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Things to do

Punta Cana is much more than the hotel pool

Postcard islands, jungle cenotes, horses that swim in the sea and a colonial capital a few hours away. This is what's waiting outside the resort.

Best seller

Saona Island: the postcard Caribbean

A catamaran, a natural pool with starfish and a beach of leaning palm trees. It's the star excursion, so compare carefully what each offer includes.

Nature

A turquoise cenote at the foot of a cliff

At Scape Park, in Cap Cana, you'll find Hoyo Azul: crystal-clear water surrounded by jungle. There are also zip lines and caves to fill a whole day.

Adventure

Buggies through plantations and mud

The Punta Cana classic: dirt tracks, a stop at a cave and another at the beach. You'll come back covered in mud, and that's the point.

With animals

Swimming on horseback in the sea

A ride along the beach and through the mangroves that ends with your horse wading into the water with you on top. One of the few things you can only do here.

Leave the bubble

The first European city in the Americas

Santo Domingo's Colonial Zone is a World Heritage Site. Below you'll find every activity with what it really costs and what nobody tells you.

Things to do

19 activities with what they actually cost and what nobody tells you.

This is a reference guide, not a source of rates. Every price is an ESTIMATE and the business can change it whenever it likes; they were checked in August 2026 and vary by season, by day of the week and by group size. Before you go, check the price, the opening hours, that it's still open and exactly what's included with the venue itself. The link on each card takes you there.

Adrenaline

  • Go-karts

    ⏱️ 1-2 hours

    Karting circuits near Bávaro, run in timed heats. Good for a spare afternoon or for going with teenagers.

    📍
    from $40

    Go-karts

    ⏱️ 1-2 hours

    Karting circuits near Bávaro, run in timed heats. Good for a spare afternoon or for going with teenagers.

    📍 Open in Google Maps — get directions

  • Buggies through jungle and beach

    ⏱️ Half a day · the buggy leg is usually about 40 min

    The Punta Cana classic. You drive dirt tracks between plantations and usually stop at a cave or cenote for a swim.

    📍
    ⭐ Unfiltered Pick
    from $60

    Buggies through jungle and beach

    ⏱️ Half a day · the buggy leg is usually about 40 min

    The Punta Cana classic. You drive dirt tracks between plantations and usually stop at a cave or cenote for a swim.

    ⚠️ Heads up

    You will end up coated in red dust head to toe. Wear clothes you don't care about, bring sunglasses and something for your face. If you ride as passenger you eat more dust than the driver.

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  • Aqua karts and jet ski

    ⏱️ Half a day, usually as a combo

    Amphibious karts and jet skis, almost always sold in a package with buggies, a zip line over the water and a floating obstacle course.

    📍
    ⭐ Unfiltered Pick
    from $75

    Aqua karts and jet ski

    ⏱️ Half a day, usually as a combo

    Amphibious karts and jet skis, almost always sold in a package with buggies, a zip line over the water and a floating obstacle course.

    ⚠️ Heads up

    Turns tend to be 10 minutes per activity. Check how much actual time on each thing the package includes before you pay.

    📍 Open in Google Maps — get directions

Water parks and nature

  • El Dorado water park

    ⏱️ Full day

    The big water park in Punta Cana, and by some distance the best day out for a family with kids. It's enormous: separate slides for adults and little ones, a very long lazy river you swim down, and a lake you can kayak on. One ticket covers everything for the day with no paying per ride, and there's more than enough to fill a full day without the kids getting bored.

    📍
    ⭐ Unfiltered Pick
    from $70

    El Dorado water park

    ⏱️ Full day

    The big water park in Punta Cana, and by some distance the best day out for a family with kids. It's enormous: separate slides for adults and little ones, a very long lazy river you swim down, and a lake you can kayak on. One ticket covers everything for the day with no paying per ride, and there's more than enough to fill a full day without the kids getting bored.

    ⚠️ Heads up

    The price depends on which rate they apply to you: around $70 on the resident rate, up to about $120 as a tourist. Check their own site before you go — they keep it current.

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  • Caribbean Lake Park

    ⏱️ Full day

    The cheaper of the local water parks. A solid family day without spending El Dorado money.

    📍
    from $80

    Caribbean Lake Park

    ⏱️ Full day

    The cheaper of the local water parks. A solid family day without spending El Dorado money.

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  • Scape Park and Hoyo Azul

    ⏱️ Full day

    In Cap Cana. The jewel is Hoyo Azul, a turquoise cenote at the foot of a cliff. Also zip lines, caves and cenotes you can jump into.

