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Coconut palms leaning over white sand at Cabeza de Toro beach in Punta Cana, with calm blue sea and a line of palms along the shore

Where to stay in Punta Cana

Photographed in 2020. Photo: Danu Widjajanto, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Places to stay in Punta Cana

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About Punta Cana

Punta Cana, a resort town at the eastern end of the Dominican Republic, spreads along the coast on both sides of its airport: Punta Cana Village is about 1 km away by road, Cap Cana about 11 km, Bávaro about 19 km and Uvero Alto about 41 km. Bayahibe, on the south coast, is about 69 km away.

Dominican Republic. Guide last checked .

Facts and rules

Last checked . Each fact links to its source.

Airport
Punta Cana International (PUJ), about 1 km by road from Punta Cana Village, about 11 km from Cap Cana and about 19 km from Bávaro. Source
Entry
EU, UK and US visitors need no visa. A stay beyond 30 days pays a fee on departure, on a sliding scale by the length of the stay. Source
Stays over 30 days
The immigration directorate extends a tourist stay beyond 30 days up to 120 days. The request is free and made online; the fee for the extra days is paid online or at the airport. Source
E-Ticket
Free online entry and exit form at eticket.migracion.gob.do, compulsory on commercial flights and shown to the airline. Guests in a vacation rental enter the host's full address. The USD 20 departure tax is in the air fare. Source
Tourist card
USD 10, included in airline charges; it allows a stay of up to 30 days. Source
ITBIS
18% on hotels, apartment hotels, villas and tourist apartments. Renting a dwelling as a home is exempt. Source
Legal tip
Hotels must add 10% to guests' bills as a tip for the staff, under article 228 of the Labour Code. Source
Short-term rental register
The Ministry of Tourism consulted from 20 May to 22 July 2026 on a draft resolution to register short-term vacation rentals and their hosts. Whether it has been signed is unverified as of September 2026. Source
Parking with a rental car
No municipal meter scheme was found for Bávaro or Punta Cana, so parking comes with the hotel, the plaza or the beach access. The road from the airport to Bávaro, Macao and Uvero Alto has no toll booth (via GetCar). Source
Tolls towards Bayahibe
DOP 100 for a car at the Coral 2 booth, km 52 of the Autopista del Coral, and the same at Coral 1, km 18. Source
Emergency numbers
911 for ambulance, fire and police. Outside Santo Domingo, UK travel advice also gives the tourist police: +1 809 200 3500. Source

Areas of Punta Cana

Bávaro beach with swimmers in the turquoise surf, people walking on the sand, a line of palm trees and a boat offshore
Photo: Oleg Yunakov, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Bávaro

The coast from Cabeza de Toro to Macao, where hotels rose along the shore and Bávaro itself grew into a service centre with malls, supermarkets, banks and clinics. It suits a first beach holiday with shops within reach, less so a stay away from the resort strip.

Punta Cana airport
about 19 km
The beach
under 1 km
Playa Macao
about 20 km

Car and parking

No municipal meter scheme was found for Bávaro on an official page (via GetCar), so parking comes with the hotel, the plaza or the beach access; ask before booking. The Boulevard Turístico from the airport has no toll booth (via GetCar).

Punta Cana Village

A village beside the airport, planned by the Punta Cana Group: low office buildings on the main avenue, side streets of gated communities with houses to the east and small apartment buildings to the west, and shops near the airport. The public beach, Playa Blanca, is about 3.5 km away by road. It suits a longer stay or an early flight, less so a beach at the door.

Punta Cana airport
about 1 km
Playa Blanca
about 3.5 km
Cap Cana
about 10 km

Car and parking

The side streets are gated communities, so ask the host how a guest's car gets in and where it parks. No municipal meter scheme was found (via GetCar), and the airport is about 1 km away by road.

Yachts moored at the marina in Cap Cana, in front of cream-coloured town houses with red tiled roofs
Photographed in 2011. Photo: uira (Flickr), CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Cap Cana

A private development of about 120 square kilometres south of Punta Cana Village, with hotels, homes and a marina, and Juanillo and Api beaches. It suits a hotel or villa stay inside a private development.

Punta Cana airport
about 11 km
Playa Juanillo
under 1 km
Bávaro
about 26 km

Car and parking

Cap Cana's own guide lists car, golf cart, bike and e-scooter hire, a fuel station at Marina Cap Cana Norte open daily, a 24-hour road assistance team and a flat taxi rate within Cap Cana. Whether a visitor without a booking may drive in is unverified as of September 2026 (via GetCar).

A wave washing onto the pale sand of Playa Macao, with turquoise water and a few swimmers further out
Photographed in 2016. Photo: Carolinarondon, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Uvero Alto and Macao

The north end of the resort coast, where all-inclusive hotels stand along the beaches of Uvero Alto, with Playa Macao, popular with local visitors and surfers, about 9 km to the south. It suits an all-inclusive stay about 25 km from Bávaro by road; evenings out mean a drive.

Punta Cana airport
about 41 km
Playa Macao
about 9 km
Bávaro
about 25 km

Car and parking

The Boulevard from the airport reaches Macao and Uvero Alto with no toll booth, and Macao is a public beach with no fee published for its car park (via GetCar).

Leaning coconut palms and white sand on the beach at Bayahibe, with boats moored in the calm bay
Photo: Oleg Yunakov, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Bayahibe and Dominicus

A town on the Caribbean coast, founded as a fishing village in 1874 and now a tourist destination, with Playa Dominicus next door. It is the gate to the Cotubanamá national park and the boats to Saona. It suits a base on the south coast, less so a short stay near the airport.

Punta Cana airport
about 69 km
Playa Dominicus
about 5.5 km
Bávaro
about 82 km

Car and parking

About an hour from the airport on the Autopista del Coral, through the Coral 2 booth and, depending on the exit, Coral 1, at DOP 100 each for a car (via GetCar).

Guides

Where to stay

Where to stay in Punta Cana with a car: the areas compared

The resort coast runs from Cap Cana, south of the airport, to Uvero Alto, about 41 km north of it by road. The areas differ in what lies outside the hotel: a service town, a planned village, a private development or a line of all-inclusive resorts. Bayahibe, founded as a fishing village on the south coast, is the base farthest away, at about 69 km.

Photo: Oleg Yunakov, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons

Questions

Which part of Punta Cana suits a first visit?

Bávaro, the coast from Cabeza de Toro to Macao, about 19 km from the airport by road. As hotels rose along the coast, it became a service centre with malls, supermarkets, banks and clinics. Cap Cana, about 11 km from the airport, suits a stay inside a private development.

What taxes are added to a hotel or villa in Punta Cana?

ITBIS at 18% on hotels, villas and tourist apartments, and hotels add a legal 10% tip to guests' bills. No separate per-night tourist tax was found as of September 2026.

Does a visitor need to fill in anything before flying?

Yes. Every traveller completes the free E-Ticket online, for arrival and again for departure, and shows it to the airline. The USD 10 tourist card and the USD 20 departure tax are included in air fares.

Is parking paid in Punta Cana?

No municipal meter scheme was found for Bávaro or Punta Cana on an official page (via GetCar), so parking comes with the hotel, the plaza or the beach access. Ask the hotel or host how parking works before booking.