The most beautiful natural sites to discover Dominican Republic

It is accessible by car via a tarred road (follow the signs, 7 km outside the village) and visited by the whole lot of travel agencies and resorts in the area, and even by a few crooks attracted by the tourist windfall (be careful!). As you can see, with its miles of sand and its transparent water, it is far too beautiful to have it all to yourself. At the end, a small river allows a refreshing swim. And then, take a break in the local restaurants offering seafood and lobsters!

This huge open-air cave, which is reached by a 350-step stone stairway, is filled with stalactites, stalagmites and bats. There are also three ponds (hence the name), the first, El Ojo de Azufre, filled with sulphurous water, the second, El Ojo de las Damas, with salt water, and the third, El Ojo de la Cañuela, with fresh water. The works of development of the site were carried out by order of Trujillo. A ferryman will take you to the last of the ponds by means of a makeshift ferry, for the modest sum of 25 pesos.

A cable car, inaugurated in 1975, facilitates the ascent of this high hill - the Loma Isabel de Torres, with the status of national park - which stands like a sentinel above Puerto Plata. It is because of its height (the hill culminates at about 900 meters of altitude) and the wide panorama to which it gives access that Trujillo decided to build a fortress here. By posting sentries here, the city was protected, or at least able to retaliate if an attack from the sea took place. In fact, although the summit (where there is a cafeteria) is often trapped in the clouds, the viewpoint has now become a tourist attraction in its own right: the panorama over the city and the entire bay is breathtaking! Throned above the dome of this fortress, the statue of a Christ the Redeemer, more modest than its counterpart of the Sugar Loaf in Rio de Janeiro in Brazil, watches over the city. The other interest of the Loma Isabel de Torres is its botanical garden. It is to the engineer Benjamín Paewonsky that we owe this complete creation, dating from 1973. You can follow the paths lined with more than 600 local plant species (594 trees and flowers to be exact) while discovering the reconstruction of a traditional Taino habitat. A recommended visit, which will also allow you to refresh yourself when the heat in the heart of the city becomes stifling.

After walking along narrow paths through the rainforest, crossing several rivers (be sure to take a dip!), climbing many steep inclines, you will be rewarded by the discovery of a natural pool into which a 50 m high waterfall flows, surrounded by deep caves. The water is pure and fresh and the panorama sublime. A well-deserved swim, after the efforts of the climb, is divine. You can also rent horses in the ranches located along the road (it climbs!). To leave well shod.

The trip through the Gri Gri lagoon takes about an hour. The boat glides slowly through a network of shallow channels in the middle of a dense mangrove forest. The scenery is magical and breathtakingly beautiful. We advise you to make this excursion early in the morning, as this is the time when the birds are present. After the visit to the Swallow Cave, you will swim in the clear waters of Caletón Beach. A pleasant outing alternating between physical effort, admiration and relaxation.

Rather wild and quiet, the beach is really beautiful, but beware of mosquitoes. The access to this paradisiacal and almost deserted area is to be deserved, but the game is worth the candle (we will leave our car about 300 meters before arriving at the beach). The colors are magnificent, between the intense blue of the sea, the golden of the fine sand, the green of the coconut trees which border the beach... There is no restaurant, except for a few young people who sell piña colada. It is better to bring a picnic.

Many commercials have been filmed in this exquisite little bay, bordered by green, transparent waters and shaded by almond trees with abundant foliage. Excursion boats stop here for a swim after touring the Gri Gri lagoon.

It can also be reached by road, 3 km after Río San Juan. It takes about 10 minutes to get there. There, on the sand, a few restaurants, roughly equipped with tables and wooden benches, await the visitor to offer him grilled fish, salads and fruit juices..

