What is holding back tourism in Puerto Plata?

[alfiefan]

I first went to POP and stayed at the PD in 1988. My most recent visit there was in 2009. During the intervening years, when in the DR, we stayed at rented villas outside PP. There has been a vast change at the PD, and not for the better. In the early years, the PD area was laid out like a small town, and you could walk along the main road and into the various resorts. The beach was unobstructed - you could walk for miles - and while the hotels faced the beach and set up their loungers, it still felt like the whole beach was open to everyone.

Now, the hotels are like gated compounds. If you walk around the complex, all you see are the walls and barriers. There is nothing to see if you go for a walk. Nothing to do. The beaches have been sectioned off and each resort has put up barriers staking out their territory. I suppose you can still go for a walk all along the tide line, but you're not welcome anywhere else, and you certainly can't stop and sit for awhile in the shade and people-watch. I suppose these are the effects of the hotels being AI. They don't want anybody else in their premises or on their beach.

So, the PD has become a collection of enclaves. Aside from the problems others have mentioned, all these walls and barriers are isolating. The PD is not a destination anymore, the hotel is THE destination. You don't really meet anyone not from your resort, you don't enjoy the whole PD, you don't feel like you're free to roam the beach and stop anywhere you want. It's very limiting.

Second, I agree with others who object to the trash-talk about how dangerous it is to go outside the hotel. That makes people afraid of the country and the population. Yes, of course there are some places in PP to avoid, and time times of the night to be very cautious. But in my experience, no one is in danger taking a taxi or even the gwa-gwa to PP and wandering around the central part of the city in the daytime or early evening. I don't think the resorts are concerned about people's safety. I think they want all the money staying inside their walls. This is very greedy and short-sighted.

Just got back a couple of months ago from a trip that included 2 nights in Old San Juan, Puerto Rico. Puerto Plata could be as beautiful and tourist-friendly as OSJ. In fact, it could be even better, because there are so many more natural places of beauty and interest near PP. To become something like OSJ, PP would need to:
* Get serious about tourist safety. Resorts and hotels would have to assume part of the cost of a strong, visible security force (in OSJ, I encountered two uniformed cops on bicycles when I went out of the hotel at 6 a.m.) Hire private, if necessary.
* Get serious about cleanliness. Tourists are frightened by filth and stink. Clean it up, or accept that tourists will never return and tell everyone they know it`s a filthy hole. I love PP, but in spite of the stinky-dirty, not because of it. Make the hotels at the PD chip in to clean POP up and keep it clean, and if they balk, give them a few boutique store-fronts as the payoff.
* Quarantine the sex business. Most people don`t want to see the ho`s, and they sure don`t want their kids seeing them. Get it out of the public eye. See point 1 above for how to get this done.

Puerto Plata can be a gorgeous, interesting, dollar-generating attraction in its own right. That Victorian architecture is beautiful. The Malecon could be a huge draw, day and night. The central park is gorgeous. The whole place is walkable, historic, and set in a beautiful spot, right underneath Mt. Isabelle.

Just my ideas. Go ahead and shoot them down. I love the DR and PP. Been going there for years, and will be back again this June, bringing people with me who have never been there. But it kills me to see it so shabby and downtrodden.

 

[the gorgon]

The question is also who gets whose money. I quess often the money spent in AI's don't stay in DR. When I spend a night with a local girl dancing in El Cabaillon or La Canita, changing the places with motoconcho, the locals get 100% my $, (or the haitianas

that is a point i made earlier to the poster Amu, who believes that the DR is the wunderkind of caribbean tourism, because it gets the highest number of stayover visitors ( as opposed to cruise ship passengers, who are here for less than 24 hours) the point is that international tourism is driven by tour operators. some destinations are even more susceptible the actions of tour operators than others. when a country has a specific, unique asset, the tour operator role is lessened. when tourists go to see the Eiffel Tower, they can only see it in Paris. similarly, Big Ben is only in London. there are many people who book their own flights to see these places, without any need to go through operators. the influence of tour operators is far less, in those cases, than in the caribbean, since all the islands offer the same sun and beach package. the tour operators decide where the seats go. if companies like Thompson Fly and the like decide that they are not sending any seats to POP, then it dies. the tour operators get the bulk of the money a tourist spends on a vacation. they get the airfare section, and the acommodation, plus tour packages. the destinations get a bare minimum of the cost of the package. in the caribbean, the leakage is around 70-80%. what makes it worse for the DR is that most of the really top flight hotels are foreign owned, so the money goes right back to the investor country of origin.

