POSSIBLE VIOLENCE AT CASA MARINA

[James Walker]

For 2 weeks now, the new Casa Marina hotel at Las Galeras has closed the public path and beach for the local Dominicans. This path (used for more than 200 years by everyone in the area) is no more than 10 meters from public beaches and the path is on public property - not the property of the hotel. All public beaches in the DR are just that - public - and no hotel or company has the right to close any beach to any person by any means. It appears that the local Senator has been bought since he refuses to do anything about the situation; and in fact a soldier from the militia - paid by the government - is blocking the path which runs in front of the hotel along the beach. The locals in the area are giving the hotel until this coming Wednesday, February 10th to return the path to the public. If not, there will be a large demonstration which will likely turn violent since the locals are very upset about the situation as many of them cannot reach their land beyond the hotel and must take a 10 kilometer detour some of which is not accessible by vehicule. The locals would ask all tourists thinking about coming to the area to boycott the Casa Marina hotel, thereby putting pressure on the hotel to return the path to all who wish to take it. Thank-you!

 

[Mike Martin]

I am a Canadian and have stayed at the Casa Marina Hotel Sosua Is this the Casa Marina in Sosua? If it is I will boycott the hotel. If I wanted to stay in a gated hotel I would choose Puerto Plata Playa Dorado People love Sosua because visitors have an opportunity to meet Dominicans and get to know the culture. Any people will turn against tourists if it leads to discrimination in their own country. One only has to look at Jamaica to see the result.

 

[Mike]

This is not in Sosua.

 

[Ellen]

I hope this protest sets a precedent for other resorts thinking they own the beach and do not allow anyone other than guests to traverse the property. Another such place is Dominicus Resort in Bayahibe. If you are not a guest you may not venture onto the beach even though by law 60 meters from the high water mark is owned by the government. There is now the Gran Dominicus which will probably do the same exact thing.

Beaches like Bavaro where one can walk for miles and enjoy the beauty of this country should be the rule. It would detract from the enjoyment of the area if each resort didn't allow non-guests to pass through "their beach".

I certainly hope the protestors at Casa Marina make an imact (without violence). Someone needs to wake up the appropriate people and get them to enforce the 60 meter law. Taking the beaches away from the people and allowing only paying guests to have the right of way is terrible.

On the other hand I salute Casa del Mar in Bayahibe for not only improving the beach but putting in a sidewalk toward town and encouraging vendors to set up attractive stalls so sell their wares. The "locals" add the flavor of the Dominican which is, after all, the reason people come to this wonderful country.

 

[Natasha Lopez]

I sure hope there isn't any violence, but this makes me sooooo mad!!! I know exactly the path you're referring to, and it's a real shame this is happening. I saw people using the path this summer in order to go to work or transport their wares to sell at Las Galeras beach. When we got to know back then that a 250 room resort was going to open, we knew it was going to be BAD NEWS for Las Galeras. Let me know if there is a protest site anywhere; you can count with my signature.

Natasha

 

[Jean-Claude]

On the stretch of beach that lies between Bavaro and Natura Park, we once witnessed a strange happening: two security guards came on a motorbike, causing a vendor to run away, leaving his goods (shells, artifacts etc) on the spot.

On several other occasions, we saw beach guards and vendors obviously negociating the right for the latter to get access to the 'profitable' part of the shore. Some vendors were turned away.

But what really bothers me is not just the racket itself. It is the fact that one can justify it by the need to "protect" the tourists from harassment. We - the tourists - are therefore the culprits, because we insist on that kind of "protection" (some resorts even boast it). Even worse, we assume that we can get it there since "those" countries are not as "free" as ours - and we might as well take advantage of it.

Personally, I don't mind having to say no, with a smile, to equally smiling and good-humoured beach vendors. Believe it or not, most of them will be happy with a hand-shake. Who is civilized ?

One last word: I have been told of another island in that area where it took a revolution to open the beaches to the poor. The notion of Freedom is not that simple...

 

[JD]

but the two hotels have the same 800# in the official travel planner, which suggest they are under the same ownership.

