Top Beaches Near Puerto Plata: Cabarete

Cabarete Beach

Just 2 kilometers (1.2 miles) long, Cabarete is a thriving, thumping seaside destination.  A far cry from the sleepy fishing village it once was just a couple short decades ago, Cabarete today shines as the destination for independent tourism on the north coast. Hugging a simple two-lane highway are thousands of hotel rooms, dozens of cafés, bars, restaurants, and a wide expanse of palm tree-studded sandy beach. Days in Cabarete are bustling, warm, and sunny; its nights are nothing but hot.

Cabarete was transformed in the late 1980s after area beaches were discovered to have ideal conditions for windsurfing and kiteboarding. The town is now a haven for these new adventure sports, as well as hiking in the nearby hills. Of course, lounging on a reclining beach chair with a drink in hand is a perfectly respectable way to pass time on the sandy expanses.

Outdoor Dining along Cabarete Beach

Where to Eat and Drink

Panadería Dick

Much like with their cured meats, Germans don’t loaf around when it comes to bread – Panadería Dick is the best bakery and pastry shop in Cabarete. Right in the middle of town, this restaurant’s breakfasts run around RD$100 for eggs, toast, and coffee. RD$50-100; Thu-Tue 7am-6pm; C/ Principal; 571-0612; panarolfdick@yahoo.com

José O'Shays

There is no beachside watering hole better known or more perfectly located than José O’Shays. It might be the quintessential Irish pub, except for the fact that its draft beer is Presidente and it serves pitchers of caipirinhas alongside Irish Car Bombs. The sea breeze and crashing waves outside compete with sports on a half-dozen televisions, watched by expats of all stripes. RD$100-450; C/ Principal in the center of town; 571-0775; www.joseoshay.com

Jose O'Shay's at Night

Bambú Bar

A deceivingly quiet restaurant during the day, Bambú cranks up the music after dark, ascribing to the “if you blast it, they will come” philosophy of nighttime entertainment. The party, lasting late into the night, spills out of the tiered dance floor onto the beach, where sweaty revelers take breathers and quaff Presidente. RD$100-300; restaurant 9am-11pm, bar until very late; C/ Principal; 982-4549

Friendly Cabarete Locals

Where to Sleep

Casa Blanca

Cool and Canadian-owned, this budget hotel has splendid tropical garden and delicious pool. See about the rooftop pad for 360-degree views of the beach and countryside. US$20-60; 113 C/ Principal next to Janet’s; 571-0934 or 935-0809

Kite Beach Hotel

The upscale Kite Beach Hotel offers spacious accommodations decorated with modern sculpture and paintings. Guests enjoy the on-site pool and restaurant and take comfort in the 24-hour security and gated parking lot. Special rates are available for kite-surfers getting lessons with Kitexcite (see below). US$59-US$600; just east of Extreme Hotel; 571-0878; kitebeachhotel@gmail.com; www.kitebeachhotel.com;

What to Do

Kitebeach

Kiteboarding

Quite the sight from happy hour on the beach, the brightly colored kites of boarders across the bay from Cabarete Beach contrast with the deep blue color of the Caribbean waters. Kiteboarding, almost unheard of 15 years ago, is quickly gaining interest and popularity. Conditions at Cabarete are near perfect during almost the entire year for kiteboarding. Bozo beach, between Kitebeach and Cabarete Beach, is also a kiteboarding hotspot. www.cabaretekiteboarding.com

Windsurfing

Windsurfing appeared in Cabarete in the 1980s as the sport began to experience international growth. The beaches around Cabarete offer that rare environment perfect for windsurfing: good winds and calm surf. Windsurfing season runs from December through April, when waves are the best, and again from June through September, with placid waters. Various companies offer windsurfing rentals and lessons.

Kiteboarding & Windsurfing Companies

Kitexcite: Kite & Surf Center at the western entrance of Cabarete; Stefan (manager) 829-962-4556; http://www.kitexcite.com/

Bozo Beach Kite Club: 571-0285; 866-1754; info@noworkteamcabarete.com;

www.noworkteamcabarete.com

Cabarete Coffee Company (CCC)

CCC caters to the responsible tourist, offering full-day coffee (US$100) and cacao (US$75) tours into the mountains. Beyond exploring the processing of both crops, the tours also include meals and transport. The cacao tour is local, taking place in the mountains by Cabarete, while the coffee option removes tourists to the Jarabacoa-area farm of Julia Alvarez, author of In the Time of the Butterflies. CCC began Haitian relief efforts after the earthquake and also offers internships to local youth. C/ Principal; 571-0919; info@cabaretecoffeecompany.com; www.cabaretecoffeecompany.com

For a full description of where to stay, eat and have fun, check out the complete Cabarete chapter in Dominican Republic (Other Places Travel Guide)!   

