Local providers in Samaná

A massage cabin on the road to La Playita, Las Galeras, run by Marciely Batista, a masseuse and physiotherapist. The menu runs from short fifteen-minute sessions — general, back only, or facial — up to half-hour and full-hour treatments: relaxing, knot release, therapeutic, sports, Thai, reflexology and manual lymphatic drainage. Half-hour sessions cover the back of the body, the hour covers all of it. You choose whether the massage happens inside the cabin or outside on the beach, and she can take two people at a time. Spanish and Italian.

Tauro Tours Samaná is a local operator based in Samaná town. Its half-day buggy tour runs off-road through the countryside to Playa Rincón, with stops at Caño Frío and a typical Dominican house on the way, and ends with a buffet lunch at the ranch.

Las Terrenas Sailing Club sails catamarans out of Las Terrenas. The five-hour day sail runs along the coast past beaches and coves that are hard to reach any other way; the same trip also runs as a sunset sail, and there are lessons for anyone who wants to take the helm themselves.

Forsage rents cars, quads, scooters and buggies in Las Terrenas, from a base in the Playa Bonita / El Mosquito area. The fleet covers compact cars, SUVs and Jeeps, ATVs in a range of engine sizes, new scooters, and buggies sized for families and groups. Forsage also runs guided ATV excursions through the hills, rural back roads and beaches around Samaná. The company works mainly with visitors and says it holds the permits, licences and insurance required to rent vehicles in the Dominican Republic. Questions and bookings go straight to its WhatsApp.

Riding stable in Las Galeras. Rudy’s Rancho runs five routes out to the beaches around the village — Playa Aserradero and Playa Grande, Playita, Playa Madama, Playa Colorada, and Playa Bremen with Playa Rincón — from an hour there and back up to three. Every route can be done on horseback or on foot, and the price and the duration are the only things that change between them. Non-alcoholic drinks are included; food is not. Up to twenty people per outing, and not suitable for children under six. English, Spanish, French and German.

Rancho Romana Ecolodge Park is a family-run park in the El Limón countryside, with nature trails through the jungle, farm animals and river pools. It is an easy half day away from the beaches, and a good choice for families travelling with children.

LT'Kite is Las Terrenas' premier kitesurfing and wingfoil school, operating since 2007 from the sheltered Portillo lagoon. IKO-certified instructors offer personalized lessons for all skill levels and provide complete equipment rentals, with instruction available in French, English, and Spanish.

Angelina teaches yoga and aerial yoga in Las Galeras, outdoors and close to the sea, in a quiet corner of the Samana peninsula. Mat classes work on breathing, mobility and stretching at a pace you can follow whatever your level, while the aerial classes use a suspended hammock to take the weight off the spine and open up postures that are hard to reach on the floor. Classes run about an hour, in small private groups, so a first-timer and a regular can be in the same session. She teaches in English and Spanish, and times are agreed on WhatsApp.

Andrés is a certified local guide (AGTUGE) with 15 years of experience, leading hikes and boat trips out of Las Galeras. His days cover the beaches no road reaches — Playa Frontón, Madama, Rincón and the seven hidden beaches — as well as Cabo Cabrón National Park, the El Limón and El Castaño waterfalls, the Loma Pilón de Azúcar summit, Los Haitises, and whale watching in Samaná Bay from January to March. Most days start in the morning at Playita Las Galeras.

Private driver and airport-transfer service based in Samaná, offering door-to-door transfers to El Catey (AZS), Santo Domingo and Punta Cana airports plus point-to-point trips.

Joel is a local taxi driver based in Samaná town. He runs airport transfers from El Catey (AZS), Santo Domingo, Puerto Plata, Santiago, La Romana and Punta Cana, plus trips around town, beach runs and excursions across the peninsula. The fare is agreed before you set off, and he picks you up where and when you say. Speaks Spanish.

Swiss photographer Jen and her partner Lorenzo shoot outdoor lifestyle sessions around Las Terrenas — families, couples, solo travellers and maternity — with drone footage available. French, English, Spanish and German spoken.

