For Medellin, we have stuff exquisitely planned.

Question: What is your recommendation for a second city to visit? We cannot visit the capital as I'll have respiratory problems given the altitude. We looked at Cartagena, a 12 hour bus ride from Medellin. It seems ho-hum to me: The same colonial archtitecture as here; the same tourist stuff. What would be your best choice for a city other than Cartagena and the capital? Needless to say, at 70 and 61 years of age, we won't be hiking.

Question: I see that Colombia abuts both Brasil and Peru and that neither of these countries require a visa for Dominican citizens. Any recommendation to enter any of these countries, a "safe" place (it's relative), then return?

Many thanks.

 

[NanSanPedro]

Funny. I just looked up Medellin today 👍🏼👍🏼

 

[bob saunders]

I am 67 and my wife 64 and we walk and hike everywhere. Cartagena has a very different vibe than anywhere in the DR, or Colombia for that matter, and to me is worth visiting. Santa Marta is nice and has a nice national park. Safe area. If you didn't have the altitude problem, there are numerous places to go. https://internationalliving.com/countries/colombia/coffee-triangle-colombia/

 

[CG]

Medellin is the greatest place on earth, such an accomplishment of urban planning & renewal considering their recent past, BRAVO!.. Every mayor of every Latin American city should visit and follow their lead..

 

[aarhus]

Hello All,

I hope you are safe and happy.

LOL! I'm not talking about a vacation TO the D.R. (where I've lived for 14 years) but a vacation FROM the D.R.
For my world travels in years past, I always used Lonely Planet publications. Now, a newish game in town is superlative, allowing you to drill down to all manner of detail in every conceivable category and that is wikitravel.org

My wife (dominicana) and I will spend one month in Medellin, Colombia. I anticipate much vicarious enjoyment as she has her first experience entering an airport and flying at 61 years of age. For Medellin, we have stuff exquisitely planned.

Question: What is your recommendation for a second city to visit? We cannot visit the capital as I'll have respiratory problems given the altitude. We looked at Cartagena, a 12 hour bus ride from Medellin. It seems ho-hum to me: The same colonial archtitecture as here; the same tourist stuff. What would be your best choice for a city other than Cartagena and the capital? Needless to say, at 70 and 61 years of age, we won't be hiking.

Question: I see that Colombia abuts both Brasil and Peru and that neither of these countries require a visa for Dominican citizens. Any recommendation to enter any of these countries, a "safe" place (it's relative), then return?

Many thanks.

I haven’t been but what about Cali. I have been to Cartagena, Medellin and Bogota. What’s striking is how different they are.

 

[chico bill]

Are you certain Brazil and Peru do not require visas for DR passport holders?

 

[windeguy]

Are you certain Brazil and Peru do not require visas for DR passport holders?

If this is correct then no visa for Dominican Republic citizens with a passport is needed for Brazil and Peru.

Dominican Republic Passport Visa Free Countries List 2024

Dominican Republic Passport Visa-free Travel 2024 The Dominican Republic passport ranking is @RANK@; the number of visa free destinations accessible with

visaindex.com

 

[william webster]

Seems to be correct........ article says so

 

[Lucas61]

I am 67 and my wife 64 and we walk and hike everywhere. Cartagena has a very different vibe than anywhere in the DR, or Colombia for that matter, and to me is worth visiting. Santa Marta is nice and has a nice national park. Safe area. If you didn't have the altitude problem, there are numerous places to go. https://internationalliving.com/countries/colombia/coffee-triangle-colombia/

Sold! Saying that the vibe in Cartagena is different even from other parts of Colombia indicates that this city is special, so I'll take your word on it and we'll check it out. Per my source, in Cartagena in Barrio Gethsemane (not the correct Spanish spelling but biblical!) on a street called Calle de la Media Luna, one can find all manner of buget hotels as Cartagena can get very expensive very quickly. In land area, km^2, the land area of Colombia is 23 times greater than that of the D.R.! That being said the bus from Medellin is 12 hours. Ouch! A reminder of my Greyhound days. Probably be best to leave in the evening and arrive in the morning. Arriving via local transport to an unknown city at night is a big no-no. But then at night you cannot see the geography. If we know that the departure point in Medellin is secure, then on the return, we could leave Cartagena in the morning, see the country by daylight through the window, then arrive in the evening.

Thanks also for the recommendation on Santa Marta which I'll now check out. Ditto for the link and that website. I have loved and drank Colombian coffee all my life. Not vetting the special coffee places would be a mistake.

 

[Lucas61]

Medellin is the greatest place on earth, such an accomplishment of urban planning & renewal considering their recent past, BRAVO!.. Every mayor of every Latin American city should visit and follow their lead..

That's what I hear--a major turnaround from the depths. It appears that in transport and other features relating to infrastructure, that the country is First World in many respects, although "developing" in others. For years now in the D.R. I've heard nothing but good reports about this country--with the usual caveats.

 

[Lucas61]

I haven’t been but what about Cali. I have been to Cartagena, Medellin and Bogota. What’s striking is how different they are.