Top Beaches near Puerto Plata: Introduction

"Cristo Redentor" Overlooking Puerto Plata

Plenty of travelers fly into Puerto Plata’s Gregorio Luperon airport (POP) to bypass Santo Domingo – a great idea for a short stay aimed just at the beaches that might not include the big city. But where to go once you arrive? The sandy spots in Puerto Plata itself are nothing to write home about. Below are three of our favorite beaches in the area, which we’ll profile over the next month. They’re all within an hour’s drive of Puerto Plata: Sosua, Cabarete, and Playa Encuentro.

Sosua

Sosua is the first big town east of Puerto Plata. Founded in the 40s as a sanctuary for Jewish refugees from Europe, it’s now turned into a beach town with a very distinct European influence. There are two beaches in the city, but the larger, called Playa Sosua, is a wonderful place to spend a day or two. As it’s located inside a bay, the water is calm - perfect for a leisurely swim. Snorkeling is therefore especially popular, as the reef reaches almost to the shore. Behind the beach is a long stretch of stone boardwalk lined with vendors hawking souvenirs and dishes from across the pond, like wurst and schnitzel.

Playa Alicia (a.k.a. Playa Santa) of Sosua

Cabarete

The rowdiest beach town in the country, Cabarete is a party day and night. Not to be forgotten, however, is the quality of its beach. The sand curves languorously, though the waves here are a bit stronger than in Sosua. The town’s bars, restaurants, and nightlife back up directly onto the sand, so that you can take in the view while you enjoy fresh fish, a Santo Libre, and the people-watching.

Seashell Salesman in Cabarete

Playa Encuentro

Unlike the other two, Encuentro is not part of any town. In fact, it’s a bit isolated, which is why we love it. The strong waves are some of the best on the island for surfing, and the sand is often deserted save a few vendors serving just-caught-and-fried fish with refreshing Presidentes. It’s just you, sand, and sea. The beach is accessible by public transport (like the others), but getting there with your own car is much more convenient.

Overnight Trips from Santo Domingo

Windsurfing in Las Salinas Beach, trekking in Rio Blanco, and psychedelic mosaic art in Bonao are all within a few hours’ drive of Santo Domingo. Escape the noise and the heat of the city, and take off to one of our favorite overnight trips from Santo Domingo.

Overnight Trip 1
Glistening Salt Flats, Mangos, and Windsurfing: Las Salinas, Baní

Mural of Baní

Named after a prominent Taíno cacique, Baní means “abundant water” in Taíno, even though the city sits at the edge of the driest part of the country. The city was formally established in 1764, but when Haitian General Dessalines invated in 1805, his troops burned the town to the ground. Banilejos (residents of Baní) now proudly proclaim their home as the town of liberators and poets, including Enrique Montaño and Pedro Landestoy Garrido. Among the most famous Banilejos is Generalísimo Máximo Gómez y Báez (1836-1905), who served in the Dominican army when it was under Spanish control during the re-annexation of the 1860s. Gómez later left for Cuba and helped that country win independence from Spain.

Typical Architecture in Baní

Baní is perhaps best known for its tremendous diversity and production of mangos. The season’s pinnacle is celebrated during the Feria del Mango, which takes place every June and includes dozens of types of mangoes – as well as a huge party. Salt is another major product from the area, extracted from the mines by the beach in Las Salinas.

Do: Playa Las Salinas - Salt Mines

On the way to Las Salinas Beach are a series of sand dunes, known as Las Dunas, whose unusual beauty is worth a photo. While this beach isn’t the best the South has to offer, it is a relaxing place to cool off from the hot Southern climate. From the beach, blinding white piles of salt, harvested from the surrounding salt flats, shimmer under the South’s unobstructed sun. The mine’s manager will gladly let visitors take back a handful of this crucial condiment and local moneymaker.

