The Caribbean · Dominican Republic

Dominican Republic

Where we met · Melody's home country · Beaches, culture & incredible food

The trip

The one that's closest to home.

This guide is a special one for us. The Dominican Republic is where Melody was born and raised, and it's where the two of us first met — in Punta Cana. Melody was born in Haina and grew up most of her life in the capital, Santo Domingo. The DR is an absolute gem of a country: incredible beaches and waters, a beautiful culture, unbelievable food, and an atmosphere that's just sensational. There is so much to explore — the famous Punta Cana, plus La Romana, Samaná, Santo Domingo, Isla Saona, Río San Juan and Puerto Plata — every one of them exceptional, with so much to do. One honest tip: driving here is genuinely difficult, so we'd recommend arranging transport or going with a tour — although we do often rent a car ourselves and road-trip it, which is an adventure in its own right. We've been lucky to spend time here more than once.

Where it all started

Punta Cana

The country's most famous stretch — and the place we first met. Punta Cana and neighbouring Bávaro are miles of palm-backed white sand and warm, reef-calm water, ringed by all-inclusive resorts and the launch point for nearly every great excursion in the east.

Our beginning01

The Punta Cana & Bávaro beaches

📍 Punta Cana / Bávaro, the east coast

This is where our story began, so it will always be our favourite stretch of coast in the country. The beaches here are the postcard the DR is famous for — soft white sand, leaning coconut palms and calm, bath-warm water held back by the reef. It's the easy, do-nothing side of the island, and the perfect base for the day trips below. Beyond the sand, two of our favourite ways to spend a day are getting out into the countryside on a buggy and out on the water on a boat.

Calm, swimmable waterBest excursion base

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Punta Cana: Buggy, ATV or Kayo Tour with Cenote Swim

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Punta Cana: Party Boat with Snorkeling, Booze & Hip-Hop

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The postcard island

Saona Island

Off the south-east coast near Bayahibe lies Isla Saona, a protected island of impossibly clear, shallow turquoise water, natural starfish pools and palm-fringed sandbars. It's the classic Dominican day trip for a reason — and one of the most beautiful places we've swum anywhere.

A pristine empty white-sand beach and shallow clear water at Saona Island

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The clear water & palm-fringed sand

📍 Isla Saona, from Bayahibe / Punta Cana

The water around Saona is so clear and shallow you can wade out for what feels like forever, and the sand is the softest, whitest we've found in the country. Most trips make a stop at the famous natural pool — a waist-deep sandbar out at sea dotted with starfish — before lunch on the beach. You can go the fast, fun way by speedboat, or the relaxed way by catamaran; we'd happily do either again.

Bring reef-safe sunscreenFull-day trip

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Saona Island: Small-Group Tour by Luxury Catamaran

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From Punta Cana: Island Escape to Saona by Speedboat & Lunch

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Melody's home city

Santo Domingo

The capital, and the city Melody grew up in — so this one is personal. Santo Domingo is the oldest continuously inhabited European city in the Americas, and its Zona Colonial is a UNESCO-listed maze of cobbled streets, the first cathedral built in the New World, and centuries of history around every corner. It's the beating cultural heart of the country.

The Dominican Republic flag flying among tall palm trees against a blue sky

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The Colonial Zone & the capital

📍 Zona Colonial, Santo Domingo

Wander the Zona Colonial and you're walking the oldest European streets in the Americas — the first cathedral, the Alcázar de Colón, and the storied Calle Las Damas. Just outside the old town, the Los Tres Ojos limestone caves hide crystal lagoons underground, and the towering Columbus Lighthouse (Faro a Colón) anchors the modern city. A guided tour is the easiest way to string the highlights together in a day — and to hear the history behind them.

Oldest city in the AmericasUNESCO old town

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Colonial Zone Sightseeing Tour with Columbus Lighthouse & Tres Ojos

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Santo Domingo: Los Tres Ojos, Boca Chica & More

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Our favourite coast

Samaná

The lush north-eastern peninsula is, honestly, our favourite corner of the whole country. Samaná trades resorts for jungle-backed beaches, hidden coves, waterfalls, mangrove channels and some of the wildest coastline in the Caribbean. If you come in winter, the bay is also one of the world's great spots for whale watching.

Us on a lush green cove beach near Las Galeras, Samaná

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Playa Rincón & Las Galeras

📍 Las Galeras, the tip of the peninsula

Playa Rincón is regularly ranked among the most beautiful beaches on earth, and in person it lives up to it — a long, wild curve of coconut palms and clear water with barely any development. Base yourself in the sleepy town of Las Galeras and you're within reach of Rincón and a handful of hidden coves. Boats also run out to nearby islands like Cayo Levantado (aka "Bacardi Island") for a proper day on the water.

