Alex and I wanted to get away somewhere warm on her winter break from college, so I booked an Apple Vacations at a local travel agent, Suzy Davis Travel. I think it might be the first time I used a actual travel agent!

We had a “six apple” (rated) resort, a special deal but you don’t know which one until you arrive at the airport. We saved quite a bit of money this way.

We flew out on December 9th for a week in Punta Cana, staying at the Secrets Excellence Resort, an all-inclusive on the north coast of the Dominican Republic. It is quite a drive from the Punta Cana airport, Secrets is the furthest west of many hotels in the Punta Cana area. We arrived late Saturday for a 7-night stay.

We had very nice rooms and had our first sight of the beautiful resort grounds and huge pool. The grounds had fountains, statues, lots of exotic flowers and birds, it made for lovely walks. They provided a daily schedule, the “Sundial”, with all the activities from yoga, horse back riding, water polo, theater, dance lessons.

We spent most of our time at the pool, it wound through the entire resort. They had a swim-up bar and plenty of staff that circulated to provide drinks. We enjoyed trying the drink of the day, great fruity rum drinks.

We did take advantage of the free horse back ride, one per stay. I enjoyed it but felt bad for the horses, who seemed both hungry and thirsty.

We planned a couple day trips. The first was a “safari” with Outback Adventures, a 6-hour cultural tour through the countryside. Our first stop was a Dominican country house. It felt very strange to be walking through a private home and their property. The guide insisted the residents didn’t mind, and are paid to open their homes to visitors.

The pink and green house was nicely decorated. One of the more interesting aspects of the home was that it had no running water. There is a large black bin to collect rain water. It also didn’t have a kitchen, all the food was prepared in the backyard.

After touring the house we were led down a path in the woods where coffee beans and cocoa beans are grown. We sampled some fresh coffee and hot chocolate. I bought some of the fresh ground cocoa. They roast both beans on their property.

My friend, Kelly, and her husband Manny, happened to be in Punta Cana the same week so we planned a day trip to Santo Domingo together. We went Thursday. It was about a 3 1/2 hour drive to the capital. Santo Domingo is the oldest European founded city in the New World, where the colonization of the Americas began. It was founded by Bartholomew Columbus, brother of Christopher, in 1496. We toured the Colonial Zone, a World Heritage Site.

We stopped at the Alcazar de Colon, or Castle of Columbus built by Diego Colon, Christopher Columbus’s son. Began in 1510 it is considered “Gothic Mudejar with Renaissance influences in the doorways and arches”. The 55-room building was home to the Colon family for 3 generations and hosted Hernan Cortez. It is now a museum with 22 rooms, open to visitors, that are filled with artifacts.

After a tour of the castle, and the Viceregal Museum inside it, we walked through town enjoying the sites.

After lunch, we visited the oldest cathedral in America, the Catedral Basilica Menor de Santa Maria, Primada de America. It was built in 1540. The remains of Christopher Columbus were found here in 1877 during restoration work.

After another 90 minutes free to enjoy town we returned to the bus. On the way out of town, we stopped at Faro a Colon, Columbus Lighthouse. It is Columbus’ tomb. At night, lights come out of the top and are reflected in the sky in the shape of a cross. It was built in 1992 to mark the 500th anniversary of Columbus’s arrival in the Americas.

We spent the final few days just in the pool, hot tubs, and lovely restaurants.

** All photos property of Lisa, not to be copied or reproduced **