Playa Dorada is surrounded by the many resort hotels, many of them offer special “All Inclusive” rates for staying there. It’s said that there are 100,000 hotel beds in the city. Which gives you a little bit of an idea of how packed the beached can be in the main tourist season. It’s best to try and hit these beaches in the off-season.

Another great reason to think about going to Playa Dorada or Costa Dorada in a off season it the rates. Often “All Inclusive” hotels drop their rates from about $120 USD per person per night to as little as $30 USD per person per night. A that rate it is cheaper to go to an all inclusive then it is to get a normal hotel room and buy your own food. “All Inclusive” are exactly what the name implies. All food and drink is included with the price of the room making it a great deal.

Parents will small children should be advised that these beaches are topless beaches so it is common to see topless women on the beach.

As with most of the Dominican Beaches there is a very active nightlife on Playa Dorada, much of it being centered in the motels themselves. No doubt added to by the All Inclusive including free alcohol.

Along with beaches and resorts there are several world class golf courses with in a short distance of the hotels. There are also a number of great places to eat. You will find local Dominican food as well as American and European food.

Activities include Scuba Diving and snorkeling, golf, windsurfing, kiteboarding and deep-sea fishing. The ocean world adventure park is a great place to bring your family along with cable car tours.

Now while I missed this tour on my last trip to Puerto Plato, I’ve heard one of the must see tours is the Brugal Rum Distillery. Personally I feel Brugal beats any other rum I have tasted. Rumor has it that after a short tour they give out samples of the many different types of rum that they offer. If you have anyone at home you want a unique gift for, what could be better than a bottle of the local rum?

From All Inclusive Hotel

Boca Chica Beach Sunset

Boca Chica beach is located on the southern coast of the island of Hispaniola. It’s a unique reef-protected lagoon of tranquil blue waters and powder-white sand. It is perfect for families with children as it is only waist deep even up to a mile from the shore and hardly ever there are waves. The crystal clear and shallow water are great for swimming and snorkeling, paddle boating, kayaking, especially around the coral reefs. Boca Chica has two small islands, Los Pinos and La Matica (later there maybe something more about those two islands).

Boca Chica has a many Hotels and all inclusive resorts within walking distance of the beach. For a list check out our Boca Chica Hotel Reviews.

Boca Chica is the most crowded beach of the Dominican Republic especially on weekends and holidays because it is only 19 miles away from the capital city – Santo Domingo. Only Monday morning the beach is empty and cleaned up of any trash left from the day before. It is so close to the capital that it pays off to go there even for one day. It is small and basically everywhere you can get on foot. You can always take a motoconcho for 10 pesos and they will take you whenever you want to. If anyone gets tired of the beach, it is also close to other places such as a small horseshoe bay that offers great boogie boarding or if you are interested in playing golf, there is San Andres Caribe Golf Club in the area.

People call it “shopping beach”, because you don’t have to worry about spending your free time shopping – here the goods come to you. Vendors trying to sell coconuts, sunglasses, silver jewelry and paintings are everywhere on the beach. What is more, while getting a tan, for a few dollars you may have your manicure or pedicure done or even get your hair braided. Just make sure you agree on the price before they give you a treatment.

Beach Restaurant

History
Boca Chica was originally developed by the president and a dictator of Dominican Republic – Juan Bautista Vicini Burgos in the early twentieth century. However, it became really famous when the dictator Raphael Leonidas Trujillo decided to build the first hotel on the coast – Hotel Hamaca. There, Trujillo provided asylum to Fulgencio Batista, Cuban dictator, former president, after the Cuban Revolution. Soon later Hamaca Hotel became something of an icon. It welcomes guests until today. After Trujillo’s death in 1961 Boca Chica transformed to an exclusive resort called “Playa Saint-Tropez”. Since then it became a popular resort destination for wealthy Dominicans coming from Santo Domingo and tourists from all around the world.

Calle Duarte – night life in Boca Chica
Calle Duarte during the day is a busy street full of souvenirs stalls, little cafes and really good restaurants. One of the best things to take home is rum, artwork or crafts. There are several discos that play of course merengue and bachata, making boca Chica one of the better “singles” beaches on the island. However, you may find there a bar with an extravagant name “Route 66” that brings to mind the highway that runs across the USA. Unlike in other bars, rock and roll fills the air there. Yet, after dusk Calle Duarte has a notorious reputation. It becomes the place of party bars and prostitution. You have to be careful not to get close to the prostitutes, because very often even if you don’t accept their offers, they may try stealing your wallet.

Even during the day prostitution is very common in Boca Chica. Usually the girls target single men, so men with their families are usually not bothered. You will often also see men taking a prostitute up to their hotel room, this is accepted by most of the Hotels. Prostitution is one of the major draws or drawbacks of Boca Chica depending on your viewpoint. Except for the occasional minor cleanup of the situation, the city doesn’t seem to really view this as a problem to be dealt with.

Boca Chica Ocean View

Boca Chica Beach

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