Playa Fronton and its neighbor Playa Madame are only accessible by boat or horseback. It takes 25 minutes to reach them through extraordinarily beautiful coastal landscapes. Impressive cliffs fall steeply into the ocean. Coconut trees, almond trees and cactus vegetate the fine sandy beach. Playa Fronton is a beautiful diving site with corals and tropical fish. Don't forget your mask and snorkel (and bring water shoes to protect you from corals and sea urchins!). An excursion not to be missed from Las Galeras.

Few people know it, even Dominicans, but the country's north coast is home to a colony of manatis . This mammal, measuring 3 to 4 meters and weighing up to 300 kilos, has made its home in an estuary surrounded by mangroves to the east of Punta Rucia. Long hunted by local communities, only 10 remained in 1996. It was then that the authorities decided to protect the area by creating a protected sanctuary dedicated to manatee conservation. One of the results of this project was the opening of the Ciudad Manatí information center in 2013.Here, local guides will tell you all about the manatee and its habitat during a guided tour through the mangroves, where you will be introduced to the different types of manatee. The highlight is the viewpoint from which you can watch the manatee come to the surface to breathe. According to the guides, you have a 90% chance of seeing one! Today, over fifty representatives of the species inhabit these waters. A fine example of successful animal protection and responsible tourism.

Alsoworth a visit: Finca la Protectora. An agricultural and craft farm producing coffee, avocados and cocoa, among other products. It is accessible by quad or 4x4. It is also possible to sleep on site (rather basic). A wonderful discovery of an eco-responsible place in the heart of lush nature.

Cayo Arena, from its original name Cayo Paraíso, is an essential visit of the north coast. Located at 20 min of boat of Punta Rucia, it is a small isolated sand bank in the middle of the Caribbean Sea, protected by a coral barrier. Its size varies according to the tides; it is advisable to go there at low tide, when the island is larger and the beach more beautiful. On the beach, 2 cane roofs are installed to provide some shade. The surrounding water is calm, turquoise and crystal clear, and the sea bed is spectacular. The name of Paraíso has never been so justified! With the help of a mask (usually provided with the transport), you can admire the perpetual ballet of tropical fish in an explosion of colors. The corals are not to be outdone, forming a veritable underwater forest whose diversity amazes. The corals are (for the moment) in a good state of conservation, but the increasing number of visitors does not bode well for the future. During the high season, up to 500 people crowd the island, which is barely larger than a tennis court. Our advice: sleep in Punta Rucia and negotiate to leave early in the morning, so you will have the island and its seabed all to yourself, and the sensation for a few hours of having reached paradise.

The association of fishermen Astrapuca (+1 809 931 8626) offers tours to Cayo Arena (1 000 pesos / person - minimum 3 people). The tour lasts about 2 hours and includes a tour of the mangroves and a snorkeling stop.

The cold and warm waters of the Yaque del Norte and Jimenoa rivers come together to form a large lake in the turbulent remous. The show is fascinating of power and spray. On Saturday evening, Dominicans come to the streets and let the national bachata pass away. The place then becomes a small improvised dance trail. On Sundays, the atmosphere is much more family with a possibility of horse riding.

Taking its name from the Taino word Haiti (mountainous area) due to its particular topography, Los Haitises Park is a maze of hills and huge limestone spires approaching 500 meters high. The protected area stretches over 208 km² from the south/southwest of Samaná Bay to San Lorenzo Bay. The formation of this singular natural area, once under water, dates back to about 40 million years ago (Miocene) and has emerged gradually due to various tectonic movements. Thanks to the high humidity and the frequent rainfall, the park has developed a subtropical vegetation: between mangroves and fjords, tree ferns and bamboo mingle wildly with lichens and orchids.

The interior is criss-crossed by a network of narrow, shallow inlets where no boat can venture. A multitude of plump islets covered with lush green vegetation dot the calm waters bordering the park. These karst domes and towers are the result of the erosion of millions of years old limestone formations, creating an area with an original relief, a real Ha Long Bay version of the Caribbean.

