In the article I will talk about the best beaches in Dominican Republic. How to get there, there will be a map and many tips with life hacks. The Dominican Republic is not a big country, but there are more than 1000 beaches. And if you open the TOP-10 most beautiful beaches of the Caribbean, 3 or 4 of them will be Dominican.
Table of contents:
- General facts about Dominican beaches
- Map of the best beaches in Dominican Republic
- The best beaches of the Dominican Republic TOP-10
- Travel Tips
General facts about Dominican beaches
If you look at the Dominican Republic on the world map, you can see that this is a small island state. But the number of beaches here is huge. Here are the features of the Dominican Republic that tourists need to know:
- It’s summer here all year round. On the coast, less than +25 degrees does not happen even in the coldest months.
- The island of Haiti (Hispaniola), where the Dominican Republic is located, is not of volcanic origin. Many millions of years ago it was part of the continent America. Therefore, the beaches here are not rocky but sandy.
- White and very fine sand
- And most importantly: the north of the country is located on the Atlantic Ocean, and the south – the Caribbean Sea.
- Due to this, in different parts of the country there is a different color of water, different power of water.
The best beaches in Dominican Republic: map
I must say right away that this is a subjective and personal rating of the author. The author (that’s me), a big sociophobe, he doesn’t like beaches where there are a lot of people :). Therefore, of course, deserted beaches will prevail in this TOP. I am sure when you get to these beaches you will also say WOW.
The best beaches in the Dominican Republic: TOP-10
Before I list these pieces of paradise in the Dominican Republic, I want to say that the order does not matter. The list will simply be the best beaches without ranking and so on. If I can single out the coolest beach and justify why, then there is simply no way to further arrange the beaches in their places. They are all like from the Bounty ad.
It is important to know:
A large number of world famous films were filmed on the beaches of the Dominican Republic. And even the famous in the 90s advertising of bounty and Bacardi rum. You can watch these videos and find out what else was filmed in this country in the article: what famous films and advertisements were filmed in the Dominican Republic.
Madama beach
Madama Beach is located near the village of Las Galeras, in the easternmost part of the Samana Peninsula. This is a wild beach, to which there is no road.
It is important to know:
Hereinafter, by the word wild beach, I mean not a beach for nudists, there are none here. A wild beach, these are beaches in the wilderness, without hotels and other infrastructure, where it is difficult to walk or get there, where no one knocks coconuts off palm trees, which means it is not recommended to lie under a palm tree.
Madama beach can be reached in two ways:
- by boat from the beaches of Las Galeras
- or on foot from the same beaches, in 45-60 minutes. You will have to walk along the path through the real jungle and banana plantations
What you need to know about Madama Beach:
- There is no infrastructure here
- The length of the entire beach is less than 100m
- There are no or almost no people here
- Since the beach itself is short, it is a kind of lagoon without the waves of the Atlantic Ocean. There is nothing to do here except to sunbathe.
- Therefore, I recommend to allocate 2 hours to stay on this beach
It is important to know:
All beaches in the country are free and municipal, keep this in mind.
Fronton beach
Fronton Beach is the most beautiful beach in the entire Caribbean, and without competitors. The photos will speak for themselves.
This is a wild beach neighbor of Madama beach. To get in the same way as to Madama, there is no road between these beaches. Rather, there is no straight line, but there is a road through the jungle about 6 km.
Facts about Fronton Beach:
- The coastline of the beach is 1 km.
- There are a lot of palm trees
- There are beautiful bays and rocks
- A million palm trees like from an advertisement
- And most importantly, look at the background. A high black mountain, which makes this beach a cool place.
- The water, here it is bright emerald color
- We come here all day long. We bring drinks, coals, meat with us and make a barbecue.
- There are almost no people here, only rare tourists who are brought on boats.
Read more about the beaches of Madama and Fronton, how to get there, and much more in the article at the link.
Rincon beach
Rincon Beach, another beach on the Samana Peninsula. In general, Samana is a piece of land in the Dominican Republic, where human activity is least visible. There are jungles, wild beaches and extremely low population density.
