Punta Cana in 7 Days: a guidebook for getting the most out of your visit

Punta Cana is the most important tourist reference in the Dominican Republic and also the city from which it is possible to discover some of the most incredible places in the Caribbean. With a wide range of activities Punta Cana has many alternatives to surprise you and give you a trip of enjoyment and fun.

If you plan to visit Punta Cana for 7 days, you will have enough time to see the best sites but you will have to organise your itinerary so you don't miss anything. Below I will help you to make your trip to the Dominican Republic unforgettable and to discover all the activities that Punta Cana has to see and do.

The first thing you'll notice about Punta Cana on your transfer from the airport to the hotel will be its beaches.

The city is a Caribbean paradise with white sand and crystal clear water. The best plan for the start of your trip is to visit some of the city's best beaches.

Visit Playa Blanca

This is one of Punta Cana's most characteristic beaches and is located very close to one of the most visited hotel areas outside the city centre. Playa Blanca is a relaxing spot with calm waters and is noted for its resort bars, restaurants and paragliding.

In Playa Blanca you'll find places to have lunch and discover the main profile of the Dominican Caribbean, highlighted by palm trees and diving activities. It is also very easy to get to, as it is a wide beach with many hotel complexes.

Snorkelling in Playa Bávaro

In the afternoon you can continue your initial tour to Playa Bávaro, which is located a few streets away from Playa Blanca. Bávaro, besides being one of the best known beaches on the island for its elegance and fine white sand, is considered one of the best Caribbean beaches, and its coral reefs off the coast are ideal for snorkelling in Punta Cana.

Playa Bávaro is also home to the Dominican palm trees that make it a paradisiacal place. It is also the perfect beach to wait for the sunset and watch the sun set over the blue water of the Caribbean Sea.

Experience the Dominican nightlife

At night you'll find that one of the most fun things to do in Punta Cana is to enjoy its long parties and world-famous nightclubs, such as Coco Bongo.

It's also possible to hop on a party bus that tours some of the city's most popular bars and end the night well into the early hours of the morning, ready for the sunrise of the second day.

Either way, no matter which option you choose, you're sure to have plenty of fun in Punta Cana.

Excursion to Saona Island from Punta Cana is one of the best things you can do during your trip.

This is one of the largest islands in the Dominican Republic and also one of the most visited for its natural beauty. There you can enjoy its white sandy beaches, the tour of Mano Juan, a fishing village, and the Flamingo Lagoon.

Get to know Isla Saona on an organised excursion

Excursions to Isla Saona are usually full-day trips and usually include lunch with a typical Dominican menu and an open bar.

Saona, in addition to idyllic scenery, offers coral reefs for snorkelling and beach tongues for sports such as football and volleyball.

Walk around the Flamingo Lagoon

The Flamingo Lagoon is a portion of the island that is separated from the Canto de la Playa Lagoon by a narrow chute of land and is an ideal spot for bird watching in the Caribbean.

Ideally, the hike should be done in the early morning hours, which is when there are the most birds and when it is possible to see sea turtles, and then continue on to Mano Juan, the picturesque fishing village of Saona.

• Price of the excursion: Saona Island tours start at 75 euros with round-trip catamaran transfers and hotel pick-up and drop-off. Also includes lunch with Dominican menu and open bar of alcoholic beverages.
• Duration of the excursion: approximately eight hours.
• Advantages of this excursion: you will be able to get to know one of the best destinations in the Dominican Caribbean with an excursion with an excellent price/quality ratio.

The third day in Punta Cana can start with a trip to Macao Beach, one of the few remaining unspoilt beaches in the Dominican Republic.

In this rugged area, the strong winds also ensure that it is an ideal place for surfing or for enjoying Punta Cana with children, since there are no hotels in the area and it is located on the outskirts of the city, the influx of tourists decreases substantially.

Visit Macao Beach

Macao Beach, in addition to the surfing options, has other services available such as restaurants, water sports activities, snorkelling equipment rental, buggy tours and boat or horseback riding, making it an ideal place to combine the tranquility of the beach with the many activities offered by Punta Cana.

In Macao you can also get some of the best photos of Punta Cana and enjoy the beach with the locals, as being further away from the city centre it is less frequently visited by tourists. If you are one of those who prefer to do local activities when you travel, this is an ideal visit for you.

Take a swim and snorkel experience at the Hoyo Azul cenote

After spending half the day at Playa Macao, you can visit the Hoyo Azul, which is a fifteen-metre deep, crystal clear cenote where tourists are allowed to swim.

You can also snorkel and scuba d ive to see some of the local marine life.

Hoyo Azul is surrounded by an eighty metre high limestone cliff, so as well as a cenote with deep blue waters you can enjoy the unmissable rocky surroundings.

Punta Cana has a wealth of natural activities and one of them is touring the Dominican jungle while driving a buggy, which can be a fun and adrenaline-filled experience.

These adventurous excursions will take you along winding trails through coffee plantations, coconut groves and beaches leading to indigenous springs.

Immerse yourself in the jungle by buggy and take a dip in Los Hoyos del Salado

A jungle buggy tour will take you off the beaten track from the beaches of Punta Cana to visit cenotes at Los Hoyos del Salado, crystal clear waters at Cabeza de Toro and the most inhospitable beaches.

To visit the Dominican jungle it is mandatory to be accompanied by an expert and registered local guide, so if you want to visit the forested heart of the country you should opt for a tour of this type.

