Saona Island Tour

This was a full day excursion...well worth the $69 US per person fee.

Our bus was to pick us up at 7:10am, but being on "Dominican Time", it arrived at 7:30. This gave us time to have some coffee and a donut at the Ocean H-10 first. The bus took us to a few other resorts to pick up passengers, then on a 1.5 hour ride south-west from Punta Cana to a harbour where we boarded a large speedboat. We had some rum ("Vitamin R" as it is locally known as), went snorkelling for about half an hour in the warm Caribbean water (lots of fish!!!), and had some more rum. Jeff and I had never snorkelled before, so it took a few minutes to get the hang of under-water breathing. ("You mean we really won't drown?") The fish were everywhere, with such vibrant colours, and had no fear of us splashing around and trying to touch them. It was fantastic!

We then took a 2 hour ride in the gorgeous mid-morning sun on a catamaran to Saona Island, with dancing and plenty of rum on board the whole way. Jeff discovered that the bathroom down below was just a hole in the bottom of the boat, and you could see the water flowing by!

The turquoise water was crystal clear all the way to the bottom, and slightly warmer than the Atlantic side of Punta Cana. Hot burning sun, soft white sand beach, and a great buffet lunch made for a highly enjoyable and memorable afternoon. I finally got brave enough to try the BBQ chicken, and it was so tasty! Jeff had rice... this had become our "usual" dish since it seemed fairly safe, but I was getting bored of it.

This was day-5 of our vacation and so far we had not experienced any sickness from the food! We were very careful to only drink bottled water... or "vitamin R". The pina coladas at La Flamboya (Cortecito Inn) had also become a staple for us; half a fresh pineapple for every 2 drinks, not boxed juice or syrup like at home! Plus "mucho" rum; free-poured, not measured by the ounce.

We left Saona Island around 2pm, and headed for a spot in the middle of the ocean where we could actually get out and stand! It was a sand-bar, and we picked up star fish and conche shells, enjoyed the 2-ft deep warm water, and more rum was poured all around. The view was amazing, with huge waves crashing against each other in the distance. We thought this might be where the Atlantic ocean meets the Caribbean ocean, but apparently it is not. Quite an experience to feel like we were a part of this beautiful ocean.

Then we went to a "natural swimming pool", although Jeff and I agreed the temperature was not different than Saona or the middle of the ocean "sand-bar" waters. This was a hot-spot for all the tours...a "meeting place" and lots of other tourists from other boats were hanging out, having a water-party. In our boat, only a couple of guys got out to swim...the rest of us had been in and out of the water all day and stayed in the boat.

We got back to the bus around 4:15 or so, and had time for a bathroom break before heading back to Punta Cana. A woman stood in the bathroom doorway handing out small sections of toilet paper... better hope that's all that's needed, 'cause there's none in the stalls!  :) 

We had ice cream bars before boarding the bus; I couldn't finish mine in time, so after Jeff had a few quick bites, he fed the rest to a local well-behaved stray dog hanging around. The locals seem to think this is silly (to feed the dogs), but all the tourists thought it was adorable as the dog sat still and gently licked all the ice cream from the stick.

We were back at the Ocean H-10 resort by 6:30pm, and headed for our hotel (Da'Tonino) beside the resort to have a quick nap and slather ourselves with sunburn medicated aloe gel before heading out for the evening.

Definitely a day to remember.