For the true night owls, the resorts’ casinos stay open until the early morning hours. These casinos may be found at Playa Dorada Hotel, Paradise Resort and Jack Tar Village.

And then there is Hemingways in Playa Dorada Plaza, a restaurant-bar-discotheque that has been going strong for almost 12 years and is open to guests from all hotels and to the townspeople. Hemingways has mastered the combina- tion and today provides the hang-out spot for Puerto Plata’s young adults, as well as the visitors to Puerto Plata, both foreign and local. Its success is in the chemistry and the way the DJ plays to the crowd. Jossie Marte Cohen explains how, depending on the time, the musical lineup is decided. From 9pm to 11:30pm, an older crowd will be in, and so the music will tend to 80s and 70s rock and disco, mixed in with a little reggae. As the evening advances and the drinks are flowing, he will add more modern offerings, such as hip hop, and mix rapid and slow dances. Once in a while, he will throw in a Merengue – just to relax the ear.

If it is a weekend, the DJ may insert a few more Latin beats for the local Dominicans. Marte explains that people don’t really realize they are in a disco until midnight, when the party really gets going. He says maybe the evening is for a Latin Fiesta (like on long weekends), or beach night (themed for the beach), or pirate or tequila party. On long weekends, they will have live Dominican rock groups or specially-invited artists. The hotels’ animators will also converge there, with their newest friends in tow.

The evenings go by fast in Playa Dorada, until they suddenly come to a stop. After all, some energy must be saved for the active day that follows. After the dining and dancing, the evening will end just as it as began for many, with a stroll under a star-studded Caribbean sky, through the lush gardens of many of the hotels, along the ocean boardwalk at Paradise Hotel, or round the sidewalks that border the road that links the 14 hotels in Playa Dorada. This is the Playa Dorada complex at its most romantic, with couples hand in hand headed for a good night’s sleep.