Dominican Republic
 

I am looking to vacation in the Dominican Republic next February with my husband and another couple and would like some recommendations on where to stay. We are 50ish from NYC and like nice restaurants and night life. Is it easier to stay all inclusive or what are the other options? I don't really know much about this Island because we usually go to Mexico or Puerto Rico but we have decided to try something new and different. Can anyone help?

If you like nice restaurants, I don't think you'll be happy with most of the all-inclusive resorts. The food is generally ok, but it's not that great. Some of the more upscale AIs are better than others.

Most of the AIs are in Punta Cana, but there are also a string of resorts (both all-inclusive and not) along the north coast in both directions from Puerto Plata. You might want to consider Casa de Campo if you can afford it. You can buy an all-inclusive meal plan, but it's a very expensive resort.

Look into Excellence Punta Cana. It's an adults only all inclusive. Great service--good food--we had lobster every day for lunch. It is about an hour ride from the airport though.
DR is not like the other places you've visited where there are plenty of nice restaurants off site of the resorts. It's not a place you venture out alone.

Thank you for the tips. I will definitely look into the recommendations from Doug and schmerl. I did hear it isn't good to go outside the resorts. Is this common in DR?

I don't really agree with schmerl here. While I've never driven around the DR myself, my writers all have, and no one has ever had a problem except with insufficient signage and somewhat crazy drivers (common on many islands).

The reason most people don't leave the AI resorts is that the resorts don't encourage you to do that (since everything is available to you without extra charge right on site) and because it's expensive to rent a car. Once you rent a car, there aren't too many places to go since independent restaurants and nightspots are few and far between in Punta Cana in particular. This isn't the case in other areas of the country, where you'll find lively scenes in and around Cabarete, for example.

I think the DR, though a very poor country, is as safe as any similar kind of places and perhaps more so (except in some specific parts of Santo Domingo, where I don't think it's safe to drive on your own).

But it's certainly true that aside from Captain Oliver's and a few newer independent restaurants and nightspots in a few of the shopping centers, there is little reason to leave a Punta Cana resort ... and even less reason when cars cost a minimum of $60 per day. So people almost always choose taxis for whatever excursions they do take, and these are few and far between.

Don't get me wrong. The DR has crime. However, I think concerns over personal safety are rather over-emphasized in the DR, more than they are warranted in most places.