Excursions from Cabarete

Cabarete has a lot of variety to offer so depending on how long you are visiting, you may never feel the need to leave. If you would like to pack your vacation with as much as possible, or you are here for over a week, there are definitely some excursions that are worth your time. All are within a few hours or less of Cabarete. Some of these locations can only be reached by car or taxi. Others can be reached by public transportation as well.

Day trips from Cabarete

Other Beach Areas:

You can travel the main road to most of these beach areas by Guagua but you will have to walk from the main road to their location. For this reason, it is recommended that you either rent a car or hire a taxi to take you.

Boca de Yasica

Boca de Yasica

Located 20 minutes east of Cabarete, you can reach this lagoon by turning left off the main road at the Camino/Paraiso del Sol Hotels entrance. Follow this road and turn right. After passing these hotels keep left until you reach a dirt road that eventually follows the ocean. There are few people, and along with the beautiful ocean, you'll get a chance to see where the Boca de Yasica meets the sea. A small restaurant sells fresh fish.

Playa Grande

Playa Grande

Located 1.25 hours east of Cabarete, this beautiful beach area is just after the Playa Grande Golf Resort. The sand is soft and white, and the water is clear and a magnificent turquoise color, typical of the Caribbean. There are several open-air Dominican restaurants in the area where you can feast on delicious fresh seafood.

Playa Preciosa

This beach is right next to Playa Grande and is as equally appealing. The difference between the two is that this one has no restaurants, beach vendors, and tends to be visited by fewer people.

Playa Diamante

Locate 1.5 hours east of Cabarete, this pretty bay area is enclosed by mangrove forests. The geological make up of the area makes the shallow waters quite cool, and therefore lovely to wade in.

Playa Magante

Locate 50 minutes east of Cabarete, this lovely, secluded beach is right before the town of Rio San Juan. With three restaurants and a horseback riding ranch in the area, many people take a trip here to do something different for the day.

Playa Caleton

Playa Caleton

Located 1 hour east of Cabarete, this beach area is in the fisherman's village of Rio San Juan. You can take a boat trip on the Gri Gri Lagoon, a fresh water lagoon with a mangrove forest forming a canopy over its various channels. The trip makes its way through the winding lagoon to a shallow cove in the ocean. This cove is like a crystal clear pool where you can enjoy a swim before getting back on the boat. The journey also takes your through a cave area unique to the area. There is a restaurant in amongst the mangroves at the lagoon if you care to enjoy some lunch during your visit.

Other towns/cities:

These towns and cities are all within an hour and a half of Cabarete and quite easily accessible. You can rent a car, or hire a taxi to take you, but you may want to consider taking public transport because it's so reasonably priced.

Sosua

Haitian art displayed on the road

Located 15 minutes west of Cabarete, Sosua is for the most part a tourist town as well. It is also where you'll find most of the dive companies on the north coast. All of them begin their dives from the picturesque Sosua Bay. The beautiful Sosua Beach is the main attraction here and it is lined with food stands, restaurants, bars, and a variety of shops selling tourist souvenirs.

Puerto Plata

San Felipe Fort

Located 45 minutes west of Cabarete, Puerto Plata is the largest city on the north coast. It's name, 'Port of Silver', was given to it because of the silver luster of the water at sunset. There are a few attractions you can visit besides the town, such as the Amber Museum, the San Felipe Fort and the famous Brugal Rum Distillery.

Santiago

Monument

Located 1.5 hours west and south of Cabarete, Santiago is the Dominican Republic's second largest city. Some things definitely worth the trip are the Tomas Morel Museum of Folkloric Art, the Monument of the Heroes of the Restoration, and the Tobacco Museum. Make sure you also visit the bustling downtown area, alive with the colors, sights and sounds of typically Dominican 'big city' life.

Sightseeing Trips:

These areas are recommended because of the drive, as opposed to the destination. For this reason it is probably best to rent a car or bike, or if you're not comfortable with driving, hire a taxi.

Cordillera Septentrional

Cibao Valley seen from the Cordillera Septentrional

Located 10 minutes east of Cabarete is the town of Sabaneta. At this town junction, take the Moca Mountain Road to the right. This winding mountain road leads you through the Cordillera Septentrional mountain area. The drive passes through small Dominican villages and you'll have panoramic views of the countryside along the way. If you keep driving this route you will eventually end up in the city of Moca, the cigar-making capital of the Dominican Republic. This mountain road is an absolute favorite of motor bikers looking for a winding scenic tour.

The road between Gaspar Hernandez and Tenares is very similar. Some would say it's an even more beautiful route to take. A great day trip by motor bike or car would be to do the round trip from Cabarete - Sabaneta - Moca - Tenares - Gaspar Hernandez - and back to Cabarete.

Carretera Touristica

This hilly area is located 35 minutes west of Cabarete towards Puerto Plata. Once you pass the Montellano junction, turn left on the road heading to Santiago. Along this road is where Dominican vendors sell their particular specialties: fresh cheese, meat, fruit, flowers, and hand made furniture. This route also has beautiful views of the hills and countryside of the area.

Adventure Trips:

You can travel the main road fairly close to these areas but you'll still have to walk from the main road to their location. For this reason, it is recommended that you either rent a car or hire a taxi to take you.

Yasica Jungle River

Local fisher on Río Yasica

Located 25 minutes east of Cabarete, just before the town of Islabon, you must turn right before a bridge heading to town. There is a boat that tours this river that includes an informative chat about the nature in the area. A small zoo on site has iguanas, snakes, turtles, ravens and a monkey.

Mount Isabel

Statue on top of the mountain

Located 45 minutes west of Cabarete, towards Puerto Plata, is Mount Isabel. You can't miss it on your drive there. This is a close area to do some hiking and see some beautiful views of the countryside.

Blue Lagoon and Dudu Lagoon

Laguna Dudu

Located 1.5 hours east of Cabarete, behind the town of Rio San Juan, Blue and Dudu Lagoon are a clear blue freshwater water holes. There are big signs for the area on the right side of the main road. Once you turn in here you'll have to stop at the small restaurant so they can give you a key to enter the areas.

Damajagua Cascades

Jump!

Located 1.5 hours west of Cabarete, in behind the city of Puerto Plata, is the Damajagua waterfall area, hosting 28 waterfalls. For a few Pesos you can hire a Guide to take you through the route. It is a 30 minute walk to the first waterfall and you can climb up to the seventh one. Or, if you are really adventurous, you can walk all the way up on a foot path and then make your way down through all of the waterfalls. Sneakers or runners are a must! For more on cascading go to DominicanAdventures.com

Jarabacoa

Rio Yaque del Norte popular for rafting and kayaking

Located 3 hours west and south of Cabarete, is the mountainous Jarabacoa area. This area is flush with adventure opportunities, with the most popular being horseback riding and river rafting. It's a beautiful area for hiking in the fresh cool mountain air. This area is where most of the flower and strawberry plantations are located.

For more on Jarabacoa go to DominicanAdventures.com and Hispaniola.com

Organized tours

Some great tour options are:

• Ecology-based whale-watching in Samana Bay
• Enchanting waterfalls of El Limon
• Mountain towns of Jarabacoa and Constanza in the cool heights of the Dominican Alps
• White-water rafting, kayaking and cascading
• Thrill to the challenge of deep-sea fishing
• Charming isle of Cayo Levantado just off Samana (Bacardi Island)
• Cultural and historical highlights of the capital city of Santo Domingo
• Experience the exotic Africa-in-the-Caribbean culture of neighboring Haiti