CocoKite Fishing & Wingfoil offers private boat excursions, fishing and water sports in Las Terrenas. Our main activity is private boat trips, personalized for each group: fishing, boat rides, beaches, snorkeling, or different combinations to enjoy a day at sea. We also specialize in Wingfoil, Paddle Foil and Surf Foil, with lessons for beginners and experienced riders. We work with small groups and private experiences to offer a personalized service tailored to each client. We speak French, Spanish and English.

Samaná Zipline is a treetop zipline park in the rainforest of El Valle. The course has 12 lines and more than 7,400 feet of cable, up to 350 feet above the canopy and at speeds of up to 40 mph, starting from a pirate-ship platform, with views across the jungle to the sea.

Ondina Sosa runs Ondiyoga from a private studio in Las Terrenas, where she gives massage and teaches yoga. Two treatments, both 75 minutes: a relaxing anti-stress massage, and a Thai yoga massage, for which she trained in Cabarete and at the Lulyani School in France. Group yoga classes take up to six people. All three can happen at the studio or wherever you are staying — a villa, a hotel, or the beach — for a small travel supplement. She works in Spanish, English and French, and takes cash or bank transfer.

A massage kiosk on Calle Jose Francisco Pena Gomez in Las Terrenas, built around one idea: working stress out of the body through deep relaxation massage that goes after tension where it has settled. Four treatments, all of them an hour — relaxing massage, deep relaxation massage, deep tissue massage and foot reflexology. One person at a time, so the session is unhurried and the pressure is adjusted as it goes. Cards are accepted. Massage is not given to anyone with a fever, inflammation, high blood pressure, an infectious illness, open wounds, burns or a recent fracture, so mention any of these when you book.

HugXander Transport runs transfers on the Samaná peninsula.

Family-run eco-tour agency in Las Galeras, operating since 2008. Joel & Ludi Excursions focuses on small-group, authentic experiences across the Samana peninsula, away from mass tourism, using their own vehicles and boats. Offerings include buggy and quad tours through the region's largest off-road circuit, catamaran and boat trips to the area's best beaches, whale watching in season, ziplining, waterfall hikes, camping on Playa Fronton, sunset catamaran outings, and fishing trips. Meals are cooked directly on the beach for guests.

A highly-rated taxi service based in Las Terrenas that provides airport transportation and local rides. With an excellent customer rating, they offer reliable ground transportation solutions for travelers in the Samaná region.

Katrin Kocsis is a portrait and lifestyle photographer based in Las Terrenas. Her vacation sessions for couples, families and solo travellers are shot in natural light on the beaches around town, documentary-style: real moments rather than posed ones.

Nadin works out of Punta Popy in Las Terrenas and has been giving massages for more than ten years. Her sessions mix Thai massage, deep tissue, sports therapy and relaxation, and each one is put together around what your body needs that day rather than following a fixed routine. Relaxation massage runs 30 or 60 minutes; deep tissue and sports work go from 45 up to 90 minutes. Alongside the massages there are spa rituals — face glow, hands, exfoliating body glow, and a foot and lower leg treatment — plus a two-and-a-half-hour package that combines massage, full body exfoliation and a deep facial. She also travels to villas and hotels. Sessions are booked on WhatsApp, in English.

Maome is a salon and spa on Blvd. del Atlantico in Las Terrenas, and most of what it offers travellers happens somewhere else: the therapist comes to your villa, hotel or apartment. Nine treatments, an hour each — a muscle-releasing relaxing massage, a tissue-oxygenating massage, hot stones, aromatherapy for two, lymphatic drainage, prenatal massage, a four-hands massage with two therapists, a facial and foot reflexology. The published prices are for the treatment where you are staying; rates at the salon itself are different and are quoted on WhatsApp. Beauty salon services are handled separately.

Elewis Tours is a Samaná-based travel agency and tour operator licensed by the Ministry of Tourism. It runs the classic trips from the port of Samaná: Cayo Levantado, Los Haitises National Park with Caño Hondo, and humpback whale watching from January to March, with transport from Las Terrenas available. Guides speak Spanish and English.

