First Visit to DR at Occidental Allegro Punta Cana
I returned a few days ago from my first visit to the DR. Myself and two friends stayed at the Occidental Allegro Punta Cana for the one week stay.
First, I must say, as I am sitting and writing this report, that I am already missing the DR. Some of that has to do with the weather being -30C here, but some of it is the gentle, easy going attitude of the country that I found. Before going I read many different reports on the DR, some good, some bad. Anyone who wrote bad of the people in the DR must have had bad attitudes to begin with. Although I did not come into much contact with the "average" DR (most of my contact was at the resort or on excursions), I found all I came into contact with to be friendly, helpful and interesting.
The hotel was good, nothing great, but certainly not as bad as some of the reports I read before going. The accomodations, service and food were quite acceptable and the location was beautiful. There was a minor bit of construction, but certainly not enough to distract the average person. A few people who were there had minor problems, but they were taken care of quickly and to their satisfaction. I would go there again, as long as the price was right.
We did the Saona Island trip and had a wonderful time. Our tour guide was Angel, an intelligent and knowledgable fellow. I feel sorry for him, having had to put up with some of the drunks on the trip, but he even handled them well. We went by bus to the boat launch where we took a speedboat out a ways, and did some snorkelling over the coral reefs. From there we went to the Natural Pool and spent time examining starfish and enjoying the shallow crystal blue waters. We arrived on the Island and spent several hours sunning, enjoying our lunch and swimming in the Carribbean, before departing by Catamaran back to the mainland. It was a full day trip but well worth the time and cost.
I have already written a comment on our visit to Manati Park. The park is very nice, but my heart goes out to the poor dolphins imprisoned there. Please read Manati Park Death for Dolphins, under general.
I did a little bartering with the vendors on the beach and bought a few lovely items for gifts for my friends back home. One of the vendors was Francesco, a friendly and informative man. We chatted a bit about what it was like to be a beach vendor and how the business worked. A very nice fellow.
I hope to return to the DR again in the near future and would like to see the area around Bayahibe or Samana.
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