 To get to Las Salinas, head southwest toward the coast on Carretera Máximo Gómez. Pick up this highway by turning left at the Isla Gas Station located on the highway leading out of Baní heading west (Parador Baní is on the right). Drive to the end of the road and turn right and pass through the towns of Villa Sombrero and Matanzas. Keep going until the coast and follow signs for Las Salinas. You can also pick up a guagua (RD $ 80; 20min; hourly 7am-6pm) at the stop located a few blocks south of El Mercado Público.

Hotel Las Salinas

Sleep: Hotel Las Salinas

Right on the water, this hotel’s 35 rooms are adorned with bright white linens that contrast the dark wooden furniture, and though they come with A/ C, the ocean provides a refreshing breeze. The hotel draws both a wealthy Dominican crowd and windsurfing fanatics, who have been visiting the hotel since it held a windsurfing competition in 1988. Offering a private beach, pool, glamorous chaise-lounges, and a dock with a gazebo, Las Salinas Hotel creates an exclusive atmosphere without breaking a traveler’s budget.

RD $ 2000-3000; Puerto Hermosa; on the right on the main road through Las Salinas; 809-866-8141, 809-310-8141; hotel_salinas@ hotmail.com, www.hotelsalinas.net

Overnight Trip 2 
Bonao and the Río Blanco Ecotourism Complex  

Central Park in Bonao

Bonao is the first city on the highway north out of Santo Domingo, about an hour’s drive away. It is bounded on one side by seemingly endless rice paddies, and on the other by the rapidly rising rock of the Cordillera Central. Bonao began, like many other towns, as an outgrowth around a fort; this one built in 1495 by the Columbus expedition.

Modern Bonao is a two-industry town: rice production and mining. In the foothills outside of town are one of the largest mines in the country, with enormous impact on Bonao employing a plurality of residents, but also has environmental consequences. Bonao is also proudly home to artist and master painter Cándido Bidó, and there is a fascinating museum here in his honor.
Visit www.bonaocityrd.blogspot.com, a local website dedicated to local news, sports, and music, for updates on local happenings in the city.

Mosaic Bathroom: "The Throne"

Do: Casa Museo Tiburcio

The Casa Museo Tiburcio, known by locals as La Casa de Piedra, is worth a stop in the town of Bonao before heading to the Río Blanco Ecotourism Complex (see below). Home of the Bonao artist Cristian Tiburcio, along with his wife and three children, the house is made entirely of ceramic and stone mosaics, from the walls to the beds - and even the blender. Bright tiles form figures like fish and animals, but the house features the artist’s signature piece: eyes. Tiburcio uses eyes as a form of self-portraiture, producing an often-overwhelming sensation in its visitors.

Mosaic Bedroom:"Bosque de los Sueños"

One particularly impressive area is in the bedroom called Bosque de los Sueños (Forest of Dreams), where the bedroom’s toilet is literally a throne covered inside and out with colorful tiles. The artist studied under the Dominican master Bidó, whose influence is apparent in Tiburcio’s use of color, especially Bidó’s classic hues of blue and orange. The first floor is the only space with white walls, used to display the artist’s paintings, sculpture, and mosaic pieces. His home-as-project began in 1998, and continues to be a work in progress with plans that call for an outdoor theater and community park.

 12 C/ Los Pinos, Urbanización Falconbridge; contact Cristian at 809-525-2972 or 809-304-6510; cristiantiburcio@ yahoo.com; www.casamuseotiburcio.com

Sleep: Río Blanco Ecotourism Complex,  Hoyo del Pino

Seventeen kilometers uphill from Bonao into the deep, piney forests of the Cordillera Central is the small valley village of Hoyo del Pino. In 2004, community members founded a non-profit dedicated to the conservation of the area around a tributary of the Yuna River, one of the largest watersheds in the Dominican Republic. The Río Blanco Ecotourism Complex provides a peek into the wilderness and coffee farms around the village. Locals and seasoned experts guide hiking treks, birding tours of endemic and migratory species, and visits to mountain-cold swimming holes. Other attractions include one of the highest waterfalls in the country; coffee production, demonstrations, and tastings; and a stop at a bamboo artisan’s workshop. A natural history museum is in the works. The complex has its own kitchen and lodging, and proceeds go to ecosystem preservation efforts and improving economic opportunities for families living around the project area.

Guide service, which is required for some activities, is RD $50. 809-310-5767; contacto.coeturb@gmail.com; https://sites.google.com/site/visitacoeturb/; https://www.facebook.com/COETURB