All Inclusive Dominican Republic

When Cristopher Colombus landed on Hispaniola in 1492, he called the coast of Puerto Plata , on the Dominican Republic's north coast, the most beautiful land under heaven. With its long stretches of pristine white beaches and its lush verdant valleys cradled by majestic coast mountain ranges, Puerto Plata remains one of the top all inclusive travel tourist destinations in the Caribbean. It has many luxurious resort developments with entertainment, water and land sports, casinos and spas, and lots of other fun activities.

The Dominican Republic itself - which occupies over half of the Island - has traditional Spanish influence and culture. It was on these shores that Columbus first landed in the New World to claim the new territory for Spain. He believed that he had just conquered India for the Spanish empire, and one of his first acts was to name his son Diego the governor. Colombus had been promised by his Queen Isabella that if he successfully opened a new western passage to the spices and jewels of India, that she would bestow her daughter upon him in marriage. Columbus established the first European town in the Americas and named it Isabella; and other Spanish settlements soon followed to farm the fertile land which would bear food crop production all year around. Most of the indigenous population was wiped out due to war and disease.

African slaves, brought in to work the plantations, added to the population but remained mostly in the east. After the discovery of the gold-bearing lands of Mexico and Peru to the west, the island of Hispaniola was largely neglected. The French took advantage of the decline of Spanish interest to seize Hispaniola with little opposition. They renamed the island Haiti. It took 300 years for the Spanish to reconquer the island, and even then a third of the island remained in French hands. The French third is today's Haiti, and the Spanish two-thirds became the all inclusive Dominican Republic. The majority of the Dominican Republic's population consists of rural subsistence farmers, but there are also large sugar plantations which employ rural workers. The majority of the population lives in small one- or two- room shacks with dirt floors and thatched roofs. Fishing is also a major industry, and city dwellers work in factories and live in apartment buildings built in the old Spanish style.

Nowadays the Dom Rep (as it is called) is one of the most popular tourist destinations in the Caribbean, famous not only for spectacular beaches and crystalline waters, but also for its fabulous night life, dancing the merengue to alegre music with its mix of African rhythms and Spanish maraca rattle beat, and its many historical landmarks. America's first cathedral was erected here in 1512, and Colombus is believed to be buried in the Cathedral of Santo Domingo. The University of Santo Domingo, founded in 1538, is the oldest university in the Americas. The Spanish colonial architecture, the all inclusive hotels, the friendly, laid-back people, and the spectacular beauty of the scenery ensures that visitors come back again and again.