Worth seeing
Carnival is very popular in the country and, to make the most out of it, celebrated twice a year, in February and in August. The more famous one is the carnival of La Vega with its magnificent masks, colorful costumes and parades every Sunday in February.

If you travel to the country between January and March then you should not miss to visit the peninsula of Samana. Every year at that time hundreds of humpback whales gather in the Samana Bay for breeding and giving birth. A very rarely and fascinating nature sensation.

Merengue & Bachata & Car Wash
Dominicans love music. The most typical place they like to meet for dancing is the car wash, a mixture of a real car wash and a bar. Famous Bachateros and Merengue singers like Anthony Santos, Frank Reyes or Juan Luis Guerra come here to play live concerts.

In no way you should miss the big Merengue Festival which takes place every year in Santo Domingo in July. For days the capital goes nuts during that festival. Thousands of people flock to the sea promenade called the Malecon to dance, sing and party at one of the numerous live concerts.

Sports
Baseball or “Beisbol”, as the Dominicans say, is the national sport. There is no Dominican boy who does not dream about being the next Sammy Sosa or Pedro Martinez, the Dominican heroes of the US American Baseball League.

Food
The Dominican cuisine is dominated by Creole, Spanish, and African influences. Typical dishes are La Bandera, consisting of white rice, red beans and roasted or fried chicken, as well as Sancocho, a soup fea-turing seven meats combined with different vegetables, yucca, and potatoes.

Dominicans love snacks. You will always find a little comedor close-by where tasteful dishes are appetizingly arranged in the showcase, or a mobile snack-bar that offers meat- and cheese-filled turnovers (empana-das, pastelito) or delicious freshly squeezed fruit juices.