You second bob saunders notion when you note how different Cartagena is from Medellin. That is what I needed to hear to justify that excursion. And, yes, you mentioned Cali, another major city. I will investigate. I see you are a coffee lover like me. That is clearly something to explore if not buy. I remember that 25 years or so ago, when I was in Jamaica, I purchased one of the most expensive coffees in the world--Blue Mountain. It's a mild coffee. When I first tasted it I wondered what the fuss was about. Then I realized it had a subtle taste unlike any other. It was very cheap in Jamaica at that time and I had big regrets that I did not bring back the maximum. Ditto for Ethiopian coffee: mild but subtle.

 

[Lucas61]

If this is correct then no visa for Dominican Republic citizens with a passport is needed for Brazil and Peru.

Dominican Republic Passport Visa Free Countries List 2024

Dominican Republic Passport Visa-free Travel 2024 The Dominican Republic passport ranking is @RANK@; the number of visa free destinations accessible with

visaindex.com

@windeguy: Thanks for apprising DR1 members of this critical URL. I use it all the time. On the map, the D.R. will appear in red. All other world countries will be color coded as to their visa status for Dominican passport holders. Grey, for example, means "passport required." Below you will a table with the color classifications per country in alpha order. From this you can immediately glean which country do not require a visa, and that includes Peru and Brasil. Given that these two countries border Colombia, this means that from one location a Dominican citizen could access three important Latin American countries without a visa. You can use a variation of the same URL for any country of which you are a citizen to find your visa requirement. I STRONGLY URGE DR1 MEMBERS TO CHECK THIS LINK. IT'S VERY USEFUL. The site notes that the Dominican passport is one of the weakest in Latin American. The others are Cuba and Haiti. That being said, it's surprising that you can enter Israel and Japan with a Dominican passport, no visa required. We checked out both Marrakesh, Morocco (ditto, no visa required) and Japan, but the cost of the airfares was VERY prohibitive. At nearly 70, I could be dead before I saved enough money.

 

[slowmo]

You might want to check out Guatape as it is close to Medellin but has a different vibe. Seems peaceful and slow paced.

 

[Father Guido]

I was in Peru in 1990 with my work, Lima and the port area of Callao, it was dangerous then and still is now; been to Cartagena many times, always enjoyed it, very historical and on the beach; been to Santa Marta, very overrated.

 

[Lucas61]

You might want to check out Guatape as it is close to Medellin but has a different vibe. Seems peaceful and slow paced.

Cool. I will check this.

 

[Lucas61]

I was in Peru in 1990 with my work, Lima and the port area of Callao, it was dangerous then and still is now; been to Cartagena many times, always enjoyed it, very historical and on the beach; been to Santa Marta, very overrated.

Thanks. I will cross these cities off my list. Bottom line: I'll check a map and see what is the closest town/city from the Colombian border. Then I'll vet both transportation and safety. If either is a problem, then "no go."

 

[keepcoming]

Posts must be DR related.

 

[Lucas61]

Posts must be DR related.

Sure. Everyone understands that. For the people, like me, who have been here for many years and plan to remain here for the rest of our lives, there are the questions of: How does one live? How does one find meaning in life? Part of that answer has to do with exploration and travel. If it were not for that urge, and a dash of courage, many of us never would have come to the D.R. in the first place and DR1 forums would not exist. DR1 is a de facto ex-pat support community. We advise and help each other, mostly as relates to the D.R. but now always. Indeed Colombia is related to the D.R. in the sense that ex-pats, many of them, are in relationships with Dominican citizens and Dominican citizens, like anyone in the world, desire to travel but are limited in their options, thus, the discussion. A discussion such as this contributes to the well-being of those who live here as well as their Dominican partners. "No harm, no foul."

 

[aarhus]

Posts must be DR related.

When I lived in the DR I was interested in knowing about locations I could travel to near the DR where my Dominican wife at the time could travel to without her having to apply for a visa or it would be easy. We started with Colombia. Then Panama and Brazil. And India. Crazy idea. She eventually got a US visa and she recently got visitors visa to Spain. So in my opinion it can be DR related. Also just destination’s with direct flights from the DR is useful to know.

 

[aarhus]

You second bob saunders notion when you note how different Cartagena is from Medellin. That is what I needed to hear to justify that excursion. And, yes, you mentioned Cali, another major city. I will investigate. I see you are a coffee lover like me. That is clearly something to explore if not buy. I remember that 25 years or so ago, when I was in Jamaica, I purchased one of the most expensive coffees in the world--Blue Mountain. It's a mild coffee. When I first tasted it I wondered what the fuss was about. Then I realized it had a subtle taste unlike any other. It was very cheap in Jamaica at that time and I had big regrets that I did not bring back the maximum. Ditto for Ethiopian coffee: mild but subtle.

I am sorry about your health issues regarding traveling to Bogota. I thought Bogota was very interesting. Maybe not a popular opinion but I liked it better than Medelin. So many cultural activities. Yes Cartagena is similar in many aspects to Santo Domingo. I would have wanted to see Cali. Annually they have a salsa festival.