Puerto Plata

General information
Sports & nature
Nightlife
Culture and history
Tours

Puerto Plata

Puerto Plata, where tourism began in the Dominican Republic, remains one of the favorite destinations for visitors. Its spectacular and extensive landscape combines sea, mountains, green valleys, rivers and a number of beaches. Its fertile soil gives rise to cocoa and coffee plantations, while beneath the earth, lies the lightest amber in the world.

The cunning explorer, Christopher Columbus knew that there was much to discover on the Atlantic coast of the island, where he eventually found gold deposits, when he saw her from his ship in 1492. Attracted by the clouds shining on the Loma Isabel de Torres that illuminated the Vast blue coast, baptized the area as "Puerto Plata", and settled in La Isabela with a mixed community of Spaniards and Taínos, the first inhabitants of the island. There he built the first church and his first home in the Americas. You can follow the path of Columbus and travel through these archeological ruins that are now part of a national park.

Languages spoken	Español
Currency used	DO, RD$, USD$, EUR$
Country name	Dominican Republic

Sports & nature

The natural abundance of Puerto Plata continues to amaze those who put their eyes on "The Bride of the Atlantic", as the locals call it. The Puerto Plata cable car, the only one in the Caribbean, will take you to the top of the Isabel de Torres hill with its beautiful botanical garden, where you will have a panoramic view of the Atlantic coast with its more than 100 kilometers of beach that adorn the multiple coastal towns, indoor farming communities full of rivers and waterfalls, and hotels of all shapes and sizes for all tastes. In addition, Puerto Plata is home to colonial vestiges, including the largest collection of 19th-century Victorian houses in the Caribbean, the world's oldest amber fossils in the Amber Museum, and one of the region's first colonial fortresses, Fort San Philip, dating from 1577.

From east to west along the coast of Puerto Plata, the constant trade winds, the various rivers, the vast Northern Cordillera and the Atlantic Ocean conspire to create a world of outdoor adventure, including coastal towns famous for their water sports . Less than half an hour from the city, the town of Sosúa, founded by Jewish immigrants who fled from Nazi Germany, where expatriates and locals live, has beautiful beaches and various dive sites. A few kilometers away, Cabarete is a world famous center for kitesurfing, surfing and windsurfing, and a favorite cosmopolitan hideaway for those fleeing the winter. Playa Dorada is the ideal place for those who want to relax in style, with activities by the sea near the city, from canyoning in the waterfalls of the 27 Charcos de Damajagua to snorkeling in Cayo Arena and a relaxing afternoon in the Marina de Ocean World

In addition to nature, Puerto Plata has a lot of villages that provide a wealth of cultural experiences. Community tourism center, here you can visit family plantations of cocoa or coffee, learn to play and dance merengue with a family of musicians, or immerse yourself in the Dominican ball at the Bartolo Colón stadium and museum. Along the way, you will find a wide variety of culinary experiences, from sandwiches by the side of the road to seafood by the beach, and international gourmet restaurants.

The main points of entry to Puerto Plata include the Gregorio Luperón International Airport (POP), located 15 minutes from the city center and the hotels of Playa Dorada or Costa Dorada, and the Amber Cove Cruise Center in Maimon.

Nightlife info

The nightlife of the city of Puerto Plata offers a lot of environments for all tastes. The sophisticated bars also serve as dance sites, and you'll find smoking and entertainment rooms by the sea. The resort areas of Playa Dorada and Costa Dorada are close to discos and casinos. If you are looking for entertainment by the sea, the Malecon bars organize theme nights, from karaoke to live music.

Culture and history info

uerto Plata is located on the north coast of the island of Santo Domingo, a place chosen by Christopher Columbus. Columbus discovers San Felipe de Puerto Plata on his first trip, on January 12, 1493 and called the mountain (now Loma Isabel de Torres) Monte de Plata because at the top there are clouds that make it appear as silver. The city of Puerto de Plata takes its name. When Columbus arrived on the island of Santo Domingo in 1492, the first thing he built was the Christmas Fort. Destroyed it builds the first city in America called La Isabela on January 2, 1492.

The city of Puerto Plata was founded in 1502 by Nicolás de Ovando in the place chosen by Colón. In 1508 he was awarded the coat of arms with a silver mount, on whose top points an F and a V are engraved, and at the foot of the mountain white and blue waves. The Fortress of San Felipe is the only witness of the city of the 16th century. This fortress was built from 1564 to 1577. The convent of San Pedro Mártir that was standing at the time of the second foundation falls into deterioration at the time of the Haitian occupation.

The church of San Felipe Apóstol of 1934 of reinforced concrete is built in the same place of the primitive and subsequent ones that were successively made of brick, masonry and wood formed of galvanized iron. On October 4, 1863, as a result of the Restoration War against the Annexation to Spain, the city was ignited, being built again in 1865. In this third building this city flourishes again due to its constant port conditions, which communicates all The Cibao region with the outside world. The opening of the railways helps this communication: Sánchez-La Vega in 1887; Puerto Plata-Santiago in 1890 and Santiago-Moca in 1909 (It should be noted that there were still no internal roads and trade had to be done on steamers along the coast). At this time merchants from different parts of the world came to populate the city mainly from Germany, England, Spain and the West Indies.

In 1974 it was chosen because of its coastal characteristics as a tourist pole by means of a presidential decree. As part of the conditioning program of Puerto Plata for tourism purposes, the infrastructure of the historic center was improved, such as the aqueduct, the boardwalk was built, streets and containers were repaired, the Fort of San Felipe was restored, and the funicular was built to climb the Isabel de Torres hill. The Victorian roundabout in the central park was rebuilt and recently on the initiative of the government the train station was rebuilt, Faith was restored in the Povernir and the Bridge of Guinea.

Culture

The culture in Puerto Plata was more than anywhere else in the country, a lifestyle. There were men, like Eduardo Brito, who without knowing how to read and write, were able to sing Rigoletto, and to do it exceptionally well; and, then, to educate oneself until you get surprised in the most developed and educated nations.

The atmosphere of freedom, of movement of people with different opinions, of troubadours, poets, painters, merchants and adventurers who established residence there, made this town really "enchanted".

Wealth is stored in its historical monuments, in its Victorian houses, in its late-night and bohemian customs, in its patriotic deeds and in the character of the people, they were part of the miracle in less time than anywhere else in the world. They helped as much as they could do the beauty of their beaches and the investments made.