Getting to Bahía de las Águilas

Why access is deliberately limited

Bahía de las Águilas sits inside Jaragua National Park, the largest protected area in the Dominican Republic, which also encompasses Laguna de Oviedo and Isla Beata. Development within the park is restricted, which is exactly why the beach has remained largely undeveloped while much of the Dominican coastline elsewhere has not.

This is not an oversight or a gap waiting to be filled — it is the intended state of a protected coastline, and the two access methods that exist today (boat and 4x4 track) reflect that deliberately limited approach rather than a lack of investment.

Any future increase in visitor numbers linked to CBJ opening would still need to work within the park's protected status, so travellers should not expect the beach itself to gain hotels, restaurants or paved parking simply because a nearby airport opens.

The boat route from La Cueva

La Cueva is a small fishing community on the coast near Cabo Rojo, and boats departing from there are the most commonly used way to reach Bahía de las Águilas today. This approach typically involves arranging a boat with a local operator or guide rather than a scheduled ferry service.

Because it depends on sea conditions and boat availability rather than a fixed timetable, this route works best when arranged with some flexibility built in, rather than treating it like a fixed-departure shuttle.

The overland track through the park

An alternative route follows an unpaved track through Jaragua National Park, generally requiring a 4x4 vehicle given the terrain, and is usually undertaken with a guide familiar with the park's access rules.

This route puts you inside the park boundary for longer than the boat option, passing through the kind of dry coastal forest and scrubland typical of Jaragua, before reaching the beach itself.

What CBJ is expected to change, and what it won't

Once CBJ opens, the intent behind siting it at Cabo Rojo is to shorten the overland journey from an airport to this coastline compared with today's route via Barahona or Santo Domingo. That is a reasonable expectation based on the project's stated purpose, but it is not the same as a confirmed transfer service, and no operator — including this one — can currently describe an exact pickup or drop-off arrangement between CBJ and Bahía de las Águilas.

What is unlikely to change is the boat-or-track access model onto the beach itself, since that reflects the park's protected status rather than the distance from the nearest airport. Even after CBJ opens, reaching Bahía de las Águilas will likely still mean transferring from a vehicle to a boat, or continuing on a 4x4 track, rather than driving straight onto the sand.

Register your interest in a CBJ-to-Bahía de las Águilas route on our advance interest list, and we will contact you once transfer options for this specific route are confirmed.

Questions we get on this

Can you drive directly to Bahía de las Águilas?

Not in a standard vehicle. Access today is by boat from La Cueva or by a rough 4x4 track through Jaragua National Park.

Are there hotels at Bahía de las Águilas?

No. The beach sits inside a national park where development is restricted, so there are no hotels directly on it.

Will CBJ opening mean you can drive straight onto the beach?

Unlikely. Even once CBJ opens, the beach's protected status means boat or 4x4 access is expected to remain the way in, though the overland approach to the wider coast should shorten.