Hello, and welcome to my travel guide for the beautiful Dominican Republic! I have decided to escape Mardi Gras in my home town of New Orleans and use that time to travel, giving me two weeks here to explore! My Air Bnb is located in Puerto Plata which is where this guide will mostly take place. There are a few other locations that I ventured out to which you can read about in the “adventures” section. I will share what I can about what I have learned here, where I stayed, ate, and drank, how I got around and a few ins and outs on how to navigate life in the Dominican Republic.
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TIPS
Learn some Spanish! I know it’s not easy but let’s try, ok?
Have cash on you at all times! And don’t be an asshole, have Dominican Pesos on you at all times, leave your big fat Benjamen's at home. There is an ATM outside of the airport and another one I frequented often on the Umbrella Street!
Download WhatsApp!
People will offer you their phone numbers a lot here, take them. It is good to have resources and contacts in this country. If you don’t know someone who can help you, ask one of the new people in your WhatsApp Rolodex! The odds are they will be able to point you in the right direction. Otherwise you could end up paying more for the same thing or missing out on an adventure!
TRANSPORTATION
Puerto Plata is extremely easy to get around in, everyone wants to give you a ride and it is really cheap! I used Uber and the MotoTaxi guys the most. Don’t be vain, all of those honks aren’t just because you’re beautiful —it’s likely just a MotoTaxi or cab trying to give you a ride! …You are beautiful though ;)
MOTOTAXI are the guys wearing the orange vests...probably cat calling you. I took these a few times and I loved it, I just always tried to choose the least cat-cally, friendliest looking ones. Just use your better judgement and if that fails you, don’t come to me. I have a number for one below who was very friendly and safe. These should run you about $3-4 per ride. They never told me how much so I don’t really know.
UBER is not exactly the same as in the States. When booking your driver, it will ask you how much you want to offer for the ride...I think they decide whether to pick you up based on the amount you offer, I just went with the max amount. I have also had them a few times ask if i have cash to pay in and they will cancel if not. So, it can be a little tricky. They also seem to ask you where you are going even though it says it in the app...be prepared to give some sort of directions --likely in Spanish. About $2-4/ride.
METRO AUTOBUSES is probably the most legit long distance transportation I have come across. These buses are NICE ok, and cheap! I paid about $10 US to get from Puerto Plata to Santo Domingo. This bus also makes a stop in Santiago if you are interested in going there. I took the 7am bus, which leaves shortly after 7am (if you’re like me and feel like you need to be everywhere absurdly early, don’t. The inside of the building doesn’t open until about 6:50am leaving you awkwardly standing outside looking like a victim). The bus is air conditioned and they had that thing blasting, I recommend a little sweater! These busses leave every other hour (I think) on the weekends. Another good note on these, all of the bus stations seem to be in safer areas and have cab drivers waiting at drop off to take you to your destinations. The station in Santiago is near a Burger King and there are plenty of restaurants near the Santo Domingo station, these are nice safe places to go while planning your next move if you haven’t quite figured out your destination.
Below are some contacts that I made while I was here of trustworthy drivers:
MOTOTAXI — NAME: Kesnel — NUMBER:1(849)925-0561TAXI (UBER) — NAME: Juan (Speaks English) — NUMBER:1(829)563-3792 — Good for late night!TAXI — NAME: Masa — NUMBER:1(809)852-8389ADVENTURES
I will preface this with, good fucking luck!
I booked two tours through Viator, which I have used in other countries numerous times and have never had a problem. That being said the Dominican Republic isn’t like other countries, the people here are on their own time and don’t seem to care about yours -as lovely as they are.
27 CHARCOS, a beautiful waterfall adventure containing various slides and jumps into pristine blue waters, count me in! Or not. A few days before my booked tour the company contacted me to say that I was the only person they had booked for that day and they wanted to know if I could reschedule. Since I work when I travel the answer was no. They assured me that it was ok and that they would still take me anyways. Sunday morning rolls around along with my 7:30am pickup time and I have no word from the company. I shoot them a text to see what is up and they tell me they couldn’t find a driver to take me. Long story short I ended up having the option for a refund or to reschedule. I had some PTO so I ended up taking a day off work and going on Monday. The driver was an absolute angel, the tour guides were funny, lovely people, and the waterfalls were as amazing as they look in photos. If you can get here, go! The only things I recommend bringing on this tour is some cash to tip with, water shoes that double as a decent walking/hiking shoe, a towel for after, and one of those little waterproof phone things if you’d like to take some photos. I also wore bike shorts instead of swim bottoms and I was very grateful for that decision. I got these water shoes from Amazon and have no regrets. Contact info for the Driver/Tour guide if you want to just text him and bypass the Viator situation.
