Punta Cana, Dominican Republic

By Lee | May 8th, 2007 | 8 Comments »

Punta Cana is the jewel in the crown of the Dominican Republic. The beaches are spectacular and the seafood is great. The resorts are top notch with idyllic pools and palm lined properties. Relaxation is the theme in the DR and If you dare escape the allure of the all inclusive resorts then you can experience what the rest of the island has to offer as well.

Punta Cana is a strip of beaches on the east coast of the Domincan Republic that is very affordable to the average person with all inclusive deals being the norm. So you get overweight package junkies from all over America and Europe soaking up rays in little bathing suits, peeing in the pool and sucking down Presidente beer until they can’t see anymore. If you’re like me and hate all inclusives and package deals in general then you might dislike Punta Cana. However, you would have to look beyond the annoyances of that type of thing and realize just how calm and breathtaking the beaches actually are. This will get you through some of the other visual horrors that can otherwise ruin a beach stay.

The beaches at Punta Cana are some of the best I’ve seen in the Caribbean. Granted, I don’t claim to be an expert on the Caribbean beaches as I have only been to a handful of Caribbean Islands (I always figured I’d save them until I was old-but now with this record pursuit-they will have to be seen sooner). But of what I have seen, Punta Cana ranks right up there with any of them.

Again, if you’re like me, then you’ll have a tough time just sitting at a resort for a week so you’ll want to rent a car and drive around the island and do some exploring. Thats exactly what I did. I drove from Punta Cana to Santo Domingo and back in the same day while stopping in a few places in between, La Romana and San Pedro de Macoris-home of several star Major League Baseball players here in the United States. For me that was cool for whatever reason because I am such a big sports fan.

All in all, I enjoyed my time in Punta Cana and the DR in general but for future reference, I can do without package tourism unless absolutely necessary.