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What to expect: Days are full and often starting early and continuing until evening. Days can have many hours in touring vans or long periods of standing and/or walking. Walking can be difficult at times: over uneven terrain, up hills, and stairs (often without handrails). Most lodgings will be in buildings of two floors or less and guests will be expected to carry their own luggage.
Appropriate for: Travelers who are physically fit and comfortable with long days of travel and walking.
First day starts when you board the shuttle from the airport to the hotel. The tour ends at the hotel checkout of the last day.
Small groups with one to two guides at a time.
The elevation commonly associated with possible onset of altitude sickness begins at approximately 8,000 ft and there are no parts of the tour that go to that elevation or above.
Most diets can be accommodated throughout the tour. Most locations where nights are spent have many restaurant styles to choose from. For the nights spent in the Eco Lodge specific diets can be accommodated as long as there is advanced notice of at least 5 days given. Natural events and holidays can affect the operating hours of restaurants and supermarkets and thereby limit the foods available. Strict diets requiring strict separation of foods and special food handling can be problematic and, in those cases, it is suggested that the guests shop for and prepare their own meals. There will be no refunds for meals that are included and unable to accommodate specific diets.
All accommodations are carefully selected for location, charm, cleanliness, and service. Lodging varies based on location with the goal of three-star accommodations. No lodgings will have potable drinking water from the faucets. Most lodgings will have air condition, however it is possible that the air conditioning may not be working, there will be no partial or whole refunds given in situations where air conditioning is not provided. There are areas of the Dominican Republic where electricity outages are extremely common and sometimes daily. There are also often situations where running water is not available. We seek to provide excellent accommodations that have Wi-Fi available, however due to electricity fluctuations and lack of service being provided, sometimes Wi-Fi simply is not available.
The Dominican Republic has areas with upgraded infrastructure including some well-maintained highways. There are many areas where the roads are not as well maintained, and detours are common. There are also many natural conditions that can affect routing, such as flooding, landslides, earthquakes, downed trees, and other obstacles to accessibility. Demonstrations can be somewhat common in parts of the Dominican Republic which can cause delays and sometimes complete detours.
The tour has three different days that utilize small watercraft for intimate tours in the ocean. Sea conditions can change quickly and can be inhospitable to boats even on sunny days with clear skies. Therefore, for all water excursions there are “uncooperative sea conditions” alternate itineraries. Go BIG has a network of friends and suppliers in the industry throughout the country and experience navigating the locations visited on the tour. The majority of detours in the country are usually simply delays and do not require rerouting.
We pride ourselves on trying to maximize the comfort for travelers. When possible, we get far larger vans than required to allow more space for spreading out. The boats used to access the remote beaches of Las Galeras and for the Samana Bay non-whale watching boat excursions are smaller open boats and they do not provide protection from the elements including the sun and rain. Guests should dress appropriately and be prepared for potential weather changes.