 

[J]

This is just terrible! Glad to hear the locals are standing firm -- hope you are successful. We will send a note to them in protest, as we were planning to visit this place because we thought it would be different from other overdeveloped all-inclusive resort areas. Maybe some notes from foreign tourists will help a little.

Alas, we must ask: how will this affect the Bancroft's house, which is on the same beach as Casa Marina Bay? We are planning on staying there soon. What should we do?

Thank you for your post.

 

[Charlie]

YES. They are owned by the same company but 4 hrs apart on the north coast.

 

[Al Waggoner]

You used to be able to go on the road behind Casa Marina and return to the beach past the resort. This required that you pass through resort property and past a guard but they would allow you through after stopping. Perhaps they just assumed that foreigners were staying at the resort. I'm not sure whether this is still an option but I think that it probably is. If so, it is the last right on the highway before you hit the beach. Once on this road, keep bearing left whenever there is a choice and eventually you will come to a guard station. If they allow you to pass, this will take you to the beach past the resort and, from there you can get to Bancroft's house.

 

[J]

Thanks very much. Still wondering, if for some reason we can't get past the guards, is there another way to go to the beach/Bancrofts with a regular rental car?

 

[Al Waggoner]

I don't think that there is any other road to the Bancroft's house. I doubt that you will have any trouble getting there on either road. The closure is intended to keep the locals from bothering the guests at the resort - not to stop people from passing to their property on the other side of the resort. Foreigners in a car are not likely to be prevented from passing through on either road.

 

[Rene]

I am confused! Aren't both hotels side by side ? In Sosua

 

[JD]

Re: POSSIBLE VIOLENCE AT CASA MARINA - ANY NEWS????

The hotel is Las Galeras is called Casa Marina Bay -- this is the site of the beach access being blocked. The side-by-side hotels in Sosua are called Casa Marina Beach Resort and Casa Marina Reef. All three are under the same ownership and can be e-mailed at casa.marina@codetel.net.do.

Any news about what happened yesterday at the protest in Las Galeras?

 

[Mike Martin]

I protest the restriction of locals using public beaches in Dominican Republic. I suspected that some form of intimidation was in force when I stayed at Casa Marina in Sosua because this beach had almost no Dominicans in sight. Not only is this kind of discrimination wrong but will eventually result in a backlash against tourists as seen in other Caribbean countries using these methods to make a quick profit. I have often seen advertisements in Canada for Dominican Hotels with private beaches. Action should be taken to put a stop to this false advertising.

 

[Bill Collins]

So what's new about "public" beach access! Anyone had a problem in Sosua with a private beach in front of a certain general's home? This is a stretch of about 1/4 mile and several years ago I was asked to leave the area.........at gunpoint by a military guard! The beaches in the DR are public if no "big fish lives nearby.

 

[James Walker]

Re: UPDATE ON POSSIBLE VIOLENCE AT CASA MARINA - ANY NEWS????

Just to let you know that there was a reunion earlier this week amongst all the parties involved and those in the wrong came to their senses. As of today, all is back to normal and locals can go along the path and beach as before. I do empathize with the hotels that don?t want their customers harrassed all day long by locals selling their wares (i.e. Cayo Leventado), however, keep in mind that the government issues permits to these people and can thereby limit their numbers and their sometimes bad, persistent habits. Enjoy your holiday in the DR!

 

[Sue]

I agree with you whole heartedly. The beach at Playa Dorada area is not restricted to tourists that I know of. We have been vacationing there for 10 years and the only restriction is that the lounge chairs belong to the resorts. That goes for any guest that trys to use a chair from a hotel he/she is not staying at. I would hate to see the locals shunned in their own country. It's THEIR country, after all. Such happy, loving, and above all honourable people. A couple of years ago, we stopped in a small town just off the road from the airport to Dorado Club where we stay for a few supplies. My husband told me how much money he needed and I handed it to him. As we were about to drive away....the storekeeper ran out shouting "Senior...senior!!" Do you know what?? I had given hubby a $100. US...instead of a 100 pesos!! Now THATS integrity. I have seen it many times there, these people are the BEST!!! They deserve to be treated with the respect that they deserve!