Your Travel Experience with Tierra Maya Tours
Day 1
Santo Domingo
After the arrival transfer, the rest of the day is free for you to get to know the oldest city in the “New World”. This lively city of millions has a range of cultural and architectural sights to offer that you won't find anywhere else on Hispaniola.
Included meals today: None
Day 1 - 3
Overnight at Hotel Nicolas de Ovando****, Colonial Room
The renovated hotel exudes a very special ambience and represents an enchanting combination of historical elegance and modern style. Enjoy exclusive cuisine in an elegant atmosphere, either in the air-conditioned restaurant or in the Spanish courtyard. The elegant restaurant “1502” spoils you with specialties from Mediterranean and local cuisine and is open for both lunch and dinner. The facilities also include an air-conditioned lobby, the bar “La Taberna del Mojito”, where tapas are served alongside refreshing cocktails.
Day 2
History, music and culinary delights in the World Heritage Old Town
After breakfast, your tour guide will pick you up at the hotel reception at 10:00 am. Today you will get to know the first city built by Europeans in America. This is where the first cathedral in the New World was built, the first governor resided, the first bishop was consecrated and the first hospital was opened. This bustling city of millions has a number of cultural and architectural sights to offer that you won't find anywhere else on the island of Hispaniola. You will spend the day in the historic old town, the so-called Zona Colonial, which has been declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The tour includes palaces, forts, museums, churches and squares. You will walk through the Calle de las Damas, the first street to be paved in Santo Domingo for the ladies of the Spanish nobility to stroll along, as well as the pedestrian zone El Conde with its many stores and street vendors, bars and restaurants.
After the city walk, we will serve you one of the most typical Dominican dishes for lunch. The stew known as sancocho is a flagship of Dominican gastronomy. In addition to various types of meat, the dish combines a variety of local Caribbean ingredients such as yam, musk pumpkin, manioc and plantain, which give the stew its characteristic flavor - a dish as rich as Dominican culture. Rice and avocado are served as a side dish. After the meal, you will be accompanied back to the hotel. Use the afternoon to relax or to stroll through the city. In the evening, you will be collected from the hotel at 6.00 pm to enjoy a very special open-air concert. Every weekend, the group Bonyé plays in the magical setting of the ruins of San Francisco. The group of around 20 singers and various instruments play merengue, son and jazz. The concerts are attended by Dominicans of all ages, who celebrate exuberantly, listen to the music and dance happily. European guests in particular are always impressed by the joy of the locals and get carried away by the atmosphere.
Included meals today: Breakfast and lunch
Day 3
Off the beaten track
On today's excursion, you will get to know a different side of Santo Domingo. Off the beaten tourist track, you will see the lives of the less privileged population and play a small part in improving their circumstances. fter breakfast and check-out, you will be picked up by your driver at 09:00 and your luggage will be deposited in the car. You will then drive to one of the most precarious districts in the Dominican Republic, Gualey. The district is located north of the old town on the west bank of the Ozama River. Here you will visit the Rincón de Luz charitable foundation. The foundation has been working for over 18 years in the areas of education, nutrition and health for socially disadvantaged children, young people and senior citizens. Children from pre-school age to the beginning of middle school receive school lessons and take part in lunch. At the foundation, you will hand over a food donation (included in the price of the excursion, provided for you in advance). The founder and chairperson Leyda Alvarez will give you a tour of the premises and present her work. You will also have the opportunity to meet the school children. You will then be given a guided tour of Gualey. This will give you an impression of the living conditions in one of the poorest districts of the Dominican Republic. You will visit the four pozos, small lakes fed by natural springs, which are popular with the locals. One of the pozos has recently been used as a breeding pool for ornamental and food fish. Drinks are available during the walk from local corner stores, known as colmados. At the end of the tour, head to the cable car station in Gualey. You board the cable car, from where you can enjoy a spectacular view. You cross the Ozama River, travel via the Tres Brazos and Sabana Perdida stations to the Charles de Gaulle terminus in the north of Santo Domingo and then return to your starting point. During the round trip, you will gain a new perspective on the city and get an impression of the different living conditions. From the gondola, you will have numerous opportunities to take spectacular photos. A quarter of the excursion price is donated to the foundation in the form of a food donation, which you hand over on the day of the excursion. The journey then heads north. You drive to Jarabacoa on the oldest highway in the Dominican Republic. The route leads through rural areas characterized by intensive agriculture. On the way, you will stop off at the Reposteria Miguelina. The excursion restaurant offers typical local dishes and is particularly known for its traditional desserts (costs to be borne by the participants). You leave the highway at La Vega. This is where the mountain world of the Cordillera Central begins, also known as the Dominican Alps, where many locals spend their summer vacations due to the good climate. The small town of Jarabacoa lies 600 meters above sea level and is surrounded by pine forests, rivers, mountains and valleys. Spring-like temperatures prevail here all year round. The climatic health resort is the center for hiking enthusiasts and nature lovers.