 

[the gorgon]

I agree they're "head in the sand" idiots, only interested in short term lining their pockets, but by going to the meeting and at least trying to make them see sense might just have a small impact. If they hear the same message from enough people, maybe some sense might finally sink in. If nobody says anything, there is no chance!

they do not listen, because they think they know it all already.

 

[the gorgon]

I first went to POP and stayed at the PD in 1988. My most recent visit there was in 2009. During the intervening years, when in the DR, we stayed at rented villas outside PP. There has been a vast change at the PD, and not for the better. In the early years, the PD area was laid out like a small town, and you could walk along the main road and into the various resorts. The beach was unobstructed - you could walk for miles - and while the hotels faced the beach and set up their loungers, it still felt like the whole beach was open to everyone.

Now, the hotels are like gated compounds. If you walk around the complex, all you see are the walls and barriers. There is nothing to see if you go for a walk. Nothing to do. The beaches have been sectioned off and each resort has put up barriers staking out their territory. I suppose you can still go for a walk all along the tide line, but you're not welcome anywhere else, and you certainly can't stop and sit for awhile in the shade and people-watch. I suppose these are the effects of the hotels being AI. They don't want anybody else in their premises or on their beach.

So, the PD has become a collection of enclaves. Aside from the problems others have mentioned, all these walls and barriers are isolating. The PD is not a destination anymore, the hotel is THE destination. You don't really meet anyone not from your resort, you don't enjoy the whole PD, you don't feel like you're free to roam the beach and stop anywhere you want. It's very limiting.

Second, I agree with others who object to the trash-talk about how dangerous it is to go outside the hotel. That makes people afraid of the country and the population. Yes, of course there are some places in PP to avoid, and time times of the night to be very cautious. But in my experience, no one is in danger taking a taxi or even the gwa-gwa to PP and wandering around the central part of the city in the daytime or early evening. I don't think the resorts are concerned about people's safety. I think they want all the money staying inside their walls. This is very greedy and short-sighted.

Just got back a couple of months ago from a trip that included 2 nights in Old San Juan, Puerto Rico. Puerto Plata could be as beautiful and tourist-friendly as OSJ. In fact, it could be even better, because there are so many more natural places of beauty and interest near PP. To become something like OSJ, PP would need to:
* Get serious about tourist safety. Resorts and hotels would have to assume part of the cost of a strong, visible security force (in OSJ, I encountered two uniformed cops on bicycles when I went out of the hotel at 6 a.m.) Hire private, if necessary.
* Get serious about cleanliness. Tourists are frightened by filth and stink. Clean it up, or accept that tourists will never return and tell everyone they know it`s a filthy hole. I love PP, but in spite of the stinky-dirty, not because of it. Make the hotels at the PD chip in to clean POP up and keep it clean, and if they balk, give them a few boutique store-fronts as the payoff.
* Quarantine the sex business. Most people don`t want to see the ho`s, and they sure don`t want their kids seeing them. Get it out of the public eye. See point 1 above for how to get this done.

Puerto Plata can be a gorgeous, interesting, dollar-generating attraction in its own right. That Victorian architecture is beautiful. The Malecon could be a huge draw, day and night. The central park is gorgeous. The whole place is walkable, historic, and set in a beautiful spot, right underneath Mt. Isabelle.

