Things to do in Dominican Republic
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La Yuca Caliente
A definite step up from the neighboring cookie-cutter restaurants, La Yuca Caliente is sophisticated and serene. Spanish, Italian, fish dishes and excellent pizzas are served by a professional and courteous staff. Tables are set out on the beach amid swaying palm trees and the low-key sound system is conversation friendly. Wi-fi internet is available.
reviewed
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Punta Cana Full-Day Dune Buggy Adventure to Lemon Lagoon Bay
9 hours (Departs Punta Cana, Dominican Republic)
by Viator
Hop aboard this full-day dune buggy adventure and experience the very best Punta Cana has to offer. Drive a manual transmission dune buggy through rice fields…Not LP reviewed
from USD$158.99 -
Caribbean Coffee & Tea
Tucked into Plaza Andalucia, a small strip mall, this café is popular with a young upscale crowd from the surrounding Los Angeles–like neighborhood. While there’s nothing to see other than a busy intersection, sitting at one of the outdoor tables sipping a cappuccino (US$2) or tea (US$1.50) is a pleasant way to while away an afternoon. Wraps (US$10), paninis (US$7) and salads (US$6) are also available.
reviewed
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El Meson de Lu
This simple and unpretentious restaurant is a downscale version of Mesón D’Bari across the street. Mostly loyal locals line up at the small bar or in the open-air dining room for filling plates of seafood and meat. Even though service isn’t with a smile, it’s a good choice, especially at dinnertime when it’s not uncommon for a trio of musicians to serenade your table.
reviewed
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Canal Kite Club
Canal Kite Club rents windsurf boards, bodyboards, surfboards, kitesurfing equipment and provides lessons for all these activities. Six hours of kitesurfing lessons (really the minimum needed to have a sporting chance of making it work) cost US$200; a two-hour windsurfing lesson is US$60, the same time for surfing is US$40.
reviewed
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Dajao Restaurant & Bar
There are two Dajaos: a sleek, small, modern side, resembling a European café, and an older, basic side, much like an ordinary comedor. The former outshines the latter, not only in terms of style but in menu, too: it has specials like conch-meat croquettes (US$10), shrimp crepes (US$9) and grilled octopus (US$10).
reviewed
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Fun Tours
The Fun Tours, next door to Iguana Mama, offers the usual range of package tours, including a day trip to Cayo Arena (US$55), and an abridged version of the Damajagua Falls tour (you only go as far as the seventh waterfall).
reviewed
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Expreso Pekin
Fast, cheap and good Cantonese-style Chinese food. Even delivers, which might be a good idea since the fluorescent lighting makes you feel like you’re in an incubator.
reviewed
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La Despensa
Largest grocery store in the Zona Colonial, which means lines can be long especially around closing time. Load up on cheap water, soda, alcohol and juice.
reviewed
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Janet’s Supermarket
This is the biggest and best supermarket at the eastern end of town.
reviewed
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Fun Rental
Quad rentals (US$55 per day) and trips to Los Haitises (US$58).
reviewed
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Punta Cana Ecological Park
A half-kilometer south of Punta Cana Resort and Club, the Punta Cana Ecological Park covers almost 8 sq km of protected coastal and inland habitat and is home to some 80 bird species, 160 insect species and 500 plant species. Visitors can take very worthwhile 90-minute guided tours taken in English, French, German or Spanish through a lush 18-hectare portion of the reserve known as Parque Ojos Indígenas (Indigenous Eyes Park), so named for its 11 freshwater lagoons all fed by an underground river that flows into the ocean. The tour also includes a visit to the park’s botanical and fruit gardens, iguana farm (part of a breeding program) and a farm-animal petting zoo. The…
reviewed
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Jardín Botánico Nacional
The lush grounds of the Jardín Botánico Nacional span 2 sq km and include vast areas devoted to aquatic plants, orchids, bromeliads, ferns, endemic plants, palm trees, a Japanese garden and much more. Great care is taken to keep the grounds spotless and the plants well tended, and it’s easy to forget you’re in the middle of a city of over two million people. In fact, birders can contact Tody Tours for an expert eye on the many species found here. The garden hosts a variety of events, including an orchid exhibition and competition in March and a bonsai exhibition in April. The on-site Ecological Museum exhibits and explains the major ecosystems found in the DR,…
reviewed
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Museo de las Casas Reales
One of the interesting museums, partly because of its history and the high quality of its exhibits, near Plaza España. Built in the Renaissance style during the 16th century, it was the longtime seat of Spanish authority for the entire Caribbean region, housing the Governor’s office and the powerful Audiencia Real (Royal Court), among others. It showcases colonial-period objects, including many treasures recovered from Spanish galleons that foundered in nearby waters. Several walls are covered with excellent maps of various voyages of European explorers and conquistadors. Each room has been restored according to its original style, and displays range from Taíno artifacts…
reviewed
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Iguana Mama
Iguana Mama, the leading adventure-sports tour operator on the north coast, is in a class of its own. Its specialties are mountain biking (easy to insanely difficult, US$65) and cascading. It is the only operator that takes you to the 27th waterfall at Damajagua (US$85), and it has pioneered a new cascading tour to Ciguapa Falls, which only Iguana Mama offers. There’s also a variety of hiking trips, including a half-day walk (US$45) into the hills behind Cabarete (Parque Nacional El Choco), and a full-day trip to Mount Isabel de Torres (US$80), just outside Puerto Plata. Its Pico Duarte trek is expensive, but handy if you want transportation to and from Cabarete (per…
reviewed
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Victoria Marine
Victoria Marine is Samaná’s most recommended whale-watching outfit. It’s owned and operated by Canadian marine biologist Kim Beddall, who was the first person to recognize the scientific and economic importance of Samaná’s whales, back in 1985. Victoria Marine tours use a large two-deck boat with capacity for 60 people (though most tours have around 40). The skilled captains religiously observe the local boat-to-whale distance and other regulations – most of which Beddall helped create – while on-board guides offer interesting facts and information in five languages over the boat’s sound system. Sodas and water are provided free of charge. Tours leave at 9am and last…
