Javo Beach La Playita
Javo Beach La Playita
Javo Beach La Playita
4.5
9:00 AM - 6:00 PM
Monday
9:00 AM - 6:00 PM
Tuesday
9:00 AM - 6:00 PM
Wednesday
9:00 AM - 6:00 PM
Thursday
9:00 AM - 6:00 PM
Friday
9:00 AM - 6:00 PM
Saturday
9:00 AM - 6:00 PM
Sunday
9:00 AM - 6:00 PM
About
La Playita Beach in Las Galeras. Famous white sand beach and cristal clear waters located only 2 kilometers from downtown Las Galeras in Dominican Republic. Snorkeling equipment rental, Massages on the beach, and Volleyball court. La Playita Beach Restaurant & Bar serving fresh seafood ; Langosta, Shrimp, and Fish of the day !
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Most Recent: Reviews ordered by most recent publish date in descending order.
Detailed Reviews: Reviews ordered by recency and descriptiveness of user-identified themes such as wait time, length of visit, general tips, and location information.
Popular mentions
4.5
708 reviews
Excellent
447
Very good
213
Average
37
Poor
7
Terrible
5
wild-goose.ch
40 contributions
Jan 2022 • Couples
We never got to eat there as we intended to order langustas but ended up having a discussion about the price. On the menu it says 1100 pesos per lbs and when we sked, how much an average langosta will be there was a man telling that the right price is not 1100 but 1700 pesos. We left before ordering, we don't like to be mucked around...
Written January 27, 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Bruce w
Dominican Republic37 contributions
Jun 2022 • Family
The beach is excellent. But it has changed. Been coming here over a 20 year period. Now charging for beach chairs with no signage or notice. Before if you ordered over priced food and drinks, you did not pay for a chair. Now pay for both, overpriced and with very disrespectful, arrogant and rude boys on the beach. Even the free parking is recommended to be tipped heavily.
Service on the beach is non existent and difficult to say the best. Lots of new seaweed as is happening more and more in DR. Time to look for another beach in Las galeras
Service on the beach is non existent and difficult to say the best. Lots of new seaweed as is happening more and more in DR. Time to look for another beach in Las galeras
Written June 27, 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Yolanda M
1 contribution
Jul 2022 • Family
It was my first time in Las Galeras, but visit DR annually. I have to agree with the seaweed and the constant hustle. Prices were changed the moment we went to order. We wondered out to Las terrenas and the prices were definitely less done Las Galeras. It was over all an ok experience, but probably will not be back anytime soon.
Written July 24, 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
jtimothyk
Chula Vista, CA39 contributions
Jun 2015 • Couples
For our stay in the Las Galeras area of the Samana peninsula, we wanted to spend our second full day at a beach after spending our first full day on a tour of Los Haitis National Park. At first, we intended to go to the beach at the famous Playa Rincon, not far from where we were staying. When we began looking into it, however, we were put off. Getting to Playa Rincon by taxi or by boat was going to cost 60 to 70 dollars and we were hearing others talk about trash, seaweed, and safety issues. We also heard that Playa Rincon isn't any good for snorkeling. Instead, we opted to go to nearby La Playita Beach and are very glad we did. The pleasant, shady walk to the beach from our hotel took about ten minutes. When we got there at mid-morning, a couple of workers were sweeping and cleaning the beach. We found a nice, partly shaded spot to the far left as you face the water. We were struck by the powdery white sand, crystal clear water, and beautiful views of the point. If you go out from the rocks at the far end of the beach, you can enjoy some good snorkeling for an hour or two. During the half-day we spent at La Playita, no more than ten people were there. A very friendly dog joined us and hung out nearby, mostly napping. I don't know if it is like this all the time, but on the day we went, the beach was very quiet and peaceful. Only one vendor approached and tried to sell us something. Often during the day, we looked across the bay at Playa Rincon in the distance, and felt glad we had chosen La Playita instead!
