Playa Frontón boasts some of the area’s best snorkeling. Apparently it’s also popular with drug smugglers and Dominicans braving the Mona Passage on their way to Puerto Rico. Trails lead to the beach, but it's easy to get lost, so hire a local guide – contact Karin at La Hacienda – or, preferably, come by boat: Asoldega charges about RD$3000 to Playa Frontón (RD$1000 per person with four or more).
Lonely Planet's must-see attractions
Montaña Redonda
26.53 MILES
This dramatic mountaintop viewpoint has been discovered by the Instagram generation – Dominicanos flock here on weekends to take photos swinging in sky…
Playa Rincón
6.55 MILES
Pitch-perfect Playa Rincón, with soft, nearly white sand and multihued water good for swimming, stretches an uninterrupted 3km – enough for every day…
Cascada El Limón
19.33 MILES
Tucked away in surprisingly rough landscape, surrounded by peaks covered in lush greenery, is the 52m-high El Limón waterfall. A beautiful swimming hole…
Parque Nacional Los Haitises
25.29 MILES
Around 9km west of Sabana de la Mar, Parque Nacional Los Haitises is certainly the best reason to visit this small bayside town. Its name means ‘land of…
Cayo Levantado
12.11 MILES
A gorgeous public beach lies on the western third of this lush island, 7km from Samaná. It's the only section that's open to the public – a five-star…
Playa Cosón
29.25 MILES
The sand at Playa Cosón, 8km west along the main highway from Playa Bonita, is tan rather than white, and the water greenish rather than blue, but it’s a…
Playita
3.69 MILES
Better than the beach in town, Playita (Little Beach) is easy to get to on foot or by motoconcho (motorcycle taxi). It’s a stretch of tannish sand and…
Playa Madama
0.43 MILES
Playa Madama is a small beach framed by high bluffs at the edge of the country; keep in mind there’s not much sunlight here in the afternoon.
Nearby Las Galeras attractions
1. Playa Madama
0.43 MILES
Playa Madama is a small beach framed by high bluffs at the edge of the country; keep in mind there’s not much sunlight here in the afternoon.
2. Boca del Diablo
1.99 MILES
'Mouth of the Devil’ is an impressive vent or blowhole, where waves rush up a natural channel and blast out of a hole in the rocks. Car or motorcycle is…
3. Playita
3.69 MILES
Better than the beach in town, Playita (Little Beach) is easy to get to on foot or by motoconcho (motorcycle taxi). It’s a stretch of tannish sand and…
4. Playa Rincón
6.55 MILES
Pitch-perfect Playa Rincón, with soft, nearly white sand and multihued water good for swimming, stretches an uninterrupted 3km – enough for every day…
5. Cayo Levantado
12.11 MILES
A gorgeous public beach lies on the western third of this lush island, 7km from Samaná. It's the only section that's open to the public – a five-star…
6. Playa las Flechas
12.53 MILES
This small beach, 5km east of Samaná, is easily accessible from town. It's thought by many historians to be the site of a small and short battle between…
7. El Museo de las Ballenas
13.93 MILES
The little-visited, old fashioned Whale Museum is housed in a dilapidated building south of the center. It won't tell you more than you'll get on a whale…
8. Cascada El Limón
19.33 MILES
Tucked away in surprisingly rough landscape, surrounded by peaks covered in lush greenery, is the 52m-high El Limón waterfall. A beautiful swimming hole…