Day Beach in Punta Cana –
Located on the east side of the Dominican Republic, Punta Cana is popular for its pristine water and white sandy beaches. Resorts are built near the coasts with all inclusive packages, so the guests can have all the comfort without having to move from the area, in this case from sleeping, dining, gym, pool, until partying.
POV – Bavaro beach as one of the beautiful beaches in Punta Cana
However, the option above is not budget friendly. The good news is Punta Cana could be enjoyed with a variety of budgets. Of course questions like where should I stay, how many days do I need, what to do, where to eat etc appear.
And I would happily break it down for you below.
How to go to Punta Cana?
Punta Cana has its own airport, so you can fly directly to Punta Cana. However, if flying to Santo Domingo would be way cheaper, you can opt to go from Santo Domingo and go from there. Read more about vacation in Santo Domingo here. From Santo Domingo there will be two bus companies that go to Punta Cana. Read them more here.
We went with Bavaro Express by paying 450 DOP per person.
The seats were normal in size & there were no seat numbers for passengers. So, if you are lucky & the bus seats weren’t fully sold, you can put your belongings beside you.
One of the views once your bus entered Punta Cana
In which area should I stay?
Due to its reputation as a famous Caribbean vacation destination, Punta Cana is safer than other cities in the Dominican Republic. But I would recommend you to stay in the Bavaro area, since this area has it all, from beach, gastronomy, laundry to entertainment.
Supermercato Cicolella – Our fav. supermarket in Bavaro since one can pay with card & there are price scanning machines for customers
There are a lot of lodging options in Bavaro & the area is still busy in building even more lodging to accommodate Punta Cana vacation purposes
What should I consider in booking a room?
Do opt for a place that offers you a walking distance to the beach & supermarket, having a kitchen, swimming pool, air conditioner, and a good wifi. Imho they are necessary for one to have a good stay in Punta Cana on budget. Trust me, you do not want to stay too far away from the supermarket since tap water in The Dominican Republic is not drinkable. Therefore, you might need to buy water more frequently than you think.
Our AirBnB in Punta Cana – look goods on pictures, but the devils are in details
How much money do you need here?
Lodging costs may vary, but it should range between 25 USD until 50 USD per night for a decent room. Since we are not satisfied with our accommodation, I wouldn’t recommend it here. We stayed in AirBnB for 25 USD per night. Aside from that, we always brunched at home and dined out for snacks and dinner with a daily budget of 35 USD. And it was enough.
Note – Since the wage for service workers is low, it is normal to have an added 10% of service charge on the bill, despite the 18% tax. If you want to add more tips it would be highly appreciated. Based on my experience, the service was never satisfying. But, I used to work in the service industry, so maybe my expectations are different than yours.
Notice the after the 18% tax there is another added 10% on the bill?
How long should you stay?
This depends on what you are looking for. But people normally go to Punta Cana to chill and have a good time. So, I would say 4 days until a maximum a week is enough.
What to do here?
Day 1 – Beach Day
Chill at Bavaro Beach
There are a lot of beaches in Punta Cana, but accessing one is not as easy as one thought. These beaches are mainly connected to the resorts and they do not have a public entrance. Therefore, opting for Bavaro beach is the best option.
The public entrance for Bavaro Beach was already marked in Google Maps as Cat Parking Bavaro (must be a typo from Car)
Chilling on Bavaro beach was fun, since it offers a beautiful view of how Caribbean beach should look like. After chilling, you can walk along the beach and hunt for your souvenir at nearby souvenir shops.
As you walk, you will see a lot of lying beach chairs, which belong to the various resorts & are exclusive only for resorts guests
Pro Tip – Learn Spanish before you go and be ready to say “No, gracias.” a lot because people would offer you a lot of services & stuff.
Pina Colada on a cart for 10 USD was one of the offered services on Bavaro beach
Day 2 – Go to Saona Island
This popular island is so beautiful, that the movies of Pirates of Caribbean were shot here. I was taken aback for its beauty. But on the downside, since its popularity as well it backfired on the excursion that I took. The amount of tour participants would affect your trip heavily in terms of how long it would take to go to the island, which resulted in how long you actually would be on the island yourself.
We made a stop at the natural pool aka National Park Cotubanama otw to Saona Island. The water temperature was nice & the water itself was beautiful visually
Saona Island from afar
Be ready to share Saona Island with a lot of people since this excursion is very popular
How much? 50 USD per person with lunch, drinks & pick ups included.
Our buffett, which you can top up anytime you want as long as the food is still available
Pro Tip – Book your Saona Island with a reputable tour operator. And if you can, go on low season, which is April until September (check your weather app tho since this period varies for wet months). And prepare small changes since you will be expected to tip a lot, from the toilet, your speed boat & catamaran ride, until your driver.
After our speed boat ride, this guy at front aka the speed boat crew passed a hat to the passengers for tips for the whole crews
Day 3 – Explore downtown Punta Cana
Downtown Punta Cana is the place if you want to do proper shopping. There are options from the local shops with a better made quality of gifts & creative souvenirs or universally known shops such as Mini So.
I love stickers, so I stopped by at Mini So & get these for just 100 DOP
We started from the mall and afterwards we did rum, coffee, and chocolate tasting starting from Oliver’s Rum. Here you can try various Dominican’s rums for free. And just across the rum shop, still in the same area, you will find the coffee and chocolate shops, which offer free samples as well. The sellers are knowledgeable and the products themselves are good. Plus, you can also try the famous Mama Juana, the “viagra” of The Dominican Republic. It is not compulsory to buy something, but I guarantee you will end up with something anw. I ended up buying a chocolate tea after tasting it since it was so good.
Ideally you will start your tour from here
But we aren’t rum drinker, so we opted to the building across directly for coffee tasting
We smelled, learned one or two thing about coffee, and tried some samples
After tasting some coffee, we tasted some Mama Juana. It tasted sweet & smelled cinammony. Thank God I only tried a little bit, so I felt nothing. Imagine drinking this “viagra” too much & continuing your day normally…
The tea with the best smell in the world, I tried to drink it with honey and it was bomb! It was pricey since 50gr was sold for 8 USD. But, it is a guaranteed quality product.
Day 4 – Gastronomy
There are a lot of local delicacies to try in Punta Cana. But one shall not miss Mofongo aka mashed fried plantains, Sanchoco aka the stew of the country, Empanada aka the fried pastry with delicious filling, or La Bandera Dominicana which is the staple of popular eatery of the locals combining rice, any types of proteins, fried plantains, salad, and bean soup.
Trying Sanchoco for the first time, lekker! You can find it almost at every restaurant since this is very popular
Check below for the local restaurants in Punta Cana!
Casita de Yeya – for different types of classic Dominican delicacies. Try the local drinks as well to accompany your Dominican palates, such as milky maracuja or local beers like Presidente or Carnita.
Mofongo with fried pork belly aka chicharrones for 550 DOP before tax
Empanadas de queso & pollo for 150 DOP before tax
The Taproom – for another whole selection of different types of beer with self service. Beers are pricey, but I believe it depends on what you choose. They also provide snacks as drinking companies or hearty meals for hungry bellies.
Hubby did self service beer for the first time. On the screen, you will see the price & how many ml you already poured.
Fish & Chips for 390 DOP before tax
La Bandera Dominicana for 535 DOP before tax
Restaurant Delicioso – for Chinese food. This is our true champion since the food tastes good, fast (Panda Express style), and unbeatable in terms of price.
Unbeatable price & performance for just 685 DOP after tax for all
Dalia Cafe – our favorite for decent pastries & coffee. We used to hang out here for blogging days since the ambience & wifi were great. But, they also serve warm meals.
Pain Au Chocolate for 110 DOP before tax
Butter biscuits with caramel topping for 100 DOP before tax
Napoli – the only Italian restaurant that we tried during our stay in Punta Cana, since the food was good. I tried the best freshly made Linguini Carbonara here. And if you are a pizza fan, the pizza dough is good & the pizza itself is baked in oven wood.
Freshly made linguine carbonara for 460 DOP before tax
Hawaiian Pizza size Medium for 480 DOP before tax
La Bruja – a perfect choice if you want to try fusion cuisine. So far, this was the best dinner that we had in Punta Cana. The price is slightly higher than the other restaurants. But, it’s worth the money.
Try Perlin Pork for 850 DOP before tax – portion wise it’s huge! The one on the pic. is already halfway eaten, so imagine a full portion
The Damn Fat Burger for 690 DOP before tax is a must try for a burger lover who craves meat. Here you will find angus, breaded pork, bacon with egg & cheese between the breads
Day 5 – Culture Day
This is certainly something that one would miss by staying in the resorts. To know about the Dominican Republic culture, one shall get out to experience stuff.
Here are some things that one can do for free or within budget in Punta Cana!
Join a free Bachata lesson with locals at Bohio every Sunday at 20:00. One only needs to buy drinks.
Bohio also sells food on a daily basis. I ordered my Sancocho from here and it was okay. Do note tho, the service isn’t the fastest here. So, if you are that hungry, this might not suit you.
Attend Catholic Sunday Service at Iglesia catolica Jesus Maestro at 10:00 (if you are a devout Catholic or just want to satisfy your curiosity of the cultural aspects).
Party with the locals or other tourists at High Room Punta Cana. The club is closed on Monday & Tuesday. People say it is the only UDM house in Punta Cana.
Day 6 – Fly back home or repeat the activities above until your flying day comes
HONEST THOUGHT – After staying for two weeks in Punta Cana on a budget, I can conclude that staying in an all inclusive resort probably is the best option to enjoy Punta Cana. The Dominicans that we daily meet on the streets rely heavily on tourists. So, if you are walking by yourself, people tend to approach you to sell their stuff, from excursions, shops, taxi service, gastronomies, and the list goes on. They are strong and persistent, that even saying no thank you here may not be enough since some people still followed you around until you looked them in the eyes and firmly said no. It got really tiring after two weeks and you ended up missing being left alone.
Thank you for reading! POV – Rico HotDog el Cortecito for 130 DOP tax included
@globustrotterin 
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