Cabarete, Dominican Republic, is a small beach town that offers life-changing experiences to everyone. From stunning beaches to adventurous water spots such as kitesurfing and surfing to exploring the local way of life, there are plenty of things for you to do on your vacation.
What makes Cabarete different? Read this blog post to find out 6 signs you've been to Cabarete!
Living the beach bum lifestyle means gritty pieces of sand will work their way into all your belongings. After a couple weeks in Cabarete, there will be sandcastles worth of golden sand living in the bottom of your beach bag, hiding in your bikini bottoms, nestled in your scalp, sleeping with you in your bed…basically, your entire life will be covered in sand. By the end of your vacation, it won’t even bother you when you find sand in your toothpaste.
When you get home and unpack, that sneaky sand will jump right out of your luggage and into your carpet and on top of your kitchen counter! Every day for months the sand will bring up memories from your moments in Cabarete. Mornings spent watching the sunrise from the beach, and afternoons snoozing under palm trees. Daily explorations of the long stretches of sand between Cabarete Bay and Encuentro Beach. Monday night karaoke at Voyvoy that lead to you singing your face off with new friends and then running barefoot over to Ojo's for a few nightcap pitchers on the beach. However all that sand ended up in everything you own, those tiny grains will always remind you of the time of your life!
2. You know a new dance…and you want to teach it to everyone
Resistance is futile. If you spend one night out on the town in Cabarete, you will be persuaded into dancing. Even if you have two left feet, the locals of Cabarete are always patient enough to teach tourists how to shake their hips to a little Bachata.
Once you get the hang of it, you find yourself dancing the night away under the stars on the rooftop patio at Ojo’s during their weekly Latin Dance night—where the whole town seemingly turns up to show off their skills. And it doesn’t stop there! When you get home, you constantly make your partner, best friend, and mother practice Bachata dancing in anticipation of your next vacation!
3. You consider the gas station a reasonable place to party
Gas station parties (aka Bomba Parties) are a quintessential Dominican pastime. Where else in the world can you meet up with 50 of your closest friends, drink Presidente, and dance to blaring Dembo music while filling up your moto with gas? Nowhere!
During Samana Santa and other big holidays in Cabarete the gas station is the place to be. It gets so crowded with partygoers you have to use your best crowd maneuvering techniques to get to front of the beer line. When you get home you are bummed to realize there is no Presidente, plantain chips, or Bachata to shake your rump to while you fill up at your local gas station.
4. You all of a sudden know how to make a mean mojito
After sampling the Caribbean’s finest cocktail at a number of different establishments, you will become a bona fide expert at what makes the perfect mojito. Fresh lime juice and mint leaves, cane sugar, and of course, Brugal. Mojito Bar on Cabarete Beach has arguably the best mojitos in town, and if you sit at the bar for a mojito or 4 (because it’s almost always happy hour at Mojito Bar) you can watch and learn how the world’s most delicious elixir is concocted.
Throwing a mojito party for your friends back home is a great way to integrate back into normal life and the perfect opportunity to show off your newfound dance moves. If you can’t stay in Cabarete forever, at least you can take a bit of the island home with you in the form of an amazing Mojito recipe.
5. You are constantly in search of the perfect avocado.
It’s safe to assume that many grocery stores all over the world have avocados…but one thing is for sure, they don’t have DOMINICAN avocados. You will never find an avocado as large and ripe and buttery as a Dominican avocado in your own grocery store, but you will try…because you have always been the persistent type.
Your friends don’t understand your obsession with Dominican avocados because it’s hard to describe what makes them so deliciously different. All you can do is explain that once you have sunken your teeth into a Dominican avocado, there is no going back to the way things used to be.
6. All of your friends are jealous
Photo by Bikini Empire
Maybe it’s the glowing tan. Maybe it’s because you learned how to kite, or surf, or fly through the air at Kaiceitos Circus and have the shredded biceps to prove it. Perhaps it’s because you haven’t stopped talking about how delicious and affordable the food was. Whatever the reason, don’t expect your amigos to want to hear about your trip…again. Let them wallow in jealousy, while you upload photos to Instagram wearing nothing but a bathing suit and a big smile. Maybe when their jealousy subsides you can convince them to go with you next year, but this time for longer.
Ready to explore Cabarete? Book your ocean-view condo now!