After spending two nights in Santo Domingo, it was time to head to Las Terrenas. Las Terrenas is a laidback beach town in the Dominican Republic and it’s been gaining popularity lately. It also seems to be the only backpacking destination in the country. Sure, there are also backpackers in Santo Domingo and other beach towns, but Las Terrenas is the place where they spend most of their time.

From Santo Domingo, you need to take the Asotrapusa bus. A one way journey only costs 500 Dominican Pesos (about 8 US Dollars). Their terminal is along Calle Barahona. Just type in “Terminal Asotrapusa” on Google Maps, it’s going to come out. There’s no need to buy a bus ticket in advance, just be there at the terminal at least 30 minutes before departure. See the bus schedule below:

As you can see above, it was fairly close to the hostel where I was staying– only a 15 minute walk away. The hostel staff warned me though that it’s not safe to walk to that area. They advised me to take an Uber instead. There were two of us though and it was around mid day, so we figured we’d be all right. We just took note of the location so we didn’t have to keep bringing out our phones for directions. The place where the bus terminal was located was pretty chaotic but we never felt like we were in danger. Sure there may be pickpockets, but at least during the day time it didn’t seem to be a place where violent crimes could occur frequently.

The trip only took about three hours. The bus left at 11 AM and we arrived at Las Terrenas at around 2 PM. The hostel where I booked was only about a 20 minute walk away from the bus terminal, so I didn’t have to take a “motoconcho“— these are motorcycles that are used for public transport. They only charge 100 Pesos for short distances and it’s a pretty convenient way of getting around town. Sure guaguas are cheaper, but it could take a while before one passes on the main roads. Obviously, for safety reasons there should only be one passenger per motoconcho, but you’d see several of them carrying two or three passengers! When we were about to head back to Santo Domingo we were running late and since this was around 5 AM there weren’t any motoconchos around– except for one. Imagine three grown men with two huge backpacks on a single motorcycle. I didn’t think it was possible. 🤣

I stayed at Hostel 23 in Las Terrenas and i can’t recommend it enough. One of the best hostels I’ve stayed at. The owners are completely hands on, they hold activities daily to promote interaction, and there’s this sense of community which makes it so easy to make new friends. The location is great too. As I’ve mentioned it’s pretty close to the bus terminal. There are lots of convenience stores and cheap places to eat nearby. It’s not quite at the center of town but it’s pretty close so establishments like banks and grocery stores are nearby— about a 10 minute walk to most of them. Unfortunately, the directions given by Google Maps are all wrong. Once you’re in the vicinity, look for El Pan De Antes. It’s a bakery that serves delicious baked goods, this is where i kept going for breakfast heh. Directly across from this bakery, there’s an alley that leads straight to the hostel.

Now obviously, a lot of people go to Las Terrenas for the beaches. There are many options. The popular ones are Playa Bonita and Playa Las Ballenas. It’s easy to get to these beaches. The easiest and fastest option is to take a motoconcho of course. If you’re not in a rush, you can take a guagua for 50 Pesos. Guaguas don’t have set schedules, and most guaguas don’t have signs so finding the right one entails a bit of trial and error. When a guagua passes by, just mention the name of the beach. The driver would tell you if they’re gonna pass by this beach or not. It can also get confusing because lots of private shuttles and minivans are basically the same as guaguas. Guaguas in Las Terrenas always keep the passenger door open though. If the door is closed, that’s most probably a private vehicle. heh.

Our favorite beach was Playa El Anclón because it’s pretty much isolated. To get here, take a guagua that goes to Samana. It costs 100 pesos per person cause it’s quite far from town. Just mention Playa El Anclón and they’d drop you off by the dirt road that leads to the beach. It’s pretty straightforward, just keep walking east and eventually you’ll reach this beach. Unlike the beaches closer to town, this beach isn’t readily accessible so you won’t find any bars or restaurants nearby. So if you plan on spending a couple of hours chilling here, bring snacks and drinks. heading back was kinda difficult though. There didn’t seem to be any guaguas passing by late in the afternoon. This didn’t seem to be an area where motoconchos frequent either. Good thing we were able to hitch a ride back to Las Terrenas.

