The island of La Hispaniola was discovered by Christopher Columbus on December 5, 1492. Located in the Center of the Caribbean Sea, it is the second in size of the Greater Antilles, Cuba being the largest. The island is shared by two nations: the Republic of Haiti and the Dominican Republic. Click here for more information about the Dominican Republic.

The climate of the coastal zone is warm, tropical. It is fresher in the central region. The average temperature during the entire year is 25 degree celsius (77F). Check the current weather in Puerto Plata.

Zona Colonial - Santo Domingo

Aerial view North Coast

The official language of the Dominican Republic is Spanish. It is very common to find English, French, Italian and German speaking people at important tourist destinations.

National currency is the Dominican peso. The real value of the Dominican peso varies in accordance to the value of the U.S. dollar.

You can explore the colonial zone of Santo Domingo, visit the mountain areas of Constanza and Jarabacoa, windsurf and have a gourmet dining in Cabarete, dive in Sosua, and enjoy the Cosmopolitan feeling of foreign beach enclaves until the Samana peninsula.

The country has seven airports: Las América International and Herrera, in Santo Domingo; Punta Aguila and Punta Cana, María Montéz in Barahona, Gregorio Luperon in Puerto Plata and Del Cibao in Santiago. It is 2 ½ hour flight from Miami, 3 ½ hours from New York and 9 hours from Madrid.

The population of the Dominican Republic is estimated at nearly eight million people. The capital is Santo Domingo with 2.5 million; the second largest city is Santiago with approximately 600,000 inhabitants.

The beach of Sosúa offers a kilometer long beach of white sand, a bay of crystal waters and coral reef heads, the best scuba dive area and aquatic activities on the north coast.

Cabarete's endless beaches, constant breezes and protective coral made this one to the most popular wind-surfing destination of the Caribbean.

Merengue and Bachata

Both towns have a complete spectrum of activities and accommodations, from quaint bed and breakfast inns to mid sized hotels and all-inclusive resorts. These towns are live with activities, abounding with restaurants of every variety and price range, bars and discos and a casino that serves both communities.

What distinguishes Cabarete and Sosúa from the large resort developments like Playa Dorada in Puerto Plata or Punta Cana Bavaro on the east coast is that both are authentic Dominican towns, where the locals and visitors mix freely in clubs, on the streets and beaches.