Playa Boca Chica

Once you’ve spent a moment with your feet in the fine, powdery, white sand and waded in the clear blue waters of Playa Boca Chica, it is not hard to understand why this beach is the town’s main attraction. A coral reef at the mouth of the Bahía de Andrés (which you can wade out to) makes it impossible for big breakers and big fish to get through, resulting in calm water that is safe for children.

Playa Boca Chica is about five kilometers long and on the far east side sits the Coral Hamaca by Hilton Resort. Farther along is the Don Juan Beach Resort and its dive center, Treasure Divers; Hotel Zapata is toward the far western end. Between these locations are multiple restaurants and bars.

Beachgoers can rent the tables and chairs spread all across the beach, for a price. But haggling is a must and settling on a price before sitting down is essential. The same goes for ordering food and drinks to be brought to you by those offering service. It is easy to get taken for a ride if you don’t agree on price beforehand. After the price is negotiated, sit back, relax, and enjoy!

During low tide, it is possible to walk out to the islands of La Matica and Los Pinos (which used to be called La Piedra, “The Rock,” before Australian pines were planted on it), just offshore, to do some bird-watching. The depth of the water averages only about 1.2 meters (in some spots it is only ankle deep), making it a pleasant journey either by foot or by shallow boat, which can be rented at the beach. La Matica (The Little Shrub) is more a mangrove than an island and a favorite spot for herons. Los Pinos (The Pines) has more hard ground to climb onto, and the mosquitoes can be aggressive. Reaching Los Pinos is a bit more difficult than getting to La Matica. Wear water shoes if you go walking.

During the weekdays mostly locals selling their wares and tourists enjoying the water and sun frequent the beach. Sunday at Playa Boca Chica is much more crowded—Dominicans from the city and surrounding areas come to the beach to cool off.

Some of the larger all-inclusive hotels have built walls surrounding the beach space in front of their hotels in an effort to block the locals from entering. By Dominican law, this is illegal, but the law is not enforced and it is a common practice of big resort chains. Often they have armed guards to keep their guests quarantined from the rest of the beachgoers/locals. Anyone without the hotel’s bracelet on will be stopped from entering. Sure, peddlers are kept at bay, but should you be a guest at one of these resorts, venturing beyond the resort walls to mingle with the Dominicans on their rightful beach means you can get your hair braided and have fried fish, chicharrones (fried pork skins), and yaniqueques (johnnycakes) brought to you from the freidurías (frying establishments). At Playa Boca Chica you can also do your shopping for trinkets, souvenirs, and jewelry as you lie in the sun thanks to the wandering peddlers. These vendors and hawkers can be aggressive, but a stern yet polite “no gracias” should do the trick when you’ve had enough.