Introducing Bávaro & Punta Cana

Ground zero of DR tourism. The epicenter of the all-inclusive resort. Where buffet items seem to outnumber grains of sand. If you were to tell a Dominican anywhere in the world that you visited their country, this is where they would assume you came. Deservedly popular because its beaches do rival those anywhere else in the Caribbean, both in terms of their soft, white texture and their warm aquamarine waters, a trip here nevertheless involves as much a love for swim-up pool bars and rubbing sun-tanned elbows with likeminded people. Over 24, 000 hotel rooms from Punta Cana to El Macao, with more on the way, are crowding out the impressively tall coconut trees that fringe the shoreline. Punta Cana, shorthand for the region as a whole, is actually somewhat of a misnomer. The majority of resorts are scattered around the beaches of Bávaro, really nothing more than a series of small commercial plazas, and Cortecito, a short strip of shops along a ‘town beach.’ Punta Cana (Grey-Haired Point), the easternmost tip of the country and where the airport is located, has some of the more luxurious resorts and Caribbean-hugging golf courses.