What Is Included In A Cayo Levantado Tour

The differences between Cayo Levantado tours hide in plain sight. Two excursions can leave the same dock on the same morning, cost within a few dollars of each other, and deliver completely different days, because one includes a buffet lunch on the beach and alcoholic drinks, while the other is a bare boat ride with nothing but a guide and sea air. The island, the sand and the water are the same. The bundle is not.

A single listing makes you dig for what's actually included. This guide lines the inclusions up side by side, tour by tour, so lunch, transfers and extras are easy to compare before you book. Where a listing says nothing about pickup, or stays silent on cancellation, this page says so too, because a silent listing is information. Travelers also call the island Cayo Escondido, and this Cayo Escondido guide spells out what is included before money changes hands.

What Is Included In A Cayo Levantado Tour?

**A Cayo Levantado tour always includes the boat crossing and a guide or live guide on board, and almost always includes time on the island's public beach. Beyond that, lunch appears on most listings (buffet or plated), drinks and snorkel gear appear on some, and hotel pickup appears mainly on tours departing Punta Cana, Santo Domingo, Las Terrenas and Puerto Plata, while Samana departures are split, with some listing hotel pickup and others not.

The baseline is real and it is cheap. The Samana: Cayo Levantado Day Trip by Boat, from $28 per person for 7 hours, lists a boat ride and a live guide, and nothing else: no meal is listed. That is the honest floor of this market. One step up, at from $67 per person, the Samana: Cayo Levantado Island Boat Trip with Buffet Lunch adds a buffet lunch on the beach, all taxes and fees, beverages, and one piña colada with or without alcohol per adult. That single listing answers most of the "what is included" question for the classic island day.

Above that, the bundles grow. The Bacardi Island Excursion with Catamaran, Beach and Lunch from Punta Cana, from $115 per person and rated 4.7 from 72 reviews, adds breakfast, lunch and use of snorkelling equipment on top of round-trip transport. And at the far end, the Los Haitises National Park, Montaña Redonda & Bacardi Island tour, from $203 per person, stacks a light breakfast, lunch with drinks, a guided boat cruise, snorkeling in good conditions, swim stops, entrance fees and sunloungers into one 10 hour 30 minute day.

The pattern worth noticing: the further the tour travels, the more it must include. A Samana departure is a short hop, so the listing can stay lean. A Punta Cana departure implies hours of road before any boat, so transport, food and drink get folded in. That logic drives every section below.

Does A Cayo Levantado Tour Include The Boat Transfer?

Yes, every Cayo Levantado tour on this site includes the boat crossing as part of the price, whether that is a direct boat from Samana port, a catamaran across Samana Bay, or a speedboat. No listing sells the island visit separately from the crossing. For Punta Cana and Santo Domingo tours, the bus transfer is also included, and hotel pickup is listed on most of them.

Cayo Levantado sits about 5 km (3 miles) from Samana across the bay, per the Dominican film commission's location page, and the DGCINE listing notes that boat taxis leave regularly from the Samana port on Avenida Marina, daily. Tour boats use the same stretch of water. A listing that departs Samana is selling you that short boat taxi crossing plus island time, and the crossing is inside the printed price every time.

The interesting variation is the boat type. The Bacardi Island Excursion with Catamaran, Beach and Lunch puts you on a catamaran for the 11 to 12 hour day. The Cayo Levantado Snorkeling and Kayaking Tour lists a speedboat. The Los Haitises & Cayo Levantado tour from Samana, from $60 per person and rated 3.8 from 28 reviews, states "Catamaran or Boat", meaning the vessel is the operator's call on the day. If the boat itself is part of the appeal, a catamaran listing says so, and a listing that says only "boat ride" is telling you not to expect sails.

For Punta Cana departures, the transfer story is bigger. The From Punta Cana: Samana Tour to Bacardi Island & Limon Falls, from $110.40 per person and rated 4.1 from 233 reviews, lists round-trip transportation, then a safari truck ride and a boat ride inside one package: road, mountain and sea in a single inclusion set. The listing describes boarding a boat at La Cañita and a catamaran to Cayo Levantado with about 1 hour on the island. That is three separate movements, all covered.

