Visitors from all other countries need a visa for entry.
You will be required to purchase a Dominican Tourist
Card in order to enter the country. They cost $20.00 US.
Your travel agent or airline may sell them. Some charter
flights include the tourist card with the purchase of
your ticket. If not, you can purchase the Tourist Card
when you arrive in the Immigration area of the Puerto
Plata Airport for $20.00 US cash. You should have exact
change for this. They don't take pesos. You will receive
a copy of your Tourist Card from the Immigration officer.
You must keep this copy and present it to Immigration
when you leave the country. The Tourist Card is valid
for three months.
When you leave the Dominican Republic, you will have
to pay a departure tax of $20.00 US per person at the
airport. They only accept US cash. They will not accept
credit cards, pesos or any other currency.
What to do when you arrive
at the Puerto Plata Airport
After disembarking your plane,you will come to the Immigration
hall. Before getting in line, be sure to purchase a Tourist
Card at the booth on the left-hand side of the room if
you do not already have one.
Continuing on, you will collect lugage from baggage claim,
and pass through customs. Free baggage carts are available
near the conveyers. Customs may or may not stop you. But
in the event they do they will probably open your bags,
looking for things like VCR's, TV's, Microwave ovens etc.
If you bring your own bike in a box they will want to
look inside. Help as much as you can in the process of
opening the box to keep it from being destroyed. Bikes
accompanying the traveler are not subject to duty. For
your information, laptop computers, radio/cassette players
and windsurfers accompanying the traveler are also allowed
into the country duty free.
More than likely a porter will try to help you with your
luggage. If you would like assistance, RD$25 (US$50) per
bag is a reasonable payment. Sometimes two different porters
will pick up your bags. This is fine as long as you want
to pay each of them. More porters are outside the terminal.
If you are not interested in assistance, a firm and direct
"No Gracias" should do the trick. Sometimes
it takes two "No Gracias"s. The distance from
the baggage area to customs is minimal as is the distance
from Customs to the taxi. s
Outside of the terminal there are generally a few men
with "Taxi" signs that will direct you to a
cab. Everybody likes a tip. The taxi may not be the most
modern vehicle you have ever been in, but don't worry.
The one-way taxi fare to Cabarete is US$30 (as of January
2004) and it takes about 20 minutes. All taxis are privately
owned here and you do not have to tip the driver unless
you want to. The driver should have a Taxi I.D. on him
or hanging from his rearview window. General Taxi Fares
Travel
Insurance
Our trips are sold as packages, and there will be no
refunds to individuals who leave a trip early or arrive
late. We strongly recommend that you purchase a travel
insurance policy that includes trip cancellation and interruption
insurance. Iguana Mama provides comprehensive Travel and Medical insurance through International Medical Group. Please click HERE for more information, instant quotes and to purchase coverage.
Language
Spanish is the official language of the Dominican Republic.
However, other languages are spoken across the country.
Throughout the tourist regions English and German are
spoken and, to a lesser extent, French and Italian.
Currency
and Credit Cards
The currency in the Dominican Republic is pesos. In January,
the official exchange rate was around 48.00 Dominican
Pesos (RD$) for US$1.00. We say around because the rate
you get depends upon where you change your money...change
house, bank, hotel, etc. We will recommend places to you
when you arrive.
All major currencies can be changed here including US$,
Euro, Canadian$ and British Pound.
All major currency Travelers Checks are easily cashed.
Visa, Mastercard and American Express can be used here
but not all hotels and restaurants accept them all. Iguana
Mama accepts Visa, Mastercard, American Express and Travelers
cheques and US$ and Euros. You can get a cash advance
from your credit card at a bank but a commission is generally
charged on the transaction. There is also a Western Union
office in Cabarete. Most hotels have safes in the rooms
which you can rent to keep money, passport and other valuables.
For our guests on Overnight Adventures, we can store valuables
in our office safe while on the trip. We are happy to
photocopy passports and plane tickets for all of our guests'
security and peace of mind.
Taxes
Most goods and services are subject to the 12% ITBIS
tax. Hotels and nicer restaurants frequently charge an
additional 10% for service.
Tipping
All hotels and many finer restaurants include a 10% service
charge on the bill. This service charge is generally distributed
to all employees of the establishment. You may tip extra
to the person who is serving you if you wish. We suggest
around 10%.
Communications
There are several international phone centers in Cabarete
and throughout the country where you can make international
calls (including collect calls) and send faxes. Some hotels
offer phone and fax services. There are also many Internet-cafés
in Cabarete where you can send and receive emails.
For emergency purposes, you can leave the Iguana Mama
numbers with relatives:
· Phone: (1) (809) 571-0908
· Fax: (1) (809) 571-0734
· E-mail: info@iguanamama.com
Electricity
Electricity is 110 volts/60 cycles - the same as the
US and Canada. Some hotels have a 220 volt receptacle
for European appliances. Power outages or brownouts are
common and frequent throughout the country. Most hotels
in Cabarete have a generator. This is not the case in
the backcountry and non-tourist towns.
Weather
The Dominican Republic has a variety of climatic zones
or micro climates; humid, dry, tropical jungle, Savannah
and forest. The coastal zone is blessed with warm tropical
climate, while temperatures are cooler and more temperate
in the central region.
The year round average is 24 degrees C (77 degrees F).
Throughout the mountain region, and especially in the
winter months from December to April, temperatures drop
dramatically, sometimes falling below 0 degrees C (32
degrees F) in Constanza, Valle Nuevo and on Pico Duarte.
Rainy times are May, November, & December but also
depends largely on the part of the country you are in.
For our trips we suggest that you plan for hot sun, rain,
and some cool temperatures at night.
Health
You're not required to have any vaccination shots to
enter the Dominican Republic. You should always consult
your doctor for recommendations before extended travel
or travel to developing nationsl. We strongly recommend
that all visitors familiarize themselves with the travel
information available from the Department of Health of
your country (in USA, the US Department of Health and
Human Services's CDC).
Note: there are areas of the Dominican Republic close
to the Haitian border where cases of Malaria have been
confirmed. Our trips do not go near these areas. From
mid-July 2000 to September 2001, 13 cases of Polio (more
than 8 million people live in the Dominican Republic)
were confirmed in the DR. In response to this, 3 rounds
of mass vaccination campaigns vaccinated an estimated
3.6 million children between December 2000 and April 2001
Drinking water: Do not drink the tap water. Bottled water
is available everywhere. The water we use on our trips
is either bottled, filtered or mountain spring water.
To allow your body to adjust to different food and water
and to avoid getting sick, don't further tax your system
by exhausting yourself the first day or by drinking too
much alcohol.
Medical facilities: You must have your own medical insurance.
Please be sure to let us know if you have any allergies
to things like bee stings, medicines, and food. There
are several pharmacies in Cabarete with an average selection
of products. However, if you take medication we recommend
you bring enough with you to last the length of your vacation.
Cabarete has a very good 24 hour medical clinic (Servi-Med,
571-0964) with multi-lingual staff. The closest hospital
is in Puerto Plata, about 45 minutes away. If you wear
contacts, PLEASE do not forget your glasses just in case.
