Experience the best of Samaná

The Samaná peninsula forms the north-eastern arm of the Dominican Republic, a long tongue of green hills and coconut palms between the Atlantic and Samaná Bay. The town of Santa Bárbara de Samaná, founded in 1756 by settlers from the Canary Islands, is the main port. From about mid-January to March, humpback whales come into the bay to breed, and boats go out to watch them.

Boats also leave for Cayo Levantado, a palm-covered islet in the bay, and across the water Los Haitises National Park has mangrove channels, limestone hills and caves with Taíno rock art. On the north coast, Las Terrenas has French and Italian restaurants, and Playa Rincón is a long beach backed by palms. The El Limón waterfall is reached on foot or by horse through the forest.

Pescado con coco, fish in a thick coconut sauce served with rice and fried plantain, is the signature dish of Samaná. The peninsula also has communities descended from African American settlers who arrived in the 1820s. Visits are easiest between December and April, when the weather is drier, and showers are more frequent in late summer and autumn.