Taxi Samaná Caribe Tours is a local taxi and transfer service based in Santa Bárbara de Samaná, covering town trips, beach runs and airport transfers across the peninsula. The most frequent routes have listed fares, and trips run anywhere in the Dominican Republic. Speaks Spanish.

Canopy adventure park above Samaná Bay run by Runners Adventures: 10 ziplines across 20 platforms, with lines from 85 to 450 metres and views over Cayo Levantado. Includes equipment, training and hotel pick-up.

Juan Silva is an Argentine photographer and videographer who has lived in Las Terrenas for six years. He shoots portrait and sunset sessions in natural settings along the coast, and also does video and drone work. Sessions are built around the light and the place rather than studio poses.

Luigi runs a private taxi service in Samaná built around El Catey Airport (AZS), with arrivals and departures to Samaná town, Las Terrenas and Las Galeras. He also drives to and from the other main airports — Santo Domingo, Puerto Plata, Punta Cana, Santiago and La Romana. Speaks Spanish.

Samuel Almando Mercedes – Taxi Service We offer safe, comfortable, and reliable transportation, with responsible service and friendly customer care. Samuel Almando Mercedes is a taxi driver based in La Galera, providing regular taxi services, private transportation, and trips to various destinations. In addition to the La Galera route, we offer transportation to other routes and destinations according to each customer’s needs. Our goal is to provide a safe, punctual, and high-quality service, making every trip comfortable and convenient. 📍 Service from La Galera and various routes 🚕 Regular and private taxi service 🛣️ Transportation to different destinations 🤝 Safety, reliability, and excellent service

Family-run vehicle rental in Las Terrenas since 1998, based in Pueblo de los Pescadores. Cars, quads, buggies, scooters and motorcycles for exploring Samaná, with insurance included and 24/7 assistance. Service in Spanish, English and French.

Peninsula Tours is a Las Terrenas agency running day trips across the Samaná peninsula, most with pickup at your hotel. The list covers the El Limón waterfall on foot or on horseback, Los Haitises and Cayo Levantado by boat, the beaches of Frontón, Madama, Playita and Rincón with snorkelling, ATV and buggy rides, the El Valle zipline, and whale watching in season.

Viajar a Samaná is a private tour agency located facing the beach in Las Galeras, working with certified local guides for Spanish-speaking visitors. The excursions are private: a boat for two people to Playa Frontón and Madama, the seven hidden beaches on foot with a guide certified by the ministry of tourism and 15 years of experience, the El Limón waterfall by private taxi walking through the jungle and with a local guide, Playa Rincón and Caño Frío with private van service to do the tour, and a 12-day trip through Samaná, Dominican Republic with hotels and transfers included and a personal guide. Los Haitises is the only one done by shared boat.

A working equestrian center at La Barbacoa, in the hills above Las Terrenas, with rides out to the countryside, the forest and the beach. The hacienda works mainly with riders who have been on a horse before: horses are matched to what each rider can actually do, and the pace can open up to a canter or a gallop. There is a shorter walking ride for first-timers, and private lessons from eight years old. The team answers in French, Spanish and English.

Balance Spa Relax is a massage and wellness studio in Las Galeras, on the Samana peninsula, focused on relaxation and personalised body and facial care. The menu runs from deep tissue and relaxing massage to holistic and ancestral therapies - aromatherapy, ayurveda, volcanic hot stones and kobido - plus body rituals and Germaine de Capuccini facials. Couple treatments and in-villa service are available.

One of the best-known spas in Las Terrenas, and the widest treatment list in the area. Massage covers relaxing, deep tissue, wellness, hot stone, lymphatic drainage, prenatal, four-hand and couples sessions, so two people can be treated side by side. Beyond the massage table there are facial cleanses, the Noche Zen ritual, and hair braiding. With that many options it is worth saying what you are after when you write — a knot in the shoulder after a long flight and an hour of switching off are not the same treatment, and the team will point you to the right one.

Bia teaches yoga and gives massage in Las Terrenas.

