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Paradise beaches with white sand and clear waters, and even a filming location of Pirates of the Caribbean. Did I convince you to visit? Continue reading!
Isla Saona is one of the most frequented tourist destinations in the Dominican Republic. The amazing beaches, the clear shallow water, and the underwater wildlife that are all part of the national park the island is located in are a magnet for people to come and see. One of the beaches on the island was a filming location for the first Pirates of the Caribbean movie, I'll let you figure out which beach it was by yourself. Another piece of televised trivia, one of the beaches in the area is going to be used as a filming location for one of the Survivor series.
So how do you get there?
The easy way
The easiest way to do it is to book a tour from almost anywhere on the island. I heard of tour groups that organized a visit to the island from as far as Monte Cristi (which completely the other side of the island, about 6-7 hours away in public trasnport). The plus side is that you can visit each and every one of the beaches, and that the tour agencies will take care of everything, and you just need to show up and spend some money. The problem with this way is that it is generally way more expensive, as the tour operators are usually overcharging you for each part of the way. In addition to that, you are limited in the itinerary that the tour operator has planned for you, which might result in being on the beach for as little as an hour.
If this sounds appealing to you then go for it, the closer to Bayahibe you will start, the cheaper it should be for you
The fun way
Not that I'm saying that the other ways are not fun, but open bar on the Caribbean waters does strike me as a lot of fun. Once you reach Bayahibe, the main place from which all of the boats go to the island, you will find a great variety of local tour operators (really, there is A LOT of them). For something around 30$-50$ per person (can be lower or higher depending on your connections and negotiating skills) you will get the following:
A ride on a Catamaran to one of the closer beaches on the island, with an open bar and a party with local music. If you are lucky some locals will join the ride and make the party more lively, but even if not then there are usually staff members that get people to dance and have fun. The ride lasts about 2-2.5 hours.
A stay on the said beach (might differ between the different operators), with a lunch and an open bar. We were catching some sun for about 3-4 hours before we headed back
A short stop (30-40 minutes) on the way back in an area that is called "natural pools" for the shallow waters around. In which you can snorkel or just swim around, and if you are lucky you will see some starfish (please just look at them and don't touch, in spite anything that the tour operators might tell you)
Each offers a tour that is a bit different, but most of them look like that. The boats usually leave between 9-10am, and the tour operators always ask everyone to arrive at 9.
The backpacker way
On the same beach all the tours leave from there is a pier. From that pier, every day at 9am, there are boats leaving for the island. In these boats you will find local workers that are going to work on the island, locals on vacation, and all kinds of tourists. You will have to pay the entrance to the national park yourself in the office near the pier (150 DOP per person). You can buy either a one way ticket or a two way one, depends on how flexible you want to be (500 DOP pear person each way). Then once you reach the beach you want you need to take care of accommodation (or bring your won tent) and food (you can bring tat with you as well).
Which way is the best?
Well that is up to you. Personally, the easy way is not my cup of tea because I like my flexibility. Between the other two it depends on your plans. If you are planning just to get to the closest beach like Playa Isla Saona or Playa del Gato and you are not planning to stay overnight, the fun way is going to be cheaper and more fun (did I say open bar already?). If, on the other hand, you are planning to stay the night or visit the more remote beaches like Mano Juan, the backpacker way is your way to go.
How to prepare?
First and foremost, find out the details in advance. Who are you going with? Which operator? How much it should cost? What are the hours the boats are leaving?
Most of the information you can find here, but it is always better to find out in the actual place.
Secondly, bring some cash. A lot of places in the country do not accept cards, a remote island is not different.
Thirdly, the island, being a remote island, does not get much traffic in moving goods. That means that whatever you find on Isla Saona will be a few times more expensive than what you will find on the main island. Make your calculations, you can bring your own food, drink and take care of accommodation.
When we went to Mano Juan, we brought only our tent, and were lucky enough that the place we hung out at had just received a shipment of beer (food was less of a problem if you like fish, as it is a fishing village). When we went to the Catamaran tour we brought just ourselves, but some of the other people brought a whole fridge of food and alcohol with them. So you decide what you need!
Final thoughts
We have been to some of these beaches, but not to all of them. Our absolute favorite is Mano Juan, which is also a fishing village. We stayed the night and enjoyed the quiet and safe beach. Choose your favorite way to go, make your preparations and enjoy one of the most beautiful places in this country.
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