🇩🇴Dominican Republic

The E-Ticket is free. Say that again.

Every passenger flying into the Dominican Republic must file an electronic entry and exit form before check-in. It costs nothing. The only address is eticket.migracion.gob.do.

• Fraudulent sites charge between USD 36 and USD 90 for filling in the identical free government form. They copy the colours and the fonts, they buy search advertising, and they rank above the real thing. Migración has publicly warned about them.
• The rule is simple: if the address does not end in .gob.do, it is not the government. Anything ending .com, .net or .org offering to process your E-Ticket is a middleman.
• File it once for the whole trip. The same submission covers entry and exit, and you can complete it as soon as you have flight details, up to 7 days ahead for the arrival leg.
• You get a QR code. Save it offline and screenshot it. Airline staff ask for it at check-in and immigration scans it on arrival.

What you get at the desk

• 30 days is the standard tourist admission for visa-free nationalities, and it is granted on arrival with no application.
• The USD 10 tourist card is already in your airfare if you fly in. Arriving by land or sea, you buy one on the spot. The USD 20 departure tax is likewise bundled into the ticket.
• Passports should have 6 months' validity. A temporary measure running to 31 December 2026 lets citizens of the EU, UK, Canada, the USA, Brazil, Chile, Argentina, Colombia and Ecuador enter on a passport merely valid for the length of the stay.
• You will be fingerprinted and photographed on entry. This is routine.
• Bring evidence of onward travel. Entry can be refused without it, and airlines check before boarding.

Where your nationality lands

• The exemption is generous and widely missed. Anyone, of any nationality, holding a valid visa or residence permit from the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, Ireland, Cyprus or a Schengen country may enter the Dominican Republic as a tourist for up to 30 days without a Dominican visa. If you hold a US or Schengen visa, you very probably do not need to apply for anything.

Overstaying is a bill, not a crime

This is unusual and worth understanding, because it is calmer than most countries.

• There is no daily fine accruing in the background, no office to report to and no arrest risk for a tourist who stays past 30 days.
• You settle it when you leave, on a published sliding scale tied to how long you actually stayed. It starts at about RD$ 3,500 for 30 to 90 days and climbs steeply from there.
• It is payable at the airport by card on departure, or in advance at a Banco Reservas branch.
• Extensions up to 120 days can be arranged through Migración for a fee if you would rather do it properly.

• Departure luggage is screened for narcotics at Punta Cana and Las Americas, sometimes twice, and bags are opened in front of you. Never carry anything for anybody.
• The allowance is a carton of cigarettes and a couple of litres of spirits per adult, plus a value cap on other goods.
• Cash equivalent to USD 10,000 or more must be declared on entry and exit.
• Drones need permission from the aviation authority and are otherwise held at customs.
• Coral, shells and amber of archaeological origin are restricted, though ordinary amber and larimar jewellery travels freely with a receipt.
• An electronic entry form covers customs and immigration together and is filled in before you fly.

The rule that catches people

Private hospitals here expect payment, and the FCDO warns that visitors who cannot settle a hospital bill may be prevented from leaving the country.

• Travel insurance with medical cover and repatriation is not optional. Check the ceiling, and check that it covers any watersports or motorcycling you plan.
• Private hospitals are good and expensive; the public system is stretched and not a realistic option for a visitor.
• Expect to pay up front or to have your insurer guarantee payment directly. Carry your policy number and the insurer's 24-hour line somewhere you can reach without data.
• Punta Cana, Santo Domingo and Santiago have the best facilities. Serious cases from elsewhere are moved to one of those.

Water and food

• Tap water is not drinkable anywhere in the country. This is unambiguous.
• Drink bottled or filtered water, and use it for brushing your teeth if your stomach is sensitive.
• Ice in resorts and established restaurants is made from purified water and is generally fine. Roadside ice is a gamble.
• Street food is part of the experience, and the usual rules apply: busy stalls, hot food, high turnover.

Mosquitoes

• Dengue is the main risk and is present year round, worse in the wet season. There is no specific treatment, and repeat infections are more dangerous than first ones.
• Oropouche virus has been spreading in the region and is now a recognised risk here.
• Malaria risk is low but not zero, concentrated in rural areas near the Haitian border. Check current advice if you are going there.
• Use repellent with DEET, day and night. The mosquito that carries dengue bites in daylight, so an evening-only routine misses it.
• Air conditioning and screens help more than anything else.

