Boca Chica and Juan Dolio

Boca Chica is the beach Santo Domingo goes to, half an hour east of the city past the airport, and its particular feature is a coral reef running right across the mouth of the bay, which turns the whole thing into a natural pool: the water is warm, clear and waist-deep for a very long way out, with a small island in the middle you can wade to. That makes it unusually good for small children and unusually crowded at weekends, when the capital arrives with coolers and speakers. Juan Dolio, twenty minutes further east, is longer, quieter and lined with hotels, and works better for anyone who wants the same coast without the party.

What you actually see

• The reef lagoon - shallow warm water protected across the whole bay.
• La Matica - the small island you can wade out to.
• The weekend crowd - the capital at the beach, loud and cheerful.
• Juan Dolio - the longer, calmer stretch twenty minutes east.

When to go

November to April is the dry season. Weekdays are calm at both; weekends and holidays fill Boca Chica completely. Mornings are the best time before the music starts. The water is warm all year.

Honest expectations

Boca Chica at a weekend is extremely crowded and loud, with constant vendors and a hard sell along the sand, and the town behind the beach has a longstanding sex tourism problem that is visible after dark. Water quality in the lagoon suffers when the crowds peak. Juan Dolio is calmer but its beach has eroded in places and is narrower than it once was.

Nearby

Santo Domingo is half an hour west; San Pedro de Macorís is east.