Mount Redonda in the Dominican Republic, or, as this place is also called, the sky swing, is an example of how an ordinary mediocre attraction was turned into a candy bar. In this article, you will learn everything you need to know in order to visit this place. You can go here either independently or as part of an excursion.
Mount Redonda or Sky Swing: General facts
To begin with, it’s not a mountain. Redonda is just a hill just over 300m above sea level. The surrounding landscape is so well integrated into the overall picture that an optical illusion is created and it seems that the height is huge.
Important to know:Places of this level with such views in the Dominican Republic are simply a huge number. Especially in the central and northern part of the country. There are at least hundreds of viewing platforms with views.
What else do you need to know about Mount Redonda, other than that it’s a hill:
- These are private properties. And they belong to the same Dominican family for many years. In fact they made it a tourist attraction
- Looking at the map (it will be below), you can partly understand the popularity of Redonda:
- The mountain is located at a distance from the tourist routes.
- There’s nothing else around here.
- If you live in Bavaro or Punta Cana, it takes less than an hour to get here. From other resorts to go here is not advisable from the word at all. Since the road can be 4-5 hours in one direction.
- And for tourists from Bavaro and Punta Cana, there are not many attractions in the area: Mount Redonda, Saona Islands, Altos de Chavon. Therefore, they come here with great pleasure.
About Redonda’s doppelganger
This information is not official (I was told by the Bavaro tour agency):At the end of 2020, there was a conflict between the family, the owners of this place and several excursion agencies from Punta Cana and Bavaro. As a result, they were banned from bringing tourists here. They found a similar observation deck 15 km away from Mount Redonda, and dug in a swing at the top. And now, some agencies carry vacationers to Redonda. And the other part, who is “under sanctions”, says that the mountain is closed and now there is a new place that is steeper and is being taken there.
First of all, this is not our war with you:). Secondly, they mislead travelers. People have already written to me with information that the mountain was closed. Know that the mountain works and is open to everyone. If you need a photo just from a sky swing, like in Bali, then probably there is no difference where to go.
Mount Redonda: map
As you can see from Bavaro it is 45 km. If you plan to drive yourself, mark the parking point in Yandex. Navigator. And then you will understand intuitively on the spot. There’s only one road, so you can’t get lost.
How to get there?
I will immediately say that we will consider the option of getting from Bavaro. If you live further away, such as Boca Chica, and want to go here, then only by car. There is nothing direct on public transport, you will get there with two transfers in half a day.
From Bavaro, Mount Redonda can be reached by:
- Taxi. A round trip will cost about$50-70. Learn more about taxi services in the Dominican Republic here.
- On a scooter. 45 km in one direction is certainly too much. The option is not a fountain, but has a place on life.
- By public transport. This is also a C grade option. Public transport in the Dominican Republic is terrible. In this case, only GuaGua (minibuses). They don’t have a schedule, don’t understand the routes, and so on.
- But from Bavaro there is GuaGua to the village of Miches.
- Sent from the Bavaro Express station, please check in advance.
- It will cost 2-4$ one way.
- Ask them to drop you off at Mount Redonda in advance. In Spanish, this is Montana Redonda. Say so, they’ll understand.
- And specify when the bus goes back to plan your timing.
- The easiest option is to buy a tour. The price is about$50-80. You will be picked up from your hotel. They bring them to the mountain, put them in a jeep and take them to the top. They give you time to take photos. Some agencies also include lunch in the price. some don’t. The entire tour takes about 4-5 hours.
- The most comfortable option: by car rental. Don’t depend on anyone. If you arrive early in the morning, there will be no people at all and there will be no queue for the swing. A large article about car rental in the Dominican Republic, follow the link.
The Tip:If you do not have a car, your hotel is located in the area of Bavaro and Punta Cana, it is more profitable for 1-2 people to buy a tour than to take a taxi. Here you can find all the activities and excursions from Punta Cana, there are also routes to Redonda
What to do at the top: climb and entertainment list
For those who drive by themselves: imagine that you have reached the parking lot. It’s marked on the map. What should I do next?
- We park the car.
- At the ticket office, 50m from the parking lot, we buy an entrance ticket. A must-have for everyone! There will be more information about the prices. Please also note that as a rule, all entrance tickets are already included in the tour.
- Further to the top on the road exactly 2 km and you have two options:
- Watch how we did it, and how the heroes of Heads and Tails did it, for free
- On a 4×4 jeep, for money.
Important to know:Ordinary cars are not allowed in the park on the mountain. Go either on foot or buy a seat in their Jeep. In Heads and Tails, the difficulty of lifting is slightly embellished. Because there you need to show how far it is and add a little cinematic quality.