The rest

• No vaccinations are required for entry, but check routine cover and hepatitis A and typhoid with a travel clinic 8 weeks out.
• The sun is stronger than it feels in the sea breeze. High-factor sunscreen and shade in the middle of the day.
• Pharmacies are good, widespread and cheap, and many drugs that need a prescription elsewhere are sold over the counter. Bring your own regular medication with a copy of the prescription.
• Heat and dehydration are the most common problems visitors actually have. Drink far more water than you think you need.

The all-inclusive question

Punta Cana and Bávaro are built almost entirely around all-inclusive resorts, and for a beach week the maths usually favours them.

• Check whether the quoted rate already includes the 18 percent ITBIS and the 10 percent service charge. Some booking sites show the bare rate and add 28 percent at the end.
• All-inclusive does not mean everything. Premium spirits, à la carte restaurants, spa treatments, motorised watersports and excursions are usually extra.
• Tips are still expected even where the brochure says they are not needed. Cash in small notes.
• The resort strip is not the country. Punta Cana is an enclave, and you will see very little of the Dominican Republic without deliberately leaving it.

Other options, and where

• Santo Domingo's Zona Colonial has the best independent hotels in the country, in genuinely historic buildings, at a fraction of resort prices.
• Cabarete and Las Terrenas run on smaller guesthouses and apartments, and suit longer, slower stays.
• Jarabacoa and Constanza, up in the mountains, are cool, green and almost entirely domestic tourism. Worth a couple of nights for the contrast.
• Samaná is where whale watching happens between January and March, and accommodation books out well ahead for it.

Practical

• Air conditioning and a reliable generator are the two things worth checking. Power cuts are frequent, and a hotel without an inverter or generator means no fan at 03:00.
• Hot water is not universal in cheaper places, which matters less than you would think in this climate.
• Short-term rentals are widespread and legal, and Airbnb is well established in Santo Domingo, Cabarete and Las Terrenas.
• Hurricane season runs June to November. Book refundable rates in September and October, the peak months, and check the cancellation terms rather than assuming.

Which network

• A Claro prepaid SIM costs about RD$ 150. Altice frequently gives the SIM away and sells short data bundles from around RD$ 50.
• Altice's tourist package is around RD$ 550 for roughly 15 GB with calls and texts, which is the straightforward option for a one or two week stay.
• Bring your passport, and expect to be photographed. Prepaid SIMs must be registered to a named person here. Staff take a copy of the passport and usually a photo of you. It takes a few minutes and it is not optional.
• Kiosks at Punta Cana and Las Américas airports sell and activate on the spot, which is the least painful route.

Coverage and the resort trap

• Coverage is good along the south coast, in Santo Domingo, Santiago and the resort corridors, and 4G is the norm with 5G in the cities.
• It thins out fast in the mountains and the far southwest. The Cordillera Central, Pedernales and parts of the Samaná interior have real gaps.
• Resort wifi is often poor and sometimes charged. A local SIM is usually better than paying the hotel, and much better than roaming.
• An eSIM from a travel provider such as Saily works and skips the registration desk entirely, at a higher price per gigabyte. For a week in an all-inclusive that is a fair trade; for a longer or more mobile trip, buy local.

Sockets in the Dominican Republic are Type A, B and C at 120 V, 60 Hz - the American standard, with the odd two-round-pin outlet in tourist accommodation.

• American and Canadian plugs fit straight in. European, British and Australian ones need an adapter.
• 120 V is the constraint. A 230 V-only European appliance will not run properly, and no plug adapter changes that.
• Unearthed two-slot sockets are common outside newer hotels.
• Resorts often fit European two-pin sockets alongside American ones for their guests, so a room can have both.
• Power cuts are routine away from the resort corridors, and most hotels run generators that take a moment to pick up.

Language

• Spanish is the language, and outside the resorts very little English is spoken. In Punta Cana hotels you will be fine; in a Santo Domingo colmado or a guagua you will not.
• Dominican Spanish is fast and drops consonants. Final S disappears, so "¿cómo está?" becomes something closer to "¿cómo etá?". Even confident Spanish speakers need a few days.
• A translation app with offline Spanish downloaded is worth ten minutes of preparation.

