Outside of the proposal on the last trip we went on, this has to be the next most exciting trip we will take! We may not spend our time here laying on the beach with cocktails, but; exploring gorgeous villas and resorts isn't exactly a bad way to spend our time either. To top that off, we haven't been here in almost 10 years since our very first trip we took together! Hard to believe it has really been that long! |
This was definetely another adventure for us, driving around this country was pretty crazy (not a shocker), traffic laws aren't enforced, pot holes so big they can flatten your tires, motos drive on the wrong side of the road, they don't use head lights at night (if they do, they only use high beams), they like to play chicken and drive rediculously fast to go, well no where really. Overall though, it was fun, I know Jackie was enjoying driving like Mario Andretti, and scaring the shit out of me.
We started out by flying in Santo Domingo, renting a car and driving to Punta Cana (2 hrs driving time). This whole trip we didn't pre-book any hotels, so I went ahead and picked a random all-inclusive for us to enjoy, since our first venue appointment wasn't until 4pm the next day. If you ever travel to the Dominican Republic, we highly recommend you avoid all-inclusive resorts unless you just plan to be drunk the whole time. The food is absolutely disgusting! I even remembered that from almost 10 years ago, but had hoped there had been some improvements since our last visit. We like street food anyways, we just did this for the amenities of the resort to pass time.
Our trip then took us back to Santo Domingo for a pit stop, and early the next morning drove to Cabrera for our next venue we saw. This first one was absolutely gorgeous. However, not quit what we wanted for a few reasons so we moved on. Here's a few pics; since words can't really describe.... Killer pool, right????
We started out by flying in Santo Domingo, renting a car and driving to Punta Cana (2 hrs driving time). This whole trip we didn't pre-book any hotels, so I went ahead and picked a random all-inclusive for us to enjoy, since our first venue appointment wasn't until 4pm the next day. If you ever travel to the Dominican Republic, we highly recommend you avoid all-inclusive resorts unless you just plan to be drunk the whole time. The food is absolutely disgusting! I even remembered that from almost 10 years ago, but had hoped there had been some improvements since our last visit. We like street food anyways, we just did this for the amenities of the resort to pass time.
Our trip then took us back to Santo Domingo for a pit stop, and early the next morning drove to Cabrera for our next venue we saw. This first one was absolutely gorgeous. However, not quit what we wanted for a few reasons so we moved on. Here's a few pics; since words can't really describe.... Killer pool, right????
We then headed over to Cabarete to see two venues here. Loved it here! More things to do, SO MANY resturuants on the beach (literally eating with our toes in the sand), enjoyed a few drinks on the beach watching the local kids just having fun playing beach games and racing each other up and down the sand.
We ended up staying the night Sosua, we took up an offer we recieved and stayed in cute little 2 bedroom condo water front for pretty cheap. Once we made it out to dinner, we realized the area wasn't all that nice. Sat in a resturuant just watching tons of prostitutes and old white men walking around together; and military police walking around with their guns in hand. It was pretty insane, of all the places we have been to, I have never seen it so bad. Side note- Sosua was the only unpreferred city we passed through... Every where else was safe!
The next day we went back to get a second look at a venue where the owners were incredible. They asked us where we ended up staying, once we told them they insisted we stayed the night with them, comfortably in their insanely HUGE mansion. Showed us around the real Cabarete area and beach scene (got us out of Sosua or Sewer as they call it), drank wine through the evening, and Jackie played the owners in pool just having an amazing time. We will never forget their genuine hospitality, and our new friendships.
We ended up staying the night Sosua, we took up an offer we recieved and stayed in cute little 2 bedroom condo water front for pretty cheap. Once we made it out to dinner, we realized the area wasn't all that nice. Sat in a resturuant just watching tons of prostitutes and old white men walking around together; and military police walking around with their guns in hand. It was pretty insane, of all the places we have been to, I have never seen it so bad. Side note- Sosua was the only unpreferred city we passed through... Every where else was safe!
The next day we went back to get a second look at a venue where the owners were incredible. They asked us where we ended up staying, once we told them they insisted we stayed the night with them, comfortably in their insanely HUGE mansion. Showed us around the real Cabarete area and beach scene (got us out of Sosua or Sewer as they call it), drank wine through the evening, and Jackie played the owners in pool just having an amazing time. We will never forget their genuine hospitality, and our new friendships.
Working our way back to Santo Domingo we still have two more venues to see. One more back in Cabrera and one in Las Terrenas. Once we got to Las Terranas, we completely fell in love with the area. This part of the island had more beauty than all of the others. We spent the night in Los Nomados which is next to Las Terrenas. The best beaches we saw, bluest waters, sandy and perfect for swimming, the list goes on! Unfortunately the venue here did not meet our needs, however if you do plan to visit the Dominican Republic outside of our wedding, we HIGHLY recommed Los Nomados.... Truly a hidden gem you never hear about.
Now that the trip is over we had a tough choice to make between two venues we fell completely in love with. Finally almost decided, your going to have to wait to see which one we picked... It's more fun keeping it a surprise!
Below is a map of our journey through the Dominican Republic.
Below is a map of our journey through the Dominican Republic.