Las Terrenas: Paradise FoundBill Piatt

Villa Clarissa 4, Ave Pedro Francisco Bono, Las Terrenas

A Decade-Long Quest for Living Abroad:

10 Key Criteria

Beachside with Mountains & Trees

Affordable Restaurants & Cafes

Welcoming Cosmopolitan Community

Relatively Undiscovered

Ease of Access

Path of Progress

Quality Construction Providing Value for Money

Foreigner-Friendly Government & People

Active Lifestyle

Access to Healthcare

Explored Belize, Honduras, Nicaragua,

Costa Rica, Panama, Ecuador & Spain

Too HOT, or Too COLD

Some Countries were awesome (like Ecuador), but just too far away

Many Cute Towns, But Without Good Grocery Stores

Two-Dimensional Cultures: Anglo/Gringo & Local

Too many Tourists (Cruise Ships) with Too Many Touristy Restaurants & Shops

What Do You Do with Your Spare Time (other than just drink & socialize)?

Pacific Ocean is Too Wild & the Tides are Enormous

Caribbean Islands Tend to Have a Sargassum Problem

Some Real Estate Markets Just Feel Too “Frothy”

Current Government May be Friendly, but Who Knows What Comes Next?

Is this really where we want to LIVE?!...

How We Ended up in Las Terrenas

After a particularly unpleasant trip to another island in Jan/Feb 2016, I just

looked for where I could go with an unused about-to-expire Delta ticket.

Spent a few days in Santo Domingo, marveling at the history here

Hopped on an “Espresso Bus” to Las Terrenas to see what all the chatter

was about.

Within three days, I was hooked.

My wife thought I was crazy.

I talked her into coming, and within

48 hours SHE was hooked, too!

Beachside with Mountains & Trees

Some of the most beautiful beaches on earth, many

that are accessible only by boat (reduces crowding!)

Surrounded by mountains with gorgeous vistas &

waterfalls

Samana Peninsula has more Palm Trees per square

mile than anywhere else in the Caribbean!

Affordable Restaurants & Cafes

Literally hundreds of excellent owner-operated restaurants

French, Italian, Dominican, Japanese, Mexican, German & Fusion Cuisine

Three course “Prix Fixe” gourmet French luncheon from $7 per person

Highest end, world class dining along the beach averages about $30 pp

Dominican BBQ Chicken dinner in town for $4-5 per person

Did I mention Shopping??

Welcoming, Cosmopolitan Community

Large cadres of full and part time residents that

probably outnumber “tourists”

Social life is very active, including many impromptu

gatherings & events

Everyone is welcome! Even if you weren’t invited…

Where else can you go to the grocery store & hear 5

different languages spoken in 30 minutes?!

Large numbers of Expats are married to Dominicans,

creating a most interesting cultural fusion

Relatively Undiscovered

Las Terrenas has an aura of being farther off

the beaten track than it really is.

Though fairly well known to Europeans and to

a lesser degree Canadians, it is virtually

unknown to people from the US (that don’t

subscribe to LIOS)

Most activity and growth is occurring

“organically” without large infusions of

external funding (good news!)

NO CRUISE SHIPS!

A small semi-sleepy little town just far enough

away to dissuade the lazy from looking.

A place where the living is easy…

Ease of Access

El Catey airport is less than 30 minutes away.

SDQ (Santo Domingo) airport is less than 2

hours on a very civilized, well-maintained &

lightly used toll road.

SDQ is easily reached in about 7 hours from

Raleigh, NC (our primary airport) & costs

between $400-$600 depending on the

season & class of service

SDQ is a short 2-hour flight from MIA, 3-hour

flight from ATL, or 3.5-hour flight from NYC

Path of Progress

First all-year road was built in 1969, fell apart & re-paved in 1989 & 2010

Las Terrenas first had town-wide electricity in 1994

El Catey Airport opened in 2006

New Toll Road to Santo Domingo completed in 2008

Road along Playa Las Ballenas paved in 2011

Beachfront Promenade on Playa Bonita completed in 2014

Quality Construction Providing Value for

Money

Concrete construction, designed to be earthquake &

hurricane proof

French, Italian, British, Canadian & Dominican

General Contractors, all accustomed to building for a

discriminating market

Cross-pollination of European & Dominican cultures

results in businesses with extraordinary customer-

service focus & access to local artisans

Development projects tend to be smaller, allowing

owners more control over the maintenance &

upkeep of properties, enhancing value

Prices are very low relative to other Caribbean

locations that offer less quality – roughly $200/square

foot, including land, for a modern villa

Property management industry is strong, competitive

& professional

Foreigner-Friendly Government & People

The Dominican Republic was one of the first

countries in the world to create Free Trade

Zones.

Ministry of Tourism focuses on attracting a

variety of tourists by creating alternative

zones for development (eg Punta Cana for

Golf, Cabarete for Kite Boarding, Las Terrenas

for easy living, etc).

New Residency & citizenship options have

made the DR a very attractive option for off-

shoring.

Government is stable & conservative in its

management of the country.

Active Lifestyle

A completely walkable community, from one end

to the other.

Organized mountain bike treks weekly

Kite Board, Surf, Kayak, Ride Horseback, Fish, Sail,

Hike, Swim…

Lots of leisure activities without spending big $$$

Healthcare In Las Terrenas

New International Clinic Opened in 2014

English-speaking doctors

Most hospitals accept US & European Health

Insurance (Medicare is US-ONLY, though)

Medical Helicopter Service to Santo

Domingo

World-Class specialists in Santo Domingo,

though not in all specialties

Certainly sufficient for the relatively healthy

Not Just a Great Place to Visit…

A Wonderful Place to LIVE!!

Great karma

Excellent Restaurants & Cafes

Fabulous Grocery Stores

Customer Service Culture

Cosmopolitan Community

La Dolce Vita!!

Las Terrenas Conisists of Five Beaches,

Each With Its Own Character

Bill Piatt

Sans Souci in Las Terrenas

Villa Clarissa 4, Playa Las Ballenas

Ave Francisco Pedro Bono

Las Terrenas, Samanabpiatt@me.com

WhatsApp: 703.887.7177