Local travel planner specialized in Samaná, with in-depth knowledge of the peninsula, its culture, local customs and hidden gems. I help travelers design personalized, authentic and well-organized stays, with trusted recommendations and responsive support. Guests particularly value my local expertise, organization and personalized advice, helping them experience Samaná beyond the usual tourist spots.

Sunshine Holiday is a local operator in Las Galeras that has run boat trips to Playa Frontón, Playa Madama and Playa Rincón since 2018, with lunch cooked on the sand on the full-day version. It also runs quad days to Playa Rincón, the El Limón waterfall with a visit to a local family, an El Valle safari, and Los Haitises with Cayo Levantado by catamaran.

AyP Travel & Tours is a local tour operator in Las Galeras. It runs boat trips to Playa Frontón and Playa Madama, the seven-hidden-beaches hike that ends at Playa Rincón, quad and buggy days through the countryside, and catamaran trips to Los Haitises and Cayo Levantado. It also rents scooters and motorbikes for getting around Las Galeras on your own. Spanish spoken.

Boat trips out of Samaná town for the humpback whales in Samaná Bay, running every day from 10 January to 15 April. Two versions: a morning trip for the whales only, 9:15 to 12:45, and a full day that adds the afternoon on Cayo Levantado — Bacardi Island — with a buffet lunch and time on the beach, 9:15 to 4:30. Both include the sanctuary entrance fee and a specialist guide. Dominicans and residents get 15% off. A long-established local operator with one of the largest review counts on the peninsula.

Riding stable near El Limón, working with horses since 2015. Rancho Playa rides to the beaches — Estillero and El Limón — and does the El Limón waterfall on foot rather than on horseback. The beach rides run an hour and a half, one in the morning and one at sunset, for two to eight riders. The full day walks up to the waterfall, stops for lunch, and spends the afternoon in the saddle along the coast. There is a sand arena at the ranch for lessons and for riders starting out.

Mejores Excursiones Samaná is a local guide running private, flexible day trips around Samaná with hotel pickup. You pick the combination — the El Limón waterfall, the beaches of Frontón, Madama and Rincón by boat, Los Haitises and Cayo Levantado by catamaran — and the day is built around it. Some days add a visit to a traditional Dominican house and a cigar factory.

D'Guidde House Ranch runs horseback tours to the El Limón waterfall.

A rental shop in Samaná town with scooters, quads, buggies and cars. A scooter is the cheap, easy way between town, the beaches and the restaurants; a quad or a buggy is for the dirt roads beyond them. You collect the vehicle in Samaná and move around the peninsula on your own schedule, with no tour timetable. Spanish spoken.

Seaklub Las Terrenas is a PADI 5 Star dive centre inside the Bahia Principe Explore El Portillo resort in Las Terrenas, Samana. It is a small, welcoming centre run by people who dive for the love of it, working to PADI safety and quality standards. They cover the whole range: PADI Discover Scuba Diving for first-timers, certification courses at every level from PADI Scuba Diver and Open Water Diver up to Divemaster, and guided dives for certified divers on the reefs, rock formations and wrecks off Las Terrenas.

Adonis Tours & Rent a Car, trading as A&M Exclusive Adventures, rents vehicles and runs excursions from its own shop on Calle Duarte, opposite Ferreteria Acosta, in the centre of Las Terrenas. The fleet covers scooters and motorbikes, quads, golf carts, cars and SUVs, and buggies, hired by the day, the week or the season. They bring the vehicle to your hotel or villa anywhere on the Samaná peninsula and collect it at the end. They also run the El Limon waterfall tour by quad, with a local guide, horseback up to the falls, a coffee and cacao tasting, lunch and a stop at the beaches. One contact on WhatsApp for the vehicle, the delivery and the excursion. Open every day from 8:00 to 18:00.

Boat excursions from El Valle, the quiet bay on the north side of the peninsula — coastal trips, hidden beaches and fishing, run by a local skipper who knows the water.

Lorenzo drives a private taxi from Las Terrenas, 24 hours a day, across the Samaná peninsula and anywhere else in the country. There are no fixed routes or schedules: you choose the destination, the departure time and the stops along the way, which helps on the long drive from Santo Domingo. Speaks Spanish.