    📍
    from $175

    Scape Park and Hoyo Azul

    ⏱️ Full day

    In Cap Cana. The jewel is Hoyo Azul, a turquoise cenote at the foot of a cliff. Also zip lines, caves and cenotes you can jump into.

    ⚠️ Heads up

    The priciest of the three, but Hoyo Azul doesn't look like anything else in the area.

    📍 Open in Google Maps — get directions

With animals

  • Horse ride along the beach

    ⏱️ 1-2 hours

    The short, cheap version, without the swimming part. Usually runs at sunset.

    📍
    from $40

    Horse ride along the beach

    ⏱️ 1-2 hours

    The short, cheap version, without the swimming part. Usually runs at sunset.

    📍 Open in Google Maps — get directions

  • Monkeyland — squirrel monkeys

    ⏱️ Half a day with the transfer

    A reserve up in the hills where free-roaming squirrel monkeys climb onto you and eat out of your hand. The animals aren't caged: they live on the property and come over on their own. One of the plans that works best with children.

    📍
    from $89

    Monkeyland — squirrel monkeys

    ⏱️ Half a day with the transfer

    A reserve up in the hills where free-roaming squirrel monkeys climb onto you and eat out of your hand. The animals aren't caged: they live on the property and come over on their own. One of the plans that works best with children.

    ⚠️ Heads up

    It's a good hour from Bávaro and is nearly always sold combined with a cocoa plantation or zip lines, so it eats the whole day. They'll take photos of you to sell afterwards — if you don't want them, say so on arrival.

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  • Swimming with dolphins

    ⏱️ Half a day

    Dolphin encounter and swim programmes at local centres, with different levels of contact depending on what you book: from touching them standing in shallow water to the fin-pull swim.

    📍
    from $95

    Swimming with dolphins

    ⏱️ Half a day

    Dolphin encounter and swim programmes at local centres, with different levels of contact depending on what you book: from touching them standing in shallow water to the fin-pull swim.

    ⚠️ Heads up

    These are captive dolphins, not open water. It isn't the same as seeing them wild and that's worth knowing before you pay: some people love it, some wish they hadn't. The price climbs steeply with the level of contact.

    📍 Open in Google Maps — get directions

  • Swim Horse — swimming with horses

    ⏱️ About 4 hours

    A ride along beach and mangrove that ends with you riding into the sea on horseback. One of the few things in Punta Cana that isn't like anywhere else.

    📍
    ⭐ Unfiltered Pick
    from $119

    Swim Horse — swimming with horses

    ⏱️ About 4 hours

    A ride along beach and mangrove that ends with you riding into the sea on horseback. One of the few things in Punta Cana that isn't like anywhere else.

    ⚠️ Heads up

    Fine if you've never been on a horse. Includes a guide, hotel pickup, water and lockers.

    📍 Open in Google Maps — get directions

Leaving the resort bubble

  • Higüey and the Basilica

    ⏱️ Half a day

    The main city of the province and the country's great pilgrimage site: the Basilica of Our Lady of Altagracia. Markets, local food and real prices rather than resort ones.

    📍
    from $

    Higüey and the Basilica

    ⏱️ Half a day

    The main city of the province and the country's great pilgrimage site: the Basilica of Our Lady of Altagracia. Markets, local food and real prices rather than resort ones.

    📍 Open in Google Maps — get directions

  • Santo Domingo and the Colonial Zone

    ⏱️ Full day, a long one

    The first European city in the Americas, with its Colonial Zone a UNESCO World Heritage site. If history interests you at all, it's the most significant thing to see in the country.

    📍
    from $

    Santo Domingo and the Colonial Zone

    ⏱️ Full day, a long one

    The first European city in the Americas, with its Colonial Zone a UNESCO World Heritage site. If history interests you at all, it's the most significant thing to see in the country.

    ⚠️ Heads up

    Three hours there and three back. On a one-week trip it costs you a whole day.

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  • Saona Island

    ⏱️ Full day

    The single most-sold excursion in Punta Cana: catamaran, a natural pool with starfish, and a postcard beach. It's also one of the areas that escapes the sargassum.

    📍
    ⭐ Unfiltered Pick
    from $90

    Saona Island

    ⏱️ Full day

    The single most-sold excursion in Punta Cana: catamaran, a natural pool with starfish, and a postcard beach. It's also one of the areas that escapes the sargassum.

    ⚠️ Heads up

    Which is exactly why it fills up. In high season, the earlier you leave the better.