Included meals today: Breakfast
Day 3 - 4
Overnight at Hotel Pinar Dorado***, Junior Suite
Lovely complex with great gardens and pool, a 10-minute walk to the center of Jarabacoa. Well-equipped rooms and a high-quality restaurant with friendly service.
Day 4
Coffee tasting, mountain walk and tobacco culture in the Dominican Alps
After breakfast, you will visit the Monte Alto coffee factory, where everything about the cultivation and processing of coffee will be explained to you. Of course there is also a coffee tasting. Only Monday to Friday.
Afterwards, take a walk through the mountains of the Dominican Republic to one of the region's famous waterfalls. Enjoy the impressive view and landscape and immerse yourself in the unique nature with endemic flora and fauna. The journey then continues to Santiago de los Caballeros. Here you will visit one of the most renowned cigar factories in the Dominican Republic, La Aurora, where you will learn all about tobacco processing. You will have the opportunity to watch the employees as they produce the coveted tobacco products by hand. Only Monday to Friday. After the tour, the driver will take you back to your hotel. Use the afternoon to relax or take a short walk through the city.
Included meals today: Breakfast
Day 4 - 5
Overnight at Hotel Camp David Ranch****, Suite
Enjoy breathtaking views from the spacious balconies and the culinary compositions of the exquisite cuisine. Camp David is one of the most traditional restaurants in Santiago. A modern accommodation with extensive gardens and a beautiful ambience.
Day 5
Cocoa plantation and Caribbean magic
After breakfast, the journey continues towards Samaná. After driving through a fertile valley, you reach San Francisco de Macorís. In the shade of the huge jungle trees, you will visit the Sendero del Cacao. Here you have the unique opportunity to learn all about the coveted fruit of the cocoa tree, from the cultivation of the cocoa bean to chocolate processing, at the Hacienda La Esmeralda cocoa plantation, which supplies world-famous chocolate factories. Of course, a cocoa and chocolate tasting is also part of the program. Lunch is provided during the tour. (Closed on Mondays).
From here, the tour continues via Nagua to Samaná. The Samaná peninsula is 63 km long and 10 to 20 km wide. It is a tropical paradise with secluded beaches, clear mountain rivers and steep cliffs. Las Terrenas is the bustling center on the north coast of the peninsula. Here you will experience authentic island flair and feel the magic of the Caribbean as the tour guide bids you farewell.
Meals included: Breakfast at the hotel and lunch during the visit to the cocoa plantationI
Day 5 - 8
Overnight at Takuma Boutique Hotel ****, Dream Room
Relax in the enchanting boutique hotel. It has 7 rooms with a private garden and direct access to the 35-meter-long pool. The hotel is located just a few steps from the beach and is close to numerous restaurants, bars and boutiques.
Day 6 - 7
Las Terrenas
Unwind on the beautiful and unique sandy beaches of this peninsula. Here you can experience pure Caribbean life. Palm trees swaying in the gentle breeze, cool cocktails and freshly prepared seafood as well as the sounds of merengue and bachata music. Go on optional excursions or relax in a Caribbean atmosphere! We particularly recommend an optional boat tour to the “Los Haïtises” national park. This is one of the largest untouched areas of humid tropical jungle in the Caribbean. An enormous green mangrove belt stretches along the coast and over 50 small islands form a labyrinth of waterways. We also recommend a tour to the El Limon waterfall and if you are here during the whale season, you should not miss it. Every year from January to the end of March, almost the entire humpback whale population of the North Atlantic Ocean meets in the waters of the Dominican Republic. Both the mating and the birth of the whale calves take place in these warm and protected coastal waters. The Bay of Samaná is one of the few places in the world where you can experience the whale calves and their mothers up close.
Meals included: Breakfast
Day 8
Las Terrenas - Santo Domingo / Punta Cana
Transfer zum Flughafen von Santo Domingo oder Punta Cana oder gemäss Ihren Flugdaten.
Wenn Sie Ihre Zeit auf der Insel noch etwas geniessen möchten, um in den Eindrücken der Reise zu schwelgen, buchen Sie noch eine Badeverlängerung. Relaxen Sie am Strand von Bayahibe oder Punta Cana, Ihr Transfer ist bei uns inkludiert, solange die Badeverlängerung auch bei uns gebucht wird.