Things to do near Punta Cana
Dec 3rd, 2009, 09:08 AM
#1
Original Poster
Join Date: Aug 2008
Posts: 28
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Things to do near Punta Cana
Going to Punta Cana in the DR for the first time over Christmas just two adults, staying at Gran Bahia Principe Bravaro and need advice of things to do in the area, sightseeing sort of things.
Dec 3rd, 2009, 09:42 AM
#2
Join Date: Jun 2004
Posts: 10,210
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Honestly, there's nothing. Punta Cana is rather isolated and not near anything of much interest except beaches.
If you want to rent a car (or take a tour), you could go into Higuey and see the giant concrete cathedral and go to the artisan market. That's all you'll find within an hour's drive.
If you want to go further, you can get to La Romana and visit Casa de Campo for the day (but probably not use the resort facilities or beach). There are myriad tours offered by all the AI resorts so you can go snorkeling or have some kind of activity outside the resort, and there's a little zoo and dolpin-interaction place nearby (it's not that great, though).
If you want to rent a car (or take a tour), you could go into Higuey and see the giant concrete cathedral and go to the artisan market. That's all you'll find within an hour's drive.
If you want to go further, you can get to La Romana and visit Casa de Campo for the day (but probably not use the resort facilities or beach). There are myriad tours offered by all the AI resorts so you can go snorkeling or have some kind of activity outside the resort, and there's a little zoo and dolpin-interaction place nearby (it's not that great, though).
Dec 3rd, 2009, 11:06 AM
#3
Original Poster
Join Date: Aug 2008
Posts: 28
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Thanks for the info. I'm OK with just relaxing on the beach in the warm sunshine as we are coming there from WY but thought if there were things to see we could do some of that too...didn't want to miss something we should see.
Dec 14th, 2009, 06:12 AM
#5
Join Date: Dec 2009
Posts: 1
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
You can find a lot of the Dominican Adventures here at http://www.dr-adventures.com , they list many different types of adventures in all areas of the Dominican Republic.
Hope it helps.
Hope it helps.
Dec 14th, 2009, 07:31 AM
#6
Join Date: Jun 2004
Posts: 10,210
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Many of the tours are not worth the money. I like Isla de Saona, which is about 90 minutes from Punta Cana. The beach there is lovely, and there's decent snorkeling (but not great snorkeling). You may be brought there by speedboat from a marina at Casa de Campo, and if the tour includes that, then you will stop for snorkeling along the way.
Isla de Catalina is good for snorkeling, but again it's kind of far from Punta Cana.
I'm not very fond of the island "safaris" because the landscape just isn't that interesting, but if you can drive at ATV that can be fun (just be aware of the dangers).
A day-trip to Santo Domingo is really exhausting (a 3-hour drive each way), but the city has a lot of interesting history. I'm just not sure it's worthwhile since you're sped around so much and don't really have that much time to explore.
Isla de Catalina is good for snorkeling, but again it's kind of far from Punta Cana.
I'm not very fond of the island "safaris" because the landscape just isn't that interesting, but if you can drive at ATV that can be fun (just be aware of the dangers).
A day-trip to Santo Domingo is really exhausting (a 3-hour drive each way), but the city has a lot of interesting history. I'm just not sure it's worthwhile since you're sped around so much and don't really have that much time to explore.
Jan 14th, 2010, 01:02 PM
#7
Original Poster
Join Date: Aug 2008
Posts: 28
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
We ended up just staying at the resort and enjoying a relaxing time by the water on the beach. The resort is beautiful yet I wouldn't stay at The Gran Bahia Principe Bravaro again as it's just too large and the service is horrible.