Power

• Electricity is 120 V, 60 Hz, with US-style flat two-pin and three-pin plugs. European and UK appliances need an adapter, and anything not dual-voltage needs a converter.
• Power cuts are frequent enough to have a name: apagones. They can last minutes or hours.
• Most decent hotels and businesses run an inverter or a generator. This is worth checking when you book, because it is the difference between a brief flicker and a night without air conditioning.
• Keep a power bank charged, and charge devices whenever the power is on rather than when you need it.

Everyday rhythm

• Colmados are the corner shops that hold the country together, selling everything in whatever quantity you want, often with plastic chairs outside and music playing.
• Music is loud and public and constant. Merengue, bachata and dembow, at volumes that visitors sometimes find startling. It is not aimed at you and complaining will get you nowhere.
• Cash rules the informal economy. Colmados, guaguas, motoconchos and street vendors want pesos.
• Tipping the supermarket bagger is a small local custom. They are often unpaid and work for tips. RD$ 20 to RD$ 50 is normal.
• Dress modestly away from the beach. Swimwear is for the beach and the pool, not the town, and Dominicans dress smartly.
• Baseball, not football, is the national sport. The winter league runs November to January and is a genuinely good night out.
• The pace is unhurried. "Ahora" can mean now, later, or at some point. Build slack into plans and do not schedule tightly.

Read the bottom of the bill

A Dominican restaurant bill has three numbers, and the first one is the smallest.

• That is 28 percent on top of the menu price, and it is not a scam. It is how the law works, and the menu price is quoted before both.
• The 10 percent propina legal frequently does not reach the person who served you. It goes to the establishment and is distributed at its discretion.
• So tip on top, in cash, if the service was good. Five to 10 percent handed directly to the server is the local practice among those who know how the system works.
• In all-inclusive resorts, USD 1 to USD 5 in cash for bar staff, housekeeping and porters is normal and genuinely appreciated. Small bills are worth bringing for exactly this.

Pesos and dollars

• The peso (RD$) is the currency, and you should use it.
• US dollars are accepted in resorts and tourist areas at a rate designed to profit the seller. You lose money every time you pay in dollars.
• Change money at banks or established exchange houses, not at the airport and never with someone on the street.
• ATMs are widespread and dispense pesos. Use machines inside bank branches during opening hours rather than standalone ones on the street, which is both a fraud and a safety point.
• Tell your bank you are travelling. Card blocks are common here because the country is flagged for fraud by most issuers.

Cards, carefully

• Card cloning and card fraud are a genuine problem and the FCDO warns about them specifically.
• Never let your card out of your sight. Ask for the terminal to be brought to you.
• Check statements while you are still travelling, not after you get home.
• Carry some cash. Smaller restaurants, guaguas, colmados and motoconchos are cash only, and card acceptance drops away sharply outside the tourist strip.
• Keep small denominations. Breaking a RD$ 2,000 note in a small shop is often impossible.

Between cities

• Caribe Tours and Metro run proper long-distance coaches, air conditioned, cheap and reliable. Santo Domingo to Puerto Plata is a few hundred pesos and about 4 hours.
• Book ahead for weekends and holidays, when Dominicans travel in force.
• Domestic flights barely exist and are not worth the cost for a country this size. The coach is the sensible option.

Within cities

• Santo Domingo has a metro, two lines, clean, cheap and useful for the modern city though not for the Zona Colonial.
• Guaguas are the backbone of local transport. They stop anywhere, cost very little, and leave when full. There is no timetable and no route map you can rely on; ask, and someone will tell you.
• Carros públicos are shared cars running fixed routes, cramming in far more people than seems possible.
• Motoconchos are the fastest way across a town and the most dangerous. No helmets are offered. If you use one, accept that you are taking a real risk.

Driving

• Road deaths here are among the highest in the Americas, and motorcycles account for most of them.
• Assume nothing is signalled. Overtaking on blind bends, vehicles without lights at night and livestock on the road are all normal.
• Do not drive at night outside the cities. Lighting is poor to absent and the hazards are worse.
• Police checkpoints are routine. Have your licence and rental papers, be polite, and note that requests for informal payments do happen.
• Fuel is sold by the gallon and attendants pump it for you. A small tip is customary.

Apps

• Uber works in Santo Domingo, Santiago and to a degree in Punta Cana. It is cheaper and less stressful than negotiating a taxi.
• Indrive is widely used and lets you propose your own fare.
• Google Maps is reliable for driving and useless for guaguas.
• WhatsApp is how the whole country communicates, including hotels, drivers and tour operators. Have it working before you arrive.

