The hurricane season starts in August, and goes to November, with the bulk of Hurricanes in September and October.

We are fortunate in our position to be a rare direct hit, due to the fact that the leeward islands, Puerto Rico and the East side of the Dominican Republic are all in the way before hurricanes hit us.  We are also protected by the mountains.

The upside to Hurricanes is the waves.  We are expecting 20 ft waves with this hurricane, which makes for some outrageous surfing conditions for those brave enough to bear the conditions.  And for the really insane, the kitesurfing can be epic.

hurricane earl misses Cabarete

Now the Toronto to Puerto Plata flights are year round, and they have added flights to Samana, and La Romana, as well as the current flights to Punta Cana and Puerto Plata.

This is great news for Canadians who want to come down and kitesurf through our windest season – which is the summer- as previously Canadians had to fly via Miami during the summer months.

More and more the Dominican Republic is becoming an easier destination for kiteboarders and for fitness lovers, as it’s such an easy vacation for those in Canada.

This is also great news for Dominican kiteboarding compeditors, as they no longer need a trasit visa through other coutries when going to Brasil to compete.  Now they can fly direct as well.

For more information, check out GOL airlines

guestroom bathroom

Here are some quick photos of the penthouse.  It is a 3 bedroom, 2.5 bathroom condo, with the best view of kite beach around.

The third bedroom is small, with a single bed.  The other two rooms have en suite bathrooms.  The kitchen and common area are all open space, offering fantastic entertaining opportunities.

The balcony overlooks the beach, and is a great place to relax and watch all the action going on.

view of the kitchen and common area

the 10 ft dining table

half the balcony

the view from the balcony

main bedroom

guest room

The hotel is full, the restaurant is hosting a bbq with a live band, the gym has 3 classes a day and people working out in between, the yoga loft has 3 full time instructors, the kite lounge is one of the busiest in Cabarete – it’s all coming together.

It’s been a long journey to bring the hotel to where it is.  When we first took over, it was in rough shape.  Any place that is on the beach requires a lot of love, and this place was lacking a lot of love.  The two years it’s taken to turn things around have been a challenge on many fronts, and it’s true what they say – that which doesn’t knock you down, only makes you stronger.

Extreme is much stronger now that it’s ever been.  With all the things happening here, it’s become a kiteboarding vacation like no other.  There is nothing in Cabarete or the Caribbean that compares to eXtreme in terms of what we have to offer, location, activities,  fun factor or it’s ultra cool vibe.  Guests don’t come to Cabarete and find eXtreme, they come to eXtreme and find Cabarete.   And almost all come back for more.

Thank you to all who have helped us make it this far, and thanks to all the loyal friends of eXtreme who have been there with us and remain.  eXtreme is and will always be a great time.

Our friends up at Taino Organic Farms, in loz brazos, are putting together the Dominican Republic’s first full sustainable organic farm.

It is being built as we speak, and Farmer Paul will build on the current organic farm to expand into a variety of other produce to supply the organic vegetable delivery, the Saturday’s farmer’s market and the Funky Carp restaurant in eXtreme hotel Cabarete.

Farmer paul brings 30 years of organic farming knowledge, along with contacts from all around the world. He spend a lot of time in Vancouver, Canada, as well as Hawaii farming heirloom vegetables including tomatoes, cucumbers, squash, beans, leaf vegetables and more. When combined with the rare exotic trees, Taino Oraganic Farms is quickly becoming the premier producing farm of organic produce here on the North Coast of the Dominican Republic.

Come on by the Funky Carp at eXtreme Cabarete to sample some of the produce, or make an appointment to visit Taino Organic farms – it ties in well with any Cabarete kiteboard vacation. There is lots to see including a wide variety of bamboo, a great river to swim in, or just relax and take in the chill country living. There is even a distillery on site, so you’re sure to have a good time.

As soon as there is enough bamboo to harvest, they will be building small Cabanas for guests who want to spend the night.    This will be the only true eco tourism lodge in the Dominican Republic, as it will be fully built in a sustainable method.

It started while figrefighter Allie was on her way back from visiting the farm.  As we drove past the sign for Cerdo Asado (Roasted Pig), the though came to mind – why don’t we have that for dinner.   As soon as we got back to the hotel we started to ask the other kiteboarders who was in for dinner with us, and everyone started to say yes.

