Guide to the DR
Santo Domingo · --:--
República Dominicana · Example itinerary

7-Day Dominican Republic Itinerary

A week, done right — the beach you came for, the colonial capital, and the wild green peninsula of Samaná.

✈ PUJ→Punta Cana3 nights→Santo Domingo2 nights→Samaná & Las Terrenas2 nights→✈ POP
Build my own version → See the route

A week is the sweet spot for a first trip. You get the beach you came for, the history that makes the DR more than a resort, and a taste of the wilder side. This route runs Punta Cana to Santo Domingo to Samaná: sand and excursions, then the first city in the Americas, then a peninsula of waterfalls, whale season (January–March) and the easy beaches around Las Terrenas. An open-jaw route so you never backtrack.

How to read this: it's one good way to spend 7 days, not the only way. We show the shape of each day — the two highlights worth building around. The planner fills in every meal and a night out, adds a budget breakdown, and swaps it all to your pace, budget and taste. For the drives between stops, see our drive-times guide.

✈
Fly into PUJ — Private driver / transfer. Have the ride arranged before you land.
1

Punta Cana

3 nights Base: Bávaro
Full Punta Cana guide →

Frictionless: direct flights, white sand, resorts, golf and easy excursions — the safest, simplest first stop.

Day 1
  • Higüey Basilica & Dominican Countryside Tour — The pilgrimage basilica, a local school and a family home with a real campo lunch — the closest a resort day gets to the actual DR. Book ↗
  • Dominican Coffee, Cacao & Rum Tasting — How chocolate, coffee, cigars and mamajuana are actually made — a small, tasty, low-key afternoon. Book ↗
Day 2
  • Playa Bávaro — The signature palm-and-turquoise strip.
  • Marinarium Marine Park Snorkel Cruise — Snorkel with nurse sharks and rays in a protected natural pool, then float the sandbar. Book ↗
Day 3
  • Playa Macao — The wilder public beach — surfers, fewer resorts, a fried-fish shack or two.
  • Bávaro Parasailing — Up over the turquoise for the aerial view of the whole coast.

Standout tables: Noah Marina · Dolce Italia · SBG Punta Cana

🚗
Punta Cana → Santo Domingo — Private driver / transfer, ~150 min drive..
2

Santo Domingo

2 nights Base: Zona Colonial
Full Santo Domingo guide →

Culture, food and nightlife in one walkable, well-policed core — the best cultural anchor for any trip.

Day 4
  • Catedral Primada de América — The first cathedral in the Americas (1540).
  • Alcázar de Colón — Diego Columbus's palace on Plaza España — the best-preserved Renaissance building in the Americas. Book ↗
Day 5
  • Museo de las Casas Reales — The colonial-era Royal Houses, now a museum of the Spanish period.
  • Fortaleza Ozama — The oldest European military fort in the Americas, with river-and-sea views from the Torre del Homenaje.

Standout tables: Turo · La Cassina · Central Gastronómica

🚗
Santo Domingo → Samaná & Las Terrenas — Private driver / transfer, ~145 min drive..
3

Samaná & Las Terrenas

2 nights Base: Las Terrenas
Full Samaná & Las Terrenas guide →

That rare place where green mountains fall straight into wild beaches — El Limón, Playa Rincón, Los Haitises. Humpback whales Jan–Mar.

Day 6
  • Playa Rincón Beach Trip — A boat or 4x4 to one of the world's most beautiful wild beaches — coconut palms, no resorts.
  • Playa Bonita — A long, calm, boutique-lined beach next to Las Terrenas — the peninsula's easy default.
Day 7
  • Cayo Levantado Island Day — A palm-fringed island beach day in Samaná Bay — the original 'Bacardi Island'.
  • Playa Cosón — A long, wild stretch of golden sand west of town — big skies, few crowds and great sunsets.

Standout tables: El Lugar · Zamia by Itinerante · El Cabito

Make this 7-day trip yours

Answer seven quick questions and we'll rebuild this route around your budget, your food, and your pace — with a full day-by-day, a budget breakdown, and booking links.

Plan my trip →
More routes

Other Dominican Republic itineraries

5 daysBeach and capital, the easy way — Punta Cana's sand, then Santo Domingo's history.10 daysAdd the north coast — beaches, the capital, whales at Samaná, and Cabarete's surf and wind.14 daysThe grand loop — beaches, boat days, the colonial capital, the pine mountains, and the north coast.HoneymoonSeven days of just the two of you — barefoot luxury on the east coast, then the wild, secluded green of the Samaná peninsula.