Cabarete Beach, Dominican Republic |
Cabarete is a small, low-key and laid-back Caribbean
beach village located just 20 minutes away from the Puerto
Plata airport on the north shore of the Dominican Republic.
Its an ideal tropical paradise vacation spot, especially
for the young traveler seeking fun, new friends and sporting
adventure. With its charming, cool/hip ambience and combination
of relaxed and adventurous lifestyles, most visitors can barely
resist the spontaneous temptation to extend their stay and
just hang around the place for awhile longer.
The village is spread out across the center
of a gorgeous, seemingly endless, semi-circular beach of sun-soaked,
fine golden sand. Just behind this, and limiting its size,
lies a large tranquil lagoon, backed up by richly verdant
hills overflowing with luxurious tropical vegetation.
The perfect blending of the surrounding physical
elements of nature the location of the offshore reef
at the entrance of the bay, the direction from which the tradewinds
usually blow, and the low-lying hills
Surfing at Encuentro in Cabarete, Dominican Republic |
behind the village which cause a unique thermal
effect form not only a beautiful layout. They also
create an unusual synthesis of really outstanding wind and
wave conditions. This makes Cabarete bay an exceptional location
for the high energy and exciting water-sports of kiteboarding
and windsurfing, or for regular surfing on the Encuentro beach
located just around the corner from it.
Its also the perfect place for just lounging
back and crashing to get that perfect tan when youre
not out playing in, or gliding over, the soothing, warm Caribbean
water, or participating in some other fun adventure sport,
such as mountain-biking, scuba-diving, wakeboarding, cave
exploring or canyoning.
Another alternative to pass the time pleasantly
is chilling out in your swimwear while sipping a cool Rum
Punch or sampling the great local Presidente beer at one of
Cabaretes several informal beach-bars. Time goes by
quickly while casually mingling with the locals or other interesting
international travelers from every corner of the globe.
The beachfront also hosts several casual restaurants
which serve diverse menus of tasty dishes of both local and
international cuisine, listed at very reasonable prices. Diners
can choose from quite a wide selection, including fresh delicious
seafood such as dorado, lobster or shrimp, or - for a change
of pace - can opt for sampling the Dominican specialty of
Creole chicken with rice and beans.
Many youthful and young-at-heart vacationers
play hard at night in Cabarete too, partying late until the
wee hours. Most beach bars are really cool places to just
hang around in and put down a few Cuba Libras before hitting
the sack (the locally brewed rums are of quite high quality).
Party in Cabarete, Dominican Republic |
To liven things up a bit, several of the most
popular bars on the beach regularly host Live local bands
- including some reputable groups from the capital who have
made their own recordings. These play Rock-favorites like
Jimi Hendrix or Santana, the occasional Blues or Jazz, or
groovin Reggae tunes to sway along with.
For those with more energy who want to swing
the night away to the dynamic sounds of more Latino-flavored
and local music, its never possible to ever forget while
youre here that this is the land of the meringue. The
disco dance floor is always jam-packed, especially just after
midnight, with both locals and visitors showing off their
stuff, or just learning how to master the steps of both meringue
and the occasional bachata or salsa, with some modern techno-music
thrown in for variety.
Visit ActiveCabarete.com
for more info about Cabarete.
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