I recently returned from a one weeks holiday to the Dominican Republic, staying in the Playa Doradaresort. I travelled alone and really didn't know what to expect.
The flight and transfer went smoothly and I was pleasantly suprised when arriving at the resort. All the surroundings are very lush and tropical and there's a superb golf course contained within it - if golf is your thing of course. The resort consists of hotels, various shops and a shopping plaza. The hotels are on an all-inclusive basis. My hotel was one of the smaller ones, a bit basic but nonetheless clean and comfortable.
I was worried about how I would cope being a female on my own. Fortunately I soon met plenty of people at my hotel who befriended me so I was able to spend my time with them as opposed to wandering about on my own. I never felt unsafe when I was walking about on my own, but of course I was hassled by the local males - not in a sinister way, more flirtacious banter. I found a smile, a wave and a "hello and goodbye" soon sorted them out.
That aside, myself and my fellow travellers did get a bit tired of the constant stream of locals trying to sell us things etc. Usually a polite no thank you suffices but some of them were particularly pesky and persistent. As this is a developing country, they regarded us as millionaires - the wristbands that we were wearing to indicate we were on an all inclusive package, signalled to them that we were fair game.
The weather was disappointing even for November when I travelled. It was still very hot and humid but there was an awful lot of rain and in the 7 days I was there, the sun only came out on 3 of those. It would be a good time to travel for people that don't like extreme heat or are not particulary into sun-worshipping.
The beaches I did not find to be all that impressive. Being on the North coast - this is the Atlantic sea so the water was quite choppy and the beaches were golden sand as opposed to the white sand I had dreamed of. If you are after white sandy beaches and a calmer sea, I would advise visiting the South coast of the island which lies on the Caribbean Sea.
All inclusive is a great idea, especially if you are a hearty eater (like me!) - a huge choice of food daily, something for everyone, and of course as much booze as you can drink. The hotels lay on their own entertainment during the day and evenings, definitely worth a look. There's also quite a few nightclubs and casinos in the vicinity.
There's a fair few shops in the resort, plenty of things to buy to take home as well. Amber is one of their local products and there's some beautiful jewellery you can buy. I found the prices to be fairly cheap.
I would certainly visit there again, but would go in the summer months like July or August as I am a big sun-lover and was disappointed with the weather. Also I would try the south coast on my next visit as I feel the beaches and the sea would be more what I was hoping for.
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Advantages: Beautiful place - Ideal for couples and families - very friendly place Disadvantages: Very quiet nightlife - not much to do in the evenings and evening entertainment not up to much
Dec 5th, 2003
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