Dominican Republic Attractions and Things to Do

Dominican Republic attractions include touring the capital of Santo Domingo, climbing waterfalls, multi-day bike rides and whitewater rafting with rapids ranging from Class III to Class VI. The country ranks highly among Caribbean attractions for its 21 golf courses and 1,000 miles of beaches.


The capitol of Dominican Republic is the oldest city in the New World and has cobblestone streets, cultural attractions and historical sites galore. One shopping highlight is Calle El Conde, a cozy pedestrian street and one of the oldest and most popular streets in the city. It is lined with a wide variety of shops and restaurants and the kind of atmosphere for walking around that you will find in Old San Juan -- but without the cars.


The city of Sosua is situated on a North Coast Caribbean bay spotted with white sand beaches, rock formations and luxurious homes and resorts. This former fishing village is now a top tourist destination as evidenced by the bars, restaurants and shops along its streets.


Isla Cabritos has one of the world's largest American crocodile populations. In order to view them up close by boat, visitors pay an entrance and boat fee of $60 no matter the number of people on board. The cost can be shared with other visitors. The visitor's center has information about the region's history and geology. No unguided visits are allowed. Entrance to the park is about one mile east of the town of La Descubierta.


This new marine theme park allows visitors to swim with bottlenose dolphins in the world's largest dolphin lagoon, feed stingrays, explore an artificial reef, get close to sharks in the world's first shark interaction pool and swim just inches from tigers behind protective glass. Guests can explore a rainforest with waterfalls, beaches, lagoons and wildlife. Displays include birds, iguanas, lizards, frogs, snakes, fish and tigers. Phone: (809) 291-1000.


Los Haitises is known for its delicate and ecologically diverse mangrove coast. Rock formations, pictographs and petroglyphs are available for viewing in three cave systems. Visitors also can see Hispaniola parrots, owls and gannets along with solenodonte and hutia. Tours are available from El Portillo for about $65 and include lunch


Cabarete's town beach is ranked as one of the world's top five kiteboarding and windsurfing destinations. The beach often is part of international competitions. Adventure sports enthusiasts also visit Cabarete for other activities including mountain biking, rock climbing, hiking and whitewater rafting.


The national zoo is a 400-acre park of tropical gardens, water features,  tigers and local fauna. It also is home to two unique mammals. One is the hutia -- a rare, large-eared animal that experts thought was extinct until it was rediscovered in the 1960s. The other is the solenodon -- a nocturnal mammal that has existed in North America as long as 30 million years ago.


Damajagua Falls is located a half hour away from Puerto Plata. It reaches a height of 43 feet and has 27 rock pools and waterfalls.


Fort San Felipe was built in 1564 and is the oldest surviving building in Puerto Plata. The fort served as a prison under Rafael Trujillo, the dictator of Dominican Republic in the mid-20th century.


Saona island is located on the southeastern tip of Dominican Republic and is part of the National Park of the East, located between Santo Dominigo and Punta Cana. It is a popular excursion for tourists by boat because of the beautiful beaches.