One caution applies to every crossing. Several listings note tours are shared with other people and pickup is collective, and reviewers mention the crossing can be choppy in windier conditions even though Samana Bay itself is relatively protected. The crossing is always included; calm water never is. The boat ride guide covers what the crossing itself feels like.

Is Lunch Included On Bacardi Island Tours?

Lunch is included on the large majority of Cayo Levantado tours, usually served on or near the island beach, and it is almost always described as a buffet or a Dominican buffet. The main exception is the bare boat day trip from Samana at from $28, which lists no meal. Buffet lunch specifically appears on tours from $67 upward, and one half-day adventure from Las Terrenas lists lobster.

The buffet is the default format. The Cayo Levantado Island Boat Trip with Buffet Lunch states it plainly: buffet lunch on the beach. The Samana: Whale Watching and Cayo Levantado Full Day Tour, from $84 per person and rated 4.7 from 224 reviews, lists a buffet lunch at Bacardi Island as part of its day. The El Limon Waterfall and Bacardi Island Tour from Punta Cana, from $149 per person and rated 3.6 from 125 reviews, calls it "buffet style lunch with two drinks", one of the few listings that quantifies the drinks that come with the plate.

Character varies with price and route. The Excursion to Samana and Cayo Levantado from Punta Cana lists "Lunch Typical Dominican Food". The Samana Bay: Bacardi Island and Limon Waterfall tour itemizes its menu in the inclusion line itself: rice, chicken, pastas, green salads and tropical fruits. The Half-Day Island of Cayo Levantado Guided Adventure from Samana, from $130 per person, lists a beach buffet and, unusually, lobster included. That is the fullest single plate on the roster.

Two honest gaps remain. First, a few listings name lunch without describing it, and this page does not fill that silence with a guessed menu. Second, the island's public side has its own simple food and fresh fish stalls, per the film commission's description of the island, so even on a no-meal boat trip you can eat, you just pay separately. The food and lunch guide unpacks that scene.

The lunch flag matters most at decision time because it is the difference between a $28 day and a $67 day from the same dock. If eating well on the sand is the point of the day, the buffet listing pays for itself in the first plate.

Are Drinks And Snorkel Gear Included On Samana Bay Tours?

Drinks are included on roughly half of the Samana Bay listings, most often water and soft drinks, with a handful adding alcoholic beverages or a welcome piña colada. Snorkel gear is rarer: the catamaran excursion from Punta Cana lists use of snorkelling equipment, one Los Haitises combo lists snorkeling in good conditions, and the kayaking tour includes kayaks with safety gear rather than snorkels.

The drinks picture is genuinely mixed, so treat it as a per-listing question. On the included side: the buffet lunch boat trip from Samana lists beverages plus one piña colada per adult. The whale watching and Cayo Levantado full day tour lists water and soft drinks. The Los Haitises and Cayo Levantado catamaran tour from Samana lists alcoholic beverages outright, one of the few that does. The Samana: Salto El Limón Waterfall & Cayo Levantado tour lists traditional drinks and a piña colada. On the quiet side, the $28 boat day trip lists nothing to drink at all.

Snorkel gear is the rarest inclusion on this island's roster, which surprises people who expect every Caribbean boat day to hand out masks. The Bacardi Island Excursion with Catamaran, Beach and Lunch lists "Use of Snorkelling equipment". The Los Haitises, Montaña Redonda & Bacardi Island tour lists snorkeling "in good climate conditions". The Samana Bay: Cayo Levantado Snorkeling and Kayaking Tour, from $95 per person, builds its whole day around the water, listing kayaking, a speedboat, local food, drinks and entry tickets to Farola.

The practical read: if a mask and fins matter to you, pick a listing that names them, or bring your own. Reviewers describe clear turquoise water and colorful fish near the island, and calm bay areas suitable for beginners, so the conditions reward the gear. The snorkeling guide covers where the good water is.

Is Hotel Pickup Included On Cayo Levantado Excursions?

