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With an aggressive vaccination plan, the Dominican Republic is aiming to be the safest destination in the Caribbean according to the Ministry of Tourism. Tourism Minister David Collado said the goal is to have 70 percent of Dominicans over the age of 18 vaccinated before the end of the year. That accounts for 7.8 million Dominican residents being vaccinated which will help boost the confidence of international tourists traveling to the island.
“As we achieve collective immunity, the confidence of international visitors will be strengthened with the guarantees that the Dominican Republic will be positioned as the safest destination in the Caribbean to those who visit us,” said Collado.
110 Kilograms of vaccines arrived in the Dominican Republic on February 15 which is part of a 3 phase plan to vaccinate the population. The Caribbean island has already purchased 21 million vaccines which will be enough to inoculate every resident.
The Tourism Minister highlighted that the Dominican Republic has already been a tourism success story. Along with Mexico, it’s one of the only countries in the world that allows travelers to enter without testing or quarantines. Even with an open door policy for tourists, the Dominican Republic has seen its daily cases of Covid-19 declining.
Free Medical Insurance For Tourists
The Dominican Republic is currently offering free medical insurance for all tourists who visit the island until April 30. The program has already been extended once and it’s likely to be extended again with the success of the tourism restart.
The free travel insurance covers:
- Emergencies
- Covid-19 treatment
- Ambulatory care
- Hospitalizations
- Medicine
- Lodging for extended stays due to an infection
- Flight changes due to an infection
How To Enroll For The Free Insurance
All tourists are automatically covered once they check into their hotel. There is no action required by the traveler to activate the insurance which is fully covered by the Dominican Republic government.
“The free assistance plan has been a success, as it contributes to position ourselves worldwide as a safe tourist destination, where all kinds of experiences can be enjoyed with the peace of mind that there is a perfectly prepared medical system to attend to visitors in in case of any eventuality and at no cost to them,” David Collado added.
Hotels and Resorts in the Dominican Republic Offering Covid Tests
The easiest way to get a test performed is right inside the resort or hotel you are staying at. The Tourism Ministry is working alongside the Health Ministry to ensure that all major hotel chains in the country have enough Antigen tests to offer to their American and British guests, free of charge. Canadian tourists need the PCR type test, which is also available for a fee at some resorts.
Here are some of the hotel brands and chains offering testing.
Entry Requirements For The Dominican Republic
All passengers entering or leaving the Dominican Republic must fill out the E-ticket online form. This electronic entry/exit form is required for all tourists.
Passengers will fill out the E-ticket form before entering the country and once again before leaving. Each time it will generate a QR code that the traveler must have handy at the airport for scanning.
Some arriving travelers may be randomly selected for rapid Covid-19 breath tests.
The Dominican Republic reported 130,093 international arrivals in January which was 55,000 less than December. The island had seen strong tourism recovery numbers in the last quarter of 2020 before seeing a decline in January as new variants of Covid-19 emerged.
Read More:
Travel Insurance That Covers Covid-19
Countries That Have Reopened To American Tourists
COVID-19 Entry Requirements By Country
Traveler Alert: Don’t Forget Travel Insurance For Your Next Trip!
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This article originally appeared on TravelOffPath.com
Justin R
Monday 22nd of February 2021
We just returned from Punta Cana February 17th after seven days, added on a day to our trip because everything was perfect, virus awareness and safety is taken more serious than in the US. Each day in the US our family of four goes four different directions doing "essential duties" so as far as I see it the four of us all headed one direction on vacation limited the variables of coming into contact with the virus. Great job DR and Hard Rock Punta Cana.