Experience the Dominican Republic

How best to experience the Dominican Republic? My answer – no Caribbean or Punta Cana vacation is complete without snorkeling and enjoying the beaches. My favorite area is the Punta Cana region.

A Caribbean vacation in the Dominican Republic is a no brainer.

Are you up to your Caribbean vacation – Dominican Republic experience? Add in the DR’s great people and you get a first-class Caribbean vacation. I believe you will be ready for your Dominican Republic experience after reading this!

But when the world is your oyster, why did we select this island.

Why should you experience the Dominican Republic?

The things that made the choice easy for us were the combination of a tropical climate and how easy it was to get to the Punta Cana region. Add in the fact that the Dominican Republic is a reasonably priced Caribbean vacation destination and it becomes clear.

All of that becomes a moot point when you look at the Dominican Republic’s beaches. Those are great reasons to visit the DR all by themselves!

Our work lives in 2018 were incredibly stressful, so the simplicity of an all-inclusive resort where all arrangements were taken care of for us was a pretty strong factor.

Now, we researched all-inclusive resorts for our Caribbean vacation, and selected Sanctuary Cap Cana in Punta Cana. We loved the all-inclusive amenities.

The availability of a private villa for the same cost as a hotel-like room was a great incentive. We traveled to several regions of the island, and the Punta Cana area was the most enjoyable of our Dominican Republic experiences.

Why did we choose Sanctuary Cap Cana?

Sanctuary Cap Cana has a great web page and a robust Facebook and Instagram presence. These were important in 2018. Punta Cana was in Hurricane Maria’s path that year, and the resort’s social media presence provided reassurance for travelers.

The island was reported to have suffered a lot of damage, and we were worried about whether this trip would actually happen.

Having routine updates from the resort through social media helped reassure me about their ability to provide their “normal” level of service following the storm.  

Papa Joe is a bit of a romantic.

Experience the Dominican Republic beaches – they fit the romance checkbox hands down!

We travel in December each year to celebrate our anniversary. Usually, we look for adventure, and traveling to a new place is always an adventure.

The Caribbean vacation promise of white sandy beaches, snorkeling in tropical waters, soaking up some sun, and (last but definitely not least), an all-inclusive swim-up bar sealed the deal for us!

Sanctuary Cap Cana hit every one of our checkboxes.

Does your Caribbean vacation have beaches that look like this?

Most of our photos are taken at the Cap Cana resort. Yes, we could leave the resort if we wanted, and did, but the resort is truly this beautiful!

Seeing these pictures just makes me want to go back!

Why Sanctuary Cap Cana?

Well, check out the private backyard of our villa.

Being able to say “private backyard” and “villa” were huge checkmarks for this resort for us.

Privacy, all the great stuff about salty breezes, hearing ocean waves, sun… well, you get the picture.  Lounging in the sun, watching the natural wildlife – those were all great added bonuses.

For us, having a villa with the resort amenities was a no-brainer. Plus our butler Eric – I think we disappointed him because we aren’t the personal service kind of folks.

It was great to have our “limousine” golf cart transportation to supper every night.

It was even more fun when Eric and his buddies at the resort tried to outdo each other on our anniversary.

The maid started in the morning, surprise anniversary cake at supper, and check out what we found when we arrived back to our room that night!

What else did our Dominican Republic experience include?

The resort provided daily bulletins with the resort’s activities and featured restaurants of the day. My favorite category was “Drink of the Day”.

Pink Paradise rapidly became a favorite – Carlos and his crew at the swim-up Freshco Bar were beyond exceptional!

Activities at the resort included daily yoga on the beach, beach volleyball, afternoon pool activities such as Aqua Zumba, and who could forget the Friday evening “Foam Party” in the pool or the cigar tasting.

The Foam Party was a hit during this Caribbean vacation!

Live entertainment was provided every evening and included karaoke, live bands, circus entertainment, and dancing the night away. I even tried my rusty salsa steps one evening… and nobody laughed.

That’s my kind of place! Punta Cana knows how to do vacation right.

Practicality is important for a Dominican Republic experience.

Who loves all-inclusive resorts? I do – what a great way to do Caribbean vacations!

The Internet was free in the resort’s main lobby and was available in our villa for a small fee. The internet was reasonably fast and reliable, which was a nice surprise.

The pool was amazing…

The rooms were comfortable, temperature-controlled, and (it has to be discussed in the tropics) bug control was taken seriously.

Punta Cana top-notch service!

Sanctuary Cap Cana lived up to its promises and will be a return visit for us. Especially with the top-quality Dominican Republic beaches found on this Punta Cana property!

Ok, we didn’t spend the entire time at the resort, even though it may sound like it. The resort provided a tour company to help organize off-site activities, and let me tell you about them!

I expect a tour company to show me pretty pictures, and sell me their product, yadda, yadda, yadda.

Nope, they went above and beyond, here’s an example

I was a little less than dynamic on this trip. We always go ziplining, but the tour company talked us out of it.

No problem, that was the right move for me at the time.

What did they do for us instead?

Why – they booked us for a free tour to a traditional Dominican Republic village. This tour was awesome!

It featured a young man demonstrating the art of cigar rolling, learned from his father and his father before him.

Followed by a slightly older man carving coconuts. Major cool factor here.

