HaitiWelcome to Haiti ............ 264Need to Know ................. 266If You Like ........................ 268Month by Month ............. 269Itineraries ........................ 270Regions at a Glance ....... 272

PLAN YOUR TRIP 25 Top Experiences ....... 4

Dominican Republic Welcome to the Dominican Republic ....... 18Need to Know ................. 20If You Like ........................ 22Month by Month ............. 25Itineraries ........................ 28Dominican Republic Outdoors ......................... 31Regions at a Glance ....... 37

YOUR PLANNING TOOL KIT

Photos, itineraries, lists and suggestions

to help you put together your perfect trip

UNDERSTAND DOMINICAN REPUBLIC & HAITI

Dominican RepublicDominican Republic Today ............................... 214Dominican Republic History ............................. 216Music & Dance ................ 227Baseball: A Dominican Passion ............................ 231Art & Architecture .......... 233Dominican Landscapes .................... 236

HaitiHaiti Today ...................... 320Haitian History ............... 323Haitian Arts ..................... 333Haitian Landscapes ....... 337Vodou .............................. 340Haiti Earthquake ............ 344

“All you’ve got to do is decide to go and the hardest part is over. So go!”TONY WHEELER, COFOUNDER – LONELY PLANET

GET MORE FROM YOUR TRIP

Learn about the big picture, so you

can make sense of what you see

Haiti is a small country, but densely packed. The capital dominates, and is sometimes half-jokingly referred to as the ‘Republic of Port-au-Prince’. While most visitors inevitably base themselves there, it’s still worth finding time to explore the provinces.

Cap-Haïtien, the country’s second city, is the hub of the north, and relatively isolated from Port-au-Prince by bad roads. The south is better connected – greener and more lush, it’s home to the country’s best beaches – but the north coast holds many historical sites worth exploring. Mountains dominate the landscape wherever you head, with several good hikes to tempt you when the towns become too much.

Port-au-Prince & Around Urban Life Art Hiking

Urban Life Port-au-Prince’s fabric was rent asunder by the earth-quake. The toppled domes of the Palais National symbolize the damage done; its gradual rebuilding and the rehousing of people from surround-ing tent camps are a good barometer for measuring the progress made in the country’s reconstruction.

Art Despite everything, Haitian artists continue to produce new work. There’s a lot to see – and buy – from the Vodou-cyberpunk Grand Rue artists and the open-air street paintings of Port-au-Prince to the upscale galler-ies of Pétionville and, outside the city, the metal-artists of Croix des Bouquets.

Hiking Port-au-Prince can feel like being in a pressure cooker, but fresh air is still viable for city visitors. The forests of Parc National la Visite and Parc National Forêt des Pins are both within easy reach, and o er long and short hiking opportunities. p276

regions at a glance

2 72

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Top Events Whale-watching, mid-January–mid-March

Carnaval, February

Santo Domingo Merengue Festival, July

Festival of the Bulls, August

Winter baseball, end of October–end of January

month by month

January The North American winter coincides with whale-watching season in the Bahía de Samaná, making this a popular time of year to visit. Winds on the north coast around Cabarete are generally strongest this time of year.

�2Whale-watching This seasonal display

of thousands of humpback whales doing their best impersonation of gymnasts takes place in the Bahía de Samaná and Silver Bank area.

�z Virgen de Altagracia

One of the most important religious days of the year falls on January 21, when thousands of pilgrims ock to the basilica in

Higüey.

�z Day of Duarte Public estas are

held in all the major towns on January 26, cel-ebrating the Father of the Country.

February This is a month of intense partying throughout the DR, hotel prices rise and popular tours can be booked solid. February to March are generally the driest months in Samaná.

�z Carnaval Celebrated with

great fervor throughout the DR every Sunday in February, culminating in a huge blowout in Santo Domingo on the last week-end of the month or the rst weekend of March. Masks and costumes gure promi-nently in all – Santiago even hosts an international cale-ta (Carnival mask) competi-tion. The largest and most traditional Carnivals outside of Santo Domingo are cele-brated in Santiago, Cabral, Monte Cristi and La Vega.

�2Master of the Ocean

Called a ‘triathlon of the waves’, this thrilling competition in the last week in February sees the world’s best windsurfers, kitesurfers and surfers go board to board on Playa Encuentro outside Cabarete (www.masteroftheocean).