Rincon Beach is a semi-wild beach. There are no hotels, villas or other capital buildings. But the road through the jungle leads here. And you can drive directly to the beach. Walk from Las Galeras along the coast, the same 6 km as before Fronton, only in the other direction and the road is much easier.
Locals like to come here with the whole family in the evenings after work. And on weekends, they come from all over the area.
The most beautiful place on the beach, at the very end closer to the mountains. There is a small river flowing straight from the jungle into the ocean. First of all, the views are like from the picture. And secondly: the water temperature is a couple of degrees lower than in the ocean. And the locals do not like this place, as it is cold for them to swim here. And for us, the water is more than comfortable.
The length of the beach is more than 2 km. It’s very cool to just walk along the edge of the ocean with gorgeous views.
Koson beach
Another beach, already the last one, from the Samana Peninsula. And also one of my favorites. I recommend visiting absolutely everyone, as well as the beaches of Fronton and Madama.
Getting here is easy. Literally 5km from Las Terrenas on an excellent road. There is parking. There are several bars and restaurants near the beach.
The beach is also semi-wild, as there are no hotels, no villas, or other buildings for tourists to stay. There is an unfinished hotel, but judging by its appearance, the construction stopped a long time ago.
Koson Beach differs from others:
- gold fine sand
- palm trees right next to the water line
- The power of the ocean. If there are reefs or obstacles on other beaches 200-500 m away that make the ocean calm. That is not the case on Koson Beach. And all the power of the ocean rolls right on the shore. The sight is very cool.
- The waves are so strong and the spray is so high that the beach is always in a haze of fog.
The length of the beach is just over 2 km. Here you just need to walk along the ocean, or sit under a palm tree and enjoy the views. Photos to prove it.
Eagles Bay (Bay of Eagles) Beach
The Bay of Eagles beach is located in a nature reserve, which is strictly protected by the state. It is a spit more than 5 km long. The beach is so wild that out of all the buildings there is only an observation tower. There is nothing else, only nature.
Here are a few of its features:
- Eagle Bay Beach is very far from tourist routes. To get here from anywhere in the country at least half a day by car. You can’t get there by public transport. It is almost under the border with Haiti.
- The Bay of Eagles is located on the Caribbean Sea – which means that the color of the water is crazy here.
- The lagoon is protected from sea waves and the water is always calm.
- This is one of the driest regions of the country, there are no palm trees. Only a lot of cactus and shrubs.
- It is here that you can stay in a cool glamping and spend the night in a tent on the beach, 5 meters from the Caribbean Sea.
- Well, and another important point: the Bay of Eagles is located in such a way that it is one of the few beaches where you can watch the sunset. Here the sun sets directly into the sea. For the Dominican Republic, this is a rarity.
Advice:
If you go here, then you must go with an overnight stay. Since in one daylight hours to get here, relax and return to the hotel – this will not be a vacation, you will spend the whole day on the road.
Read more about the bay of eagles and glamping here.
Saona island beach
Saona Island, the largest island in the Dominican Republic after the Dominican Republic itself. The whole island is a nature reserve. Just like in the Bay of Eagles, any construction is prohibited here. There is only a small fishing village called Mano Juan.
You can get here only by boat, for $40-60, or by helicopter on a VIP tour. The length of the island’s beaches is more than 15 km.
It is important to know:
Saona Island is also the Caribbean Sea, but it is a humid region of the Dominican Republic. Here are all the beaches with palm trees, and with crazy-colored water. It was on this beach that bounty ads were filmed 30 years ago.
The beaches of Saona Island, such a forgotten piece of paradise that is not built up. And all that makes it modern are the sun loungers. I recommend to everyone. And this beach has a good location: most tourists fly to the Dominican Republic to the resorts of Punta Cana and Bavaro. From here to the island of Saona, not very far, only an hour and a half.
As a rule, tourists come to the beach of Saona Island for the whole day.
Read everything about the island of Saona, its beaches, photos, how to get there in the article at the link.
