Punta Cana

Boasting a series of wide white beaches that stretch nearly uninterrupted for 50km (31 miles), Punta Cana was almost completely undeveloped just 40 years ago. Now it's a busy international holiday destination, with 20,000 rooms scattered among more than 30 large hotels and resorts, almost all offering all-inclusive meal and beverage plans. It has a well-deserved reputation as one of the most affordable destinations in the Caribbean, as well as one of its friendliest, thanks to the Dominican Republic's lively, Spanish-influenced culture and music. More recent projects, including the in-progress Cap Cana development with its Jack Nicklaus golf courses, are targeting a better-heeled visitor.

Punta Cana's resorts were discovered first by Europeans, who still make up the majority of visitors, coming for two-week or longer stretches year-round. It's especially popular with couples, families with children, and honeymooners. Between December and April, a larger number of visitors are couples aged 25-55 from the United States and Canada.

Punta Cana is on the eastern coast of the Dominican Republic, which shares the island of Hispaniola with its smaller neighbour Haiti. Depending on the resort, it is 15-65km (10-40 miles) from the airport.

What is commonly called Punta Cana is really a string of interconnected beaches, including Bavaro, Macao and Punta Cana. The resorts line the beach, overlooking the part of the Caribbean that meets the Atlantic. Inland, the land is tropical jungle, rising to rolling hills.

Punta Cana's sugar white sand beaches, lapped by turquoise waves, are perhaps the prettiest in the Dominican Republic. The beaches attached to hotels are well-populated with tourists, who can enjoy stretching on a sun lounger or take part in watersports such as parasailing, windsurfing, jet-skiing or deep-sea fishing. But farther afield are more isolated stretches, where you may be one of only a few holidaymakers.

Golfers can choose from five courses, with green fees surprisingly low. Or experience the famous Dominican hospitality with a 4-wheel drive tour of the countryside; day-long excursions usually include a drive through the jungle, a break for swimming at a deserted stretch of beach, a typical lunch (beans, rice, plantains and chicken) at a Dominican home, and visits to caves and sugar-cane fields.

Most stretches of beach around Punta Cana are perfect for kids, with mild surf for splashing. Children will especially enjoy the dolphin, sea lion and parrot shows at Manati Park Bavaro (Carretera Manati) (website: www.manatipark.com), a theme park that also includes a replica of a native Taino village.

The tiny beach village of El Cortecito, located smack in the middle of the strip of beachside resorts, is set up for tourists, with shops and strolling vendors selling locally-produced rum, cigars, batik sarongs and amber jewellery, plus T-shirts, hats and other touristy souvenirs. Haggling is expected, and part of the fun. The hotel gift shops and shopping arcades sell much the same wares, plus resort wear at slightly higher prices. For a cheap, authentic souvenir, duck into a grocery for aromatic Dominican-grown coffee.

Nightlife in Punta Cana centres on the resorts; most have a nightly show featuring costumed dancers performing to native merengue and bachata music, and almost all have a disco where guests can dance into the early hours. Several casinos, including those at the Barcelo Bavaro complex (Bavaro Beach) and the Riu Palace Macao (Playa Arena Gorda), offer slots, blackjack and craps tables.

Punta Cana is not a gourmet's destination, but there's plenty of variety. Most guests take meals at their all-inclusive resorts, which typically offer a daily buffet with continental/Dominican cuisine plus speciality restaurants offering Italian, Asian, burgers, pizza and more. Off the resort grounds, popular choices include the beachside Captain Cook's (Playa El Cortecito) where guests are whisked by water taxi for parillada mixta, which is grilled fish, shrimp, baby lobster and squid, or the hip Jellyfish (Carretera Bavaro), where pasta, crêpes and seafood are served in a two-storey, free-form building somewhat resembling, yes, a jellyfish.

Many hotel packages include shuttle transport between hotel and airport. Once deposited at their resort, many visitors rarely leave. It's easy to walk along the beach from one resort to another; hail a water taxi or regular taxi for the ride home. Hire cars are available from major agencies, but driving can be a risky proposition due to narrow, haphazardly marked roads and reckless drivers. Adventurous travellers can try catching a guagua, the small buses that locals use to get around, or even a motoconcho, a motorcycle pressed into service as a taxi.

The small city of Higuey, about 45 minutes inland by car, has few true tourist attractions, other than its starkly modern cathedral, the Basilica, but it's a great place to sample real Dominican life: view the offerings at a colmado (a small grocery); buy peeled pineapple and mango slices from vendors; swig an icy Presidente beer. On the way there, look for photo ops at La Otra Banda, a tiny village of traditional clapboard houses, painted in vivid tropical colours.

Make the two-hour drive to Altos de Chavon, an artists' complex built on bluffs overlooking the Chavon River to resemble a 16th-century Italian village. Shops nestled on the cobblestone streets sell fine art, handcrafted jewellery, and stylish clothing; enjoy homemade pasta and imported antipasto at the romantic La Piazzetta, where the chef hails from Northern Italy.

Punta Cana International Airport (PUJ)