Punta Rucia - Off the Beaten Path in the Dominican Republic

Punta Rucia is nothing like your typical Dominican Republic beach destination, chock full of all-inclusive resorts, where the US dollar is accepted, beach vendors are like flies, and all the workers speak perfect English in their Hawaiian print shirts. Punta Rucia is what the all inclusives try to imitate, but can never artificially cultivate - traditional, tranquil, untouched, real.

In May, my dad, Robb (a 71 year-old kid at heart, from the Ozarks of Missouri) came for a visit aboard our sailboat, Wanderlust, which had been moored for some time in Puerta Plata's main harbor town of Luperon. Although Luperon is quiet and calm, I wouldn't call it beautiful. We wanted to show my dad how gorgeous the DR really was. It was the opportunity to lift sails, and head west to check out Punta Rucia, the undiscovered, sleepy, sandy beach town we'd been hearing stories about.

Just a 4 hour sail from the main harbor of Luperon, Punta Rucia is a quaint beach village with the tropical white sand and blue water reminiscent of the remote Bahamas. The white sand on the beaches sifted through our fingers like dust, and the water gently rippled in the calm bay. For hours each day, without a single other tourist in sight, we lounged like lizards in the sun in the white sand, walking from end to end, over and over, having slow conversation, picking up sea shells and after inspection, skipping them into the flat shallows. No were no jet skis, no charter boats, no hoards of snorkelers... no nothing, except the sea, and us.

With the beach to ourselves, we were left with plenty of privacy to act like happy-go-lucky five year-olds... Face painting and leaf hats, anyone? ;)

Often, the three of us jumped right off our boat, anchored in the bay, and were immersed in a world exceedingly difficult to find these days. The reefs here are still untouched by the overconsumption in other cities, like Punta Cana, with healthy coral and flourishing colorful fish. Lobsters peeked out to see what we were up to, and manta rays elegantly slid beside us. If the sand floor, palm roofed beach restaurants weren't calling our names and tempting us with delectable smells, we may have snorkeled all day.

We followed our noses in the late mornings, when the town beach bars and snack shacks open their shutters and set out tables and chairs, serving traditional Dominican fare such as whole fried snapper, habichuela, and always ice-cold beer.

After lunch, when the day gets hottest, a shady beach palapa was an oasis. There was no better place to be than at the beach bar, friends all around, soft tropical tunes playing in the background, cold Presidente in hand, playing dominoes, Dominican style... which as far as we can tell, just means slamming the domino as hard as you can on the table with a very serious face!

As the sun started to set, we dined al fresco on the beach at the French cafe, drinking wine with our toes in the sand. Local villagers make their way home from their day of fishing, school, or work. They smiled, sometimes stopping to say hello, ask where we're from and if we're enjoying their island. Very little English is spoken here, and we loved having the chance to practice our Spanish.

After a couple of glorious days away from it all in Punta Rucia, we decided it was most definitely our favorite destination in all of the Dominican Republic... the REAL Dominican Republic, a world away from the all inclusive resorts and tourist traps. Here, friendly people live slowly, happily, and traditionally Dominican. Quinn's dad proclaimed Punta Rucia to be one of the most pristine and untouched travel locations he'd ever visited... Quite an accreditation!

We would have stayed for weeks, but sadly it was time to head back to Luperon and say goodbye to our fourth crewmember. We pulled up the anchor, waved adios to the lovely beaches in Punta Rucia, and set sail east. Hasta el proximo, Punta Rucia!

Up next, Ben, Quinn and Ruca set sail to Samana, Dominican Republic for a week of the high life at Puerto Bahia Marina.

Thanks for reading,

Ben, Quinn and Ruca

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