Written July 1, 2015
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
2morrows
Port Coquitlam, Canada422 contributions
Feb 2020
La Playita Beach is 30 minutes from the port. It has a beautiful white, sandy beach that is shallow a long way out. There are chairs, umbrellas and full facilities.
Written February 15, 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
rbrow018
308 contributions
Dec 2018
I had my mind set on visiting Playa Rincon. It is supposedly one of the most beautiful beaches in the world, something that the locals continued to remind me of. While the experience would be expensive by Dominican standard, costing $800 DPO ($20 USD) just to get there and back, I was originally willing to pay the cost. As I was doing further research online, I felt that Playa Rincon COULD be a “tourist trap”. My definition of a tourist trap is a place where all the tour companies in an area funnel their groups causing a pristine location to be overwhelmed with tourists, gift shops, and expensive restaurants. I decided to visit the local beach in Las Galeras known as La Playita. As I was telling the hotel owner my intentions, he made La Playita sound like the slums. Nevertheless, it would only cost me about $100 DPO ($2 USD) to get there which made it worth checking out. The beach turned out to be about 5 minutes outside of the central area. Despite many run-down buildings prior to getting to the entrance, La Playita turned out to be one of the most beautiful beaches I’ve ever seen which is a strong statement from someone is that’s lived in Miami, Hawaii, San Diego and has traveled throughout Central America. As luck would have it, since so many people were being steered towards Playa Rincon, there were hardly any tourists on La Playita. I was able to rent a beach chair under an umbrella that was 5 feet from the water for $200 DPO ($4 USD). I also bought a bottle of Sprite for $50 DPO ($1 USD) and lounged out in the sun. For about 3 hours, I rotated between reading my book (Understanding Contemporary Latin America), listening to music, and swimming in the Caribbean ocean. I don’t know what heaven is like but that had to be close.
Written September 7, 2019
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
funtravelsallover
Atlanta, GA127 contributions
Feb 2019 • Friends
Beautiful beach with few restaurants nearby. You will have to pay a small fee for use of the beach chairs.
Written March 2, 2019
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Cherish_Travel
Portland, OR192 contributions
May 2018 • Couples
One of the prettiest little beaches I have seen. Great for a day of sunning, swimming, and eating. We had a delicious lunch there.
Written June 11, 2018
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Daria B
26 contributions
May 2018 • Couples
If you have a car you can go by car and conveniently park it by the beach for free. It’s a vey quiet and peaceful, safe beach. The locals are very friendly. We tried to snorkel but there is not much to see. It’s perfect though for just floating, relaxing (on the sun chairs in the chairs that you can rent to little money) and winding down. Soft white sand and clear, warm water with patches of sea grass. We went to Rincón as well but even though Rincón is very beautiful, I felt much safer and comfortable here.
Written May 18, 2018
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Adventuremann
Raleigh, NC19 contributions
May 2017 • Family
White sand and crystal clear blue water, this is a beach to dream about. The water is very shallow for a long distance out from the beach, making it an ideal beach for children and for snorkeling. Various local entrepreneurs set up chairs on the beach. The nicest shade is provided by the main restaurant, on the beach, but the fish is not fresh, and food is poor in quality there. Try the small shack to the left (when facing the water). They have fresh fish and serve up a delicious feast for a reasonable price.
Written May 17, 2017
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Yes, there are small grocery stores but with basic items such as fruits, vegetables, water, milk and local products. There is a good small french bakery with good bread and pastry
Written January 17, 2019
We're staying at samana can any One advise how to get to this beach or others similar please?
Written January 21, 2018
If you're staying in the town of Samana (the peninsula is named Samana and there is a town on the south side from where a lot of the whale tours leave that is also named Samana) your best option is most likely to rent a car.
My partner and I rented a car in Santo Domingo and drove up to Las Galeras (north side of Samana), where we were staying. From Las Galeras the beach La Playita is walking distance. However, beaches like Playa Rincon are not accessible without a vehicle. There's ample parking at Playa Rincon and at La Playita.
