Insider's Dominican Republic

  • 8 Days
  • Most Inclusive

We're always ready to personalize
a tour to your unique needs

Insider's Dominican Republic Get Started

Map & Route

Depart

Santo Domingo

2 2 Nights

Santiago

1 1 Night

Cabarete

4 4 Nights
Return
map Insider's Dominican Republic

What's Included

Our itineraries reflect 40 years of experience in crafting exceptional educational tours. That means we know exactly how to make the best of your time abroad—incredible destinations, immersive activities, centrally located hotels, and smart, well-traveled tour managers who ensure your educational goals are met. Here are some of the exceptional features of this tour.

ACIS Guarantees

We have high standards, which is why we take care to include these features in every tour.

Round-Trip Flights

Leave the airlines to us.

3- or 4-Star Hotels

After a busy day, comfort is key.

Centrally Located Hotels

Save the commuting time, beat the morning crowds and keep right on exploring after dark when your hotel is in the heart of the city.

Daily Breakfast and Dinner (unless otherwise noted)

Delicious, authentic, multi-course dinners at local restaurants with meal times tailored to maximize your experience.

24-Hour Tour Manager

Part guide, part educator, part engineer, part mind-reader, part magician—ACIS Tour Managers are your travel partner.

Start Exploring

Never wait hours at the airport to share a transfer with other later groups.

Service Guarantee

We're so sure you're going to love your tour, we guarantee it!

Global Network

24/7 on the ground support whenever and wherever you need it.

All Local Transportation

Urban transportation is on us, allowing you to explore each destination with ease.

Exceptional Experiences

Our tours are designed to help you and your students be in the moment and experience everything the world has to offer.

Santo Domingo Culture Quest

Santo Domingo Culture Quest

Scavenge for answers! Your tour manager will provide a list of clues and set you free to unlock the secrets of Santo Domingo, the Americas' oldest European settlement. Practice your Spanish with locals, learn about the city's history as the capital and discover the multicultural influence of Spanish colonists, African slaves and Taíno natives.

Learn More

Scavenge for answers! Your tour manager will provide a list of clues and set you free to unlock the secrets of Santo Domingo, the Americas' oldest European settlement. Practice your Spanish with locals, learn about the city's history as the capital and discover the multicultural influence of Spanish colonists, African slaves and Taíno natives.

Chocolate Cultivation and Processing Workshop

Chocolate Cultivation and Processing Workshop

From the time of the Aztecs, and long before it was known in Europe, chocolate has been of great importance on the island of Hispaniola. Learn about the lifestyle of the local people as well as the local agricultural industry during a chocolate cultivation and processing workshop. Enjoy sampling the delicious flavors!

Learn More

From the time of the Aztecs, and long before it was known in Europe, chocolate has been of great importance on the island of Hispaniola. Learn about the lifestyle of the local people as well as the local agricultural industry during a chocolate cultivation and processing workshop. Enjoy sampling the delicious flavors!

Home Hosted Lunch with Dominican Family

Home Hosted Lunch with Dominican Family

Enjoy the unique experience of connecting to the Dominican culture through an exchange with a local family. Receive a warm welcome as you break into small groups to have a home cooked meal and conversation with local families at their residences.

Learn More

Enjoy the unique experience of connecting to the Dominican culture through an exchange with a local family. Receive a warm welcome as you break into small groups to have a home cooked meal and conversation with local families at their residences.

Food Sovereignty Service Project

Food Sovereignty Service Project

Learn about the issues of food security, sustainable farming and the challenges to healthy eating in impoverished areas through collaboration with Cabarete Sostenible on a service project in the community. You will lend a hand where the need is greatest at the time of your visit—perhaps clearing donated farmland, transplanting seedlings, picking fruits and vegetables for distribution, or fundraising.

Learn More

Learn about the issues of food security, sustainable farming and the challenges to healthy eating in impoverished areas through collaboration with Cabarete Sostenible on a service project in the community. You will lend a hand where the need is greatest at the time of your visit—perhaps clearing donated farmland, transplanting seedlings, picking fruits and vegetables for distribution, or fundraising.

Surfing Lesson on Encuentro Beach

Surfing Lesson on Encuentro Beach

Connect with an important part of the Dominican culture as you learn to ride the waves at Encuentro Beach. An experienced instructor will guide you through the techniques for getting up on your board in the crystal clear waters off the North Coast's most famous stretch of sand.

Learn More

Connect with an important part of the Dominican culture as you learn to ride the waves at Encuentro Beach. An experienced instructor will guide you through the techniques for getting up on your board in the crystal clear waters off the North Coast's most famous stretch of sand.

Dominican Dance Lesson

Dominican Dance Lesson

Learn about traditional Dominican dances during a lesson in collaboration with Brigada Verde, a local youth environmental group. Take to the floor at the community dance hall for an introduction to the basic steps of merengue, bachata and salsa dances. In no time you'll be feeling the music and moving your hips, Dominican style!

Learn More

Learn about traditional Dominican dances during a lesson in collaboration with Brigada Verde, a local youth environmental group. Take to the floor at the community dance hall for an introduction to the basic steps of merengue, bachata and salsa dances. In no time you'll be feeling the music and moving your hips, Dominican style!

