The best beaches of the Dominican Republic - white sand and azure water
The beaches of the Dominican Republic are ideal places for a relaxing holiday. The sun, the warm sea, tall palm trees and white sand ... What else is needed in order to escape from problems and enjoy life? In our article - a rating of the best beaches of the Dominican Republic.
Photo of the beach in the Dominican Republic
Bavaro
Bavaro is one of the most noisy and crowded beaches of the Dominican Republic, located 25 km from Punta Cana Airport. This area is famous for a large number of hotels, expensive restaurants and quality service. It is also believed that in this area are the most beautiful beaches of the Dominican Republic. If you want to not only have a good rest, but also enjoy nature, swim in the bright turquoise water and sunbathe on the coral sand - here you are. Find out more about the beach here.
Orlov Bay
Orlov Bay is one of the most remote beaches from the center of the Dominican Republic, which is located near the border with the Republic of Haiti.
Unfortunately, in recent years, too many tourists have appeared here, so if you want to enjoy this place alone, come here as soon as possible. Better, stay overnight at a nearby hotel. It's worth it.
There are no cafes and restaurants on the beach itself, but you can have a bite to eat at nearby hotels or buy some exotic fruit on the market. Since the main highlight of the beach is its unspoiled nature, you will not find sun loungers and showers here either.
This is the beach of the Dominican Republic, where there is white sand, and the water is perfectly clear. The entrance to the sea is gentle, there are no stones and algae at the bottom. You can visit the beach for free.
Location: Jaragua National Park, Pedernales Province, Dominican Republic.
Playa grande
Playa Grande is one of the 10 best beaches in the Dominican Republic. Despite its solid status, it cannot be said that there are a lot of tourists here.
Conditionally Playa Grande is divided into 2 parts. The first is a fashionable resort with several expensive restaurants, a golf course and a luxury hotel. And the second, where you can have an inexpensive breakfast and sunbathe. There are no other differences between the parts of this beach: everywhere is very clean, there are toilets, sunbeds and changing cabins. Free admission.
The fine sand on Playa Grande has a honey hue, and the Atlantic Ocean in these places is painted in a bright turquoise color. Interestingly, depending on the season, it can be very windy (which is ideal for surfers), and very calm.
Location: Area Cabrera, Dominican Republic.
Playa bonita
Bonita Beach is one of the main attractions of the Samana Peninsula, located on the north coast. This is the largest beach in the Dominican Republic, whose length is 12 km.
As for the infrastructure, there are several cafes and bars near the beach where travelers recommend trying seafood dishes. Playa Bonita has sun loungers, changing cabins and toilets.
Playa Bonita beach is very fond of athletes: they come here specifically to surf or snorkel.
The sand on Playa Bonita is small and golden, the entrance to the sea is gentle. There are no shells, stones and algae. Free admission.
Location: Las Terrenas area, Dominican Republic.
Rincon
According to many travel publications, Rincon Beach is the best in the world. He deserved the first place in that, firstly, it is wild, and secondly, here, as in the famous adventure books, thousands of coconut palms grow on white sand, and blue mountains rise on the opposite bank.
The nearest village is 5 km from Rincon - this is the resort of Las Galeras. Tourists who have been here recommend not to buy excursions, but to get to the beach on foot. This is necessary because it is unlikely that anywhere else you will see such stunning views that open from hiking trails.
The beach itself can be divided into several parts. The first is very crowded, because travelers are brought here on sightseeing buses. And the second part is the one that you can find only on your own. There is an incredibly beautiful nature and there is not a single soul.
As for infrastructure, it is completely absent here (only in that part of the beach, which is intended for tourist groups, there are sun loungers). But nature pleases: white sand, palm trees, azure water.
The sand on the beach is shallow, the entrance to the water is gentle, however, in some places there are rocks and stones, algae are found.
Location: Playa Rincon, Dominican Republic.Find out RATES or book any accommodation using this form
Whale Beach
Whale Beach, located on the Saman Peninsula, is named so precisely because dozens of humpback whales come here every winter to breed and swim back to the cold shores of Iceland, Greenland and Canada. The official name for this place is the Humpback Whale Sanctuary in the Dominican Republic.
It is clear that getting to this place remote from civilization should not be in order to sunbathe. Hundreds of people come here every day just to see whale mating and simply admire these mammals. There really is something to see. For example, males of humpback whales, in order to attract the attention of females, often perform various tricks:
- The whale swims, and, raising its flippers, sharply hits them on the surface of the water.
- Jumping over the water.
- Competitions between a group of whales (from 2 to 20 individuals). Mammals can swim in distillations, bang their heads against each other and even inflict wounds in order to attract the attention of a female.
Please note that you cannot go to the reserve yourself - you must come here as part of an organized group. The cost of the trip will be as follows:
- excursion - $ 45 (for children - 35);
- food for marine animals (required) - $ 5;
- lunch in the cafe at the reserve - $ 5 (fish, vegetables, drink and dessert).
