Bavaro Runners Tour

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Punta Cana, Dominican Republic(809) 455-1135

Description: Over half a million visitors have enjoyed one of these day-long safari tours, where you’ll be picked up in open-sided trucks and sped through winding roads, crowded by the lush vegetation at the heart of the Dominican Re...Read More

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Maria's house Photo - Bavaro Runners Tour, Punta Cana, Dominican Republic

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Bavarro Runners

by berky

Nepean, Ontario

February 17, 2007

Best of IgoUgo A full day excursion to discover the Dominican countryside. The trucks are open air but covered with a canopy to protect one from the sun or possibly rain. We sat on long benches facing each—seat belts and hand holds are provided and we used them as ...Read more A full day excursion to discover the Dominican countryside. The trucks are open air but covered with a canopy to protect one from the sun or possibly rain. We sat on long benches facing each—seat belts and hand holds are provided and we used them as the roads in the Dominican are way below North American standards. Many times on the roads, the driver would cross over to the opposite site to avoid a large pothole. There are no lines on the road, horns are frequently used, and stop signs and lights seemed to be a suggestion, not a law.

Our first stop was a sugar plantation, its location heralded by a sign riddled with bullet holes. Our guide explained the process of cultivating the sugar cane and the history and manufacturing of sugar cane products. While a guard patrolled with his gun, our driver used his machete to cut all of us a piece of sugar cane to chew or suck on.

Once we left the plantation we drove up into the mountains and on a narrow winding road found Maria’s house. We were told that she and her family were able to survive quite nicely by growing everything they need right on her piece of land and they were quite happy with their lot in life. Her house consisted of four rooms on a concrete slab with no air conditioning and plenty of small holes in the roof. On her land, she grew vegetables and fruits and cocoa and had a few chickens and parrots. A fruit platter and a few sips of coffee and cocoa were ready for our enjoyment. There was a bright pink building with a “Bavarro Runners” sign--clean stalls with flush toilets! Our guide and Maria’s nephew cornered two of their chickens and we all watched a 30 second cock fight—no one got hurt, but we were told how betting on the outcome and spurs on the chickens enhanced the experience. For purchase there were coffee beans, ground coffee, vanilla, Mamajuana (the local alcoholic brew reputed to be an aphrodisiac) and cigars.

From Maria’s house, we drove down from the mountains to a ranch on the coast where we mounted our horses for a 15-minute walk alongside the crashing surf on magnificent Macao Beach. As well as feasting on a delicious barbecue lunch, we had time to swim in the ocean or a small pool. (There were showers for rinsing off.) Our bus had boogie boards for our use.

Our bus also had a cooler with Pepsi, rum, beer and water and we were frequently offered refreshments. The number of bathrooms along the way seemed to be in inverse relation to the number of beverages we were enjoying.

There were showers and bathrooms and once everyone was ready, we all got back on the bus for a very long bathroom less ride back to our hotel. There was a brief stop at a cave, but alas there was not a bathroom there.
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From journal Our First All-inclusive Resort Experience

Bavaro Runners Tour

by july39

Cherry Hill, New Jersey

March 22, 2006

When rolling past the poverty of the Dominican Republic on route to our all-inclusive resort we knew we had to take a tour of the country to gain some perspective into what the country is really like, as opposed to the sugarcoated beaches of our ...Read more When rolling past the poverty of the Dominican Republic on route to our all-inclusive resort we knew we had to take a tour of the country to gain some perspective into what the country is really like, as opposed to the sugarcoated beaches of our resort.We chose the Bavaro Runners tour, which was about $75. As we sped through the villages you could see Dominicans sitting outside around tables playing cards in the brightly painted villages of dilapidated housing. The one thing that was so amazing was that every single child we passed came out to wave and smile at us as we went by.The tour first took us to a cigar shop to see how cigars are hand rolled. Next we moved onto the sugarcane plantations where we saw Haitian workers cutting the cane. Our tour guide informed us that the Haitians come here to work in the fields and make $3 for every ton of sugar cane they cut. "You would call them slaves, but they are happy. This is their American dream," our tour guide explains.It’s amazing to think that conditions are so bad in Haiti that coming to the Dominican Republic to slave away in hot fields in full clothing to protect from snakes is better. I did some research on the subject and government contracted recruiters round up Haitians workers through abduction or by luring them with promises of jobs to come work in the fields and live in cramped conditions, with sometimes no electricity or running water. (I found more info at http://www.iabolish.org/slavery_today/country_reports/do.html)
So whether or not they are happy depends on your perspective I guess.
Next we visited a traditional home in the country where we saw coffee trees and the process of roasting coffee and making cocoa from the cocoa pods, as well as a cock fight, which is legal in the DR. The traditional home consisted of a bedroom with one bed for many people, which the tour guide explained to us is too hot to sleep in anyway because of the sun hitting the tin roof, so the residents sleep in hammocks outside.
After that we went on to a secluded beach where we had a traditional Dominican lunch, (there was plenty of beer and rum and cokes throughout the trip as well). Then we walked through a very sad looking zoo that I think PETA ought to know about. We road horses on the beach alongside the azure sea. It was breathtakingly beautiful and I would definitely recommend taking this tour. It lasted from 8:30am to 5pm and was well worth the price for a full day of activity. My only warning is that in the summer I think it would be a very hot trip. We went in March and it was cool.
Punta Cana: 809-552-1035.
E-mail: bavarorunners@verizon.net.do.
www.bavarorunners.com
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From journal Pampering and Perspective in Punta Cana

Bavaro Runners Tour

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