The final destination of our 2022 Caribbean Cruise was Amber Cove in the Dominican Republic. We participated in the “Highlights of Puerto Plata and Beach Escape” excursion, which included a bus ride into Puerto Plata and a walking tour of the main square, Pink Alley, Umbrella Alley, a chocolate and coffee shop, and a cigar museum.
Doña Blanca Walk (“The Pink Alley”) is a small alley in the center of Puerto Plata painted entirely in pink. This beautiful alley is a tribute to the founder of the first hotel in the city of Puerto Plata, the Europa hotel. Doña Blanca is credited with starting the tourist industry in Puerto Plata and was known for her humanitarian efforts to provide care and treatment to cancer patients.
Dominican Republic’s cigar industry has prospered well due to the embargo of Cuban cigars to the U.S. We got to see the process from start to finish of making hand-rolled cigars and even got to try one.
Afterwards, the bus took us to a resort where we had lunch and spent a couple hours on the beach. They served a local fish that had been marinated and grilled – it didn’t look too appetizing, but it was delicious and the beach was beautiful!
Then back to Amber Cove where we bought a couple DR beers and checked out the pool and nature areas. Looking forward to a relaxing evening back on the ship.
