Dominican Republic

My Dominican Republic travel summary:

Visited: March 2012, July 2014, February 2016, February 2025

Duration of visit: 14 days

Capital city: Santo Domingo

Population: 11.35 million (2025)

Dominican Republic travel blog reading time: 10 minutes

• Spectacular whale watching in Sanctuary of the Humpback Whales.
• Exploring fabulous beaches on a scooter around Samaná peninsula: Playa Rincon, Las Terrenas, Cabarete.
• Santo Domingo – first permanent European settlement and the biggest metropolis of Caribbean.
• Family trip to Punta Cana and Santo Domingo.
• Business meetings and looking for the right connection.

My Dominican Republic travel adventure offered stunning coastlines and lush countryside. I also enjoyed whale watching, great food, and even Wi-Fi on comfortable long-distance buses.

The Dominican Republic is the most visited country in the Caribbean with over 6 million visitors each year and captures over 20% of the total Caribbean tourism market.

The country is famous not only for its beautiful beaches, but also for merengue and bachata, its tropical, rhythmic music. It also boasts a huge baseball legacy, producing over 100 players in the American professional leagues.

I visited the Dominican Republic on 3 different occasions, each trip with a different focus.

• As a businessman to hold meetings regarding projects of security documents in Santo Domingo (2012, 2025).
• I spent four days in a beach resort in Punta Cana and a day in the capital Santo Domingo in a family trip with two small kids (2014).
• As a backpacker, I traveled around the island using local transport. I also rented a scooter to enjoy the good weather and stop freely at villages, beaches and scenic spots. (2016).

Famous explorer Christopher Columbus reached the island in 1492 while sailing for the Spanish Crown. He first named it La Isla Española, which was later Latinized to Hispaniola.

Dominican Republic shares the island of Hispaniola with Haiti. Although both territories were part of the same country about 200 years ago, they are worlds apart today.

After gaining independence from France, Haiti became one of the poorest countries in the Americas. Meanwhile, the Dominican Republic has grown into one of the largest economies in Central America and the Caribbean.

Dominican Republic is a perfect destination for anyone who wants to enjoy the beach while staying close to a big, modern city. It offers countless attractions, memorable places to visit, and fun things to do.

The most memorable aspect of my Dominican Republic travel experience in 2016 was riding a motorbike along the stunning sandy beaches, tasting delicious seafood and talking to friendly locals …. until the motorbike broke down … but the easy-going local lifestyle magically solved the problem.

When I crossed the border from Haiti to Dominican Republic, I noticed the contrast immediately. Spanish language, different – mestizos’ population, higher standard of living, better infrastructure and much more comfort to travel at lower costs.

The immigration officer was skeptical about the reason why I had visited Haiti.

“I am a backpacker, visiting Haiti and Dominican Republic on the same trip,” was the most honest explanation I could offer.

He just laughed back and answered: “I understand you backpacking around Dominican Republic, but visiting Haiti!”.

We just laughed to each other and I kindly nodded to him, understanding what his opinion on the neighboring country was.

My first stop in the Dominican Republic was Santiago de los Caballeros, the country’s second-largest city.

It was one of the first European settlements in the Americas and played an important role in the Dominican War of Independence. The culture-rich city features historic buildings and monuments, reflecting a fascinating history of war, trade, and European settlement.

Downtown is nicely renovated with some interesting churches, a cathedral, a park and museums. Monumento a los Heroes de la Restauracion is one of the most prominent landmarks in the city. Originally built by dictator Rafael Trujillo in his own honor, the eight-story edifice was later rededicated to the brave Dominican soldiers who fought for independence against Haiti.

My main goal on Dominican Republic travel adventure was elsewhere, but it was important to understand the history and politics!

There is only one reason to visit Samaná. Whale watching from January to March attracts more than 45,000 visitors every year. I had seen whales before in Panama, but Samaná offers an impressively high number of these massive mammals.

A visit to the Sanctuary of the Humpback Whales in Samaná is one of the most beautiful excursions in the Dominican Republic. About 2,000 humpback whales come to reproduce in the warm waters of the Atlantic Ocean.

Whales come to Samaná to give birth because newborns have too little fat to survive the cold waters for a year. After giving birth to their babies, the whales prepare their return to the north. Since 1986, Banco de Plata, an underwater coral platform averaging 20 meters deep, has served as a sanctuary protecting whales.

I had no trouble spotting whales from the tour boat. Between January and March, seeing a few was 100% guaranteed. During our trip, I saw three whales swim very close to our boat and another dozen from a distance.

I didn’t see the whales jumping out of the water like in the agency’s spectacular photos. Still, observing their bodies, fins, and tails up close was a truly rewarding thing to do.

I rented a motorbike to pay a visit to one of the top listed beaches in Dominican Republic – Playa Rincon. The motorbike wasn’t in perfect condition, but I had few options and no time to wait for another day.

After two hours and many stops to admire the beautiful nature of the Samaná Peninsula, I finally arrived at Playa Rincón. The beach is very remote and not easy to reach, with a winding road up and down the hills.

I spent most of the day swimming in the calm bay, snacking, and resting under a palm tree.

Life is a beach in Dominican Republic!

Five kilometers of pristine, undeveloped white sand lined the turquoise waters, dotted with coconut trees, casual restaurants, and only a few people scattered along the beach. The fish for lunch was fresh, the fries perfectly cooked, and the coconut chilled over ice.