Yep, Papa Joe found this carved coconut figure that had about the same amount of hair on his head as Papa Joe. Another of our favorites in the village was a charming young woman demonstrating coffee and chocolate.

Her demonstrations included the art of roasting, shelling, and grinding of coffee and chocolate. She even included a tasting of both products.

It was amazing – I’m kicking myself that we didn’t get a video of her.  We like feeling local customs, immersion into the culture. This excursion checked ALL the boxes.

I absolutely loved that tour – free or otherwise!

Time for snorkeling!

Of course, we also did the traditional Caribbean vacation requirement – water excursions.

The Dominican Republic is world-renowned for its coral reef. The reputation is well earned. We packed our snorkel masks, the Go-Pro, and dove in with everyone else.

It was crazy to not just see the coral, but to have literally hundreds of brightly colored fish swimming, seemingly within reach. Have you tried snorkeling on your Caribbean vacation?

I don’t like to “should” people… but you should.

Truthfully, the fish swam so near us while we were snorkeling. They may have brushed against us.

Ok, maybe not – it was probably another snorkeler, but that’s for the fish to decide.

Snorkeling was an awesome alternate activity to Dominican Republic’s beaches.

One last word on snorkeling in the Dominican Republic. Papa Joe and I have snorkeled on numerous Caribbean vacations, and our Punta Cana experience was the best one.

The water was clear, easy to swim in, and there was plenty of fish to see.

Scape Park and the Dominican Republic experience.

Now, Scape Park is a Punta Cana destination all in itself. We strongly recommend every traveler to Punta Cana to check this place out. From horseback riding to exploring the cave, an incredible zip line…

And wait – there’s more. I feel like an infomercial.

From hiking to and swimming in the cenote Hoyo Azul to snorkeling, one could easily spend several days at Scape Park.

Here is a great resource that may be helpful with tours and activities in the Dominican Republic, or for any Caribbean vacation. Low Price Guarantee on Tours and Activities Worldwide with 24 hour cancellation policy available.

Seriously – I use Viator (otherwise known as TripAdvisor) when we travel. It helps me decide what we want to do.

Our last experience in the Dominican Republic.

You guessed it, an excursion into Santo Domingo. As an American, you just can’t go to the Dominican Republic or the Caribbean without visiting Christopher Columbus’ first landing site in the New World.

Are Christopher Columbus’ remains contained within the Christopher Columbus Lighthouse?

Only his son knows, but the sight is worth checking out either way. The vantage point for this panoramic photo is from the Columbus Palace, and truly shows the beauty of the city.

We enjoyed the view of the Lighthouse from the Columbus Palace. I wouldn’t have called it a lighthouse; I was really glad our guide pointed it out.

Otherwise, I would have completely missed it.

Santo Domingo was a revelation.

As the oldest “civilized” city in the Americas, Santo Domingo was unexpectedly cramped in the historic city center. Truthfully, I thought the jumble of telephone, electric, and cable lines looked a little scary.

While the trip to Santo Domingo wasn’t the highlight of our trip, it was absolutely worth the money just to experience the place.

We planned a full day for this excursion, and it took every minute of the day.

How much did we spend on excursions?

You know… the nuts and bolts of the trip. We normally spend around $1000 on excursions. For this trip, we spent around $500. It was money well spent.

Transportation was a piece of cake. The resort arranged all our transportation for us. Taking care of their tourists is a serious business in Punta Cana.

Want other ideas for the great Dominican Republic beaches?  

Check out AllTheRooms for their reviews on the Dominican Republic beaches. Don’t just take my word on it.

My Top 10 Punta Cana Activities might help you figure out what other activities tickle your fancy. I think beaches always have to be included in the top 10 activities.

Our DR experience was one of our best Caribbean vacations.

The people at the resort, in the small village, and in the city, are friendly, easy-going, and eager to please. Tourism is a big deal for the Dominican Republic.

Our guides shared with us that employment in the tourism industry is highly desired. This all results in great customer service for the tourist.

Dominican Republic beaches are unbelievable. Snorkeling is world-class. The warm salty air is a welcome break from everyday life. How can you go wrong?

The bottom line…

Our base airfare was $800 per person for a standard seat, which for us is comparable to flights to other Caribbean destinations. The resort cost was $3500 for 8 days, which put the total trip cost, including tips and excursions, at around $6000.

One is of our hints for traveling on a budget. Go slightly before the high season or slightly after the season. We found that less than a week after we returned home, the resort rates doubled for “high season”.

Our anniversary trips usually are budgeted for $5000-$7500, so this fell right in the ballpark.

What are our recommendations?

Go! Absolutely worth the trip. Is an all-inclusive resort not your cup of tea? We found very nice condos in the Punta Cana area for $170 per night with comparable amenities.

Enjoy the Punta Cana and the Dominican Republic countryside. Inland is lush and green. The mountain regions aren’t tropical, like on the coastline. They are much more diverse with tobacco, banana and rice crops, and incredible flowering trees.

Have translation resources available if you don’t speak Spanish. Many Dominicans speak English. They perceive knowing English to be crucial to their future success.

However, you can expect to find situations where having some Spanish or a translation book or app will be helpful.

Enjoy your experience in the Dominican Republic!

No Dominican Republic vacation is complete without a snorkel experience. I am happy to help teach the basics of snorkeling.