Puerto Plata is a town in the north-west of the Dominican Republic overlooking the sea and behind it’s surrounded by mountains that release cold air, therefore allowing the climate to be a bit cooler in the afternoons
After a long trip we start our adventure in Puerto Plata. My cousin Davide ,who has lived here for many years ,picks us up at the guagua stop with his car. Acting as our guide he gives us a tour of the most beautiful places helping us put together our reportage of the city.
He explained how tourism has declined in Puerto Plata in the last few years and moved to other places where there have been more investments to provide comprehensive services for tourists.
The city of Puerto Plata
Our first stop is the city center, we go to the main square where right in front you will find the government building, the town hall and the city’s main cathedral .
Then we move toward the Malecon, which is the main road that runs along the beach where people go especially in the afternoon and evening when the air is cooler, to walk ,meet friends and have a drink.
We arrive at the end of this road and find the castle “of the Fortaleza San Felipe” built in 1577 by Columbus and the statue dedicated to General Gregorio Luperon.
While we were there we took the opportunity to go look at the city port where the Caribbean cruise ships once came through. We also went to the Malecon and took a nice picture of a Dominican who was deeply involved in fishing. Perhaps, if he’s lucky he will bring home dinner.
Then we went to the famous Amber Museum (very interesting) and we visited the factory of Brugal (Dominican rum) where we were offered a taste of the best rum and did some shopping in the end (we brought home a fantastic bottle of extra old rum).
Later, as it was already dark , we went to a well known Dominican shopping center ,or mall, called Sirena where we had a nice meal at the self service and took a little walk inside to see the various shops and we bought a SD card for our camera .
Puerto Plata, the sights and the attractions
In Puerto Plata there are many places to go and have fun, my cousin David brought us to Ocean World, which is located in Costa Dorada. There is also a pier so, you can get there with your own boat.
At Ocean World there are various attractions , it is situated in a very special building with a great bar in front of the swimming pool and a terrace overlooking the sea. You can also enjoy a unique dance show on the first floor.
For those who like to play, you can take advantage of the beautiful casinos where once a month they hold international tournaments and on the top floor there is a huge disco that is open until morning.
I forgot to tell you that there is also a dolphinarium where they have wonderful daily performances with trained dolphins, a must see .
Another place where you can find different types of relaxing entertainment is Playa Dorada, an area full of hotels and residences, a big tourist destination.
Here there are three discos and casinos and many beautiful golf courses open to everybody, nestled in a very beautiful and lush nature.
The nightlife in Puerto Plata
In Puerto Plata there is a pretty normal night life ,like in any other city in the world, you can go dancing in a disco, or, you can go to the local places where the Dominicans go and drink ,sing ,and dance ,and they dance a lot. Frankly, we recommend these since we certainly had more fun.
Another wonderful attraction in Puerto Plata is the cable car (built by Italian entrepreneurs) that takes you into the mountain behind the town, unfortunately we didn’t go (on my cousins advice) because in those days the wind was really strong and even more so on the top of the mountain.