One of our Island Runaways followers on Facebook asked recently, "What's Punta Cana like?" That's an excellent question about the Dominican Republic, and I thought today we'd focus on (a) the beaches and (b) the difference between Punta Cana and Bavaro. We all look forward to taking those special tropical vacations, and let's face it, we save up our hard-earned dinero so we can have a fabulous experience. Keeping that in mind, I'm going to craft this blog post so that it also

Are all beaches created equal? I don't think so. The beach I photographed in the picture below certainly looked stunning. (You'll find it on Punta Cana, by the way, in the Dominican Republic.) The seawater here felt slightly cool in October, although keep in mind that "cool" is a relative term, and as a Florida native, my tolerance for even a slight chill is...pathetic. Regardless, the ocean felt wonderful and Zickie and I happily floated on our backs and let the sun tint our

Happy Friday, Island Runaway friends! Today’s the day for island cocktails, and we’re revisiting a recent trip to the Dominican Republic. One late afternoon, Zickie and I were feeling in a celebratory mood, and took a walk down the Bavaro beach (in the Punta Cana area). Now, let me set the scene: turquoise-streaked ocean, incredibly (and I do been hard-to-believe) soft sand, and warm but not hot tropical breezes blowing through my hair. We’ve got a mission, and it’s fairly si

Have you ever tried a Presidente beer? This tropical libation in the green glass bottle is brewed in the lovely Caribbean country called the Dominican Republic. Although the Island Runaways have enjoyed a Presidente more than a few times, we’d never tasted one in the Dominican Republic itself, prior to this recent trip. This week we had the chance to drink both Presidente and Presidente Light on the incredibly soft sand beaches on the island’s east coast. So, would the Caribb

How do you rate a beach? Is it the sand: whether it’s pure white, beige, black from volcanic rock, or even a pale blush pink? Or maybe your heart lies in the ocean, with clear water shot through with mesmerizing streaks of aqua green, sapphire blue, and deep turquoise. This Island Runaways duo has seen our share of beautiful beaches, from Jamaica to Thailand, Corsica to Greece. So, today, just for you, our fellow island runaways and escape artists, we are hard at work researc

This week the Island Runaways duo is writing to you from beautiful Punta Cana in the Dominican Republic. One of us (Zickie) has explored this interesting Caribbean country on previous visits for work, but it’s my very first time here. I did know that “the DR” is located on the island of Hispaniola, and shared a border with Haiti; Cuba and Jamaica lie to the west. The country produces coffee, rum, and sugar, but its most valuable industry in recent years is tourism. Back in ou