12 Day Trips from the Dominican Republic That Earn the Day

1.Saona Island Day Trip From Punta Cana with Lunch and Open Bar

★★★★★★★★★★4.5 · 2,709 reviews · from $82Our pick

Travel from Punta Cana to Bayahibe, then reach Saona Island by speedboat or catamaran. Stop at a shallow natural pool for starfish, enjoy three hours on the beach, eat a Dominican buffet, and return by party catamaran. Guides such as Alex and Christian are known for keeping the day lively.

“Our tour guide was incredible. What an amazing experience. Highly recommend it. Everything ran right on schedule and organized. Definitely one of the highlights of my trip to DR this past May.”

Check availability →Read our full review

2.Day Trip to Santo Domingo from Punta Cana

★★★★★★★★★★3.5 · 659 reviews · from $55

Travel from Punta Cana to Santo Domingo in an air-conditioned vehicle, stopping at Los Tres Ojos National Park, the Columbus Lighthouse, the Malecón, and the Colonial Zone. A typical lunch and non-alcoholic drinks are included. Expect a long road day, group transport for up to 29 people, plenty of walking, and guide quality that can vary.

“This trip was fun overall. It involved a lot of walking, so be prepared to bring yourself a multiple bottles of water, a hand towel, a few snacks to eat and an umbrella for sure. It will be very sunny outside if you are coming in summer. Without an umbrella, it will be very hot and unbearable. This tour does not give you a lot of time to click pictures though, as we are constantly on the move. However, our guide was very friendly too and waited with a lot of patience while we clicked pictures. Overall it was an easy 4 stars. The reason I took off 1 star…”

Check availability →Read our full review

3.Santo Domingo Day Trip with Tickets and Lunch

★★★★★★★★★★3.8 · 584 reviews · 1 day · from $82

Travel from Punta Cana to Santo Domingo for a full day of history and sightseeing. Visit Los Tres Ojos National Park, the first cathedral in the Americas, Alcázar de Colón, the National Pantheon, El Faro a Colón, and the Colonial Zone. Guides including Victor, Miguel, and Hector lead the tour in English, Spanish, or Portuguese.

“This experience was incredible! Our tour guide, Rudy, was very informative and patient. He translated into Spanish for those who needed it. Our driving was excellent as well! Thank you!”

Check availability →Read our full review

4.Saona Island and Altos de Chavón Day Trip

★★★★★★★★★★4.3 · 340 reviews · 1 day · from $92

Spend a long, lively day combining Altos de Chavón’s stone-built village with Saona Island’s white sand and clear water. Your English or Spanish-speaking guide leads the visit, with transport, park entry, boat travel, buffet lunch, unlimited drinks, and a stop at the natural swimming pool included. Expect music, dancing, beach time, and a busy schedule.

“The start of the trip wasn’t so good. We were one of the first to pick up, so we couldn’t eat breakfast at the hotel. Surprisingly the bus driver was on time, but then.. We had a 3 hour bus trip, then we would go on a catamaran, which had extremly loud music and we were sooo hungry. The very loud music didn’t let us join the catamaran trip, it was ridicilous. We asked to maybe lower the music a little, so it would be enjoyable, but no one cared. So we weren’t so happy at the beginning, but later everything was great! We didn’t see any starfish, but the…”

Check availability →Read our full review

5.Saona Island: Small Group Virgin Beaches Cruise Day Trip

★★★★★★★★★★4.7 · 178 reviews · 8 - 11 hours · from $128

Cruise from Bayahibe to Saona Island with guides such as Christian, Gregory, and Manuelo. Visit Mano Juan’s turtle nursery, eat a Dominican lunch, snorkel at Canto de la Playa, and swim at the Natural Pool. The group is kept small, often around 20 people, with drinks and snacks included.

“Christian and his crew were fantastic. As soon as I booked the excursion Nadine reached out to make sure we knew how to get to the meeting point and sent me a link with a map. The destinations are beautiful and everyone made sure all of our needs were met.”

Check availability →Read our full review

6.Santo Domingo Day Trip with Tickets and Lunch

★★★★★★★★★★3.4 · 85 reviews · 10 hours · from $74

Spend about 10 hours traveling from Punta Cana to Santo Domingo, with hotel pickup, Los Tres Ojos National Park, the Colonial Zone, major monuments, museum tickets, buffet lunch, drinks, and a multilingual guide. Willy has earned strong praise, but transport changes, long road time, brief monument stops, and uneven language service can affect the day.

