Off to the Dominican Republic

As a guest of the Dominican Republic’s Ministry of Tourism, I’m off tomorrow with a big ol’ group of travel writers to explore this northern Caribbean country for the first time!

The DR shares half of its island land mass with Haiti; while that beleaguered country’s official language is French, people in the DR largely speak Spanish. Christopher Columbus just had that kind of effect on folks, I guess.

Here’s a map of the country:

After our group meets up in the capital city of Santo Domingo, our trip’s focus will be in the northeastern Samaná Peninsula, known for eco-tourism, wild parkland and unspoiled beaches.

Here’s a general map of our itinerary:

We’ll be staying in two different locations: Hotel Gran Bahia Principe Cayacoa, near the town of Samaná and Sea Horse Ranch, near Cabarete Beach.

Amongst other things, we’ll be taking the new highway north from Santo Domingo, snorkeling in Sosua Bay, taking a cable car almost 3,000 feet up to Mount Isabel de Torres, hiking in Los Haitises National Park, horseback riding at Salto El Limón and waterfall cascading along the Rio Damajagua.

But who is “we,” you ask? (Not Adam, sadly; he’ll be spending half the time working here in L.A., the other half backpacking in California’s High Sierras.)

My fellow DR travelers are:

Abbie Mood
Jodi Ettenberg
Jill Robinson
Andrea Duchon
Blane Bachelor
Jorge Luis Santiago & Sarah Menkedick

Rounding out this adventurous lineup, the latter are a photographer/writer team who’ll be celebrating their honeymoon.

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From July 8-13, please follow my/our adventures on Twitter at #drtrip and on TWT’s Facebook page, as well!

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See also
TWT Travel Binder: Dominican Republic