Aside from beaches, there’s one attraction that almost everyone visits when they’re in Las Terrenas. Well actually it’s not in Las Terrenas, but it pretty close. In the nearby town of Limon, there’s a beautiful waterfall and the hike to get there is a very popular activity. It’s easy to do this on your own, you don’t need to book a tour. First, take a guagua that heads to Limon. This costs 75 Pesos and the trip takes about 30 minutes. Just say that you’re heading to “Cascada El Limon” or “Salto El Limon“. They’ll drop you off at the spot that’s closest to the trailhead on their route. It’s still a long walk (about 20 minutes), but luckily there are lots of motoconchos waiting in this part of town. If you choose to take a motoconcho, they’ll usually ask for 100 Pesos. Before you hop on, decide if you want to do the hike. It’s quite easy and the views are great so I’d recommend doing the hike. However, if you’re not into hiking or if you don’t want to get your shoes wet, there’s an easier way. Tell them you don’t want to do the hike, you just want to see the waterfall. They’d take you to the end of the hiking trail where you’d see this sign below. You’d be mostly walking through flat and paved terrain.

Now if you want to do the hike, they’ll drop you off at the main trailhead. If you choose to walk from where the guagua drops you off, just search for “Ruta Cascada El Limon” on Google Maps. This would take about 20 minutes. If you want to skip the long hike, take a motoconcho— the other end of the trail close to Rancho Limon Adventure is almost an hour away on foot. Why even skip the hike if you’ll be walking for an hour anyway.

From the trailhead, it’s gonna take about an hour to reach the waterfall. Take note that you’ll be passing through muddy dirt roads and you’d have to cross and wade through several streams, some of which are knee high— so yeah your feet will definitely get dirty and wet. A lot of people also ride horses on this trail so you’d see a lot of horse sh*t... at the trail head you could get hounded by locals offering tours. You could hire guides and get horses here if you choose to, but it’s not a difficult hike so i don’t see why one would prefer to head to the waterfall on horseback– unless you really don’t want to get your shoes wet. This area is also where you have to pay 50 pesos. Someone selling tickets is gonna approach you as you pass through. If no one stops you, i guess it’s okay to just feign ignorance? lol. I heard that if you arrive early in the morning there’s no one there to charge you. Once that’s all settled, just follow the path. The only part where we got a bit confused was when we were crossing the first stream— we actually had to go around the bend. Otherwise it was easy. If you get lost, just look on the ground and follow the horsesh*t. 🤣

As I’ve mentioned, the views were great. From up the hill, the waterfall looked spectacular from afar. As you go downhill you’ll see a smaller waterfall before you reach the main one. You have to cross the stream, then it’s just one last short hike uphill. When we got to the Cascada El Limon, we had it practically to ourselves. Before getting there I thought it would be crowded because a lot of people were saying it would be. Maybe it was the time of day. We got there at around 3 PM on a weekday— maybe most people head there in the morning on weekdays idk. There’s a small shack and makeshift toilet by the falls where you can get dressed but it smelled so bad. If you plan on swimming, I’d recommend wearing your swimming attire before leaving for the hike.

Heading back to Las Terrenas, you don’t need to go back the way you came. Just continue to the opposite side of the falls and walk downhill. You’ll eventually see the mostly flat and well paved path I mentioned above— the easier way to reach the falls. At the end of the trail we just waited by the Rancho Limon Adventure sign on the main road until a guagua heading back to Las Terrenas passed by. There’s no need to take a motoconcho or walk back to the center of El Limon (we didn’t see any motoconchos anyway). For some reason, the ride back costs 100 pesos instead of just 75. The locals on the guagua also paid 100 so no, it wasn’t some sort of scammy tourist tax.

As for the nightlife in Las Terrenas, we pretty much partied every night. Maybe it’s because it was peak season (February) but the bars and clubs were full every night I was there— even on weekdays. The most popular ones are El Mosquito and ETNO. Just take note that some of these bars have dress codes. Flip flops, sandals, and tank tops aren’t allowed— yeah it’s quite odd since these bars are by the beach, but their place, their rules. One night we had to head back to the hostel to change clothes. If you’re not into salsa or Latino music you may not have as much fun, but hey at least the drinks are quite cheap. And man oh man, a lot of bars accept Amex! 😮

If you’re heading elsewhere in the Dominican Republic from Las Terrenas, there are direct buses to and from Santo Domingo, Puerto Plata, Santiago, and Nagua. see the bus schedule below:

Las Terrenas is a beautiful, laid back place. And though it’s getting quite popular these days, it hasn’t reached the point where it feels incredibly touristy. Punta Cana may be the most popular destination in the Dominican Republic, but Las Terrenas is arguably the better choice. Aside from the beautiful beaches, it’s far from becoming gentrified. Despite the influx of tourists, the town itself has largely remained as it was. On the streets you’d be mostly seeing locals, it’s not overrun by foreigners. I’d choose this place over Punta Cana if you’re looking for a more authentic Dominican experience.