Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
people and go down in price as groups get larger and include an excellent three-course
picnic lunch.
Tody Tours
( 809-686-0882;
www.todytours.com
; Santo Domingo)
The only birdwatching-specific tour
company based in the DR. The expatriate American owner has more than 15 years' exper-
ience as a guide and charges US$200 per day plus expenses; all transportation, food and
accommodations are organized for you. Minimum bookings of one week are preferred.
BIRDWATCHING
TOP OF CHAPTER
Barahona
POP 62,054
Barahona is an unavoidable eyesore on an otherwise dramatically beautiful coast, full of
industrial smokestacks and of little interest to travelers. A growing number of quality,
good-value accommodations sit along the coastal road between here and Paraíso, making
it somewhat unavoidable when exploring the region. It's home to the only ATM until
Pedernales, so you'll need to come here to get cash; and it's also a necessary transfer point
if you're traveling by bus.
History
By Dominican standards, Barahona is a young city, founded in 1802 by Haitian general
L'Ouverture as a port to compete with Santo Domingo. For over a century, residents
mostly made their living taking what they could from the Caribbean Sea, but today fishing
accounts for only a small part of Barahona's economy. The dictator Rafael Trujillo
changed everything when he ordered many square kilometers of desert north of town con-
verted into sugarcane fields for his family's financial benefit. More than three decades
after his assassination, the thousands of hectares of sugarcane continue to be tended, only
now they are locally owned and benefit the community.