Typically the guests here at eXtreme Cabarete end up eating together in the restaurants as a group.  At the end of a kitesurfing day, you’ll hear people asking each other what they are up to, as many of the solo travelers make instant friends  here as it’s such a social place to stay.  It part of what makes staying here so much fun, and it’s a great way to meet and find out what’s going on in town.  It’s normal for many restaurants to smile with relief as the eXtreme Van or the gang shows up, as there will often be 20 or 30 kiteboarders and surfers looking to eat… but it can make for long waits!

So as you can imagine, the list of people who wanted to join us for the Dominican feast grew quickly.  And then the guests from the neighboring hotels stared to hear the list of kiteboarding holiday makers grew and grew – until voila, instant part at the eXtreme cabarete restaurant, the Funky Carp.

The Funky Carp was gracious enough to help us throw the party, with their staff staying late.  The icing on the cake  was that one of our Norweigan guests had her birthday, and her brother organized a cake (or 3 cakes) for her, so we all sang happy birthday and enjoyed desert!

After the meal, everyone relaxed to allow the huge feast to digest, but not for long.  Tonight the crew headed out for some dancing in town, as the music was played loud at Onos.

It’s hard to beat all the fun that people have here at eXtreme, and this was just one more example why it’s the ultimate place to stay on your next kiteboarding vacation!

So far they are having a blast.  All 4 of them (with 2 more firefighters on their way) are kiteboarding every day, as well as working out in the gym and doing a yoga class to start the day.  For firefighters who have to keep in shape, it is the perfect place.

enjoying her kiteboarding vacation

“Last year was so fantastic, that we didn’t even consider any other kitesurfing destination” – Trish, the cute redhead you’ll see out kiteboarding on kite beach.

And it’s not just kite beach that they came for, it’s the surf in encuentro in the mornings, the nightlife (they are firefighers after all) and the rest of the Dominican Republic they are here.  They are going to enjoy a few road trips to explore the countryside.  Top of their list of places to see is the waterfalls (again), Samana, and maybe even a kiteboarding trip out to Monte Criste.

trish's 24th

Watch for them in town, as they are sure to have a good time.  We could not be happier to have them back, as they lift everyone’s spirits.

It’s also nice to know that we have some of Canada’s top trained safety professionals on site, should anything happen!

The Bus

“Transporte Papagayo” is  a maroon colour bus with PUERTO PLATA – SAMANA writen on the windshield.  The North Coast Bus route leave Puerto Plata at 6:45 a.m. from the front of the Brugal  Hospital in Puerto Plata.   It passes by Sosua around 7:00a.m, and will stop to pick up passengers in front of  Playero Supermarket,  before continuing on to  Nagua.  It will arrive in  Sanchez around 9:30a.m. Get off in Sanchez if you want to head to Las Terrenas.   The Bus continues along the Samana Peninsula and ends in Samana at 10:30a.m.   The route back to to Puerto Plata lleaves at 2:00.p.m.

Las Terrenas is about a 45 minute drive from Samana City.

Contact the driver 809) 749-6415(Spanish only) for his schedule.

Another option for the route to Las Terennas is “Transporte El Canario” or the “Chicken Bus”.  This bus is  light blue colour, but it  don’t have a daily route. Instead, the owner drives it whenever the owner whants or needs to .

“Transporte El Canario”  also stops  in Sosua to pick up more at Playero Supermarket.

The  phone number  for “Transporte El Canario” is (809) 291-5594.

The third option is the “Colibri” bus, from  Puerto Plata to Samana,  departing  from Puerto Plata early in the morning from the Hospital in POP.

There are also some Caribe tour buses leaving puerto plata for samana, best to contact them directly.

Wesjet now has a non stop flight direct from Toronto to Samana.  Samana is about 2 hours away by taxi, and is in itself a beautiful kitesurf holiday destination.  This is where the whales come to mate every year, in the beautiful protected Samana Bay.

The new flight schedule from Toronto is on Saturdays to the lovely white sand beaches of Samana.  The coconut palm trees wind up the mountain as a backdrop for your stunning kiteboarding vacation, and it serves as a perfect night or couple day stop on your way to Cabarete.

More and more kiteboarders are discovering the entire island of Hispanolia as fantastic hoidays destination.

And with the new direct flight from Montreal to Punta Cana, the ease of access to the island just keeps getting better.