Also remember that it makes sense to visit the reserve only from December to the end of March - at this time many whales really live here. But the rest of the year it is an ordinary beach.
Interestingly, tourists are not forbidden to swim in this place - you can quite rightfully frolic in the water with whales.
Since this is a nature reserve, there is no infrastructure (with the exception of one cafe) here. As for the beach, the sand here is fine and yellow, the entrance to the water is gentle.
Location: Samana Peninsula, Dominican Republic.
La playita beach
The list of the best resorts and beaches of the Dominican Republic will not be complete, if you do not remember about La Playita Beach - a wild beach in the northwestern part of the country. Located near the town of Las Galeras (15 minutes walk).
Since most tourists rest directly in Las Galeras, there are very few tourists on La Playita. Cafes, restaurants and entertainment are also not here.
The sand on the beach is shallow and white, the entrance to the water is gentle. At the bottom, stones and small shells are sometimes found. Due to its favorable location, wind and undercurrents are absent in this part of the Dominican Republic. Relax on La Playita's white sand beach for free.
Address: Las Galeras, Dominican Republic.
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Saona Island
Saona is a tropical island that is part of the East Dominican National Park. This is a nature reserve known in the world under the name of Bounty Island. The nature of this place is fascinating: white sand, clear water, hundreds of starfish and colorful fish in the waters of the Caribbean Sea and dozens of coconut palms on the shore.
Previously, the island of Mano was located on the island, but after Saona became a popular tourist attraction, many locals decided to move out of here and earn money by renting their houses on the seashore. With the exception of these houses, there is absolutely nothing on the beach.
The sand is white and very shallow. The entrance to the water is gentle, in some places there are rocks and stones.
In addition to the white sand beach, the island of Saona is definitely worth a visit:
- Pool with starfish. This is a shallow sandbank in the middle of the sea, in which many starfish live.
- Mango thickets.
- Caves that are located in the rocky part of the island. Interestingly, in the 20th century, archaeologists found artifacts in these caves dating from the 5-6th century BC. e.
- Rainforest where you will see a huge number of birds and animals.
Unfortunately, you cannot get to the island on your own - you must buy an excursion from one of the travel agents.
More information about Saona is presented on this page.
Location: Saona Island, Dominican Republic.
Macau
Macau is one of the best white sand beaches in the Dominican Republic that has managed to maintain its exotic look. Like centuries ago, it is incredibly clean, few people and various species of birds and animals live in the mango thickets. More information about the beach can be found here.
Location: Punta Cana, Dominican Republic.
Juanillo beach
Juanio is one of the most beautiful beaches of the Dominican Republic, which annually falls into the list of the best in the world. And although there are no good restaurants and cafes on Juanillo Beach (according to tourists), this place is always very popular.
Infrastructure: there are sun loungers with umbrellas on the beach, there are toilets, changing cabins and showers. Every Sunday at Juanillo Beach there is a small amusement park, visiting which you can ride on inflatable slides or a catamaran.
White sand is very fine, the water has an azure hue. The entrance to the sea is gentle, but sitting in the water is not very convenient, since the bottom is covered with small corals and algae are sometimes found.
Juanillo Beach is one of the most popular venues in the Dominican Republic for weddings and photo shoots. If you came to the country for a honeymoon, do not miss the opportunity to visit this picturesque place.
Location: Punta Cana, Dominican Republic.
Cocya beach
The famous Dominican Republic beach is located in the resort town of Cocya. This popularity is explained by its location - it is located 7 km from the airport, and is surrounded on all sides by hotels and hotels.
However, do not be afraid that there will be too many people - the beach is large and there is enough space for everyone. It is also nice that while relaxing on the beach, you will not see numerous hotels - they are hidden from the eyes of tourists by mango trees.
The sand on the beach is coral, which means that it does not warm up so quickly in the sun, and you can safely walk on it. The entrance to the dark turquoise water is gentle, there are no stones and shells on the seabed. A significant plus is the fact that in this place there are no strong currents and winds - reefs reliably protect tourists from this.
The beach is open to all comers. Cocya has many restaurants, shops and cafes. Throughout the beach you can see free showers, toilets and changing cabins.
Location: Puerto Plata, Cocya, Dominican Republic.
Arena Gorda
One of the best beaches in the Dominican Republic is Arena Gorda. This place, where there is white sand, has long been impossible to call wild, because there are several hotels and restaurants nearby. Nevertheless, there are not many people here, and there is always the opportunity to retire, moving away from the central part.
The sand is white and very soft, even in the heat does not burn legs. The water on the beach is crystal clear, there are no stones and shells. Hotel staff clean algae and trash every morning.
Interestingly, there are no sunbeds and umbrellas on the beach. Hotel owners wanted to recreate the atmosphere of a wild beach, so most tourists relax under palm trees. Free admission.
Location: Punta Cana, Dominican Republic.
The beaches of the Dominican Republic are some of the best in the world, and if you have long wanted to visit a place in which beautiful nature combined with good service, you definitely need to come here.
All about the beaches of the Dominican Republic from the Russian-speaking guide: