Casa de Campo put La Romana on the travel map since its start as a
tropical golfer’s paradise in the 70s. Over the years, the destination has
added more world class golf courses. To complement the golfers, yachtsmen and
water sports buffs join horseback riders, weekend cyclists, tennis fans,
hunters and skeet shooters alike who all enjoy mingling with the Dominican Republic’s
jet-setters.
Visitors meet up with their friends who have migrated to their La Romana
homes to escape the stress of big city life. The city was originally built
around and maintained by the large sugar mill years before tourism became the
mainstay in this region. Even now, the seasonal production of sugar fills the
air with the sweet smell of molasses and the design of the La Romana
International Airport (LRM) mirrors a sugar cane mill, as a reminder of the
days when sugar was king. La Romana and the nearby beach town of Bayahibe and Dominicus
have just the right mix of right – on – the – beach hotels, small restaurants
and shopping to make for comfortable visiting and living. One of the best
beaches in the country, Bayahibe (Dominicus) is but a 30 – minute drive from La
Romana city, and is where the largest concentration of hotel rooms can be
found.
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| La Estancia |
Getting there
La Romana International Airport
puts most tourists, whether headed to the La Romana area or Bayahibe area, less
than 20 minutes from their hotel.
This airport is served by regular flights by/from: American Airlines (Miami) and American Eagle (San Juan,
Puerto Rico).
There are also charter flights from: Canada: Skyservice, Air Transat,
Sunwing, Zoom Airlines (Toronto), Can Jet (Halifax, Quebec City), Air Transat,
Sunwing (Montreal) Europe: Blue Panorama (Rome, Milan), Livingston (Milan,
Rome), XL Airways France (Paris), Air Pullmantur (Madrid), Condor (Frankfurt),
LTU (Dusseldorf, Munich).
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| Altos de Chavon |
Getting around
Guests of Casa de Campo will enjoy the internal shuttle transportation.
A taxi may be taken to La Romana city and Bayahibe and car rentals are also
readily available and enable tourists to take advantage of what the area and
environs offer. There is a frequent scheduled bus service from La Romana city
to Santo Domingo,
and twice a day service to Punta Cana. Dominicus hotels feature regular
shuttles to Bayahibe town.
Attractions
Altos de Chavon. Altos de Chavon is the principal cultural attraction of
the region, where the bests national and international artists perform at the
5,000-seat amphitheater. This re-created 16th century Mediterranean
village overlooks the mesmerizing Chavon
River. When established
in 1981, Altos de Chavon was declared a working artists’ village by its
creators, who dedicated it to the fine and applied arts. Its other-wordly
cobblestone streets and quaint architecture overlooking Chavon
River conceal charming shops, fine
restaurants, intimate bars, artisanal workshops, a church, an archaeological
museum and a university that specializes in design and is affiliated to
Parson’s School of Design in New
York.
Casa de Campo Marina.
This marina, residential and shopping precinct was designed to evoke Portofino, Italy
located where the mouth of the Chavon River opens into the Caribbean
Sea. This is the place where the Dominicam Republic’s
rich-and-famous meet, play and host their international jet-set companions.
Admission to this area is restricted, and reservations are required.
El Artistico Shop. Eclectic and inspiring art work creations made of
recycled iron. It is located on the main La Romana city road on the way west.
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| Alberca la Romana |
Beaches
Bayahibe town and beach. This is a laid back fishing town and beach with
its nearby collection of small hotels, restaurants and few shops. Bayahibe is
the site from which many excursions to the nearby Saona and Catalina islands
are launched. The vive Bayahibe cultural movement presents events to make the
town an attractive destination in itself and connecting free shuttle buses are
now available from most Dominicus beach area hotels. The town lies 10 minutes
from Dominicus beach resorts and less than half an hour from Casa de Campo or
the city of La Romana.
Dominicus town and beach. Catering for the local residents and the
occasional tourist that stray from the all-inclusive resort, a handful of
casual restaurants and shops dot the Dominicus beach strip hotels. There is an
unrestricted access to Dominicus beach between Viva Wyndham
Dominicus Palace
and Iberostar Hacienda hotels.
Catalina Island. Catalina is a
15-square kilometer uninhabited offshore wildlife reserve located five miles
south of La Romana, easily accessed by sea. Tourists visit for the snorkeling
and scuba diving. For the least adventurous, glass bottom boats take tourists
out to observe the submarine world.
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| Casa de Campo |
Saona Island. Located in the National Park of the
East, the excursion to Saona
Island is the most
popular all-day trip taken by tourists visiting the southeastern or eastern
coast. The ride along the shallow coastline is one of the fine points of
reaching this palm-studded paradisiacal island, whose 115-square kilometer area
makes it the largest in the Dominican
Republic. Also of interest is a visit to
Palmilla (a natural pool) with its shallow crystalline waters and underlying
sea stars that span a large area on the way to the island of Saona.
Saona is the living image of the best of the Caribbean
with its many fine, white-sanded beaches and a small picturesque community of
Mano Juan.
Rancho Cumayasa. This ecolodge built up on a hill overlooking Cumayasa River
offers horseback riding excursions and boat rides to Catalina
Island, with an excellent Dominican lunch included.
The National Park of the East. 420-square kilometer flora and fauna
reserve, it is also a major archaeological center for Taino Indian culture.
Botanists have counted 539 flora species there, while 144 types of birds are
also known to make the park their home. Hikes can start from Bayahibe and Boca
de Yuma towns, a certified Ministry of Environment guide is required.
Scuba diving
Observe the marine life at the underwater sanctuary created by the
sunken St.Georges cargo vessel off the Viva Wyndham
Dominicus Beach.
Thousands of colourful sea creatures make scuba diving a major attraction for
those vacationing in the area. The area is well known for the dive operations
located at the resorts. For the less adventurous, glass bottom boats take
tourists out to watch the underwater view. Living underwater museum. The
Captain Kidd shipwreck site is a leading attraction for scuba divers in the Caribbean. It is being converted into a living museum to
protect corals and other threatened biology in the surrounding reef systems as
well as showcase this extraordinary discovery. Indiana University and Dominican
archaeologists have worked together to create the underground attraction that
showcases the Cara Merchant, the ship Captain William Kidd commandeered and
then abandoned in 16 as he raced to New York in an ill-fated attempt to clear
his name of piracy charges . The Captain Kidd site is the only pirate ship ever
discovered in the Americas.
It is located off Catalina Island.
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| Teeth of the Dog |
Family activities
With its great variety of sports, activities and outdoor excursions, La
Romana, Bayahibe and Domenicus area is family-oriented. Take PADI certification
diving courses, learn to windsurf, kayak or canoe, take a banana boat ride, go
fishing, horseback riding, 4-wheel motorcycle riding and much more.
In Bayahibe, the Padre Nuestro Ecological and Archaeological Route makes it easy to
appreciate the tropical vegetation along a 2 km trail into areas populated by
the Tainos hundreds of years ago. A 1km route takes tourists around the flora
and cultural heritage of the town with its early 20th century
church, Indian burial site, and the Flower of Bayahibe cactus forest.
Shopping
La Romana town, Altos de Shavon and shops in the Casa de Campo and
Dominicus and Bayahibe beach areas offer excellent shopping for arts and crafts.
Jumbo at La Romana city is a good place to stock up on good Dominican rum and
cigars, or buy Dominican marmalades or sweets.
Nightlife
The nights are when the entertainment staff of the hotels show off their
artistic talents. Options open to all in the area are:
Altos de Shavon.Some of the world’s best perform on the Chavon
amphitheater stage. From December to April, you might be able to catch a
Kandela tropical music extravaganza with more than 50 performers on stage.
Casa de Campo Marina.
This marina, residential and shopping center was designed to evoke Portofino, Italy
and is located where the mouth of the Chavon
River opens into the Caribbean
sea.
La Romana city features many restaraunts, discos and beer bars that
cater to residents in Casa de Campo.
In Bayahibe, the restaurants and the colmadones or open bars are where
people linger in the evening.
