Get In On The Dominican Republic's Best-Kept Secret
The recipe for a perfect vacation on the Samaná Peninsula: Combine a few nights in Las Terrenas for superb beaches and restaurants; add a few more nights in Santa Bárbara de Samaná for boat trips and horseback treks into the rain forest; and finish up in Las Galeras, known for its serenity and away-from-it-all appeal. Whale-watching adds another dimension to a sun-and-sand vacation between January and March.
VILLA SERENA
Style: Immaculate seaside inn with beachside garden
Location: A quiet residential section of Las Galeras
Accommodations: 21 unique rooms, some with four-poster beds, verandas and ceiling fans (air conditioning is also available)
Rates: From $150 including breakfast in low season ($210 high)
Amenities: Sea-view restaurant, room service, pool, massages, kayaks, bicycles
Contact: 809-538-0000; villaserena.com
GRAN BAHIA PRINCIPE CAYO LEVANTADO
Style: Swank hotel with all-inclusive amenities
Location: Cayo Levantado, an islet about 15 minutes from the town of Samaná
Accommodations: 193 unusually spacious rooms and suites in the main hotel, as well as beachside or hillside cottages. All rooms include TV with DVD player, mini bar, and veranda or patio; some feature patio hot tubs.
Rates: From $372 all-inclusive in low season ($390 high)
Amenities: Hourly ferry to Samaná, private beach, three pools, spa, fitness center, tennis, water sports, three restaurants, Internet access
Contact: 866-282-2442; bahiaprincipeusa.com
GRAN BAHIA PRINCIPE CAYACOA
Style: Clifftop, six-story all-inclusive with sweeping views of Bahia Samaná
Location: A three-minute ride from Samaná town by free shuttle
Accommodations: 295 rooms and suites, all with mini bar, TV and balcony
Rates: From $127 all-inclusive in low season ($140 high)
Amenities: Spa, two pools, hot tub, water sports, Internet access, three restaurants, room service
Contact: 866-282-2442; bahiaprincipeusa.com (same for Gran Bahia Principe Portillo in Las Terrenas)
THE PENINSULA HOUSE
Style: Serene, antique-filled, luxury guesthouse with manor-house service
Location: On Camino Cosón, a few miles east of Las Terrenas
Accommodations: Six spacious suites with verandas, antiques, lavish bathrooms, and TVs with DVD players
Rates: $520 including full breakfast year-round
Amenities: Pool, pool house with pantry and bathroom, alfresco candlelight dining (exclusively for overnight guests), room service (breakfast only), private pantry for guest use, massages upon request
Contact: 809-307-1827; thepeninsulahouse.com
HOTEL ATLANTIS
Style: Moderately priced beachside hotel with Moorish-style architecture
Location: Playa Bonita, Las Terrenas
Accommodations: 18 air-conditioned rooms with mini bars and TVs
Rates: From $72 including breakfast in low season ($83 high)
Amenities: Beach, garden, free Wi-Fi, kids' playground, thatched lunch pavilion, restaurant helmed by former French president François Mitterand's former chef, Gérard Prystasz
Contact: 809-240-6111; dominican-republic-hotel.net
BALCONES DEL ATLANTICO
(scheduled to open this fall)
Style: Luxurious condo-style apartment/hotel on 75 acres
Location: Just east of Las Terrenas, on the main road to El Limon
Accommodations: The first phase will have 90 two- and three-bedroom apartments with kitchens, spacious balconies, and TVs with DVD players.
Rates: To be announced
Amenities: Pools, swim-up bars, beach cabanas, massages on the beach, water sports, tennis, fitness center
Contact: 809-732-6622; balconesdelatlantico.com.do
WHERE TO EAT
COMEDORS
Setting: Casual pavilion right on the beach in Las Galeras, with eight individual grilling stands and a dozen comedors (cooks)
Cuisine: Seafood and local specialties
Recommendations: Mero con coco (snapper with coconut)
Prices: Entrées from $10
Contact: No phone
BAMBU
Setting: Indoor/outdoor restaurant/café on the malecón in Samaná
Cuisine: Dominican, with some continental and Chinese
Recommendations: Samaná seafood soup, grilled shrimp
Prices: Entrées from $7
Contact: 809-538-2661
LA MATA ROSADA
Setting: Casual, indoor/outdoor restaurant on the malecón in Samaná
Cuisine: Dominican/continental
Recommendations: Whole fish fried in a banana leaf
Prices: Entrées from $10
Contact: 809-538-2388
LA TERRASSE
Setting: Traditional beachside dining deck in Pueblo de los Pescadores, Las Terrenas
Cuisine: Dominican/Spanish seafood
Recommendations: Dorado with coconut sauce
Prices: Entrées from $14
Contact: 809-240-6730
THE BEACH
Setting: Casual-chic beach/ garden restaurant on Playa Coson, Las Terrenas
Cuisine: Continental/creative Caribbean
Recommendations: Shrimp with passion fruit
Prices: Entrées from $18
Contact: 809-962-7447
MI CORAZÓN
Setting: Stylized, two-story hacienda courtyard at Plaza La Esquina, Las Terrenas
Cuisine: Swiss-accented continental
Recommendations: Beef tenderloin gratinée with pesto; deep-fried prawns with ginger and lime emulsion
Prices: Entrées from $30
Contact: 809-240-5329
WHAT TO DO
For whale-watching excursions, call Victoria Marine on the Avenida del Malecón in Samaná (809-538-2494), which also organizes trips to the Los Haitises National Park across Samaná Bay. Various local guides lead excursions to the waterfall Cascada del Limon at El Limon. For water sports, check with your hotel.
WHAT TO KNOW BEFORE YOU GO
Tourist Information: 888-374-6361 (New York office); 888-358-9594 (Miami office); 888-303-1336 (Chicago office); godominicanrepublic.com
Documents: U.S. citizens need a passport; Canadians may enter with a photo ID. All visitors must purchase a tourist card for $10 on arrival.
Getting There: The easiest route is to fly into Santo Domingo then take either a taxi (upwards of $200 one way), a shuttle ($49 and up to Las Terrenas) or a rental car (Avis, Hertz, Budget and a host of others have counters at the airport) along the new toll road. There are also scheduled flights by small plane from Santo Domingo, Punta Cana and Puerto Plata to the airstrip at Portillo, near Las Terrenas. JetBlue flies daily between JFK and three airports in the Dominimican Republic.
Dialing In: 1 + 809 + seven-digit number
Currency: Dominican Peso (US$1 = 35 DOP)
Getting Around: Renting a car is the least expensive way to travel long distances. Or use a car and guide for trips around the peninsula, rental scooters for local beach runs, mototaxis in the town of Samaná and pedicabs in Las Terrenas.
Go back to Samaná, Dominican Republic: Love at First Sight...