27 CHARCOS TOUR — 1(809)399-4863
CAYO ARENA, or “paradise island” either or, we will never know. After not hearing from the tour guide along with my new trust issues, I reached out to them. “Hi, it me. We still on for tomorrow?” No, is the short answer. Something about red flags and ocean conditions. I guess not everyone is as eager as me to ignore a red flag, or they are full of shit. Either way, no paradise island for me.
UPDATE: I made it! After my time in Santo Domingo was cut short and I had an extra two days to kill, I reached out again to the regular tour that was cancelled due to the red flag and also to my driver from the 27 Charcos tour asking if he knew of any tours. The first people ulitimately suck, and were still saying red flag. But the new tour came through! For $50 ($40 less than the flaky flakes) they picked me up from my Air Bnb in the bus and drove us all out to the boat launch point in Punta Rucia. The tour included the boat ride, fruits and drinks and all snorkel gear on the island, and then lunch on the way home. There was a mention of fried chicken which I have to say I cannot vouch for because after a few too many rummy drinks I decided to stay behind in Punta Rucia!
In summary, If you can get to the island I highly recommend it, it’s beautiful! Honestly I think it might be better to just find your own way to Punta Rucia, spend the night, and take your own boat to the island. The boat rides from Punta Rucia to the Cayo Arena are $150 DP or $2.50 USD! To learn more on this option see Punta Rucia section! If you would rather the day tour, I will put the information below for the company that ended up taking me. They were super informative, spoke 4 languages (Spanish, French, English, and German), and were overall very communicative.
Note that the sand bar is much smaller in winter which makes a little less room for activities, if you want to go while it is more exposed make the trek in the summer months at lower tide.
CAYO ARENA TOUR — 1(809)284-3500
PUNTA RUCIA, this place is paradise hence the reason I stayed behind on the tour. When I asked my guide about staying behind he called up a local hotel to see if they had a room available. For $79 I was in! Almost immediately there was a guy there on a scooter to take me to check in to the Tropical Eco Lodge. This place is amazing and way more than I was expecting. The entire top floor of this cute beach bungalow with a whole wall of windows overlooking the beautiful blue ocean was mine! There was no A/C but there were fans and mosquito nets on all of the beds. There was also the most amazing outdoor showers, a little swimming pool in the back, and a pool table. If you are looking for something a little more luxury I saw an amzing place on my beach walk called Punta Rucia Lodge. This little beach front resort looked really quiet, peaceful, and super cute with boho vibes!
I ended up just hanging out with the locals drinking and grilling on the beach. There are cute cocktail shacks and beach restaurants too. Keep in mind that this is a very undeveloped town so there are not a lot of ammenities and you will need cash for most things.
To get back to Puerto Plata I ended up bumming a ride with the manager of the lodge into a little town where I then was directed to sit at this “bus stop” and wait. Eventually I was picked up by a minivan that assured me “Si” when I asked “A Puerto Plata?!” Good enough for me. Pretty sure they charged me more than everyone else but that is ok, it was still only about $9 US. Had I not gotten lucky with the ride from the manager, the locals mentioned there was a guy with a motorcycle who would be willing to take me!
SANTO DOMINGO, the capitol city! I was supposed to stay here for two nights but had quite a misfortune due to what I am assuming to be an allergic reaction to the cleaning products of Latin America, a reoccurring tragedy. So instead of two days, I ended up with around 4 hours —which was plenty of time to realize that I whole heartedly wanted more time here!
The Zona Colonial or “La Zona” was beautiful! I spent most of my time here walking the streets and just looking at the houses which are all brightly colored and quirky with some art deco influences. Eventually you will stumble upon Parque Colón where there is a beautiful cathedral (the oldest one in the America’s, brought to you by the colonizers), music everywhere, restaurants, and just some good solid people watching.
There is also a bar I popped into here in the park called Jalao which honestly is an absolute must. It is a huge restaurant/bar with live music and good vibes. Make sure to grab a seat at the bar where you will be front row to the band that is literally playing above the bar!
Another place I definitely recommend visiting while you’re here is Maraca! This place is design heaven, I can confidently say that it is the most beautifully designed restaurant I have ever been in, ever. But with great design comes great sacrifice and I have to say, sit at a table because the bar is fucking uncomfortable. I had the Tuna Ceviche and the Firewood Sea Bream (Pescado con coco) accompanied by the Negroni Dominicano —I recommend all of it!
