Las Terrenas

Las Terrenas is a humming hive of activity. Slow-strolling tourists and speeding motoconchos coexist somehow. The flaxen-colored sand and indigo waters of the beach, fringed by palm trees, stretch for kilometers and remind us that Las Terrenas is still a place to relax and enjoy paradise despite the frenzy that swirls around, even into the early morning hours.

This is the best place to come on the peninsula if you’re wanting a vacation of both slow days in the sun and a fun-filled nightlife. The other towns on the peninsula just don’t have the same vibe.

In the late 1970s, tourists traveling to the small town began falling in love with it and started staying for good. These expats, mostly from European countries like France, Italy, and Switzerland, have opened many hotels, restaurants, and other businesses that continue to thrive and give new tourists plenty of appealing options.

Getting to Las Terrenas

By Air: Las Terrenas is only a few kilometers from Aeropuerto Internacional El Portillo (tel. 809/248-2289), which receives some flights from Europe but mostly inter-Dominican flights. A couple of companies serve the Samaná Peninsula: Takeoff Destination Service S.A. (Plaza Brisas de Bávaro 8, Bávaro, tel. 809/552-1333, fax 809/552-1113, www.takeoffweb.com [1]), in the Southeast, has a flight between Punta Cana [2] and Samaná [3] for US$149 with regular flights every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday. They offer a flight between Santo Domingo [4] and Samaná for US$250.

Aerodomca (Aeropuerto Arroyo Barril Samaná, tel. 809/248-2566, or Santo Domingo tel. 809/567-1195, www.aerodomca.com [5]) offers flights from the airport at El Portillo to Santo Domingo (US$85) and Punta Cana (US$85) as well as other airports in the Dominican Republic [6] and throughout the Caribbean. Reservations are required with a 24-hour advance notice.

Catching a taxi into town is no problem from the airport at El Portillo. When flights arrive, taxis wait around (usually they are the minivan type to accommodate luggage) and will run you around US$8–10.

You can take a taxi from the El Catey airport for about US$90 one-way.

By Bus: Guaguas make stops in Las Terrenas along Avenida Duarte. To catch one going to Sánchez [7], go to the stop along the highway to Sánchez (US$1.50 leaving every 20–25 minutes 7 a.m.–6 p.m.). The stop for a guagua going toward El Limón (US$1.75 leaving every 15 minutes 7 a.m.–5 p.m.) is more centrally located near the intersection of Avenida Duarte and the highway to El Portillo.

By Car: If arriving from the west, make a left turn outside the town of Sánchez for a beautiful drive up over the Cordillera Samaná, la loma (the hill) between Las Terrenas and Sánchez. It is a curvy, steep road that gives spectacular views of the Bahía de Samaná and the Parque Nacional Los Haitises [8]. Watch out for fallen branches, coconuts, and palm debris, especially after a strong rainstorm. Las Terrenas is 17 kilometers northeast of Sánchez. Traveling along this road, if you would like a rest and a bite to eat, stop halfway between Sánchez and Las Terrenas at the Tex Mex restaurant El Vaquero (Carretera Sánchez–Las Terrenas), where not only is the food killer, but the view is to die for, overlooking the mountains of the Samaná Peninsula [9] from a perch in the village of El Naranjito.

If you are approaching Las Terrenas from the east, perhaps from Las Galeras [10], you must first go through Samaná, then turn right on the road toward El Limón and El Portillo. It is another 30–45 minutes to reach Las Terrenas.