New Year.

New You.

New Adventures.

Let’s go find some shall we?!

They say the Caribbean is the new hot spot for travel in 2017 so why not? Whether you’re traveling with your significant other, gal pal, group of friends or solo, I’ve experienced just the place for YOU!

On this particular trip it was girl power all the way.

Sometimes us girls really “just wanna have fun!” What better way to hang out with one of your best gal pals than to spend some quality time together on an adventure packed, sunny, exotic vacay?

In choosing the destination, we wanted something new “to us”, safe, warm, luxurious and not too difficult to get to.

Did I mention adventure? I need lots of things to do… sitting on the beach, riding horses, swimming and having a massage at the spa could all work :).

Oh- and I wanted it all on a budget too. Almost sounds impossible, right?

And that’s exactly how I came up with the awesome resort of Casa De Campo, just outside Punta Cana in the Dominican Republic.

The resort is perfect for just about everybody. They have a ginormous equestrian center for horse lovers filled with polo fields, western and english riding arenas, jumps, cattle shoots and miles of trails that take you around the entire property. If you’re a tennis or golf player, they have several courses and tons of courts! Into dance? The resort offers daily salsa and bachata lessons. I almost forgot- they have an enormous skeet shooting facility too.

Now that I think about it, tell me what they don’t offer because I’m sure I can find it for you. 🙂 The beach club was my personal fav. And if you’re into shopping or boats, you can check out the marina which is only a ten minute golf cart ride away.

Dominican Republic

The DR is an island in the middle of the Caribbean that shares a border with Hatii. It’s always warm and everyone speaks Spanish which you all know I love!

Flying here was easy and affordable. Their first class flights were just under $800. Absurd, right? We took a redeye straight to Miami and then hopped on another flight directly into Punta Cana. The return was similar. (I absolutely LOATHE plane changes and enduring a bunch of takeoffs and landings so I’ll do anything to get there as directly as possible!)

Casa De Campo Resort

The hotel has a great package rate. Through my AMEX agents, we got this amazing all inclusive package which included all of our food and drinks (yes all alcohol included, crazy right!), unlimited daily horseback riding, tennis and one round of golf, one round of skeet shooting with an instructor, and luxurious rooms with a golf course view.

Check this out: unlimited food and drinks were available to us at five different restaurants… we sampled the Beach Club (my personal fave), their Italian restaurant, the marina’s seafood restaurant (not so impressed with this one) and the main hotel and lobby’s breakfast and dinner restaurants. The lobby bar was outdoors and had the most amazing salads on its menu.

Other than a few splurges at their really fantastic spa, we didn’t need to spend extra money or worry about budgeting meal expenses. This is so nice and easy when you’re traveling with friends- there’s never a need to split the check!

I think I lost weight on this trip- the salads were so healthy and to die for! And with all the horseback riding we did each day around the resort’s 7,000 acres, I kept my muscle tone and burned plenty of calories to call it a fit vacation for sure!

Golf Cart Shenanigans!

Another “best part” about our trip (there are so many) was the golf carts we were given. Yep, you heard me. The resort is HUGE… 7000 acres of luxury villas and homes, sprawling golf courses and sandy beaches and one crazy town named Altos de Chavon. Our carts kept us moving place to place!

We drove our carts up and down the streets just about everywhere. Our trip to Altos de Chavon took about 25 minutes (so we weren’t lazy, the distances really are too far to walk to dinner). This is a quaint, intriguing town recently built to mimic a 16th century Mediterranean village. They even have an amphitheater modeled after Greece’s Acropolis where you can watch live theatre performances and music concerts.

I admit, we did get lost once or twice on our adventures but there is so much security here (they have a huge barb wire fence around the entire perimeter and guards with machine guns at every gate) that the guards always came by and offered to escort us back to where we we’re supposed to be.

Horseback Riding!

Riding was an absolute dream! We rode for two hours every day and had the best guide ever! The horses are fast so be prepared to gallop if you want to. We were able to see the entire resort from barb wire perimeters to golf courses to jungle and beach. Riding around the polo fields we ran into a group of vaqueros bringing in a herd of horses so naturally, we raced to join the men and help out. I’m sure they thought they didn’t need this crazy “guera’s” help, but I did make them smile once or twice when I started talking to the horses in Spanish.

Ready To Mingle?

And ladies, we couldn’t help but notice there were quite a few single men on vacation here in groups. This spot has the potential to be a great place for meeting some interesting, intelligent, well traveled gentlemen. We met a few who were very respectful, interesting and successful. That’s not to say it’s a meat market in any way (eww gross I totally would NOT recommend if I thought it was), it’s just a fun place where you can meet a great group of people.

Needless to say, there’s enough to do here for a month! Kids, couples, friends, the resort is friendly to everyone. The ambience is super inviting and the Dominican people were warm, kind and most helpful. I will totally be back for more riding and beach time in the near future!

Who has another favorite island in the Caribbean? Or a destination that involves tons of activities like Casa de Campo? I totally want to know… I’m working on another Caribbean adventure currently and need your feedback! 🙂

xx Shanna

 

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