Walbeobachtung 2023 in Punta Cana nach Samana Bay + Bacardi Island von Hotels.

We took the whale watching and Bacardi Island day trip. The whale watching and the island are incredible experiences and we’d do it again, BUT the transportation with this group was poorly executed and cancelled our evening plans. We were picked up at 7:00am and dropped off at 9:30pm. My husband and I are accustomed to having no bathrooms while traveling in Haiti, so we were prepared, but this is a long day with little resources in the afternoon. Bring snacks, drinking water, sunscreen, extra towels and cash to be ready for unexpected transportation delays. During the trip you’ll have access to bathrooms and stores on the way to the bay, a ham (?) and cheese sandwich with coffee for 10 minutes before the 3 hour bus ride to the bay. Lunch at the bay was delicious Dominican food: rice and beans, salad, pork, chicken, fish, fruit and rum and Coke. Large Presidente is $5 US. The 30+ minute boat ride into the bay is not for faint of stomach. Some folks got sea sick. Sitting in the back of the boat is best for motion sickness and staying dry from incoming sea water. There are market vendors and a bar on the island. On our trip the bus company changed the pickup schedule and consequently the quality of our experience. We stayed on the island (paradise) for an additional 3 hours. We waited at the dock for an hour while the guide kept calling for updates. The bathrooms were closed, and island staff left before us. We weren’t mad because we were in paradise, but everyone there was without access to food or bathrooms during that delay. After the boat taxi back to land our guide went home (understandably) and our entire bus group spent 30+ minutes finding the return transport to Punta Cana. There was no bathroom stop, food or water for the next 3 hours back to the hotel.

The tour guides put us on the wrong excursion after looking at our tickets. Our 6 hr day turned into 15! Yes, we saw whales but instead of 3 hours on a beach and a nice lunch we were rushed off the beach after an hour to a mediocre lunch. Then put on a ‘safari vehicle’ for a ROUGH where it was set up to ride horses to a waterfall. I’m not a fan of horses and am recovering have bad knees. I got off the horse because I didn’t feel safe as trail was covered in mud and the horses were slipping. So the ‘adventure’ continued by walking another mile into the forest in ankle deep horse pee/poop and mud. We didn’t go down the 821 stairs to the waterfall because we would have had to walk back up and then hike the 1.5 miles back out. Then piled back on the ‘safari’ bus, boat back to the main island and then an awful ride 2 hrs back to the hotel. Wait, I forgot to mention we left an hour later in the AM due to the chaotic nature of the pick up process. I just wanted to see some whales, have a nice lunch and relax on the beach…

Die Tour war gut durchorganisiert, bis auf die Abholung morgens im Hotel; da gab es wohl ein Kommunikationsproblem, denn wir wurden erst 1:30 später als angekündigt geholt. Das Preis-Leistungsverhältnis für den gesamten Trip ist sehr ok. Für das whale watching war genug Zeit, und man konnte die Tiere auch gut sehen. Der Stop an Bacardi Insel hat sich gelohnt, obwohl es sehr überlaufen war. Die Fahrt mit dem Truck zu den Wasserfällen war spannend, aber der Ritt mit den Pferde zu den Wasserfällen ist aus Tierschutzsicht äußerst fragwürdig!! Der Wasserfall ist sehenswert.