Experience Quintess, The Leading Residences of the World—an extraordinary luxury destination club—during a 7-night stay at the luxurious Hacienda Azul home in Punta Cana (June 25-July 2, 2008). This includes full housekeeping privileges as well as the full services of your own Member & Travel advisor, who can arrange every detail of your stay – from air travel and ground transportation, to dinner reservations and activity planning.

Located in the Tortuga neighborhood, which is on the front nine of the La Cana golf course, your four-bedroom Hacienda offers sophisticated island-style living, from trellised walkways connecting the kitchen to the dining and living rooms, to high airy ceilings allowing the breeze and sunlight to meringue around the room. There is 2,000 square feet of outdoor living space, including a sprawling patio on both sides of the main entertaining area with an impressive wrap-around pool. Play a game of backgammon, sample island rum and listen to local rhythms…or simply do nothing. 

Relax in the serenity of your second floor open-air living space and let your eyes slowly rise toward the horizon. There’s the marooned shipwreck on the ninth-hole sand trap followed by the lush emerald fairway. Directly across the way notice the couture-inspired Beach Club decorated by island denizen Oscar de la Renta. Eventually meditate on the turquoise waves of the Caribbean lapping along the magnolia-white shore. You could stay here for eternity, or at least for a brilliant Dominican sunrise.

Beach Club Dining The Puntacana Beach Club offers an unbeatable cuisine. For lunch, the Grill is available with a selection of seafood, pasta, salads and light food in general. For supper time, there is “Cocoloba” specializing in Caribbean food Nouvelle Cuisine style with a wide selection of wines off its wine list.

Ecological Foundation  Explore the 1,500 acre ecological park and reserve toward the southern edge of the resort. Filled with local flora and fauna, experimental gardens, and a petting zoo, this non-profit center works to support sustainable development and rational use of natural resources. The Center for Biodiversity and Sustainability participates in research, education and outreach programs and offers free weekly guided tours.

Fishing   Take in the palm trees and crystal water as you fish in style for sailfish, marlin and other big game fish, just a few nautical miles offshore. Charter a boat for a private excursion from the Punta Cana marina. For the past five years, ESPN2’s Billfishing Xtreme Tournament has been hosted by Puntacana Resort & Club, along with numerous others.

Kiteboarding/Kitesurfing   Kitesurfers will be pleased to know that the Dominican Republic offers perfect conditions. Beginners will be happy picking up a board nearby, but for those seeking more adventure Kite Beach, just outside Cabarete on the north shore, is considered to be the best place in the Dominican Republic, if not one of the best places in the world. Kitexcite was the first kitesurfing school in the Dominican Republic. With the newest kites a nd boards in stock for lessons, rentals and sales, this well equipped school will always stock the right size for your weight, skill level and wind conditions. For added convenience they teach all available kite systems on the market.

La Cana Golf Course  In early-2001, after creating courses around the world, P. B. Dye returned to the Dominican Republic invited by Frank Rainieri, owner of the Puntacana Resort & Club. Rainieri and partners, labor mediator Ted Kheel, famed couturier Oscar de la Renta and singer Julio Iglesias wanted Dye to design a world-class beachfront golf course. The result of P. B. Dye’s first solo effort in the Dominican Republic, La Cana Golf Course definitely belongs on your must-play list. The course is innovative, challenging, beautiful and fun. It’s long playing to 7,152 yards from the tournament tees, and hole seven alone boasts 21 bunkers, but the rewards include four superb holes playing directly along the Caribbean Sea and 12 holes with magnificent sea views.

Santo Domingo   The Caribbean’s oldest — and some claim, most cosmopolitan city — is Santo Domingo. As the capital of the Dominican Republic, Santo Domingo is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and the oldest colonial settlement in the New World. The grid streets of the beautiful Old Town are lined by the first cathedral, monastery, hospital, university and court of law established in the Western Hemisphere. Many of the buildings are over 500 yea rs old, since Christopher Columbus made his first landing in the New World here in 1592, naming the island Hispaniola. Since then, Santo Domingo has been home to nobles and knights, soldiers, monks and slaves, pirates and damsels in distress. Also fascinating to visit is the Plaza del Cultura, lined by four of the city’s 12 museums. The Museum of History and Geography brings to life the turbulent past of this tropical island. It includes the car in which the brutal dictator (1930-1961), Generalísimo Trujillo, was assassinated by an internal coup. The city is the birthplace of merengue, a two-step hip-shaking dance that is easy to learn and impossible to stop doing! El Malecon, the seafront promenade, is lined with bars and restaurants where dancing is a priority after bellies are filled.

Santo Domingo — Shopping   The best buys in Santo Domingo are handcrafted native items, especially amber jewelry. Ever since the Dominicans presented John F. Kennedy with what became his favorite rocker, visitors have wanted to take home a rocking chair. These rockers are often sold unassembled, for easy shipping. Other good buys include Dominican rum, hand-knit articles, macramé, ceramics, and crafts in native mahogany. The best shopping streets are El Conde, the oldest and most traditional shop-flanked avenue, and Avenida Mella. In the colonial section, La Atarazana is filled with galleries and gift and jewelry stores, charging inflated prices. Head first for the National Market, El Mercado Modelo, Avenida Mella, filled with stall after stall of crafts, spices, and produce; you can easily get lost in the crush. The merchants are eager to sell, so remember to bargain. You’ll see a lot of tortoiseshell work, but exercise caution as many species, especially the hawksbill turtle, are on the endangered-species list and could be impounded by U.S. Customs if discovered in your luggage. Also for sale are rockers, mahogany, sandals, baskets, hats, and clay braziers for grilling fish. Always haggle over the price of handicrafts, particularly in the open-air markets. No stall-keeper expects you to pay the first price asked. Remember the Spanish words for too expensive: muy caro. Shopping hours are generally Monday to Saturday from 9:00 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. and 2:00 to 5:00 p.m.

Six Senses Spa   One of 16 spa’s worldwide, the Puntacana Resort & Club Six Senses Spa is the first of its kind in the Caribbean. The facility includes eight indoor salons, with four outdoor salons build upon a deck overlooking the beach and sea. Treatment options range from massages and wraps to a tailored Jet Lag Recovery, along with yoga and meditation sessions. Using indigenous ingredients from sea salt to tropical fruits, every moment will be an indulgence.

Snorkeling   Punta Cana features the longest coral reef of the whole island — about 30 kilometers long. Since snorkeling is so-so from shore and decent out at select areas near the reef participating in an excursion is a must for dive experts. Join a group going to the reef off El Cortecito beach or to the area near the Riu Taino hotel. Just east of Santo Domingo in Boca Chica, the small but fabulous underwater preserve of La Caleta Underwater National Park (about three square miles) is considered by many scuba-heads to be one of the Caribbean’s top dive sites. The big draws are the shipwrecks of the Hickory and Limón, both of which sit at a depth of about 60 feet. There’s also cave diving at Cueva Taina, a winding 300-foot-long system of underwater caves. You can also choose from night dives and freshwater dives.