Ricardo Tours RD is run by a hiking guide known locally as El Senderista de Las Galeras. The walks follow the wild Atlantic coast: Boca del Diablo to Playa Frontón inside Cabo Samaná National Park, the three natural pools of Cabo Cabrón by boat and on foot, and a 4.6 km route linking seven virgin beaches that no road reaches.

Profundo Blue is a dive center in Las Terrenas offering scuba diving on the north coast of the Samaná peninsula.

A small spa on Calle Duarte, in the middle of Las Terrenas, a short walk from the beach and the restaurants. The core of the menu is three treatments: a one-hour relaxing massage, a one-hour knot-release massage for shoulders and back that have seized up, and forty-five minutes of foot reflexology. Nails are done here too — gel manicure and deep gel pedicure — which makes it a useful stop when you want a massage and your feet sorted in the same visit. The spa also does wood and plaster therapy, body contouring, deep facial cleansing and full-body exfoliation; those have no published price and are quoted on WhatsApp. Spanish and English.

Naomi Spa is an aesthetic and massage center located in Las Galeras offering spa treatments and wellness services. With a strong 4.8-star rating from customers, the facility provides relaxation and rejuvenation services in a convenient location near Playa Grande.

Un Amor Fotografía is a beach photographer based in Las Galeras who also works in Las Terrenas and on the beaches around Samaná. Sessions for couples, families and solo travellers are shot in natural light, around real moments rather than stiff poses.

Isla Verano Photography is a photography studio based in Las Galeras, Samaná, with more than fifteen years of work in the Dominican Republic, Mexico and Costa Rica. They shoot couples, families and individuals across the whole Samaná peninsula, as well as weddings and events, and they film video and drone footage. They also run one private tour of their own: a quad ride from Las Galeras to Playa Rincón with professional photography along the way and a shoot on the beach.

The spa inside Hotel Alisei, on Playa Las Ballenas in Las Terrenas, open to guests and to anyone else who books. The massage list runs to eleven treatments of 60 or 90 minutes, from relaxing and sports to lomi lomi, hot stones, four hands, pregnancy, senior, reflexology and a Vichy shower massage. Beyond the table there are organic and retinol facials, body scrubs and wraps, organic hair rituals, chromotherapy sessions, a private steam room and a jacuzzi, plus manicures and pedicures. Scrubs, wraps and hair rituals include thirty minutes of steam room, and several treatments have a two-person rate. Open 9:30am to 7pm; book at least an hour ahead.

Laura Bencosme, a 200-hour certified yoga teacher, teaches in Las Terrenas both privately and in a weekly group class. The private session is the main thing she does for visitors: she comes to your villa with mats and works with the whole group at once, up to six people, so a family or a group of friends practises together instead of splitting up. There is also a longer session combining yoga, relaxation and sound healing, given with Alma by Alexia. For anyone staying a while, the weekly group class in town is the easy way to keep a practice going. Private rates are for the group, not per person; the group class is per person.

Nano & Vega rents quads, buggies, motorbikes and scooters in Las Terrenas and runs guided quad and buggy tours.

Small local operator in Las Galeras running boat trips along the roadless side of the Samaná peninsula — Playa Frontón, Playa Madama, Las Tortugas, Playa Rincón and Playa Ermitaño — plus day trips to Los Haitises and Cayo Levantado and a buggy route through the countryside behind Las Galeras. Boats usually leave at 9:00 am and the return time is agreed on the day with the captain. Seafood lunch on the beach is an option on some of the trips.

Enoha Surf School teaches surfing at Playa Cosón, Las Terrenas.

Julio is a taxi driver in Samaná offering airport transfers and private tours. He covers all the main airports — Samaná El Catey (AZS), Santo Domingo (SDQ), Puerto Plata (POP), Santiago (STI), La Romana (LRM) and Punta Cana (PUJ) — and drives anywhere on the peninsula or across the Dominican Republic. Speaks Spanish.