�z Independence Day

February 27, 1844, is the day that the DR regained independence from Haiti; the holiday is marked by street celebrations and military parades.

March Semana Santa (Holy Week), the week before Easter, is when the DR takes a vacation; businesses close, Dominicans flock to beaches and reservations are vital. Water sports are mostly prohibited. North American college students arrive for Spring Break.

�z Sailing Regatta On the Saturday of

Semana Santa, the seaside village of Bayahibe turns out to watch a race of tradi-tionally handcrafted shing boats.

April Dominicans travel domestically during the end of April around Good Friday. This is also a good time to visit

25

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Dominican Republic Outdoors Best Mountain Biking From Jamao near Moca to the isolated Magante Beach near Rio San Juan Country roads in Central Highlands Septentrional range around Cabarete

Best Month to Go February for migratory birds in the south-west, whale-watching in Samaná, and wind sports in Cabarete.

Best Adventures to Try for the First Time Kitesur ngC i

Water Sports If it involves standing on a board, the Dominican Republic’s got it in spades – you’ll nd world-class kitesur ng, windsur ng,

sur ng and wakeboarding. The undisputed water-sports capital of the DR is Cabarete on the north coast, and Las Terrenas on the Península de Samaná is the runner-up, but the adventurous can nd a few other more isolated spots as well.

Kitesur ng Kitesur ng (also known as kiteboarding) is the sport du jour, and involves strapping a board to your feet and a powerful kite to

3 1

06-outdoor-activities-dom5.indd 31 24/06/2011 15:30

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©Lonely Planet Publications Pty Ltd

THIS EDITION WRITTEN AND RESEARCHED BY

Paul Clammer, Michael Grosberg, Kevin Raub

YOUR COMPLETE DESTINATION GUIDE

In-depth reviews, detailed listings

and insider tips

SURVIVAL GUIDEDominican Republic Directory A–Z ................. 242Transportation ............... 250Language ........................ 256

HaitiDirectory A–Z ................. 348Transportation ............... 355Language ........................ 359

Index ................................ 366Map Legend .................... 375

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HELP YOU HAVE A SMOOTH TRIP

ON THE ROAD

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On the Road

See the Index for a full list of destinations covered in this book.

SANTO DOMINGO . . .42

PUNTA CANA & THE SOUTHEAST . . . . . . . . 76EAST OF SANTO DOMINGO . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 77Parque Nacional Submarino La Caleta . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .77Boca Chica . . . . . . . . . . . . . .77Juan Dolio . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .82LA ROMANA TO HIGÜEY . . 85La Romana . . . . . . . . . . . . . .85Bayahibe & Dominicus Americanus . . . . . . . . . . . . . 89Higüey . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 96PUNTA CANA TO SABANA DE LA MAR . . . . . . 98Bávaro & Punta Cana . . . . 98Playa Limón . . . . . . . . . . . .105Miches . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .106Sabana de la Mar . . . . . . . .107

PENÍNSULA DE SAMANÁ . . . . . . . . . . 109EASTERN PENÍNSULA DE SAMANÁ . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 111Samaná . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 111Las Galeras . . . . . . . . . . . . . 116

WESTERN PENÍNSULA DE SAMANÁ . . . . . . . . . . . . 121Las Terrenas . . . . . . . . . . . . 121Playa Bonita . . . . . . . . . . . .129Sánchez . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .130

NORTH COAST . . . . . 131Puerto Plata . . . . . . . . . . . .133Around Puerto Plata . . . . .140East of Puerto Plata. . . . . .144West of Puerto Plata . . . .160

CENTRAL HIGHLANDS . . . . . . . 167Santiago . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .169La Vega . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 176Jarabacoa . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 178Parques Nacionales Bermúdez & Ramírez . . . .184San José de las Matas . . .186Constanza . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 187East of Santiago . . . . . . . . .189

THE SOUTHWEST & PENÍNSULA DE PEDERNALES . . . . . . 192WEST OF SANTO DOMINGO . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 194