Parque Nacional Isabel de Torres, brought to you by El Tereférico de Puerto Plata! This is the big beautiful mountain that is the backdrop of Puerto Plata. I am pretty sure there is a road to the top, but the most popular way to summit this beauty is by this funny little Italian cable car. Let it be known now that I am not a fan of heights, especially of the man-made kind. It started off cute, I was like “move over bitches I want to be in the front so I can take good photos”…then halfway up I am looking only at the floor and my foot is cramping because I felt the need to try to stabilize it single-handedly or something . After I made it to the top I was not looking forward to going back down —not only because I was traumatized, but because it is breathtakingly beautiful up there! The views are amazing and there is also a lovely botanical garden vibe. Rest easy knowing going down is less stress than going up, I def recommend conquering your fears for this one.
FOOD & DRINK
Monceschef BBQ, I mean look at it. I only had this plate of loaded fries but loaded fries are what my dreams are made of and these were hitting. I ended up popping in here after the Sunday Carnaval celebration and I must say it is the perfect food to accompany alcohol, probably good without alcohol also, but I am not the one to ask. There is also a little bar next door called Mi Barcito playing all the bangers. A very nice place to hangout late. I ended up going back here and ordering the same thing but this time I got pulled pork instead of the sausages, that was a good idea.
Casita Azul, Que Linda! This little Creole cottage in Parque Central has such dreamy romantic vibes. I am not sure what the little shrimp tostones are called but I had those and the short ribs with the mojito con coco (my favorite drink in the DR, coconut mojitos all day, plees) everything was delicious!
La Tarrapa, a nice Italian restaurant with a large outdoor seating area. I went here twice because it was really close to my Air Bnb, and the food was great. The first time I got the Curry Chicken Sandwich, def big enough for two people or to have leftovers. The second time I got the Chicken Parm with a side of spaghetti…I think I had to pay extra for the spaghetti but whatever, this meal was also a large portion.
Pachuche! A little cocktail bar tucked away in the famous “pink street” or Calle Rosada. This place is super cute and has delicious cocktails. I got the Mojito con Coco frozen, so good. I ended up going back here to see a friend I met along the way DJ and it was such a good vibe. He seems to pop up here often, give him a follow on Instagram @djelkin_ and maybe you can catch him while in Puerto Plata.
Super Colmadon El Charly seems like it could be fun on a weekend, it was empty when I was there but the drinks were hella cheap and if you’re like me and like obnoxiously loud Dembow, then check it out maybe. I had three giant Presedente and a rum drink and my check was $12. Sorry, I only have a photo of this guy’s crocs.
La Carihuela is the best beach restaurant and beach that I found in Central Puerto Plata along the Malecón. I got the shrimp tacos both times and they are pretty good! I liked this spot mostly because of the beach access. There are people on the beach behind the restaurant renting out seats and umbrellas for about $4 US. The ocean was also really beautiful here on Cosita Rica beach! Give the restaurant a follow on Instagram @lacarihuelabeach
Latin Wok if you’re like me and get a hankering for Asian food often, this place will satisfy your cravings! I had multiple lychee martinis (delish!!!), egg rolls, and the “hot plate”. All of the portion sizes were large and the food was delicious. The restaurant was also really cute, give them a follow @latinwokcab
EXTRAS
I just so happened to be here during their Carnaval celebrations, which in reality isn’t completely happenstance since I was currently escaping Carnaval or Mardi Gras, at home. It is always wonderful to see how other cultures celebrate a similar event and I am really happy that I got to witness at least a portion of the Dominican Republic Carnaval! From what I was told the biggest celebration takes place in La Vega, but there are smaller celebrations throughout the DR. In Puerto Plata there was a celebration every Sunday for the month of February. This probably changes depending on when Carnaval falls each year, so don’t always count on it being in February!
Carnaval Puerto Plata first of all, watch your ass! They in these streets with inflated cow bladders called Vejigas (the blue things in the image below) and use them to whack you, hard! There are novelty ones for sale too, if you want to be the inflictor of pain. For me, I made sure my back was against the wall after being whacked three times in a row…
To drink away your pain there were tents set up to sell beer and other beverages while you watch each costumed group go up on stage and dance. There was plenty of music and dancing and such amazing and colorful costumes. If you happen to be in the DR during Carnaval season I definitely recommend seeking out and joining a celebration!