If you prefer a jungle adventure that doesn't involve driving a buggy on your own, you can opt for a safari in a monster truck or an off-road vehicle.

In all cases you will be immersed in the plantations and villages of the east coast of the Dominican Republic for a full day.

More detailed information

• Price of the excursion: around 90 euros with return transfers, hotel pick-up, entrance to the cenotes and the accompaniment of a guide.
• Duration of the excursion: approximately eight hours.
• Please note**:** to drive the buggy you must be of legal age and have a driver's licence. Some tour operators may also require an international driver's licence.
• Highlights of this excursion: You will be able to immerse yourself in the heart of the Dominican forest and learn about the origins and indigenous culture of the country through visits to Taino communities.

The Dominican coastline offers a wealth of attractions to see from the water, and one of the most interesting ways to do this is with a boat ride on the waters of the Caribbean Sea.

Enjoy a boat trip in Samana Bay

Some of the catamaran rides include a tour of Samana Bay and Los Haitises National Park, which is notable for the rocky mountains that rise out of the water.

Samana Bay is one of the most beautiful natural sites in the Dominican Republic and you can experience it on a pleasant catamaran trip from which you can glimpse the Dominican jungle and its natural wonders.

The boat trip in Samaná Bay will lead to a tour of Los Haitises, which is also known as a refuge of the indigenous Taino culture and the caves with pictographs and petroglyphs that are protected by UNESCO.

Tour Los Haitises National Park

In the national park you can visit the Montaña Redonda, a site with thick vegetation and a wide panoramic view that stands out for being nestled between two lagoons, Limón and Redonda. In Limón, you will also be able to see one of the largest waterfalls in the Dominican Republic.

Visiting Los Haitises on a boat trip is one of the most beautiful ways to get to know, in addition to the National Park, the Bay of Samaná and all its attractions including the Jivales River and the lagoons. Without a doubt, it is a worthwhile experience.

• Price of the excursion: The tours to Los Haitises with catamaran ride start at 129 euros with round trip transfer and hotel pick up included.
• Duration of the excursion: approximately nine hours.
• Advantages of this excursion: it is the best alternative to get to know the Bay of Samaná and Los Haitises National Park, one of the unmissable natural sites from Punta Cana.

Outside of the paradisiacal beaches of Punta Cana and the white sands of the Caribbean, the Dominican Republic also has Santo Domingo, the country's capital and the oldest colonial city in the Americas, to offer.

Walk through the historic centre of Santo Domingo and see the emblematic buildings.

It's worth taking a day trip through the historic centre of Santo Domingo to see the Alcázar de Cristóbal Colón, the Basílica Catedral de Santa María la Menor, the Casa del Cordón, the Monasterio de San Francisco, the Fortaleza Ozama and the Calle de Las Damas.

Santo Domingo is a picturesque city with a wide boardwalk and some points from which it is possible to have a panoramic view of the old town and the municipal palaces.

With a rich history, for years it was called Ciudad Trujillo. Excursions to Santo Domingo usually include round-trip transfers with hotel pick-up and a lunch with a typical Dominican menu.

Tour the city's food markets

Santo Domingo is also noted for its colourful food markets, some of which are the oldest in the Americas, as well as its souvenir shops.

Be aware that prices can be a bit steep as these are tourist-oriented places, but in the Dominican Republic, as in much of the Caribbean, haggling is the norm.

You can also visit the capital on your own, although this can be a bit of a hassle. The best alternative, and one that will save you time and money, is to take a day trip to Santo Domingo.

• Price of the excursion: Tours to Santo Domingo start at 95 euros with return transfers from Punta Cana with hotel pick-up, entrance fees to attractions, lunch with a typical Dominican menu and the assistance of an expert local guide.
• Duration of the excursion: approximately ten to twelve hours.
• Advantages of this excursion: you will get to know an alternative place to the paradisiacal beaches of the Caribbean Sea and a historical city.

Back in Punta Cana and for the last day of the tour I suggest you visit the Ojos Indígenas Ecological Park, which is the oasis of the city, and then enjoy the local food in one of the typical restaurants.

Visit the Ojos Indígenas Nature Reserve

In this lush forest you can see native fruit trees, visit sugar cane exhibits, visit petting zoos to learn about the local wildlife and stroll through the largest iguana habitat in the Caribbean, and take a dip in the park's freshwater lagoons.

In this complete experience you will learn all about the nature and culture of the Dominican Republic and have access to a private park of more than 600 hectares.

The full tour of the Ojos Indígenas Nature Reserve is estimated to take between five and six hours, but you can make an abbreviated circuit of the trails indicated for the best activities at the site. Entrance fees to visit Ojos Indígenas start at fifty dollars, with a child-friendly rate for minors, so it's a kid-friendly plan too.

Enjoy the local cuisine at a local restaurant

Once you finish your tour of Ojos Indígenas, you can say goodbye to the Dominican Republic by enjoying the best dishes of its typical gastronomy.

I recommend you try the sancocho, which is an exquisite meat stew, the mangú, which is a kind of American breakfast with mashed green plantains, stewed beans or stewed chicken. To drink you can try the morir soñando, which with its poetic name refers to a drink of orange juice and evaporated milk.

All these dishes can be combined with fish and lobster, which are other local specialities. Apart from the restaurants in the hotels along the coast, I recommend you visit Capitan Cook on El Cortecito beach, and Huracán Café on Playa Bávaro. Both are inexpensive and offer traditional dishes.