Santo Domingo Tour with Guide

Santo Domingo Tour with Guide

Mercado Modelo

Mercado Modelo

Pomier Caves Anthropological Reserve

Pomier Caves Anthropological Reserve

Leon Jimenez Cultural Center

Leon Jimenez Cultural Center

Monumento a los Héroes de la Restauración

Monumento a los Héroes de la Restauración

Río Grande Abajo Community Visit

Río Grande Abajo Community Visit

Waterfalls of Damajagua

Waterfalls of Damajagua

Yoga Class

Yoga Class

Snorkeling

Snorkeling

Yasica River Boat Trip and Bonfire Dinner

Yasica River Boat Trip and Bonfire Dinner

Video

ACIS Americas

Featured in this video

Itinerary

This itinerary is the starting point for your tour, but it’s not set in stone. If there are days you would like to change, or specific places you’d like to go, we can work with you to create a personalized program that fits the needs of you and your students.

Day 1: Santo Domingo

Depart from the USA and arrive in the Dominican Republic. Check into your hotel in the historic and picturesque Colonial Zone of Santo Domingo and meet your ACIS Tour Manager.

Day 2: Santo Domingo

This morning take a Chu-Chu colonial historical train tour through the Colonial Zone, a UNESCO World Cultural Site and the historic central area of Santo Domingo. Enjoy facts and anecdotes as you see the Cathedral of Santa Maria la Menor, thought to be the first cathedral of the Americas, the Ozama Fortress overlooking the river, the Franciscan Monastery ruins and other historic sites. Then visit the Mercado Modelo public market. Inside this bustling Caribbean bazaar, in addition to fresh fruits and vegetables, you'll find handicrafts, paintings, jewelry, clothing, traditional prepared foods and even botánicos peddling secret potions and health remedies. In the afternoon, apply what you've learned about Santo Domingo today during a fun, team-based Culture Quest challenge.

Day 3: Santiago

A morning bus ride takes you to San Cristobal. You'll study petroglyphs and pictographs and learn about the subterranean ecosystem at the Pomier Caves Anthropological Reserve, the single most important pre-Columbian site in the Caribbean. Journey on to Santiago. Upon arrival visit the Leon Jimenez Cultural Center, the best of the nation's five national museums under one roof. Tonight see the spectacularly illuminated Monumento a los Héroes de la Restauración on a hilltop park in the center of the city.

Day 4: Cabarete

Begin this morning in Altamira engaging in a Global Exchange with the Río Grande Abajo community. Río Grande Abajo is a small, tight-knit, rural community in the foothills of the northern mountain range. You'll be welcomed by a group of locals brought together through Brigada Verde, a Peace Corps-sponsored environmental youth group. A personalized walking tour of their neighborhood will include an introduction to cacao through a chocolate cultivation and processing workshop. You'll learn how to make traditional Dominican hot chocolate and sample a taste. Then you'll have the chance to practice your Spanish as you're invited in small groups into the homes of local Dominican families for lunch. After lunch, continue to the Damajagua Waterfalls and prepare to get wet: You're about to swim, climb and cascade down falls, ending in the sparkling-clean, aqua-blue pools below! Arrive in Cabarete this evening for a night's rest in your beachside hotel.

Day 5: Cabarete

This morning enjoy views of Cabarete Bay as you free your mind and body and set an intention for the day during a yoga session. Then collaborate on a food sovereignty community service project with Cabarete Sostenible. Responding to a food security crisis at the beginning of 2020 with the COVID-19 pandemic, Cabarete Sostenible has evolved from a food distribution program into a community pillar, leading education efforts in the areas of responsible and sustainable farming and healthy eating. During this workshop, become intimate with the reality of hunger in impoverished areas and come to understand both the organization's successes and continued challenges. You will spend some time lending a hand where needed—perhaps clearing donated farmland, transplanting seedlings, picking fruits and vegetables for distribution, or fundraising. After free time to get lunch, discover the local marine life first-hand as you enjoy snorkeling with colorful tropical fish around the reefs in Sosua Bay, said to be some of the best snorkeling in the world.

Day 6: Cabarete

Begin the morning with a surfing lesson on Cabarete's iconic Encuentro Beach, an idyllic favorite where both locals and visitors of all surfing abilities come together to enjoy the azure waves. You'll start off dry, on land, learning how to "pop up" and read the waves. Then once comfortable, you'll head off into the water—our goal is that everybody stands up! After time for lunch, feel the groove as you collaborate with Brigada Verde, a local youth environmental group, for a dance lesson in traditional Dominican dances.

Day 7: Cabarete

Enjoy free time this morning to explore more of Cabarete's cultural treasures at your own pace, play in the waves at the beach or perhaps pick up some souvenirs at the many local gift and surf shops. Tonight cap off the tour in style as you sit back, relax and explore the shoreline during a leisurely boat ride down the Yasica River that concludes with a bonfire dinner on the beach.

Day 8: Departure

Depart for the USA.

Optional Extras

Ultimate-Plus Protection Plan

Most Enhanced health coverage, program interruption, baggage delay/loss and travel delay protection while on tour. Plus, enhanced medical/job loss cancellation refund policy

Rate $400

Add to Tour

Ultimate Protection Plan

Enhanced health coverage, program interruption, baggage delay/loss and travel delay protection while on tour. Plus, enhanced medical/job loss cancellation refund policy

Rate $280

Add to Tour

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