Punta Cana, Dominican Republic

If you aren’t excited about this blog by that picture above, then I do not know what to tell ya! Punta Cana in the Dominican Republic truly is a sight to see. Between the soft sand and turquoise waters, it’s the perfect vacation getaway (that I wish I was on right now). In August 2015, my family and I went here for our first family vacation in years. Growing up, my parents had a timeshare in Mexico and now own a place there, so as much as I love Mexico, it was cool to go on a vacation somewhere different. During this blog, I am going to be discussing where we stayed and what to do while your vacation to Punta Cana, Dominican Republic.

What to do?

• Barcelo Bavaro Palace Punta Cana: This is the resort my family and I stayed it, and the beach was incredible. It’s an all-inclusive resort which is a key factor of what I look for in a resort. Aside from the obvious pool activities at this resort, they have a spa, salon, casino, golfing, and scuba diving as well. Something that my dad, sister, and I did was go on the hotel’s trapeze… it was great until my dad took it too far. My somewhat “logo” for this blog is a picture of me on that specific trapeze in Punta Cana. It was fun at first… I hooked my knees onto another swing and did a back flip off of it, but then my competitive father goes “if Catalina can do it, so can I.” Long story short, that didn’t end well. So my recommendation: know your abilities, be smart, and be safe when you are doing any physical activity… like a trapeze.
• ATV Tours: This is one activity we did and tend to do on pretty much any vacation we go on. Our family loves motorsports! There are several ATV or 4×4 tours offered that you can go on, but the one we went on specifically had a coffee and chocolate tasting on it, which is a very different twist to an ATV tour.
• Saona Island Day Trip: This just looks like a dream. You take a small speedboat (if you get motion-sickness or sea-sickness probably not for you) out to a beautiful secluded island and spend the day on this nice private beach.
• El Limon Waterfall and Bacardi Island Tour: This tour takes you to several places, but the main attraction is the beautiful waterfall. If I ever go back to the Dominican Republic, this is high on my to-do list.
• Zipline: Ohhh I love me a good zip line. No surprise that a beautiful place like Punta Cana offers several zipline tours for those of you looking for a little adventure.
• Horseback Riding: I’ve never done the classic-romantic horseback riding on the beach thing in my life, and something that I like about Punta Cana is that they offer both daytime horseback riding tours and nighttime. So for those of you looking for a romantic tour with your significant other, you can do a beautiful sunset horseback riding tour on the beach… sign me up!
• Buggy Tours: Again with the motorsports, we love this stuff!! The buggies get a little wilder than ATV tours, so for you thrillseekers out there, this might be the activity for you. There are several tours to choose from, so pick your price!
• Snorkeling: I’m not quite sure if I have mentioned this in my blog yet, but I have a completely irrational fear of sharks. I understand the statistics, but I can’t get this fear out of my head… therefore, snorkeling or scubadiving activities are not for me. I know you might be thinking “so you don’t go swimming in the ocean?”, well I do, I love to, but for whatever reason water activities make me think of sharks. However, I know most people love to do these things and aren’t paranoid like I am… so snorkeling could be a good activity for you during your trip to Punta Cana!
• ScubaDoo: This is a fancy twist onto snorkeling and looks pretty cool! You wear a helmet-like thing that makes you look like an underwater astronaut and get to swim with all the marine fishies.
• Safaris: I think this is such a cool activity to have because not every place has these! Punta Cana offers so many different safari tours for people of all ages and could be a great activity to do if you’re traveling with family.
• Parasailing: Although I didn’t go parasailing in Punta Cana, I have done it before and loved it. There is something so surreal about flying so high above the water and seeing all of the incredible views around you.
• Party Boats: For you party people, there of course is something for you! Punta Cana offers a couple different party boats that you can let-loose and enjoy.
• Mountain E-Bike Tours: As I’ve mentioned before, my luck with bicycles isn’t very high, but I know you athletic people love a good bike tour. Check it out!
• Hoyo Azul & Scape Park: This looks absolutely beautiful and reminds me of cenotes I’ve been to in Mexico. For those of you who like, crystal clear watering holes… check it out!
• Catamaran Tour: I love me a catamaran tour and of course you can do one on these turquoise waters of Punta Cana.
• Hiking: It is very humid here, it’s the Caribbean! I know some of you extreme-adventure enthusiasts don’t care about the humidity and love to go on a hike in the Dominican Republic so I applaud you for that. Check it out!