Among the world's best beachesGo by boat

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Samaná: Cayo Levantado (Bacardi Island) Day Trip by Boat

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Tall leaning palms and a green headland at golden hour on Playa Cosón, Las Terrenas

Us on a wide sandy beach at sunset in Las Terrenas, Samaná

Us in calm golden-hour water beside a gazebo on a rocky point in Samaná

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Las Terrenas & Playa Cosón

📍 Las Terrenas, north side of the peninsula

Las Terrenas is the laid-back, slightly bohemian beach town on the peninsula's north side, with a French-Caribbean flavour to its food and cafés. Just west, Playa Cosón is a long, quiet sweep of tall leaning palms that turns pure gold at sunset — our pick for a slow evening walk with a drink. This whole coast is made for chasing the light.

Best sunsetsGreat food scene

A rugged, rocky coastline with crashing surf and jungle cliffs in Samaná

Us on a small rocky cove with a green cliff and turquoise water in Samaná

Us on a jungle-backed cove beach with waves rolling in, Samaná

Us on a sandbar with green mountains rising across calm turquoise water in Samaná

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The hidden coves & rugged coast

📍 Around the peninsula

Away from the main beaches, Samaná's coast turns dramatic — rocky headlands, crashing surf and tiny jungle-backed coves you scramble down to find. Some of the best (think Playa Frontón and Playa Madama) are easiest to reach by boat or on a short hike, and it's worth packing water shoes for the rockier ones. The reward is a slice of Caribbean coast that feels genuinely wild and often completely empty.

Bring water shoesBoat or short hike

Us swimming together in clear green water among mangroves in Samaná

Us standing in a clear green mangrove lagoon backed by dense jungle in Samaná

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Swimming the mangroves

📍 Los Haitises / Caño Hondo side of the bay

One of our favourite surprises here was floating in the clear, glassy channels that wind through the mangroves on the Los Haitises side of Samaná Bay. It's calm, shaded and completely peaceful — a lovely contrast to the open beaches, and usually paired with a boat trip into Los Haitises National Park to see the caves and bird-filled islets.

Calm & shadedPair with Los Haitises

Us on a big yellow swing under palm trees above the rocky ocean coast in Samaná

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The palm swing over the sea

📍 A clifftop viewpoint on the coast

You'll spot these giant wooden swings set up at viewpoints along the coast, framed by palms with the ocean crashing below — pure fun and an easy favourite for a photo. Go early or late for the softest light, and hop on together; it's one of those silly, joyful five-minute stops that ends up being a highlight of the day.

Great for photosGo for the light

The north coast

Puerto Plata

Up on the Atlantic north coast, Puerto Plata mixes colourful Victorian streets, a mountain you ride a cable car up, waterfalls you can jump down, and some of the country's best beach towns — Sosúa for calm snorkelling bays and Cabarete for kitesurfing. It's the DR at its most colourful and adventurous.

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Calle de la Doña Blanca — the pink street

📍 Old town, Puerto Plata

This candy-pink lane in the old town — Calle de la Doña Blanca — is easily one of the most photogenic corners of the city, all bougainvillea, lanterns and colonial balconies washed in bright magenta. It's a lovely spot to wander in the late-afternoon light and a guaranteed favourite for the camera.

Best in soft lightPhoto favourite

Us in a bright pink heart photo frame in the jungle park atop Pico Isabel de Torres, Puerto Plata

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Pico Isabel de Torres cable car

📍 Pico Isabel de Torres, above the city

Ride the teleférico (the only cable car in the Caribbean) up Pico Isabel de Torres for sweeping views over the coast, a replica of Rio's Christ the Redeemer at the summit, and gardens laced with fun photo spots like this pink heart frame. Go on a clear morning before the cloud rolls in over the peak — the views are the whole point.

Only cable car in the CaribbeanGo on a clear morning

Us on the beach at Sosúa with turquoise water and a green headland behind, Puerto Plata

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Sosúa & the north-coast beaches

📍 Sosúa & Cabarete, east of the city

Just east of Puerto Plata, Sosúa wraps around a calm, reef-sheltered bay that's perfect for swimming and snorkelling, while neighbouring Cabarete is the country's kite- and windsurfing capital. For a big day of adventure inland, the 27 Waterfalls of Damajagua — sliding and jumping down a chain of natural pools — is one of the most exhilarating things you can do in the DR.

Calm snorkelling bayWaterfalls nearby

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