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| view of Puerto Plata from Torre Alta |
Our family
has been to both Punta Cana and Puerto Plata in the Dominican Republic. If the
objective of your getaway is to chill at the beach for a week then Punta Cana
is for you. The beaches are nicer. If you want a mix of some beach and other
things to do, I recommend Puerto Plata.
Our group
couldn’t just be at the resort so we spent a few days exploring outside. Here
are some top recommendations:
- Paradise Island/Cayo Paraiso—this was by far the best excursion. It
entailed about a 2-hour car/bus ride and a 15 minute boat ride to get to the
island, but it was totally worth it. The white, powdery sands and the clear,
emerald waters were just perfect! There were just a few huts on the island
including one for snorkeling gear and a snack bar. All of these were included
in the package (along with lunch as it is pretty much a full day). There were
some reefs close by and while hubby and I have seen more colorful fish in the
Philippines, the variety and colours were very nice. The girls enjoyed their
first snorkeling adventure and what better place than Paradise Island for this!
DD#2 claims this is the best beach ever. It appeared that folks can only stay
on the island for a couple of hours. There are no trashbins or toilets on the
island, of course. So, to help preserve the island and give chances to other
folks to visit, time on the island is limited.
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| Paradise Island/Cayo Paraiso, Puerto Plata, DR |
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| Paradise Island/Cayo Paraiso, Puerto Plata, DR |
From the island back to the shore near Punta Rucia, we took a short detour to check out the mangroves near the outskirts of Monte Cristi National Park. It was like boating through the Amazon. Amazing.
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| mangroves near Cayo Paraiso, Puerto Plata, DR |
2. Puerto Plata City tour—we went around Puerto Plata, driving by the
Malecon --seafront boulevard where there was a King Neptune statue on one of
the rocks on the water. At the western end of the Malecón, we checked out Fuerte de San Felipe--the fort is the only remnant of Puerto Plata's early colonial days built to protect against pirates.
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| Fuerte San Felipe, Puerto Plata, DR |
We also checked out some of their bigger stores (Jumbo
and La Sirena) to get some local vibe (and local shopping). My family
especially liked the downtown where they had the Umbrella street, rum and cigar
stores as well as an Amber museum. The plaza/town square was vibrant with
hundreds of pigeons about and colourful buildings surrounding it.
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| Amber Museum, Puerto Plata, DR |
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| Cigar-making, Puerto Plata, DR |
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| Umbrella Street, Puerto Plata, DR |
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| downtown, Puerto Plata, DR |
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| plaza, downtown, Puerto Plata, DR |
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| Catedral San Felipe, Puerto Plata, DR |
3. Santiago City tour—we drove over an hour to get to the second biggest
city of the Dominican Republic. It was busy, as expected. We walked around the Monumento
a los Héroes de la Restauración which was beautifully maintained,
surrounded by a lush park, atop a hill in the middle of Santiago. It is
dedicated to the heroes of the Dominican war who fought against colonists. For
a small fee, we went to the top to get a nicer view of the entire city and its
surrounding mountains.
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| Monument to the Heroes of the Restoration of the Republic, Santiago, DR |
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| Santiago, DR |
4. Sosua beach—some excursions offer catamaran tours and snorkeling on the
Bay. We just drove to the beach and hung out. The beach was much nicer and
cleaner than the Cofresi beach, but as this is public area, the crowd was quite
diverse. The beach had many stores and restaurants so it had a different vibe—more
for partying. It did feel safer for us in the resort, however.
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| Sosua, DR |
There are many other excursions offered. And if we had unlimited time
(and money), we would have tried them all! Some of the notable ones were
- 27 Waterfalls of Damajaqua—where there is hiking, jumping, swimming.
Adrenaline-packed, but was not for everyone in our group.
- Cable car (Teleferico) trip to Mount Isabel de Torres where they have
the Christ the Redeemer statue atop (similar to Brazil’s). This is just about a
10-minute drive from Puerto Plata
- I cannot not mention Ocean World, which was a stone’s throw away from
our resort. They offer marine animal encounters and shows. It is quite pricey and
has attractions similar to Sea World or Marineland.
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| Ocean World--view from the Cofresi beach, Puerto Plata, DR |