Just my ideas. Go ahead and shoot them down. I love the DR and PP. Been going there for years, and will be back again this June, bringing people with me who have never been there. But it kills me to see it so shabby and downtrodden.

my guess is that PD was never initially intended to be this A1 enclave, but a more folksy style of destination. then, Butch Stewart and the Issa brothers unloaded that beastly all inclusive idea on the caribbean, and the DR decided to jump on the idea, and take it for a ride. they changed horses in mid stream, and went AI. the big problem is that PD is the biggest A1 complex in the world. it houses 14 hotels. if someone goes to Sandals, and it sucks, people do not go back. they consider Sandals to be a $hithole. if they go to Playa Dorada, they can only stay in one hotel, but, if it sucks, they tarbrush Playa Dorada, which they then see as an equivalent s-hole. so, when they go to a place like Celuisma, and it absolutely reeks, it's bye bye PD. sad, but true.

 

[steelmet]

As a frequent traveler to carribean, and central america,,, why would anyone want to spend the money to go to POP... personally i enjoy the area.. Every time we go, we take people who have never been.. we get a cab inside the complex and he takes us everywhere we want to go.. We have a condo on the west coast of PR in a town called isabela.. Not to touristy, but small way away is mayaguez which is a surf area.. It is loaded with us gringos from the states, as we dont fear problems. Crime is on the rise big time in PR however where they have the touristy type area, they have security.. No begging, not alot of trash.. If DR would just do something about the airfare to POP, this is the biggest issue..More and more can fly to europe for way cheaper than a place thats a few hours away.. They advertise PR and costa rica alot here.. Judging by the flights out, i would tell you that costa rica is getting good tourist money.. Simple DR,, clean a smidge, get good security, and not lazy crooked cops, and for petes sake LOWER THE DAMN COST TO GET THERE.. Thats what it really boils down too....

 

[the gorgon]

i have said, many a time and oft, that the internet is going to be the death of tourism in the DR. in most caribbean islands, the crime rate is unsustainably high. ridiculous, even. the problem with the DR is that tourists are victims of crime, far too often. it is as if people in the other islands seem to understand that tourists are their economic lifeblood, and if foreigners keep getting robbed, mugged, and killed, it will severely impair the ability of the tourism product to survive. they kill each other at ridiculous rates, but tourists are not as likely to be victims as are locals. when someone comes here on vacation, and some guy steals his i-phone right off his dining table, he puts it on the internet. 20 years ago he told a few friends when he goes back home. today, he tells the internet, and 5 million guys know about his misadventure. now, everyone can read that the life of a tourist in the DR is fraught with peril. 20 American volunteer doctors being robbed at gunpoint gets splashed all over the blogosphere, and that is not a good thing.

 

[bri777]

I dont think it gets promoted in the US due to whatever

never have been offered a vacation package
honestly ,never really heard of Dom Rep
lol
had to look it up on a map and was surprised how close it was to PR

when I tell my boss and co workers where I am going ,they really have no clue


Jamaica ,Cancun ,Caymans,VI etc all familiar places to most ,but Dominican Republic?
Manu

 

[bri777]

and yes my ticket is almost as much coming from Houston as it is from Germany lol

Manu

 

[alfiefan]

i have said, many a time and oft, that the internet is going to be the death of tourism in the DR. in most caribbean islands, the crime rate is unsustainably high. ridiculous, even. the problem with the DR is that tourists are victims of crime, far too often. it is as if people in the other islands seem to understand that tourists are their economic lifeblood, and if foreigners keep getting robbed, mugged, and killed, it will severely impair the ability of the tourism product to survive. they kill each other at ridiculous rates, but tourists are not as likely to be victims as are locals. when someone comes here on vacation, and some guy steals his i-phone right off his dining table, he puts it on the internet. 20 years ago he told a few friends when he goes back home. today, he tells the internet, and 5 million guys know about his misadventure. now, everyone can read that the life of a tourist in the DR is fraught with peril. 20 American volunteer doctors being robbed at gunpoint gets splashed all over the blogosphere, and that is not a good thing.

