At a signing ceremony at the PGA TOUR headquarters in Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida on 28 October 2015, the PGA TOUR and representatives of Puntacana Resort & Club announced that the Web.com Tour will be played in Punta Cana next year.
The Corales Puntacana Resort & Club Championship will be the Web.com Tour’s first tournament in the Dominican Republic as well as the first to be played on any of the Caribbean islands.
Frank Elias Rainieri signed the three-year agreement on behalf of Puntacana Resort & Club. The first of three annual tournaments will be played from 30 May-5 June 2016.
The Tom Fazio-designed “Corales” course at Puntacana Resort & Club will be the host venue.
Opened in 2010, the course plays along the natural cliffs, bays, ocean coves and the inland lakes and coral stone quarries of the Caribbean Sea. The layout features six oceanfront holes and culminates with its last three holes known as the “Devil’s Elbow”, with the striking 18th hole requiring a dramatic forced carry over the cliff-lined Bay of Corales.
The Corales Puntacana Resort & Club Championship will feature a 156-player field, with an eligibility component similar to that used at other Web.com Tour events in Latin America. The purse will be US$625,000.
Sport Link of Bogota, Colombia, organizers of two other Web.com Tour events in Bogota and Cartagena, Colombia will be managing the event.
It is expected to continue to strengthen the sport in the Latin American region.

Source: http://dr1.com/travelnews/archive/2015/tnews112415.html

The president of the Hotels & Tourism Projects Association in the East, Ernesto Veloz has predicted that for the first time, Punta Cana will have hosted three million visitors by year’s end. He said that another 4,000 hotel rooms are under construction. Veloz is forecasting that this will be one of the best seasons of the past 10 years with an approximate 10% growth rate this year. The Dominican Republic is expected to surpass the five million-tourist-mark this year.

Source: http://dr1.com/travelnews/archive/2015/tnews112415.html

The only water sports competition featuring surfing, windsurfing, kiteboarding and stand-up paddleboarding (SUP) known as the Master of the Ocean will take place in Cabarete from 23 to 28 February 2016. The annual event takes advantage of the exceptional conditions in the Cabarete area for these watersports.
Founded by Marcus Bohm in 2013, the competition consists of 12 teams of four athletes. Each rider competes in a discipline, and the top 15 competitors move to a final stage where they compete for the Master of the Ocean title.
Cabarete is the perfect location as there is no wind in the morning for surfers and SUP enthusiasts, and consistent incoming trade winds from noon onwards, the perfect conditions for windsurfers and kitesurfers.
The 2016 Master of the Ocean organizers say they expect to host 2015 champion Zane Schweitzer and many other international riders including Samuel Perez-Hultz, Fiona Wylde, Luciano Gonzalez, Michael Gebhardt and Brian Talma.

Source: http://dr1.com/travelnews/archive/2015/tnews112415.html

The Dominican Republic has been included on two of the Best of Caribbean travel lists of the US News & World Report publication.
Puerto Plata and Punta Cana are both included the “Best Affordable Caribbean Destinations” list. Interestingly, the destinations are given the same weight as countries such as Puerto Rico, Curacao, Jamaica, Grenada, Dominica, US Virgin Islands, Barbados, and St. Kitts and Nevis.

The publication recommends a trip to Punta Cana:
“Thanks to a wealth of all-inclusive resorts, Punta Cana is an affordable haven for sun-worshippers. This resort town offers everything from pristine beaches and turquoise water to challenging golf courses and top-notch cuisine.”

And to Puerto Plata:
“This Dominican Republic beach town offers plenty for those seeking off-resort activities. Here, you can enjoy water sports in Cabarete and jaw-dropping sights like the Damajaqua Cascades [sic]. And with daily nonstop flights from the U.S., getting to Puerto Plata is a cinch.”
In the “beach bum” category, Punta Cana is on the Best Caribbean Beaches list.

Source: http://dr1.com/travelnews/archive/2015/tnews111015.html