By Jeep, you can drive 10-15 minutes in each direction. But if you’re walking, here’s what you need to know:
- The route length, as I wrote above, is exactly 2 km. This is generally a distance for kindergarten.
- But the climb for these two km will be about 270 m. This is neither much nor little. It was easy for my wife and me, as we descended from Duarte Peak 3 days ago. And there the climb for the day was more than 2000m.
- It took us 40 minutes to get there at a leisurely pace.
- We went back down in 25-30 minutes.
- Keep in mind that yes, it is hot and there is no shade. It is better to bring protective creams and a headdress. And always on the road water.
- In total, it is not difficult for any tourist with below-average physical fitness to climb the mountain. But this is under the scorching sun. And the jeep is always included in the tour.
Mount Redonda: what to do at the top
Here can overtake the biggest disappointment, from the time spent on the whole road
The entire peak is a 100m by 100m plot of land. Maybe even less. Let me list what is here:
- Parking for jeeps of the park, which take tourists to the top, and may have brought you too
- Cafe restaurant with high prices, about prices below
- Toilet
- Two sunken photo swings
- Two hammocks for photo cards
- And the brooms they use to sweep. There are 5 of them. You can make such photos here.
That’s where all the fun ends. Among the advantages, I can highlight the fact that even if two full jeeps arrived at once for 8-10 people, there will be no queues at the photo zone. Everyone is somehow evenly distributed between sky swings, hammocks and brooms.
All activities on the mountain are included in the entrance fee. Well, you need to pay for food in the cafe.
Useful to know:When a jeep takes you to the top, it usually leaves, and you are given 2 hours of time to do everything about everything. What to do here for 2 hours I do not know. We did it at a very calm pace, taking a million photos in about 30 to 40 minutes.
Mount Redonda: opening hours, prices for a ticket, for a jeep, for a restaurant
The most important part of the article:
- Working hours: daylight hours. The ticket office is open from 8 am to 6 pm daily.
- Parking your car at the bottom costs 100 pesos or$2
- Entrance fees to the mountain:$ 5 per person
- Official site of the attraction: http://montanaredondaparadise.com/
- If you want to go up and down in a jeep then here is the information:
- we were the only tourists at the time
- we were offered for$ 20 the entire jeep, which will take and return back
- I assume that if there are more people, then the price is lower. Well, if you are traveling with a company of 4-6 people, then$ 20 is already a penny for everyone. And if something is actually pickup trucks, not jeeps, people are also put in the back. In general, 10 people can comfortably fit in one pickup truck.
- The restaurant at the top is very expensive. The menu is modest, the assortment is small. You can order: French fries with chicken or rice with chicken. The portion is standard, not huge. The price with all taxes comes out to $ 10 per plate. A beer bottle costs$4. You won’t starve to death here, but you can also have your own snack with you.
Mount Redonda: Travel budget
- As part of the tour, if lunch is not included, then for two people it turns out:
- for$ 50-80 the tour itself per person
- For$ 15, lunch at the top of Redonda
- Total for two:$100-130.
- Self-save package, as we have. We walked up the stairs and only had a beer in the restaurant.
- Petrol drive from Bavaro and back: 90km, 7l., about$7
- Parking 2$
- Entrance ticket 5$
- Beer for my wife $ 4 coffee for me
- Total for two people: 7+2+5+5+4+4 = 27$
Important to know:I didn’t include car rental here, as we had a car on lease for three weeks and had already paid for it long ago. But be aware that the average car rental price with all insurance is$ 35-40 per day. Therefore, even if you rent a car just for the sake of Mount Redonda, it still comes out cheaper. But I don’t pay for a rental car. Guided tours are also great. You don’t have to think about anything, you don’t have to drive, you can have a beer. Other people have already taken care of everything.
Mount Redonda: Travel Tips
I can’t give you much advice here, but here are the main ones that were followed through the entire article.
- If you are staying in hotels in Bavaro or Punta Cana and do not particularly plan to travel around the country, then you will definitely enjoy the excursion to Mount Redonda. This is not only one of the best attractions in this part of the Dominican Republic, but also one of the few. It will also help you relax from the beach and the ocean:)
- But if you plan to travel to other regions of the Dominican Republic. And if you plan to visit such attractions as: El Limon Waterfall, Saona Island, Fronton and Koson beach, 27 waterfalls, waterfalls of the city of Jarabacoa, then there is no point in going here. All of the above is much cooler and more interesting.
- By the way, you can read about all these attractions in the article: TOP 30 places of the Dominican Republic for tourists.
- Of course, I also do not recommend spending half a day on the road to get here, for example, from Puerto Plateau.
In conclusion: I hope you have found out what kind of attraction Mount Redonda is. And they definitely decided to go here or not. We also learned how to get to the sky swing on our own.
Any movement is always better than a sofa, the most difficult thing is to get up from it!
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