Dominican Republic 2020 Part 1

 

First off, the Dominican Republic was not really on our radar of places we wanted to visit, but we are so glad that we did.  We are pretty easy going as far as vacations go, so we don't necessarily care whether we do all inclusives or off the beaten path type getaways.  Our only requirement is that we enjoy ourselves and we are surrounded by good company.  As long as we are on a beach, who the F cares?? 

We booked our trip through Vacations To Go.  Two other couples asked us to go with them, and since we all get along, it was a no brainer!! Our friends did some research and this was the best deal out there.  One of the couples are very seasoned travelers and go numerous times a year to different all inclusive resorts on different Caribbean Islands.  We flew out on February 20th and got back home on the 25th around midnight. One couple from our group flew Southwest and we flew American Airlines.  The other couple....Well, they lost their passports and had to fly out the following day after dealing with driving to Chicago for emergency passports.  The were booked with AA like us.  The troubles they went through to get to the DR could be a whole blog all in itself! I love flying American Airlines, but I do wish we would have all had flights together.  Not flying together did have some drawbacks.  We got in at slightly different times and we couldn't book a transport company with them, even though we flew in only 20 minutes apart.  Our flight to Charlotte from Indianapolis was one of the worst flights I have ever experienced.  There was some winter weather going on around the Carolinas.  We had turbulence so stinking bad.  The flight wasn't very long at all, but it had me sick, and by the time we landed, I couldn't even think about eating.  I bought some Dramamine.  That's definitely getting put on the packing list for next time.  I don't generally get sick like this, so I never thought to bring it!  Our next flight was great, and I was able to get my stomach settled and we got a small nap in.  It was around 2pm when we landed in the DR.  We went through all the security lines fairly quickly and our driver was waiting with a sign with our name as we exited the secure area.  We booked with Dominican Airport Transfers.  I booked with them ahead of time and it was fairly cheap for a private van.  The cost was $62 and was round trip.  The driver handed us waters and a Corona as soon as we got to the vehicle, was polite, handled all of our luggage and got us there in about 20 minutes. 

Our arrival drinks

Enjoying the beach

 


When we got to the Sanctuary Resort, they were very quick to grab our luggage and they greeted us with champagne, as pictured above.  The hostess explained the property, went over any rules and talked about activities.  To be honest, if I was going to judge a resort by the greeting, this wouldn't have been a good rating.  It had a time share vibe to it and we both noticed it.  The other couple arrived halfway through us going through our spiel. They felt the same vibe.  It was also a lengthy process.  It took about 45 minutes.  We were starving, needed a drink and we wanted to check out the ocean.  By the time we got done and got to our room, we were exhausted.  If we had laid down in the bed, we wouldn't have gotten back up!  We were able to check out the ocean and we made some reservations for the Blue Marlin before it got dark.  I honestly couldn't tell you what meal I got, but I can tell you that they had THE best Caesar salad and view of the ocean, hands down.  The ambiance of the Blue Marlin was awesome.  The sounds of the ocean and the breeze were very welcome.  When we got done eating, we went to the bar inside the resort.  We had a round of fireball shots and then called it a night!  Day one was over too quickly, but we were exhausted and couldn't wait to see our other friends the following day. I do regret one thing about that first day.  The entertainment for the night was the Dominican Night activities.  There was lots of music, food and dancing.  We should have at least walked down to the beach and pool areas to check it out.  A few days later, I heard a fellow traveler talking about how it was the best night of his trip.  A tip for myself, for next time we travel, would be to take a nap the day before, and have everything prepared.  We stayed up way too late and only got a few hours of sleep before we had to leave for Indy to fly out.  I think we would have been able to stay up a lot longer had we gotten some rest. 



The view from the Blue Marlin

   On day two, I woke Brad up at the crack of dawn.  I mean...Why waste a totally perfect day?! You can nap on the beach later!  We took a walk around the property because we didn't do it the night before.  This resort has some shops, a medical office and many places to eat.  There was a shop for souvenirs, jewelry, clothing and necessities.  One big suggestion for things to pack would be sunscreen.  In the shops, they were charging over $30 for it!  We couldn't believe it, and luckily we had our own!  We always try to get something handmade from destinations instead of little trinkets that weren't even made there.  We found some really neat paintings made locally.  They were very affordable.  The only caveat was that the canvas had to be taken off the frame, because the wood cannot be taken back into the United States.  The worker rolled up our canvas and tied it neatly for us. In the jewelry store, it was mostly Larimar, which is a stone specific to the area, we were told.  I did end up getting some earrings.  We walked around Sanctuary Town, which is part of the resort, but also accessible to locals.  Almost everything there is included in our price, except the Beers of the World and the Tobacco and Rum Museum.  You can go into these establishments, you just have to pay for items.  There was also a place for pizza, a taco truck, a sweet shop, The Burger Factory Restaurant, a Smoothie place and the Fusion restaurant. The only downfall to Sanctuary Town, is that it doesn't open until later in the evening.

Taco Truck 

Wood fire pizza

 After walking around for an hour or so, we met our friends for breakfast at 7 at the main resort buffet, Casabella.  Since it was our first day, I went a bit overboard on the Mimosas.  I lost count after 6. Breakfast was great.  There was a little bit of everything for many cultures. After breakfast, we went to the beach and basically enjoyed the day sunning, drinking and laughing.  I did get in a nice little nap.  We enjoyed lunch on the beach, where they served fries, lamb, nachos,  hotdogs and burgers.  We loved the beach bar.  Every day there was a drink special.  The drink menu consisted of typical tropical drinks, like pina coladas, margaritas, rum punch, etc.  We had heard a tip to bring a tumbler from home so that we could cut down on waste, and it worked out perfect.  We got bigger drinks and they were kept colder for longer!  On the beach, Brad found the perfect spot for finding sea glass.  He spent quite a bit of time searching and ended up finding some really great pieces.  A guy came by with some parrots and we enjoyed getting our picture taken with Romeo and Juliet.  He said that later on in the week, a monkey would come.  Our friends got in during the afternoon, so we enjoyed dinner and drinks in Sanctuary Town as a group.  Some of us chose pizza or burgers and some of us chose tacos.  Overall, we were all pleased with our meals. We all sat outside together and enjoyed the evening.  Once we were all done eating, we tried out some sweets from the dessert shop. That night, we went to The Pub and enjoyed some drinks and dancing.  Some of the entertainment staff was there dancing and getting people out on the dance floor.

I made matching cups for us three girls

        

Brad’s beach Finds! Check out the blue glass at the bottom!
We bought the flag pin and just threw it in there. 

Stay tuned for part two of our vacation!

XOXO

Becky