Province · Sudoeste: Barahona e Pedernales

Barahona

Barahona is the wild southern coast: rocky beaches where mountain rivers meet the sea, such as San Rafael and Los Patos, the larimar mines, Polo coffee and the road that continues to Pedernales.

In the photo: Playa San Rafael (Barahona)

Illustrative images. The pictures in this guide are illustrations based on the real place, not photographs, and may differ from it.

The province

Get to know Barahona

The province of Barahona occupies the southwest coast, where the Sierra de Bahoruco drops down to the Caribbean Sea in a sequence of cliffs, white pebble beaches and fishing villages. The capital, Santa Cruz de Barahona, is a port with a malecón facing Neiba Bay and the main city of the southwest.

This guide covers the Barahona and Pedernales destination, including the towns of Santa Cruz de Barahona and Paraíso. South of the capital, the coastal road passes Playa San Rafael, where a cold mountain river descends into pools beside the sea, and through Paraíso and Playa Los Patos, where a short river forms a freshwater lagoon next to the beach.

In the mountains above the coast are the larimar mines, the pale-blue stone found only in the Dominican Republic, sold as jewelry throughout the region. Further inland, Polo produces one of the country’s best-known coffees and has the Polo Magnético, a slope where an optical illusion makes cars seem to roll uphill by themselves, and the Cachote cloud forest.

The province also reaches Lake Enriquillo and the Rincón lagoon in Cabral, one of the country’s largest freshwater lagoons, home to waterfowl.

Destinations

1 destination in Barahona

2 cities

Barahona and Pedernales

Cities

2 cities in Barahona in the guide

Barahona Capital

Santa Cruz de Barahona

Santa Cruz de Barahona is the main city of the southwest, a port with a malecón facing the Neiba bay and the Sierra de Bahoruco behind. It is the base for the south coast road, with Playa San Rafael, where a mountain river forms freshwater pools beside the sea, and for Lake Enriquillo inland.

Barahona

Paraíso

Paraíso is a fishing village on the southern coast of Barahona, between the mountain and the sea, with pebble and sandy beaches and cold-water rivers. Very close is Playa Los Patos, where the country’s shortest river, according to local tradition, forms a freshwater lagoon beside the beach.

When to go

From December to April it usually rains less and the coastal road looks nicer. Between June and November there is a hurricane risk on the southern coast, with heavy rains from August to October when the rivers rise. In the Polo mountains, the climate is cooler year-round.

Getting there

María Montez International Airport (BRX) is about 13 km from Barahona, with few flights; most travelers arrive via Santo Domingo, about three and a half hours by car or bus on the southern highway. From the provincial capital, the coastal road continues to Paraíso and Pedernales; to Polo, a mountain road climbs into the range.

Your questions

Frequently asked questions about Barahona

What to do in the province of Barahona?

Drive the coastal road, visiting San Rafael and Los Patos, see the larimar mines, taste Polo coffee and continue on to Lake Enriquillo or Pedernales.

What is larimar?

A pale-blue stone found only in the Dominican Republic, mined in the mountains above the Barahona coast and sold as jewelry.

What is the Polo Magnético?

A slope near Polo where an optical illusion makes cars and objects appear to roll uphill by themselves.

Is Barahona far from Santo Domingo?

About three and a half hours via the southern highway, passing Baní and Azua.

Are Barahona's beaches sandy?

Many are white pebble beaches with open sea and waves; the calmest swimming is usually in the river lagoons, such as at San Rafael and Los Patos.

Tap a province to see its destinations. Limites: Oficina Nacional de Estadística / OCHA-HDX / geoBoundaries (CC BY 3.0 IGO). Adaptação do Cidade Turismo.