    📍 Open in Google Maps — get directions

  • Catamaran or yacht party

    ⏱️ Half a day

    A boat trip with music, a bar and a stop to snorkel or swim in the natural pool. Options run from a shared party catamaran to a private yacht for groups.

    📍
    ⭐ Unfiltered Pick
    price not confirmed

    Catamaran or yacht party

    ⏱️ Half a day

    A boat trip with music, a bar and a stop to snorkel or swim in the natural pool. Options run from a shared party catamaran to a private yacht for groups.

    ⚠️ Heads up

    The price swings enormously between a shared catamaran and a private yacht. Ask how many people will be aboard before you book: 15 people and 60 people are not the same trip.

    📍 Open in Google Maps — get directions

  • Humpback whales in Samaná

    ⏱️ Full day, a very long one

    A boat trip across Samaná Bay to see humpback whales. It's one of the best places in the world to see them.

    📍
    price not confirmed

    Humpback whales in Samaná

    ⏱️ Full day, a very long one

    A boat trip across Samaná Bay to see humpback whales. It's one of the best places in the world to see them.

    ⚠️ Heads up

    Only from 15 January to 31 March, peaking in February. Outside those dates there are no whales to see: check the season calendar before you book anything.

    📍 Open in Google Maps — get directions

Local Punta Cana

  • How to set up the city tour

    ⏱️ An afternoon is enough

    There are two ways. The easy one: book a taxi through your own hotel and agree the route with the driver — that's the one we'd recommend, because the hotel stands behind him. The other: go under your own steam, which is cheaper and gives you more freedom, but asks you to get by in Spanish or to be handy with your phone.

    📍
    price not confirmed

    How to set up the city tour

    ⏱️ An afternoon is enough

    There are two ways. The easy one: book a taxi through your own hotel and agree the route with the driver — that's the one we'd recommend, because the hotel stands behind him. The other: go under your own steam, which is cheaper and gives you more freedom, but asks you to get by in Spanish or to be handy with your phone.

    ⚠️ Heads up

    Either way, go out with internet: roaming data or a local SIM. You'll want it for the exchange rate and for translation, and above all so you don't have to depend on anyone if something goes sideways. It's the cheapest thing you'll buy on the whole trip and the thing that buys the most peace of mind.

    📍 Open in Google Maps — get directions

  • Hotel taxi or Uber

    Uber works in Punta Cana, it's cheaper, and locals use it constantly. The hotel taxi costs more, but it's identified and the hotel stands behind the trip.

    📍
    price not confirmed

    Hotel taxi or Uber

    Uber works in Punta Cana, it's cheaper, and locals use it constantly. The hotel taxi costs more, but it's identified and the hotel stands behind the trip.

    ⚠️ Heads up

    For getting around during the day, Uber is fine. For coming back at night, or if you're travelling with kids, or if it's your first day and you haven't got your bearings yet, the hotel taxi is worth the extra.

    📍 Open in Google Maps — get directions

  • Downtown and around, on foot

    ⏱️ An afternoon

    The heart of the area, and the best part is that you do it walking. Within the same few blocks you have the cinema, Downtown Mall, Plaza San Juan, the Jumbo supermarket and the whole bar strip around Coco Bongo. One taxi drops you off and you don't need another until you head back.

    📍
    ⭐ Unfiltered Pick
    price not confirmed

    Downtown and around, on foot

    ⏱️ An afternoon

    The heart of the area, and the best part is that you do it walking. Within the same few blocks you have the cinema, Downtown Mall, Plaza San Juan, the Jumbo supermarket and the whole bar strip around Coco Bongo. One taxi drops you off and you don't need another until you head back.

    ⚠️ Heads up

    Jumbo is where local people shop: if you want to see what things really cost here — or take home rum and coffee at supermarket prices instead of hotel-shop prices — it's the stop that pays for the trip.

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  • BlueMall Punta Cana

    ⏱️ Half a day

    The largest shopping centre in Punta Cana. Good-quality clothing and jewellery, and a different feel from Downtown.

    📍
    price not confirmed

    BlueMall Punta Cana

    ⏱️ Half a day

    The largest shopping centre in Punta Cana. Good-quality clothing and jewellery, and a different feel from Downtown.

    ⚠️ Heads up

    It's out of the way, so this one does need a taxi or an Uber; you can't walk it from the hotel zone. Worth the trip if you plan to shop, and it pairs well with your departure day given how close it is to the airport.

    📍 Open in Google Maps — get directions