Tourism in the Dominican Republic
The nation's tropical climate, white sand beaches, diverse mountainous landscape and colonial history attracts visitors from around the world.
[8] The earliest cathedral, castle, monastery and fortress built in all of the Americas is located in Santo Domingo's Colonial Zone, an area declared as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
The most famous of these developments was the Hotel Jaragua, which gathered international attention for its luxury, alongside the Malecón de Santo Domingo in 1942.
The event was intended to attract international visitors and showcase the development of the country's tourism industry, but attendance was below expectations and foreign investments failed to materialize.
[citation needed] In the 1950s, construction of the Las Américas International Airport took place, along with highway systems to connect it to the capital and better accommodate the country's growing number of tourists.
[citation needed] In the post-civil war era, the tourism industry of the country saw an upswing through increased government attention and changes in economic policies.
Increasing competition, for example created by the Asian markets, and a change in the motivation of tourists, now forces authorities managing regions, and tour operators to supplement their offer with new options, not based directly on the sun, sand and sea.
It has been argued that the Dominican Republic should focus on diversifying its tourism product, so as to prevent elimination from the market by competitors when tourists completely change their preferences by shifting, for example, from 3S to 3E and to focus on industrial and cultural tours such as the road tar mine at la quenera, approximately 10 km south of the Haitian boarder.
[13] Most visitors arriving to Dominican Republic were from the following areas of residence or countries of nationality:[14] The weather in Punta Cana averages between a high of 81 °F to 86 °F.
The main areas of tourist activity in the country are the regions of the East, North, Santo Domingo and Barahona, but nevertheless, there has been an increase in the interior, with many tours on foot or by bike through the mountains and fields.
[citation needed] Dominican tourism is an issue that is part of the daily lives of its citizens, because it depends largely on the economic livelihood of the same, and their way of life.
Among the main tourist destinations are: It is the leading province in the country in terms of tourism, among the most important areas are: Santiago de los Caballeros or simply Santiago (English: Saint James of the Thirty Knights) is the second-largest city in the Dominican Republic, and the fourth-largest city in the Caribbean.
Due to its location in the fertile Cibao Valley it has a robust agricultural sector and is a leading exporter of rum, textiles, and cigars.
The only aerial tramway in the Caribbean is located in Puerto Plata, in which visitors can ride up to the Pico Isabel de Torres, a 793 meter high mountain within the city.
The fortification Fortaleza San Felipe, which was built in the 16th century and served as a prison under Rafael Trujillo's dictatorship, lies close to the port of Puerto Plata.
In April 1563, the Spanish settlement became notorious when the English slave trader Sir John Hawkins brought 400 people he had abducted from Sierra Leone.
