05-22-2013, 08:42 PM
Rootswoman, do you speak any Spanish at all?
If you do, it's easy to break out of the AIs and take advantage of a great bus/road/taxi system to do whatever appeals to you. There are some nice small hotels in Punta Cana, and it's easy to get north to Samana or head along the south coast, and the Orientales mountains (close to Punta Cana) are very pretty.
These are some 7-year-old pics of a quick week I spent exploring the south and southeast of DR using mostly public transport. Really lots to do besides beaches !