You can take a mini bus from Samana to Las Galeras, I'm not sure of the cost but there were people who did that, it's about a 45 minute ride. However, if you do that you'll be limited to visiting beaches only close to Las Galeras, of which the prettiest I think is La Playita. If you do rent a car be warned that the road to Playa Rincon is pretty rocky; if you're a timid driver you might want to get an SUV or something that's a bit higher off the ground.
Written January 22, 2018
Hallo, ich habe gerade die Bewertungen gelesen. Im Februar mache ich nun einen Individual-Trip mit Mietwagen über den Norden der DR. Auf jeden Fall möchte ich die Halbinsel Samana sehen, was ich in früheren AI-Urlauben noch nicht geschafft hatte. Mein erstes Ziel nach der Landung ist Cabarete. Sollte ich von dort aus gleich direkt nach Las Galeras fahren, weil ich dort eine günstige Unterkunft gefunden habe, oder sollte ich noch Zwischenstopps zur Übernachtung einlegen? Wie lange lohnt es sich für Las Galeras zu buchen? Was gibt es außer dem Traumstrand dort noch zu erleben und zu sehen? Was hat Samana noch so zu bieten? Ist las Terrenas noch sehenswerter als Las Galeras? Wie lange würdet Ihr bei einem 2 Wöchigen Urlaub in der Nordregion der DR allein für Samana einplanen und was lohnt sich noch in meinen Trip mit einzubeziehen? Monte Christi? San Franzisco de Macoris? Santiago de Caballeros?
Ich freue mich über jegliche Hilfe von Euch... :)
Written November 22, 2017
Bonjour, désolée pour ma réponse tardive...nous avons fait le "tour " de la république dominicaine en 4X4 sur deux mois, donc nous avions le temps... Pour ma part, je dirais que faire Cabarete d'une seule traite à las Galeras, c'est possible, mais le mieux et de s’arrêter à mi-chemin c'est à dire à las terrenas , c'est plus touristique mais ce n'est pas Cabarete, on trouve des logements pas trop chers via airbnb. les plages sont jolies, il y a des restos sympas et quelques bars animés le soir ... Las galeras est sympa, mais attention aux hotels et aux restaurants qui profitent de l'ambiance bout du monde, pour augmenter les prix ou offrir un service désastreux. Samana 5 jours c'est suffisant
Monte christi est sympa ça ressemble aux cotes grecques, une seule journée suffit, santiago c'est une ville sans grand intérêt. La isabela est trés sympa, une belle petite plage avec des petits restaurants locaux et il ne faut pas rater le site de Christophe Colon, nous avons logé dans une maison du site airbnb tenue par des français très sympa pour un prix modique. on peut visiter une petit île très touristique pas très loin.
on a beaucoup aimer le nord et Samana, le partie sud-est n'a pas beaucoup d’intérêt sauf si on veut rejoindre les superbes plages désertes qui font face à Samana, le sud ouest on a adoré, je pense que là on voit les paysage les plus beaux de la République Dominicaine, des plages magnifiques, de la terre rouge comme en Australie, les mines de Larimar, des cacades... et très peu de touristes
J'espère avoir répondu à vos attentes si d'autres questions n'hésitez pas. Bon voyage
Written January 21, 2018
Ciao Patrizia, scusa il drammatico ritardo. C'è un ristorante in muratore, ma il chiosco è da "Isabella".
Written March 29, 2018
chantalsanchezxh2017
Bonao, Dominican Republic
Si hay bares y discotecas o centros de bebidas alcohólicas y si es de acceso publico
Written August 7, 2017
Tiene un centro de bebida cercano, así como pequeños restaurantes de pescados, es de acceso público en su totalidad. No tiene discotecas, y eso es una de las cosas positivas que tiene.
Written August 8, 2017
Hello, we are staying in Los Galeras ... should we get a taxi from the Santo Domingo airport or rent a car? Do we need a car in Los Galeras?
Written March 12, 2017
from my review of our recent trip to las galeras. were from the usa:
Getting there.
