Dominican Republic
North Coast Regional Overview

The north coast highway:
perfect for beach bopping, town hopping
One of the most fascinating vacations you could ever hope for begins when you land at Puerto Plata International Airport, rent a car and just take off, to go exploring from place to place along the northern coast of the Dominican Republic. You find yourself cruising along a well-maintained, two-lane highway that follows the coast alongside spectacular beaches, through typical Dominican villages in and out of breathtaking, ever-changing tropical countryside. You stop at a beach here, explore a Dominican town there and otherwise take your time checking out whatever catches your fancy. 

The best thing about exploring this wilderness highway is that you're not stuck to only wilderness. The road runs from oasis to oasis of civilization. You can stop for lobster lunch in one town, then head down the road for an hour or so and find a quaint little hotel with a neat bar on a good beach. Maybe you meet some people you enjoy so you decide to hang out for a few days. Once you've had enough, you move on to the next place. 

This journey is made all that much more colorful by the collection of offbeat foreigners who have taken up residence along this coastline. They herald from places like Vienna and Amsterdam and Sicily and Montreal and they run restaurants and bars and b&b's. They organize activities and ways to discover unusual and fascinating things hidden away in the mountains and along the beaches. They take you mountain biking, cave exploring, whitewater rafting, whalewatching and otherwise live out their passions by making it possible for visitors to experience them too. 

Whether you're looking to travel around, or for place to just relax for a week, this web site will help you find what you're looking for. Whichever way you choose to travel, the combination of friendly Dominicans, lively Latin culture, offbeat expatriates, beautiful beaches and unspoiled countryside all combine to make this one of the most unusual, fun, fascinating and safe places for a Caribbean vacation.

Thse north coastal  highway puts towns and resorts within easy access with the airport. Here is a summary of the principal towns and areas of interest along the north coast:

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Puerto Plata City is the center of regional commerce, a port city and the capital of the Province of Puerto Plata (pop. +/- 150,000). The city is characterized by busy, narrow streets, quaint colonial gingerbread architecture and a wide oceanfront boulevard ending at a historical Spanish fortress. Read City Walking Tour; Guide to Local Hangouts

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Playa Dorada: Playa Dorada has the largest concentration of resorts. It offers a country club setting, with hotels spread out through a very lush and appealing garden-golf course setting. All the buildings are low-rise, maximum threee stories so the natural vegetation dominates. The whole setting is done really in quite good taste. There are some 15 different hotels in this complex, located about 5 kilometers from the edge of town. But it doesn't feel dense because of the low rise building code. Some are on the beach, others are around the golf course but all in all you are basically on the beach. The golf course hotels all have their own oceanfront beach clubs and even though it's walking distance they have golf carts and other means of shuttling those who don't feel like walking. When you're in Playa Dorada you're basically in a controlled environment. There's plenty to do and you don't really ever have to leave to have a good vacation. But, it's not the "real" Dominican Republic, so if you want to explore a bit, you'll have to go beyond your resort. That's what this web site is all about. There is not much of anything right outside this resort complex. To find local color you basically need transportation. Unless you want to walk down the highway for five kilometers to get to town. In other words, you're basically landlocked within a tourist complex. There is a shopping plaza in the middle of the complex with reataurants and pubs and shops, and you can explore up and down the beach. Most all inclusive resorts restrict admission to thier own guests, though. 

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Cofresi & Costambar: adjacent communities occupying the two of the nicest beaches on the outskirts of Puerto Plata City, popular with retired expatriates, many villas and condos available for rent by owners. Top of Page

Maimon: this bay is the location of Riu Merengue Resort, located about 12 kilometers west of Puerto Plata city. Riu Merengue is a beautiful resort that sits alone on this bay, but there is not much going on in the area surrounding the resort so basically you are landlocked here and will require transportation to go exploring.  Top of Page

Sosua: a bustling Latin village centered around a magnificent beach and bay. Lots of foreginers running small hotels, bars and discos, and plenty of interaction with local Dominicans.  Top of Page

Cabarete: a town that spung up on a beautiful beach once it was discovered to be one of the best places in the world to windsurf. Hotels, restaurants, bars and windsurfing centers mostly centered along a single beachfront strip.Top of Page

The above areas are all located within a half hour from the airport. Further down the coast yet still easily accessible are other popular destinations: 

Luperon: Luperon Bay is a large multi-fingered estuary with narrow access to the open water that makes it the best hurricane hole on the north coast. The town is growing around servicing boaters and there are a handful of interesting watering holes and restaurants.  Top of Page

La Isabela: The first permanent settlement built by Christopher Columbus on his maiden voyage in 1492, now a historical point of interest. Top of Page

Rio San Juan & Playa Grande: a coastal town popular for boat rides through a mangrove-choked lagoon. Just outside of town is Playa Grande, a beautiful beach and excellent golf course being developed for resorts. Top of Page

Cabrera: a serene, agricultural region that is attracting well-to-do foreigners who are building luxurious countryside estates far from the madding crowd.  Top of Page

At the eastern extreme of the north coastal highway lies the Samana Peninsula, a region of spectacular hills that feature a vast forest of coconut palms. Places like the town of Samana, Las Galeras and Las Terrenas are Dominican towns that have been developed into charming, cosmopolitan villages by foreigners who have moved in and set up shop.Top of Page

At the western extreme lies the border of Haiti and the towns of Dajabón, Manzanillo and Montecristi. These are authentically Dominican towns with little or no tourism influence. Beyond the border lies another world, Haiti, definitely worth a visit by way of overnight excursions organized out of Puerto Plata. Top of Page