San Cristobal . . . . . . . . . . .194Reserva Antropológica Cuevas del Pomier . . . . . . .195Baní. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .196INLAND . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 197Ázua . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 197San Juan de la Maguana .198Comendador del Rey (Elías Piña) . . . . . . . . . . . . 200PENÍNSULA DE PEDERNALES . . . . . . . . . . .200Barahona . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .201South of Barahona . . . . . . 203Larimar Mine. . . . . . . . . . . 206Parque Nacional Jaragua . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 207Isla Beata & Alto Velo . . . 207Pedernales . . . . . . . . . . . . . 207Parque Nacional Sierra de Bahoruco . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 209Polo . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .210NORTH OF PEDERNALES 210Lago Enriquillo & Isla Cabritos . . . . . . . . . .210Jimaní . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 211

Although the authors and Lonely Planet have taken all reason-able care in preparing this book, we make no warranty about the accuracy or completeness of its content and, to the maxi-mum extent permitted, disclaim all liability arising from its use.

OUR STORYA beat-up old car, a few dollars in the pocket and a sense of adventure. In 1972 that’s all Tony and Maureen Wheeler needed for the trip of a lifetime – across Europe and Asia overland to Australia. It took several months, and at the end – broke but inspired – they sat at their kitchen table writing and stapling together their fi rst travel guide, Across Asia on the Cheap. Within a week they’d sold 1500 copies. Lonely Planet was born.

Today, Lonely Planet has offi ces in Melbourne, London and Oakland, with more than 600 staff and writers. We share Tony’s belief that ‘a great guidebook should do three things: inform, educate and amuse’.

Published by Lonely Planet Publications Pty LtdABN 36 005 607 9835th edition – October 2011ISBN 978 1 74179 456 4© Lonely Planet 2011 Photographs © as indicated 201110 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1Printed in ChinaAll rights reserved. No part of this publication may be copied, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form by any means, electronic, mechanical, recording or otherwise, except brief extracts for the purpose of review, and no part of this publication may be sold or hired, without the written permission of the publisher. Lonely Planet and the Lonely Planet logo are trademarks of Lonely Planet and are registered in the US Patent and Trademark Office and in other countries. Lonely Planet does not allow its name or logo to be appropriated by commercial establishments, such as retailers, restaurants or hotels. Please let us know of any misuses: lonelyplanet.com/ip.

OUR WRITERS Paul Clammer Coordinating Author; 25 Top Experiences, Plan (Haiti); Port-au-Prince & Around; Southern Haiti; Northern Haiti; Understand (Haiti); Survive (Haiti) Sometime molecular biologist, tour leader and now travel writer, Paul has a penchant for heading to places many people head away from – Haiti sits alongside Afghanistan, Pakistan and Nigeria as countries he’s covered for Lonely Planet. Paul would like to think that Haiti fi rst came to his attention from reading Graham Greene’s The Co-

medians, but secretly wonders if childhood viewings of Live and Let Die didn’t also play their part. In the aftermath of the 2010 earthquake, Paul volunteered clearing rubble in Léogâne, before returning to research the new edition of this guide. His website is www.paulclammer.com.

Michael Grosberg Plan (Dominican Republic); Santo Domingo; North Coast; Central Highlands; Understand (Dominican Republic); Survive (Dominican Republic) This is the second edition of the Lonely Planet Dominican Republic guidebook Michael has worked on. In addition to his Lonely Planet assignments, he’s visited the DR on other occasions going back to his graduate school days when he was focusing on the literature and culture of Latin America. Michael is based in Brooklyn, New York City, and usually

writes just down the street from several Dominican restaurants where he gets his lunch. A reformed academic/journalist by trade, Michael has worked on more than 15 Lonely Planet books.

Kevin Raub Punta Cana & the Southeast; Peninsula de Samaná; The Southwest & Península de Pedernales Kevin Raub grew up in Atlanta and started his career as a music journalist in New York, working for Men’s Journal and Rolling Stone magazines. The rock ’n’ roll lifestyle took its toll, so he needed an extended vacation and took up travel writing while ditching the States for Brazil. In the DR, he found the Southeast all it was cracked up to be, but it was the Southwest that shocked

and awed, leaving him gobsmacked that this spectacular coast was so vehemently ignored by travelers. His advice? Go to the Peninsula de Pedernales! This is his 12th Lonely Planet guide. You can fi nd him at www.kevinraub.net.

Read more about Paul at:lonelyplanet.com/members/paulclammer

Read more about Michael at:lonelyplanet.com/members/michaelgrosberg

Read more about Kevin at:lonelyplanet.com/members/kevinraub

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