Getting in and visas for the Dominican Republic

By plane

The main airports (in alphabetical order) are:

• (AZS) Samana, also known as "El Catey", located between the towns of Nagua and Samana on the north coast
• (JBQ) "La Isabela" airport in Santo Domingo, mainly for domestic flights but also receives some flights from other Caribbean islands
• (LRM) La Romana on the south east coast
• (POP) Puerto Plata, also known as "Gregorio Luperon" on the north coast
• (PUJ) Punta Cana International in the east, the busiest in the country
• (SDQ) Santo Domingo, also known as "Las Americas" on the south coast close to the capital city Santo Domingo
• (STI) Santiago also known as "Cibao International" in Santiago de los Caballeros (the country's 2nd largest city)

You can get flights from Europe via Madrid (MAD) or Paris (CDG). From the US, you can fly from New York, Ft. Lauderdale,Miami, Philadelphia or Charlotte.Most European and Canadian cities have charter flight connections, which operate seasonally. You will be charged $10 for a tourist card on arrival. This must be paid in $US or EUROs (€). Local currency, GBP, etc, will not be accepted.A departure tax of $20 cash is payable on most charter and some scheduled flights. Check your airline for details. Taxi fares to nearby hotels are posted just outside the airports. Taxi from Airport to Santo Domingo (Ciudad Colonial): it is about $25/30 (maximum), but if you have time to discuss the prices, you can get it for $12-13 (maybe less). There are many taxi touts. They ask you for tips to 'find' you a taxi. Walk outside alone, decline the tout, keep hold of your baggage and save yourself a few dollars tip. At the airport, you can change your US$ and € in Dominican Pesos. But beware! You may not be able to exchange back local money to US$ and €, so do it before leaving.

By train

Train networks are currently being developed but travel by rail is not currently available.

By car

Cars may be rented through Hertz or other agencies in Santo Domingo and other major cities. Gasoline, however, is extremely expensive often costing upward of US$6/gallon. Some roads, especially in remote areas, are fairly dangerous (often without lane divisions) and many people tend not to respect oncoming traffic. However, road conditions on the major highways are roughly similar to road conditions in the United States and western Europe. Highway DR-1, for example, which connects the cities of Santo Domingo and Santiago, is a modern, four-lane, divided expressway, upon which travelers should experience few problems if any. Probably the biggest challenge that an international visitor to the Dominican Republic will face if he or she chooses to rent a car is not so much dealing with automobile traffic, but rather avoiding accidentally running over the many pedestrians who cross poorly-lit streets and highways in the evening and nighttime hours, as well as avoiding crashing into the seemingly omnipresent scooters and motorbikes, whose drivers often seem to either forget about or just simply ignore the presence of heavy vehicles on the roads. Other than these relatively minor obstacles though, driving in the Dominican Republic should not be particularly difficult for any driver with at least 5-10 years of driving experience.

By bus

By boat