Everyday practical information for Dominican Republic

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.