Numerous caves and caverns communicate with each other, forming an extraordinary underground network that is still unexplored and little known. Specialists have counted more than a thousand caves, some of which have petroglyphs on their walls dating back to the pre-Columbian period. You can visit the Angel cave, the San Gabriel cave, as large as a cathedral, the Linea and Arena caves, which contain works of art made by the Taino Indians, who did not live in caves, but used them as hideouts and depots during fishing or hunting campaigns.

Among the islands of the park, it is on the Bird Island that you can have the chance to see pelicans, parrots, water roosters and frigates, among others, passing between a mahogany and a cedar tree. Almost deserted, the park is virgin of any agricultural or forestry exploitation. Only the coastal fringe is open to tourists, the interior quickly becoming impenetrable.

Visits are mainly by water (from Sabana de la Mar, Samaná or Sánchez), but also by land from Sabana de la Mar, at the cost of several hours or even days of trekking. More info at the park office in Sabana de la Mar (Parque Central - ✆ +1 809 556 7333).

The nerve centre of the city, it is the meeting place par excellence. Its pretty green and white octagonal gazebo with two-level galleries is an exact replica of the original from a not so distant time (1880) when municipal orchestras used to entertain on Sundays. There are the traditional shoe-shine boys, lottery ticket sellers, motoconchos, drink sellers, fruit sellers, chulamia (yucca fritters, a local specialty)... All around the park, buildings of pure Victorian style stand guard.

Located beyond the barrier reef, the group of seven islets, huddled together like seven brothers (hence their name), served as a refuge for many privateers and pirates. It is possible to camp there by requesting authorization from the harbor master's office. The sea turtles come here to lay their eggs between November and February. The beaches are numerous, rather narrow and of black sand. The most spectacular is the Morro beach which looks more like Etretat than the traditional tropical beach.

The beating heart of the city, it is the meeting place of the Santiagueros, the departure point of cabs and horse-drawn carriages, the place of work of the small shoeshine boys and the lottery ticket sellers. One can spend hours resting in the shade of the large trees while observing the hustle and bustle of the area. In the center, the traditional Victorian shaded gazebo and all around nice wooden houses. An emblematic park that will be a must-see, just like the central park and Calle Benito Monción.

It divides the locality into two parts: to the west, the Dominican village of Los Charamicos, and to the east, El Batey, more developed touristically. The sand is very white and the water incredibly crystal clear. Beautiful panoramic view of the bay. But the beach is much too crowded with sunbathers and water sports enthusiasts... It is difficult to escape all kinds of solicitations. We have to wait until 5pm for the place to regain its peaceful aspect. The pink and orange swirls of the sunset are then the most beautiful of shows.

Planted with palm trees, this charming beach is framed by two rocky barriers. You quickly lose your footing and the waves are sometimes big. Not recommended for children! Chiquita beach is less crowded, and therefore quieter, than the main beach. The beach bars of the hotel Casa Marina are there to quench all thirsts and small appetites by proposing some food to be nibbled. Many water activities are offered, starting with surfing, the main activity. Be careful, here the sun is strong, protect yourself.

The excursion takes about 2 hours and is walking through the countryside and tropical forest (predicting what to drink). You will discover six caves. In the past, cave Indians were living there. Once the emotion has gone, you'll take a look at some of the taino objects and ceramics exposed in a pompously cave called museum, visit a Dominican farm and maybe make a stop in a river in fresh waters or in one of the caves.

Swimming with dolphins is a unique experience (although we still prefer them in the wild!). Interactive programs with marine mammals last around 25 minutes. The experience begins with a theoretical explanation on the beach, before moving on to the platforms and pools in the open sea off the Barcelo resort. It doesn't take long to get into the swing of things: hugging a dolphin, dancing, swimming with it and even getting a kiss, or playing ball with a sea lion - there's so much more to the program than you ever dreamed!

Next to the former, it is reached by a small trail. Apart from that, you can walk through the heart of the mangrove forest, a lair of hundreds of white herons or vultures.