With respect, we don't hear any of those reports about the DR very much in the news. We hear practically nothing about the DR. What we hear is word of mouth from people how other people 's vacation went.

Sadly, where most Canadian ppl I used to talk to years ago went to the DR, now most go to Cuba. Why?

Cheap.
No hassles (that means nobody disturbs you every five minutes on the beach trying to give you the business.)
Totally safe.

In my own experience as a repeat tourist in both countries, here's my analysis:

Cuba always colder, and not even reliably warm.
Cuba food always bad and not much of it.
Cuba no sense of humour, nor even even why a sense of humour would be desirable.
Cuba, not really a very pretty place, physically. Flat. Colourless.
Clean as a whistle.

DR awesomely beautiful compared to Cuba.
Always warmer temperatures.
Food in DR usually better, but not fab, with a few exceptions.
DR people express emotions, not restraint and withdrawal.
Totally better dancers

 

[alfiefan]

It's not only about cheap airfares. I don't want to tell you how much we spent on air getting to Puerto Rico.
Don't even talk to me about what we spent getting to St Vincent and the Grenadines.

The point is when we arrived, both places were clean, safe, and it was easy to find out many things we would like to do and see.

Tell me, is that what I'd find in PP?

 

[Salsafan]

@Alfiefan:
I agree, apart from two points:
- In summer its as hot as in DR.
- In DR totally better Bachata-Dancers, in Cuba totally better Salsa-Dancers.

 

[LTSteve]

You guys seem to be beating a dead horse. Why would tourists want to go to an AI in POP vs PC/Bavaro. PC beaches are nicer ,many of the hotels newer and a prices more competitive. It is a matter of where the Ministry of Tourism wants to put there money. Right now it is not POP. That could change down the road but there are so many options and places to go for tourists in the DR.

LTSteve

 

[the gorgon]

You guys seem to be beating a dead horse. Why would tourists want to go to an AI in POP vs PC/Bavaro. PC beaches are nicer ,many of the hotels newer and a prices more competitive. It is a matter of where the Ministry of Tourism wants to put there money. Right now it is not POP. That could change down the road but there are so many options and places to go for tourists in the DR.

LTSteve

it is not simply a matter of where the government or the tourist board want to put their money. it is where the tour operators want to send the seats. their margins are very slim. they make very little money on each package so they have to get the best deals. hotels in PC are working on volume, and economies of scale. a big hotel in POP is 400 rooms. that is a small hotel in PC. besides, the hotels in PC are newer, and in better condition. my buddy went to a hotel in Playa Dorada, and while he was sitting atop the throne, the washbasin fell off the wall and very nearly fell on his leg. had it broken his leg, and a lawsuit ensued, the tour operator would be out big dollars, just like those who have been sued by customers who have gone to places on the North Coast and gone home with debilitating stomach ailments. POP complains that they do not get promoyion and exposure. then they say they are going to resuscitate Pop. which is first? are they going to promote a non-existent product? first they have to re-invent POP, because a few coats of paint and some new bed sheets is not going to do it. the powers that be in POP have believed in their infallibility too long. they read reports of how many tourists they get, and believe that it is because they do things better than the other islands. nothing could be farther from the truth. a country like Jamaica, for instance, gets 2 million people. that is to be expected, since it is one quarter the size of the DR, with a little over one quarter the population. so, Dominicans believe that they have a better tourism product than Jamaica, and can rest on their laurels, because they are kings of the hill. nothing could be farther from the truth.

 

[Richard Alberto]

Playa Dorada was nice 10 years ago but once the global economy tanked so did it. The medium income of their clients seem to be in the middle class tourist and who took the biggest hit job wise. Whereas, Punta Cana has a higher income market and was able to somewhat absorb the economic left hook.

NTL, Playa Dorada was HUGE for POP and now it's a ghost town, that one club is wack, Bluemoon was rented for a sweet sixteen when I last went and there is not much else. At least in LT the variety in restaurants and hotel accommodations is much more attractive. As recent as this past year JetBlue made LT another, cheaper flight variable for DR visitors.

