Come with me, and you’ll see a beautiful world of imagination…on a budget! (In my Willy Wonka voice)
As most of you know, I travel every year for my birthday. I’ve been to ATL, Colombia, Miami, etc. This year, I chose Dominican Republic. We stayed in Punta Cana.
My best friend that I use to book my trips is Expedia. I understand some ppl don’t love them as much as I do, but we’ve been partners a long time. Booking with them, my flight and hotel fell under $1200 for this trip!
https://www.viator.com/orion/partner/widget.jsI booked this trip probably 3 months in advanced. My cuzzo joined me on the trip. I found my airport transfer on FB, of all places. Great company, great price. If you come here, go with Punta Cana Transportation. Please book your transportation before coming. The taxi drivers at the airport are aggy AF. Plus, you’ll get a better deal.
Spending my days..
We stayed at Ocean Sand and Beach Resort, an all inclusive. A gem! Somehow, I managed to book the ‘Privilege’ suite, by accident. By booking this package, you’ll get a two story suite. There were two fluffy robes waiting as I entered the room. It has a large king bed with a beautiful walk-in shower. The room overlooks the ocean and the pool. You have an upstairs that has a lounge area, jacuzzi, large balcony and outdoor shower. Next door, you have access to a specific restaurant that only privileged members can eat at. You also have access to a personal butler, full snack bar with alcohol(free), and free cabana on the beach. You’ll get 10% off at the spa too. Don’t bother booking excursions early. Your butler will help you book on site. Different options include horseback riding, ATV tours, a party on the catamaran, and a diving package. We chose the party catamaran!
My first day, I decided to do a flying dress photoshoot. OMG! That’s harder than it looks. The wind down here is insane and that dress almost flew me like a kite. The photographer had a partner to help me stay situated on the beach with this humongous, red, gorgeous dress. You know red is my favorite color. The shoot took nearly 2 hours; home girl was very professional and I highly recommend them. Visit them here. I’ll post the pics on my IG when they are back from editing. Make sure to follow me below.
The next day, we took an excursion on a catamaran to La Isla Saona through IRB Turismo. The island is gorgeous. However, it’s not as nice as the private island in Belize (Mahogany Bay Resort). The transitions to get there wore me out, but it was worth it. So, the bus picks you up at your hotel and then picks up others at their hotels too. Then, they go to another meeting point to pick up more guests, plus your photographer and tour guide. From there, you take a 30 to 45 minute drive to the boat docks. There are millions of buses and tours going on, so please pay attention to who your tour guide is. Ours was Papa Jose’ and he was dope!
We got on our party boat (catamaran) and cruised to the island. The ride took an hour or so. On the boat, you can sit or lounge anywhere. It’s early enough where the sun won’t burn your skin if you lay out. They have drinks and dancing the entire time. Surprisingly, the captains of all the boats were very young, like early 20s. The photographer randomly captures photos on the ride, on the beach, and on the way back. You get all of your pics for a very reasonable price. And the pictures are absolutely beautiful. On the island, they have a lunch buffet and unlimited rum and coke. They also have soda and water if you’d like. At the moment, I didn’t want water…lol. In my usual life, I drink a gallon of water per day. Honestly, I’d pack snacks too if you’re as greedy as me. The food wasn’t enough for me. You can lounge on the beach or play in the water. There’s nothing else to do. In Belize, they had paddle boards and over-water cabanas you could rent. Lastly, the bathrooms are glorified port-o-johns. So, don’t set the expectations too high.
On my last day, I had just enough time to get my massage in. Check-out is at noon, so I took advantage of it. Make sure you book early enough because they operate on island time. My appointment was for 9, and I wasn’t seen until 9:30. Then, I had to get my vid test. Results come back in an hour to your email address. You’ll need it to get back to the US.
Overall, I thoroughly enjoyed my quick getaway. One thing about me, I hate long vacations. I try to take a small vacation every month. I can’t stay away from my house for more than 4 to 5 days. I’m weird, I know. Maybe one day I can work my way up to a week or so. One thing that shocked me was the number of European guests that were there. There were so many languages being spoken all around me. I’d definitely rate DR a 4 out of 5. Of all the Caribbean places I’ve visited, Aruba, Jamaica, and Puerto Rico are my favorite. DR and Belize would be second in rank. This summer, I plan to put together a trip to El Salvador and Costa Rica. Let me know if you want to go!
Shana Hannibal 