“If the organization of transport from the hotel were more agile (without changes from one transport to another) and instead of going to a specific souvenir shop and leaving aside the coffee/chocolate place; that time could be used to enter the Columbus Lighthouse, for example.”

Check availability →Read our full review

7.From Santo Domingo: Saona Island Day Trip w/ Lunch & Drinks

★★★★★★★★★★3.9 · 83 reviews · 12 hours · from $95

Meet at Columbus Park in Santo Domingo’s Zona Colonial, then travel to Bayahibe for a speedboat ride to Saona Island. You’ll stop at the Blue Lagoon, enjoy a buffet lunch and drinks, spend nearly three hours on the beach, and return by catamaran with music and dancing. English and Spanish guides lead the day.

“j'ai beaucoup aimé le catamaran , les animateurs , les boissons à volonté, la musique: tout est fait pour rencontrer de nouvelles personnes. concernant l'amélioration : la nourriture et l'absence de douche sur l'île de Sanoa. éviter les massages proposés par les dames sur la plage ( elles mentent sur la durée du massage : huile de très mauvaise qualité ; ça m'a brûlé Le dos.”

Check availability →Read our full review

8.Samana Full Day Trip by Bus and Boat

★★★★★★★★★★3.8 · 63 reviews · 12 hours · from $135

This 12-hour trip takes you from Punta Cana to Samaná by bus and speedboat, then to El Limón Waterfall by safari truck and horseback. You will visit a plantation home, taste local fruit, eat a Dominican buffet, and swim at Cayo Levantado. Guides speak Spanish, English, French, German, or Russian.

Check availability →Read our full review

9.Samana: Cayo Levantado Day Trip by Boat

★★★★★★★★★★4.6 · 35 reviews · 7 hours · from $28Best value

From Moto Marina in Samaná, you travel by boat to Cayo Levantado, also called Bacardi Island, for about six and a half hours of beach time. A live guide gives departure instructions in English or Spanish. Expect a short ride, swimming, photos, walking, shopping, and time to buy food or drinks at beachfront restaurants. Confirm the boat type before booking.

“The perfect experience. We were on a catemeran boat that was going for a longer whale watching trip and were dropped off at Cayo Levantado, and it was just perfect because we were literally the first few tourists on that island at around 10. We walked around and then managed to get the best spot for ourselves! The catemeran was brand new, very clean and a smooth ride. The guide was very clear with the instructions on what time to meet back and where. Perfect if youret looking to just spend the day by yourself at the island and catemeran ride picks and drops you off.”

Check availability →Read our full review

10.Dominican Flavors Guided Day Trip

★★★★★★★★★★3.5 · 31 reviews · 4 hours · from $125

From Punta Cana, you’ll visit the Vega Fina cigar factory, Chocopunto chocolate workshop, Cave of Wonders, and Ron Barceló Historic Center. Tastings are included, along with hotel transfers and a multilingual guide. The pace is brisk, and the cave includes uneven walking, so comfortable shoes matter.

“This is my first time booking with you guys. The activity was amazing each tour guide was very informative.”

Check availability →Read our full review

11.Discover Santo Domingo: A Day Trip from Punta Cana

★★★★★★★★★★3.9 · 30 reviews · 5 - 10 hours · from $75

Travel from Punta Cana to Santo Domingo for a full day of history and local culture. You’ll visit Los Tres Ojos, the Colonial Zone, the First Cathedral, National Pantheon, Alcazar de Colon, and the Malecon, with a typical Dominican lunch and free time. Guide José has made extra efforts for French-speaking visitors, though French guiding is not guaranteed.

“Super excursion avec un guide et chauffeur super Je recommande”

Check availability →Read our full review

12.Saona Island from Punta Cana Day Trip with Open Bar

★★★★★★★★★★4.0 · 22 reviews · 9h 30m · from $75

Travel from Punta Cana to Saona Island for a 9.5-hour beach day at exclusive Playatao Beach. Swim at the Natural Pools, enjoy a floating bar, lunch, reserved beach tables, and drinks including mojitos, Cuba Libres, beer, and soft drinks. Junior is especially helpful with guests who need walking assistance.

“Junior was amazing at helping me walk around as I don’t walk that well, he also saw that I was on my own and I was the only English person, so he kept saying hi and having a quick chat. The catamaran was very fun and lively the drinks were definitely flowing”

Check availability →Read our full review