Since the reopening of the tourism sector after the Covid restrictions on the island of Dominican Republic, located in the Greater Antilles Archipelago, the province of Samaná has managed to position itself as one of the favourites for tourists, with significant demand in Eco tourism. In the Province is the Los Haitises National Park, one of the crown jewels of the Dominican Republic’s national park system. Eco tourists can enjoy a hike, mountain bike ride, kayak, canoe or even take a boat trip down the rivers to discover mangrove forests, small islands, limestone formations, a variety of birds or view pictographs in the caves made by the Indigenous Taíno Indians.
This ecological paradise is a huge nature conservation area with 98km2 of mangrove forests. Mangroves can be magical places that nurture our estuaries and fuel our nature-based economies. In 1999 Michael Sweeney, a then tour operator with First Choice holidays was fortunate enough to work in The Dominican Republic. Based in the Southern resorts of closer to Santa Domingo he arrived in spring 1999 just after Hurricane George had wreaked havoc in the South and destroyed parts of the infrastructure, villages, and tour routes in late 1998. His tour operators specialist tour company had to work hard to promote locally based tours to include educational visits of discovery rather than the standard excursions. It was an enormous success and gave tourist a chance to visit local villages, schools, workplaces including the cigar factories, farms, orchards, and coffee plantations and even the opportunity to talk to locals in their own homes to see how they cook, live and sleep. It was a revelation and an insight into how ecotourism became a vital part of the island’s tours in the future.
The hurricane destroyed many areas of the mangroves which cannot restore themselves. Los Haitises national park has many open areas of mangrove that need reforesting. Mangroves are especially important to the ecosystem as they help stabilize coastline ecosystem and prevent erosion and absorb storm surge impacts during extreme weather events such as hurricanes. Mangrove forests also provides habitat and refuge to a wide array of wildlife such as birds, fish, invertebrates, mammals, and plants.
Ecotourists can play a part and combine a fantastic educational day out and help with Mangrove Reforestation in Los Haitises. Local tour companies provide a full itinerary which includes a varied day out combining the above activities. Joining the tour guides by kayak you pass by the mangrove’s swamps and Cano Hondo River where you see plenty of mangrove seeds washed up by the sea. The seeds found on this area are red mangroves.
Once around fifty seeds per person are collected, you travel to the open spots in the national park which need to be reforested. Tourists are shown how to plant the mangroves and offered an explanation as to why it is so important, before having the opportunity to plant the mangroves themselves which can provide huge satisfaction knowing you have helped reforest a beautiful part of the Dominican Republic. The ecotour then provides a relaxed opportunity to swim in the caves where you can witness the pictographs made by the Tainos people who lived in the area over six hundred years ago. On the way back be sure to look to the water to spot Manatees, crustaceans and dolphins rounding off a fantastic day of sustainable ecotourism in one of Dominican Republics most important national parks.
Written by Michael Sweeney, 02/02/2022.