I was in Las Terrenas (Samaná a couple of weeks ago relaxing. I stayed in the hotel "Las Cayenas". Very recommendable, good service and just the type of hotel you need there (just breakfast). I was with my new Nikon camera and was able to snap a couple of pictures so you all guys can envy me

Enjoy!

How was the construction boom over there? and the roadways? I heard that there is a lot of construction going on by French, Germans, and now Italians. Did you see many foreigners over there?

There's a lot of construction going on, that trend is in the entire DR. I also saw many many foreigners, a tad more than the last time I went there, which was 2 years ago.

About the roads, they're a mess. It would be better if there just wasn't any asphalt. In general, since there is quite a lot of construction going on, there's quite a lot of thrash and debris all over the place. The good thing about Las Terrenas is that you have so many miles of beach, that once you get out of the town all that negative points dissapear.

It's still one of the best places in the DR to go if you want to relax and enjoy the beach without the crowd.

"DR is rising from it's ashes like the phoenix bird"

Maybe the beaches would remain beautiful if the ATV's would stay off of them! I think it is disgusting to support anything that ruins the natural beauty of any island.

I agree 100% with you tom.

The problem in las Terrenas is that many hotels and private properties are blocking the path that goes parallel to the beach that was intended for ATV's, bikes and SUV's, forcing people to enter the sand near the water, which is sad. There are even some log bridges that were purposedly destroyed so that people have it more difficult to access certain areas. And you know, in las terrenas you can't move if it's not on some kind of vehicle.

That certainly explains a lot. Thanks for the reply. Also, what are some of the prices for bread, cheese, yogurt, soda, beer, wine, rum, etc. for the residents that go to the local grocery store in Las Terrenas? We are thinking of a visit there later this year and would like to budget accordingly. I assume prices for fish dinners in the evening at local restaurants that are not fancy would be good. Hope to hear from you.