Private taxi and airport transfers, based in Las Terrenas. For arrivals, four routes are covered — El Catey (AZS), Santo Domingo (SDQ), Puerto Plata (POP) and Punta Cana (PUJ) — booked in advance for the time your flight lands and priced per vehicle rather than per person. Once you are here, the same driver works as a regular taxi around town: the beach, dinner at Pueblo de los Pescadores, the supermarket, or the dark unpaved road back to your rental at night. He lives in Las Terrenas and is available most of the day, so a local ride can usually be arranged the same day and with little notice. Book the long transfers ahead with your flight number and arrival time; for a trip inside Las Terrenas, just message on WhatsApp.

A massage studio at Plaza El Paseo in Las Terrenas, run by a therapist who also travels out to villas and hotels. The menu covers therapeutic massage, deep tissue with trigger point work, and relaxing Swedish massage, in sessions of 30, 60 or 90 minutes. Back-to-back packages let groups of three to five book one treatment after another, in Las Terrenas or in Santa Barbara de Samana. Corporate wellness days, chair massage and bachelorette relaxation packages are quoted on request. Spanish and English.

Taxi Las Terrenas DR is a local taxi and transfer service in Las Terrenas with licensed drivers. It runs airport transfers from all six main Dominican airports, with pickup, plus trips around town and across the Samaná peninsula. Spanish spoken.

AMA Healing Touch is Ana Fernandez and Marcial Batista, a husband and wife team in Las Galeras. Marcial is the massage therapist; Ana is a yoga teacher and meditation guide who leads the breathing and the sound work. Every massage ends with 10 minutes of guided relaxation, aromatherapy and sound healing, which is what sets a session here apart from a plain massage. Eight massages on the menu, from relaxing and deep tissue to lymphatic drainage, reflexology and a couples massage with both of them working at once. Ana also teaches yoga - private classes, group classes and prenatal, at any level - and runs guided meditation with sound healing, and cacao ceremonies for small groups. They have a space at Hotel Villa Vida in Las Galeras and they also come to your villa or hotel. English and Spanish.

Boat excursion operator in Las Galeras, running from Los Aserraderos beach and the Hotel Altra. Its main trip is a day out to Playa Frontón, Playa Madama and Playa Rincón with snorkelling gear and lunch on the sand, capped at ten people per boat. It also runs a Polaris buggy route through the countryside behind Las Galeras, with a stop at Playa Rincón and Caño Frío. Departures are at 9:30 am and both trips are back by about 3:30 pm.

A spa with private treatment rooms on the Blvd. Turistico del Atlantico in Las Terrenas, which also sends therapists out to villas and hotels. Six massages, each at 60 or 90 minutes: relaxing, deep tissue, sports, knot release, therapeutic and hot stone. The same six can be done where you are staying, with the table and everything else brought to you. There is also an Amazonian Discovery line of facial and body treatments using Germaine de Capuccini products. The spa takes two people at a time, and for a group at a villa it can send several therapists at once, so nobody has to wait their turn. Book at least an hour ahead on WhatsApp.

Las Galeras Divers is a PADI dive centre in Las Galeras, diving some of the best-preserved sites on the Samaná peninsula, including the walls and pinnacles of Cabo Cabrón National Park. It teaches certification courses for beginners and guides dives for certified divers.

Anita is a private chef who cooks in villas, houses and other accommodation for couples, families and groups. She designs each menu to order, working with fresh ingredients and Dominican and Caribbean flavours, and handles everything from shopping and preparation to service and cleaning the kitchen afterwards. She also caters larger events, including birthdays, intimate weddings and company gatherings. A 50% deposit is required to confirm any booking, and large events need to be arranged at least 15 days in advance.

Transporte Turismo Ruben Arias is a private transfer service run by Ruben Dario Arias, a driver based in Santo Domingo. He drives a Toyota Sienna van that takes up to 5 passengers with their luggage, and covers the road between Santo Domingo and the Samana peninsula - Samana town, Las Terrenas and Las Galeras - as well as other destinations across the country. He also works with Hotel Billini in the Colonial Zone. Transfers are private, door to door, and arranged directly by WhatsApp. He attends in Spanish.