We flew into Santo Domingo and rented a car. Getting onto the new highway to Samana from the airport is very tricky. Even though we knew it was tricky and we were prepared, we still missed the exit. You have to get off the highway immediately after getting onto it from the airport. .. you turn onto the side road. Then you go probably less than a mile and look for the turn for Samana. There is a right turn and Samana is written in orange on top of the sign listing the cities served by the exit. This is highway 7. It is very hard to see. if you miss it you have to go for miles before you can turn around and try it again.
once on the highway it is great; you will need about 500 pesos in tolls. They only accept pesos.
Be careful bc people pass on curves and double lines and at any time u might look up to see a car coming at u head-on. Fortunately, there is enough space on the sholder to pull off the main highway.
Turn off of highway 7 onto highway 5 towards Samana. This is when things get dicey. Motorcycles, trucks, pedestrians, chickens, dogs, everyone is on the road and there are no rules. Stay calm. It takes about 3 hours. Do not do this drive after dark.
We did enjoy having a rental car and using it to get around, but many of the roads are dirt and rocky and we chose to use a taxi service when we needed to go to Monte Azul, Playa Rincon and El Cabito.
We would have taken the boat to Playa Rincón but the water was too choppy.
On our return we left at 8.00 am for a 2.50 pm flight. We had plenty of time to drive slowly.
Restaurants
Monte Azul and El Cabito are musts. The views are insane and the food is good too. But beware they are both difficult to get to and you will need a 4 wheel drive and reservations. We rented a taxi for both of these bc our rental car was not 4 wheel drive. we tried a few other restaurants and all were good. Some of the best food is on the beach at La Playita.
Beaches
La Playita is close tp town and a lovely beach. There are 3 "restaurants" on the beach that sell delicious fresh fish, etc. You can rent 2 beach chairs and an umbrella for the day for about 300 pesos (7 usd). There are cocktails and I had a fabulous massage, too. ($20 USD for 30 minutes.) The water is clear and the beach clean and the sunset magnificent. We tried to snorkel off the beach but never saw any fish. Also while there is at least one jewelry seller, he was not too aggressive.
The Las Galeras beach at the end of the main road is also nice. We had a good meal at that restaurant, too. The jewelry and art salespeople were more aggressive there. Not sure if that was just bc is was not a busy day or if that is always the case.
We did an excursion to Playa Rincón beach which is one of the most beautiful I’ve ever seen. There are 2 ends of the long beach, one has a river and the other has a wild, gorgeous beach. There are chairs to rent and several open air restaurants. Well worth the visit.
Money
We did not find a single place in Las Galeras that accepted credit cards, so you must use cash. Bring some Dominican pesos with you if you plan to drive as you will need them for the tolls. Once you get to Las Galeras, go to the bank and go inside. Don’t use the ATM as you can only withdraw about $45 at a time. Go inside and you can withdraw from your debit card. I paid a $10 fee to get 15, 000 pesos ( about 330 USD).
Conclusion
If you are looking for an “off the beaten path” experience with beautiful beaches, delicious food and friendly people, you will find Las Galeras to be a perfect fit.
Written March 14, 2017
how far is it from where the cruise ships are ? Any idea what a taxi would cost to go to La Playita Beach ?
Written August 2, 2016
La Playita beach is 28 kilometers from Samana port.
There are a couple of companies in Samana city publishing their rates online on their websites.
You can Google :
OPTIMA TAXI SAMANA
and
A1 TAXI SAMANA.
Both of these companies have listings here on Trip Advisor.
ENJOY !
I do personally go to La Playita beach at least once a month.
( I am a full time resident of Samana city since 2010.)
Written August 27, 2016
Haw many beaches are there and distance to Los galeras
Written August 13, 2015
There are a couple beaches near by and they are within walking distance or a short 10 - 15 min drive.
I was only at La Playita once and it was on our ATV excursion. The beach was gorgeous and vacant at the time we visited....complete serenity
Written August 14, 2015
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