Puerto Plata

The province

Get to know Puerto Plata

The province of Puerto Plata occupies the northern coast of the Dominican Republic, between the Atlantic and the Cordillera Septentrional. It is called the Amber Coast because of the fossil resin found in the mountains, and it was the first region of the country to receive international tourism on a large scale in the 1980s.

The guide lists Puerto Plata, Sosúa and Cabarete as destinations in the province. The city of Puerto Plata has a downtown of wooden Victorian houses, the Fortaleza San Felipe from 1577, the Amber Museum and the cable car that climbs to Loma Isabel de Torres; to the east, Playa Dorada concentrates hotels, and inland the 27 Charcos de Damajagua are waterfalls descended by jumping. Sosúa has a calm-water bay and the history of the Jewish refugees who founded it, and Cabarete is the kitesurf capital.

West of the capital, near Luperón, the Parque Nacional Histórico La Isabela preserves the ruins of the first village founded by Christopher Columbus in 1493 on his second voyage. The coast continues with coves such as Cofresí and Maimón, where cruise ships dock.

Local cuisine combines fish and seafood, mofongo and dishes from the Cibao, and the music ranges from traditional merengue to the sounds of Cabarete’s bars.