Relaxing on a Dominican Republic beach is a top thing to do and the highlight of any trip.

On the way back my motorbike started to predict troubles. I had problems starting the engine, when driving uphill the engine was losing the power. I decided to stop in front of one of the many mechanical workshops along the road.

It was getting late and cool, and I wasn’t dressed properly to drive at night. I called the rental agency, and they sent a car to pick me up because the mechanic couldn’t fix my motorbike and the workshop was closing.

We loaded the motorbike onto the pickup truck and returned to Samaná after dark.

The next morning, I rented a new scooter, provided as part of the compensation for the breakdown the previous day. A warm morning with sunshine and delicious breakfast were forecasting a beautiful day.

Traditional Dominican breakfast filled me up with energy. Boiled and mashed green plantains (mangú) with eggs, fried cheese and bread, accompanied with orange juice, were delicious.

I visited Cascada Limón waterfall, a popular place to visit, though it felt a tourist trap on the way to the nearby beaches.

It is promoted as an adventure that takes you on a 2.5-kilometer journey through thick forest, on horseback or on foot down lush hilly terrain, while spotting flora and fauna along the way.

There were too many people along the path to notice the nature or spot any animals. A wide swimming hole under Limón cascade, which drops 52 meters from the top of Sierra de Samaná, was packed with loud visitors. Many people arrived on horses that could be rented just off the main road.

With all the noise, shouting, and large crowds, I didn’t enjoy it very much.

I decided to continue north on my scooter to explore the coastal town of Las Terrenas.

It’s a popular weekend beach destination for foreign visitors and locals from Santo Domingo. Unlike all-inclusive areas like Punta Cana, the town allows public access to its beaches rather than restricting them to hotel guests.

In the Las Terrenas area, several beaches are easy to access, while many small hotels, guesthouses, restaurants, and bars sit a little inland. I parked just off the road, enjoyed a swim, and had lunch at an improvised restaurant on the beach.

No luxury, but I enjoyed simply prepared, delicious shrimps with rice under a coconut palm, on a sandy beach with a stunning view of the turquoise sea.

I couldn’t have asked for anything more.

It was for the second time in my life that I stayed in an all-inclusive resort. With small kids, it felt like the best option to enjoy the beach.

We chose a 4-star hotel with the typical package these places offer. It included buffet meals, pools, a beautiful sandy beach, free drinks, and entertainment for the kids. This was a real winner because the cocktails were excellent and made with quality ingredients. They also offered non-alcoholic versions for my kids.

Drinking piña colada and playing in the water was definitely cool. The beach was nice, although it was covered with harmless seaweed in the morning. After hours of hard work, the employees finally managed to remove invasive plants from the beach. The night show was genuine and unique every night that we stayed there.

For the second half of the trip we decided to visit Santo Domingo. I had a business meeting with one of the biggest IT companies in Dominican Republic. We were slowly discovering The Old Town with emphasis on kids’ friendly locations.

Some of the highlights and things to do included ice-cream stops, feeding pigeons in front of cathedrals, racing toy cars along the beach promenade, and simply observing the everyday activities of Dominicanos. It was incredibly inexpensive to afford any activity for kids.

Santo Domingo became the site of the first permanent European settlement in the Americas. It is the oldest continuously inhabited city in the region and the first seat of Spanish colonial rule in the New World.

Santo Domingo is not only the capital and the biggest city of Dominican Republic, but also the largest metropolitan area in the Caribbean with a population of approximately 3 million people.

The city’s Colonial Zone was declared as a World Heritage Site by UNESCO. The Cathedral of Santa María la Menor in the Colonial City is the oldest Cathedral in the Americas. The construction begun in 1504 and it was completed in 1550.

We also visited IKEA store. As of 2014, it’s interesting that outside of the USA and Canada, the only places in the Americas with an IKEA are the Dominican Republic and Puerto Rico. Since we were living in Panama at that time, it was kind of fun to visit IKEA after a long time. We left the kids in the store’s playground and wander around the place freely for an hour.

Over the years, I’ve stayed in touch with several companies and businesspeople in the Dominican Republic. Because of its large population and size, the Dominican Republic has much more competition and a stronger presence of international companies than anywhere else in the Caribbean.

Local people are well trained, professional and knowledgeable, with a typical Latino attitude, which often reflects in delays or informal way of agreements. If you are not patient or ready to wait for the right opportunity for a long time, the chances for success in Dominican Republic are very limited.

I’ve learned that serious business in the region demands a reliable, well-positioned local partner. Without one, managing opportunities becomes difficult.

A bunch of families run the largest business operations, know each other, compete and, if necessary, also cooperate. The access to them is difficult, but it is a prerequisite for success.

Dominican Republic is a perfect destination to enjoy beach, nature, history and city life. Apart from all inclusive hotels and exclusive semi-closed beaches, there are many opportunities to really connect with locals and join them in the areas where foreigners are in minority.

Baseball, merengue, bachata, beaches and home to Christopher Columbus’s first New World landing point in 1492, are trademarks of the Eastern part of Hispaniola island. People know how to treat foreigners, infrastructure is great, seafood taste delicious and travelling is inexpensive.

These are some of the reasons why I consider the Dominican Republic, together with Cuba, one of my favorite destinations in the Caribbean.

The attractive places to visit and the relaxing atmosphere make me certain that I’ll return to the Dominican Republic again.