Tolled highways that are worth the money, and mopeds coming from every direction.

• The Autopista del Coral and the Santo Domingo-Santiago highway are tolled and are far safer than the parallel local roads.
• Motoconchos - moped taxis - ride against the traffic, at night without lights, and are the most common cause of accidents involving visitors.
• The alcohol limit is 0.05 %.
• Do not drive at night between towns. Unlit vehicles and animals on unlit roads make it the standard local advice.
• Fuel is served by attendants and cash is useful outside the cities.
• Toll payment is by cash or the Paso Rapido tag, which most hire cars carry.

The pattern that repeats

Theft from motorcycles is the characteristic crime here.

• Riders snatch bags and phones from pedestrians as they pass, and reach through open car windows at traffic lights.
• Walk with your bag on the side away from the road. Keep the phone away entirely when you are near traffic.
• Keep car windows up and doors locked in city traffic, particularly at junctions.
• Armed muggings do happen in daylight, including in residential districts. If it happens, hand everything over without hesitation.

Where and when

• Resort zones in Punta Cana and Bávaro are heavily patrolled and see very little of this. The tourist police, CESTUR (still widely called Politur), exist specifically for visitors.
• Santo Domingo's Zona Colonial is fine by day and warrants ordinary caution after dark. Some outer barrios should be avoided entirely.
• Do not walk on unlit beaches at night. This is where a disproportionate share of incidents against visitors occur.
• Avoid remote areas after dark, and do not display jewellery, cameras or an expensive phone.

Things worth stating plainly

• The FCDO records reports of sexual assault against foreign visitors, in some cases involving hotel staff or other guests. Do not walk alone at night, be careful about drinks left unattended, and be wary of invitations from strangers.
• Drug offences carry severe prison sentences. Do not carry anything for anyone, and never leave your bag unattended at the airport.
• Excursion operators are not regulated to European or North American standards. Check for lifejackets and functioning equipment yourself, and walk away if it looks wrong.

Scams

• The fake E-Ticket sites are the big one, charging up to USD 90 for a free government form.
• Card cloning at restaurants and standalone ATMs.
• The "closed hotel" taxi routine, where a driver claims your accommodation has shut down and takes you to a place paying commission. Call your hotel.
• Short-changing on dollar transactions, particularly with unfamiliar peso denominations. Count it.
• Timeshare and excursion touts on the resort beaches, who are persistent rather than dangerous. A firm no works.

Weather and ground

• Hurricane season runs June to November, peaking September and October. Follow the local forecast, and follow hotel instructions if a storm is coming.
• The country sits on an active fault line. Earthquakes are possible and a coastal tsunami risk exists. Know your hotel's assembly point.
• Rip currents kill swimmers on the north and east coasts. Many beaches have no lifeguard and no flags. If you are caught in one, swim parallel to the shore rather than against it.

The numbers

• The 911 system is real and works well in Santo Domingo, Santiago, Punta Cana and the main population centres, with English-speaking operators often available.
• Coverage is not national. In remote areas it may not reach you, which is why the tourist police number matters.
• CESTUR, still widely called Politur, is the force dedicated to visitors. They are present in every resort area and are the right first call for a theft, a lost passport or a problem with an operator.
• Save both numbers to your phone before you need them, not after.

Practicalities

• Report any theft to the police and get the written report. No insurer will pay a claim without it, and getting it afterwards from another country is impossible.
• Photograph your passport and your E-Ticket QR code, and keep copies somewhere separate.
• If you lose your passport, report it to CESTUR, then contact your embassy in Santo Domingo. Nearly all embassies are there rather than in the resort areas, which means a journey.
• Know the name and district of where you are staying, in Spanish. Resort names are not always enough for an emergency dispatcher.

Weather emergencies

• Hurricane warnings are broadcast on local radio and television, and hotels will brief you.
• COE, the Centro de Operaciones de Emergencias, is the national body that issues alerts and evacuation instructions. Follow them rather than your own judgement about the sea.
• If a storm is forecast, do not plan to fly out at the last moment. Airports close, and the last flights fill days ahead.

Before anything goes wrong

• Save your insurer's 24-hour emergency line offline.
• Tell someone at home your itinerary, particularly if you are travelling outside the resort areas.
• Keep enough cash to get yourself somewhere safe, because a card is no use during a power cut.