Bavaro beach
Bavaro is one of the most popular resorts in the Dominican Republic. And the most popular resort among tourists from Europe and the USA. It is located in the east of the country and is located on the Atlantic Ocean.
This is not a wild beach, but the most classic beach with hundreds of hotels, well-developed infrastructure, bars and restaurants. Feature of Bavaro beach:
- long coastline over 15 km
- a million palm trees along the water’s edge, right three meters away
- excellent infrastructure
- perhaps this is the best beach in the country for tourists buying tours. Feel free to choose a hotel on this beach, you will not regret it. Read all about package tours for two here.
Bacardi beach
Bacardi Island or officially Cayo Levantado is the 4th largest island in the country. But at the same time, its area is less than 1 sq. km. You can walk around the entire island in about 15 minutes. Bacardi Island is located in Samana Bay.
I would not include this island in the ranking of the best beaches in the Dominican Republic if not for one moment. More on this below.
- The island is truly paradise.
- Its main beach is a dream
- An advertisement for the famous Bacardi rum was filmed here.
- BUT: daily crowds of tourists are brought here on boats to this beach. And if cruise ships also enter the bay, then their passengers are also brought here.
- And it turns out that during the season, every day there are a lot of people on this beach. And without tourists, this is really one of the best beaches in the Dominican Republic.
And in order to stay here for the night without tourists, and to get access to the closed part of the island, you need to book a hotel room on Bacardi Island. There is only one hotel here. What kind of hotel, how to book it and in general everything about the island and Bacardi beach, read in a separate article.
Catalina Island Beach: the best beaches in the Dominican Republic
Another small island in the Dominican Republic is Catalina. And another heavenly beach. The island is located near Saona and 2 km from the coast opposite the town of La Romana. You can only get here by boat from La Romana, but it’s fast, easy and pretty cheap.
The island is officially considered uninhabited. And almost the entire coastline of Catalina Island is Catalina Beach. White sand like flour, a million palm trees, the azure sea and views as from the picture are provided here. But there are a few more points:
- The clear of the water off the coast of the island reaches 30-40m
- An underwater slope begins right from the beach, on which there are reefs
- There are a lot of fish and a diverse underwater world.
- Therefore, lovers of diving and snorkeling will be fine here. There are not many spots for watching fish in the Dominican Republic. And here is one of them. Details about snorkeling and diving in the Dominican Republic.
Travel Tips: Best Dominican Beaches
There are hundreds of cool beaches in the Dominican Republic. And each one will be great.
- Always take water, drinks, snacks with you to wild beaches
- There are sea urchins in the Dominican Republic, but not in large numbers and not everywhere, but coral shoes may sometimes be needed.
- A snorkel mask is generally required on any beach.
In conclusion, the best beaches in Dominican Republic are found all over the country. But many of them are on the Samana Peninsula. This region is my favorite in the Dominican Republic. There are not only the most cool beaches, but the gorgeous EL Limon waterfall, Bacardi Island, and of course humpback whales come here.
The best beaches in the Dominican Republic are considered the best in the Caribbean!
Resources to help you plan your dream trip to Dominican Republic
- Flights at the best prices with discounts
- Car rental: DiscoverCars – a largest international resource
- Hotels and apartments:
- Vacation packages:
- Tours, excursions and extreme activities:
- GetYourGuide – more than 800+ tours and water activities.
- Viator – 3500+ tours and excursions in Dominican.
- Comprehensive travel insurance: EKTA
- Internet and Calls:
- Airalo – eSIM with internet package.
- Drimsim – universal SIM card (or eSIM) in any country in the world.
- Taxi and airport transfers: Intui.Travel
Hello! Awesome site! Great articles with nice language and very informative content! Thank you! Please tell me where to go from Punta Cana to watch the sunset. Thank you!
Anatoly and thank you for your kind feedback. And the sunset from Punta Cana is nowhere to go) This is for you in another part of the country in the Bay of Eagles. But seriously, there are no beaches with sunsets in Punta Cana. Only if you climb the mountain, then what is close to you is Mount Redonda.