As there has been no wind and we’re already missing our kiting days, it’s time for a throwback to our Dominican vacation part 2.
After 14 days in Cabarete we took our direction towards Punta Cana. We had organized a bus to pick us up from the hotel and drive to Punta Cana. Must say it’s quite tricky to find suitable transport for a group of 11 + 13 suitcases + 3 big surfing equipment bags + 2 strollers. As we asked transfer offers from many different providers (almost every taxi driver says he knows someone), it soon became quite a fight between the locals. In such a small village the word spreads quickly.
Anyway we had fixed us a transfer and were ready to escape from the big waves. The journey was supposed to take around 6h, but in reality it took 8h (again some extra hours). We had agreed that the price included also toll tarifs, but the driver started avoiding the tolls and pass them through smaller roads. We realized what was going on and after some yelling in Spanish, the driver turned back on the main road. Must say knowing even a bit of Spanish will help you a lot, because most of the locals don’t speak any English and will only try to trick you. Once you’re speaking in Spanish with them they take you more as equal and things run more smoothly, but they still will try to trick you! Luckily for our group Triin is quite fluent in Spanish and speaks up when somebody is trying to rip us off!
Once we arrived, we were so tired but satisfied at the same time. It was clear from the first sight that we had arrived in a resort area. Punta Cana is basically a resort area where different resorts fill the entire coastline. We rented two apartments from Volalto Group in Stanza Mare on the Bavaro beach, which is considered as the main beach. The resort was lovely and compared to our previous hotel in Cabarete, even luxurious. We had a nice pool area and white sandy beach just infront of our building. Kids for sure were happy about the enormous pool and warm water!
Although we were a bit sceptic in the beginning if it’s allowed to kite in that beach, the locals said not to worry. Therefore we started waiting for the wind and enjoyed our relaxing holiday in a resort. The first couple of days were quiet, so we decided to check out ziplining in the jungle. We used the Canopy Adventures ziplining tour and were satisfied. A fun early morning in the jungle. You need to be patient about the trip there though, because it’s a 1,5h drive in a quite inconvenient bus on a really bumpy road.
In addition we also booked a boat trip to Isla Saona to celebrate a birthday. It was really difficult to find a decent operator because we wanted to go there on a catamaran, but most of the operators offered speed boat trips. Furthermore, the locals said that in many cases it is a scam and you will be ripped off. Anyways finally we just book an option and hoped for the best beceause we were running out of time.
Trip to Saona is a full day trip, you’ll be picked up early in the morning and taken back in the evening. The day involves – sailing an hour to nature’s pool, where you can swim in a shallow crystal clear water, sailing to the island, buffet lunch and leisure time on the island (around 3h) and the trip back.
The island itself is a true paradise island with white sandy beaches and turquoise water. It was a bit crowded (as any tourist attraction is) but you still could find youself a private spot to relax and enjoy the day. The downside of our trip was actually the catamaran what we chose. It was really crowded (especially the way back from the island as some had come there on a speed boat and got back on a sailing boat) and had a party on it (loud music and dancing). We extra asked if it is child (baby) friendly and they said yes, although we dare to disagree. Anyway this is something that you cannot change, it is part of their culture and if you want to move around you either accept it or be very wealthy to book everything private. All in all we were happy that we had our island trip!
The next last days were windy days so straight to the beach in the morning. Kiting in Bavaro beach is a bit tricky and definitely not for beginners. There are several swimming areas for the tourists, speed boats and leisure boats passing by, sailing boats and little catamarans, boats in dock, etc. So you need to know your way around and be confident in kiting among all the traffic. Yet it was thrilling as you needed to consider everything. The speed boats were extremely “fun” as they didn’t care about you at all and even came as close as possible because tourists on board wanted to take pictures of the surfers. Still we were not the only kiters there…
The weather, however, was really weird. On shore it didn’t seem that it was blowing strongly, but when going on the water it was so windy that we had to come and change our kites a couple of times. It was actually really weird to come on shore and tell the rest that you came off because of too strong wind. They looked at you like you’re crazy because it wasn’t blowing at all. Anyways we had nice last days and even the last morning before our flight we spent on the water. Just to take last of it!
Although we enjoyed our holiday a lot and were happy about discovering the Dominican Republic, our hearts still belong to Zanzibar. The best place so far! We most certainly will write more about that trip too!
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