Los Haitises National Park, Dominican Republic

By Karoline Urena • November 25, 2008

Los Haitises National Park (El Parque Nacional de Los Haitises) is a place to visit when traveling to Samana, Dominican Republic. Located in the Bay of Samana, but also took part of the provinces of Monte Plata and Hato Mayor, consists of 208 km. square of humid tropical vegetation, which allows visiting the park through their fabulous mangroves. Haitises means high land or land of mountains.

It is, without doubt, one of the most beautiful corners of the country, for its geological formation, its flora and fauna, rich in underground rivers, caves and islets.

It contains stunning landscape features such as the Bay of San Lorenzo and different keys, highlighting the Cayo of Birds, constantly inhabited of pelicans.

Los Haitises National Park in Samana is part of a Karst platform and is one of the best examples of this kind of geological formation in the Caribbean region.

Is the habitat for many species of migratory birds and native and an extensive area of mangroves and a complex system of caves and caverns where there are petroglyphs and pictographs with great historical and archaeological values.

Being near the coast, Los Haitises National Park contains a bird life with a multitude of varied species of endemic birds, native and migratory unique in the country.

Along the Bay of Samaná, Los Haitises National Park is known for the delicate ecological diversity of its coastal mangrove, the largest in the Dominican Republic. Through its 21 thousand hectares of park, rock formations, pictographs and petroglyphs, can be discovered in its three systems of caves.

The average temperature is 25 C with a humid climate and frequent rains in the two vital areas largest rain forest and tropical jungle. The parrots, owls and gannets can be observed along with the hutía.

Can be accessed only by water, starting from Sabana de la Mar and Samana, with prior permission from the Direction of the National Parks are organized tours on weekends.