 

[london777]

Very interesting thread with a higher than usual proportion of informative comments.

 

[tballerina]

Two words PUNTA CANA!!!!!

I live in Punta Cana and love it. Went to check out Puerto Plata last year and couldn't stand the chasing of vendors. I found it overwhelming. Don't find that here in Punta Cana/Cap Cana area. Even when we go to Veron. As trivial as that seems, I believe it's crucial if tourism is going to thrive in the Puerto Plata area. Also the organization is a lot better here in Punta Cana. I didn't say perfect, I said, better.

 

[alfiefan]

Here's a question, why compare PP to PC? Why try to argue one is better than the other? They are both in the same country. The country would benefit if both did well. Why believe there are only enough tourists for one destination? Why not decide the country has two (or more) attractive destinations, and decide to make them both (or all) work?

Never been to PC, but I'll take your word it's fabulous. But I've been to lots of Caribbean islands, and I can tell you that PP and its surroundings are also, potentially better than most of the other islands I've been to. It's much more gorgeous than many other islands, many of which are flat, dry, and boring. The city of PP, although rundown, still has a charm that many other island cities don't have. Coupla examples. Phillipsburg, St. Maarten - lotsa ugly stores all selling tax-free foreign goods. Pointe a Pitre, Guadeloupe - managed to preserve some of their town's historic squares, but many buildings are ugly-modern.

Clean PP up. Paint up that lovely Victorian architecture. Get the garbage and the stinky stuff off the streets. Plus the ho's and the hucksters. If that was done, it would be nicer and more interesting than those two I mentioned.

 

[Harleysrock]

you take away the sex tourism out of DR,the economy will collapse!

Maybe I'm the only guy here who would not touch any of these women with a 10 foot pole! DISEASE DISEASE DISEASE and i'm just not attracted to them and their money grabbing ways! Am i Crazy? Is there anyone else who feels the same???!!! Woman who only want me for money just really does not turn me on!

 

[ctrob]

you take away the sex tourism out of DR,the economy will collapse!

How much do you send every month?

 

[the gorgon]

Here's a question, why compare PP to PC? Why try to argue one is better than the other? They are both in the same country. The country would benefit if both did well. Why believe there are only enough tourists for one destination? Why not decide the country has two (or more) attractive destinations, and decide to make them both (or all) work?

Never been to PC, but I'll take your word it's fabulous. But I've been to lots of Caribbean islands, and I can tell you that PP and its surroundings are also, potentially better than most of the other islands I've been to. It's much more gorgeous than many other islands, many of which are flat, dry, and boring. The city of PP, although rundown, still has a charm that many other island cities don't have. Coupla examples. Phillipsburg, St. Maarten - lotsa ugly stores all selling tax-free foreign goods. Pointe a Pitre, Guadeloupe - managed to preserve some of their town's historic squares, but many buildings are ugly-modern.

Clean PP up. Paint up that lovely Victorian architecture. Get the garbage and the stinky stuff off the streets. Plus the ho's and the hucksters. If that was done, it would be nicer and more interesting than those two I mentioned.

i am very sorry to be the bearer of this bit of fact, but getting the hos out of Puerto Plata did not help a whole lot. people have to wake up and face inconvenient truths. sex sells. without Pattaya, less guys go to Thailand. if anyone has a disagreement with what i say, then maybe they might want to give me a simple explanation as to why it is that even in the lowest troughs of low season, Blackbeards is always jumping? has anyone stopped to consider the economic dislocations caused by asphyxiating the sex trade in POP? people always get offended when the matter of sex tourism is discussed in juxtaposition with the name Puerto Plata. get real! there is no Sphynx here. no Eiffel tower. no Statue of Liberty. a substantial fraction of visitors to POP go there for poon. plain and simple. no ifs, ands, or buts. subtract the foreign currency earnings from prostitution in Sosua, and there is not enough money left over to buy a plato del dia.