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Parque Zoológico Nacional
One of the larger zoos in all Latin America, the Parque Zoológico Nacional is a dismal collection of cramped, bare enclosures that will leave you fearing for the future of the natural world. The collection of animals is extensive: rhinos and chimps, flamingos and the endangered solenodon, an extremely rare, rat-like creature endemic to the island. Located in a somewhat seedy neighborhood in the northwest corner of the city (the makeshift homes of the slum perched just above the zoo appear as if they’re likely to collapse onto the property at any moment), it’s a bit hard to find. A taxi here from the Zona Colonial costs around US$6; definitely be sure to arrange a return…
reviewed
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Casa del Cordón
Said to be not only one of the first European residences in the Americas, but also one of the first residences in the Western hemisphere with two floors, Casa del Cordón was briefly occupied by Diego Columbus and his wife before they moved into their stately home down the street. Named after its impressive stone façade, which is adorned with the chiseled sash-and-cord symbol of the Franciscan order, it is also believed to be the site where Santo Domingo’s women lined up to hand over their jewels to Drake during the month he and his men held the city hostage. Today the structure is home to Banco Popular, and while you can go in to exchange money, visiting the house beyond…
reviewed
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Monasterio de San Francisco
The Monasterio de San Francisco was the first monastery in the New World and belonged to the first order of Franciscan friars who arrived to evangelize the island. Dating from 1508, the monastery originally consisted of three connecting chapels. It was set ablaze by Drake in 1586, rebuilt, devastated by an earthquake in 1673, rebuilt, ruined by another earthquake in 1751 and rebuilt again. From 1881 until the 1930s it was used as a mental asylum until a powerful hurricane shut it down – portions of chains used to secure inmates can still be seen. The buildings were never repaired. Today the monastery is a dramatic set of ruins that is occasionally used to stage concerts…
reviewed
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Grand Paradise Samaná Dive Center
Grand Paradise Samaná Dive Center is located at the far end of Grand Paradise Samaná’s beach. One-/two-tank dives including all equipment cost US$60/114 (US$5 to US$12 less if you have your own). Four- and six-dive packages bring the rate down to US$48 to US$52 per dive, including gear. Various PADI certification courses can also be arranged. Also on offer are snorkeling trips (US$12), whale-watching tours (US$49), trips to Playa Rincón (US$10), and windsurf and sailboat rental and instruction (US$10 to US$15 per hour), all available to guests and nonguests alike. It’s easy enough to walk to the dive shop here by following the path along the beach from town; resort…
reviewed
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Ruinas del Hospital San Nicolás de Barí
Standing next to a bright, white Iglesia de la Altagracia are the Ruinas del Hospital San Nicolás de Barí, ruins of the New World’s first hospital. They remain in place as a monument to Governor Nicolás de Ovando, who ordered the hospital built in 1503. So sturdy was the edifice that it survived Drake’s invasion and centuries of earthquakes and hurricanes. It remained virtually intact until 1911, when after being devastated by a hurricane, public-works officials ordered much of it knocked down so that it wouldn’t pose a threat to pedestrians. Even today visitors can still see several of its high walls and Moorish arches. Note that the hospital’s floor plan follows the…
reviewed
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Museo del Hombre Dominicano
The most extensive of the museums is the Museo del Hombre Dominicano. Highlights are the impressive collection of Taíno artifacts, including stone axes and intriguing urns and carvings, and the small but interesting section on Carnival, with the masks and costumes used in various cities around the country. Other sections focus on slavery and the colonial period, African influences in the DR (including a small section on Vodou) and contemporary rural Dominican life. Unfortunately, the explanations are all in Spanish and the displays very old-fashioned. English-speaking guides can be requested at the entry – the service is free, but small tips are customary.
reviewed
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Parque Mirador Del Sur
A long tree-filled corridor atop an enormous limestone ridge, Parque Mirador Del Sur is riddled with caves, some as big as airplane hangars. One of the caves has been converted into a restaurant, another into a dance club. The park’s seemingly endless paths are a popular jogging spot for 30-something professionals, many of whom live in the middle- and upper-class neighborhoods north of the park. Av Mirador del Sur is closed to traffic from 6am to 9am and 4pm to 8pm daily, when it fills with men and women jogging, rollerblading and bicycling up and down the broad avenue, and mobile juice bars and snack stands for anyone who’s hungry.
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Casa de Francia
The Casa de Francia was originally the residence of Hernán Cortés, conqueror of the Aztecs in what is today central Mexico. It was in this building that Cortés is believed to have organized his triumphant – and brutal – expedition. Built in the early 16th century and sharing many elements with the Museo de las Casas Reales, experts theorize that these buildings were designed by the same master; both have a flat façade and a double bay window in the upper and lower stories, repeating patterns of doors and windows on both floors, and top-notch stone rubblework masonry around the windows, doors and corner shorings.
reviewed
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Museo Alcázar de Colón
Designed in the Gothic-Mudéjar transitional style, the Museo Alcázar de Colón was used as a residence by Columbus’ son, Diego, and his wife, Doña María de Toledo, during the early 16th century. Recalled to Spain in 1523, the couple left the home to relatives who occupied the handsome building for the next hundred years. It was subsequently allowed to deteriorate, then was used as a prison and a warehouse, before it was finally abandoned. By 1775 it was a vandalized shell of its former self and served as the unofficial city dump. Less than a hundred years later, only two of its walls remained at right angles.
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