The Rough Guide to The Dominican Republic [Paperback]

Sean Harvey (Author)

Book Description

Series: Rough Guide Travel Guides | Publication Date: December 26, 2002

This is a comprehensive guide to the diverse Caribbean destination of the Dominican Republic. It includes a full-colour section introducing the highights of the Dominican Republic, as well as in-depth coverage of all the attractions, from colonial Santo Domingo to the sandy playgrounds that line the coasts. There are also discerning reviews of places to stay and eat, from beachside shacks to glitzy all-inclusive resorts. The author provides expert advice on ecotourism and adventure opportunities such as whale watching on the Samana Peninsula and hiking in the Cordillera Central. Insightful background on Dominican history, music, sport and wildlife is provided.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Sean Harvey first visited the island of Hispaniola in 1990, during which he taught English in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, travelled extensively throughout the Dominican Republic and cultivated a lifelong addiction to the island and its people.

Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.

WHEN TO GO There are two distinct tourist high seasons in the Dominican Republic, the summer months of July and August, when travellers from the northern hemisphere have some time off to get away for a couple of weeks, and the winter season from December through late February, when the Dominican climate is at its optimum, having cooled down just a bit from summertime. You’ll therefore save a bit of money – and have an easier time booking a hotel room on the spot – if you arrive during the spring or the fall, which is just fine, as the temperature doesn’t really vary all that much from season to season. In the Cordillera Central mountains, you can expect temperatures to be about four degrees cooler on average than in the valleys and along the coast – making those spots prime targets for wealthy Dominicans looking to escape the summer heat. Keep in mind also that the Dominican Republic is right in the centre of the Caribbean hurricane belt, and gets hit with a major one every decade or so; the most recent was 1998’s Hurricane Georges, which annihilated much of the year’s harvest and wiped some small villages completely off the map. August and September is prime hurricane season, though smaller ones can occur in the months before and after those, so you may want to play it safe and schedule your trip accordingly. If you are on the island when a hurricane is about to strike, your best bet is to head immediately for the closest high-end tourist hotel, which should have a protected shelter for its guests. Definitely do not wander around outside, and don’t be fooled by a brief respite of calm – you may well be in the eye of the hurricane, which means the destruction will start up again soon.

Product Details

• Paperback: 400 pages
• Publisher: Rough Guides; 2nd edition (December 26, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1858289122
• ISBN-13: 978-1858289120
• Product Dimensions: 7.8 x 5.1 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12.8 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,685,661 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #57 in Books > Travel > Caribbean > Dominican Republic

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars very useful guide, June 8, 2004

By 

J. Jacobs - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: The Rough Guide to The Dominican Republic (Paperback)

I used this guide to travel in Santo Domingo, Costanza and Samana and found it to be very useful in trip planning. First of all, it helped me to identify Samana and Constanza as great places to visit without the heavy tourism. It was also packed with information on practically every town we passed on the way and offered good hotel and restaurant recommendations. My only criticism is that it seemed the author probably traveled by car and the information on public transportation wasn't quite as thorough as in Lonely Planet guides. However, the sheer volume of other information and the easy to use layout made up for that. Overall, a very solid guide for both pre-trip planning and travel within the DR.

14 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Leave the tour guides behind, July 27, 2003

By A Customer

This review is from: The Rough Guide to The Dominican Republic (Paperback)

If you're going to the DR and are going anywhere other than the resorts, you won't regret your time spent reading this book. If you are going to the resorts, you won't be experiencing the DR anyway so don't worry about it.
Here's what you get:
1- lots of detail
2- no ads or cheap plugs
3- first hand account
Enjoy !!

12 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Interesting and unnecessarily negative guide, October 19, 2004

By 

L Rodriguez (New York City) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Rough Guide to The Dominican Republic (Paperback)

I recently traveled to the Dominican Republic and purchased this guide for my trip based on the online reviews.

Although the book is informative and does offer a good selection of transportation and hotel suggestions, it is unnecessarily and generously sprinkled with negative personal opinions from the author.

On my trip, I had the pleasure of traveling throughout the island, from West to East. I was overwhelmed with the vastness and variety the country had to offer. However while reading the guide, it was difficult to find a single chapter where the author did not go out of the way to offer some additional caustic comment on the area being described.

I was extremely distracted by the constant negativity that it overshadowed the content. After struggling to discern relevant facts from the author's personal opinions, I decided to put the guide down altogether and let the trip become a unique unbiased experience. I would not recommend this particular guide. Perhaps an updated guide or one from a different publisher altogether might be more appropriate.

Edit: I came back to re-read this review after revisiting the book and taking a few additional trips to DR. I now feel just as strongly about the views in this perhaps dated guide as when I did when I first wrote it.