Hotel pickup is listed on nearly every tour departing Punta Cana, Santo Domingo, Las Terrenas and Puerto Plata, because those are long road journeys to Samana Bay. Samana departures are split: some list hotel pickup and drop-off, others state nothing about pickup at all, and two island day passes from Samana leave pickup unstated, meaning you make your own way to the dock.

The long-haul tours are consistent. Every Punta Cana listing carries hotel pickup, from the $110.40 Bacardi Island and Limon Falls tour to the $203 Los Haitises combo, and the same holds for the Santo Domingo excursions at from $135 and from $179. The Puerto Plata departure, From Puerto Plata: Los Haitises & Bacardi Island at from $147.25, lists round-trip air-conditioned transport. These inclusions are load-bearing: a Punta Cana hotel is a 5 hour 08 minute free-flow drive estimate from the Samana Malecon, 322 km by road, so the bus is the tour.

Samana is where it gets interesting, because the dock is minutes from town and pickup becomes a genuine variable. Included: the whale watching and Cayo Levantado full day tour lists lunch and a guide, as do the Los Haitises National Park and Cayo Levantado day trip and the snorkeling and kayaking tour. Not stated: the $28 boat day trip, the buffet lunch boat trip, the day pass at from $75, and the catamaran or boat Los Haitises tour. "Not stated" is not "excluded", it is a listing that has not committed, so confirm the meeting point on the operator's live listing before assuming.

Las Terrenas sits between the two worlds: a 62 minute free-flow drive estimate from the Samana Malecón, yet its listings, like the Cayo Levantado day trip at from $125 per person, still list round-trip transportation. The how to get there guide covers the self-drive option if you would rather skip pickup entirely.

What Is Never Included On A Cayo Levantado Tour?

The recurring exclusions across the roster are gratuities and tips, personal expenses, souvenir photos, and alcoholic drinks on listings that only cover water and soft drinks. Souvenir photos are offered for purchase on at least one listing, several name tips as the only exclusion, and no tour promises whale sightings, calm seas or an empty beach, because operators cannot promise weather or wildlife.

Gratuities are the most honest line in the small print. The Samana whale watching and Cayo Levantado tour from $65 lists gratuities first among exclusions. The El Limon and Bacardi Island tour names gratuities and nothing else. The From Punta Cana Samana tour lists gratuities as optional. General Dominican practice reported across guides: boat crew and guides appreciate cash tips, and small bills in pesos or US dollars are the practical currency for extras and souvenirs. Nothing on the island's public side takes a card, and there are no ATMs on the island.

Photos are the quiet upsell. One Los Haitises listing states souvenir photos are "available to purchase upon advance request", and another Punta Cana whale listing includes professional photos while most do not. Alcohol splits the roster as covered above. Beyond the listing lines, the environment itself is excluded from any promise: whale watching activity windows are seasonal, mid January to mid March on the two listings that name the window, aligned with the official season of January 15 to March 30 that the official tourism site gives for the sanctuary declared in 1986, and sightings are never guaranteed.

One more exclusion nobody prints: certainty about the dock. The public dock at Cayo Levantado was scheduled for about 30 days of repairs from mid-September 2026, with the resort dock used temporarily for passengers. Tours kept running. A listing cannot promise which pier you step off onto, and none tries.

Which Cayo Levantado Tours Include The Most From Each Departure Town?

From Samana, the fullest bundle is the buffet lunch boat trip at from $67, and the Los Haitises combos at from $50 to $60 add the national park. From Punta Cana, the catamaran excursion from $115 includes breakfast, lunch and snorkel gear, while the $203 Los Haitises, Montaña Redonda and Bacardi Island tour has the longest inclusion list on the roster. From Santo Domingo, both 14 hour options include pickup, though only the $179 one lists lunch.

Samana departures reward the lean shopper. If the island is the whole point, the from $28 boat trip is the pure product and the from $67 buffet trip is the comfort product. If the day should hold more, the Los Haitises & Cayo Levantado catamaran tour at from $60, rated 3.8 from 28 reviews, bundles lunch, all fees and taxes, a guide in English and Spanish, a mangroves visit, a caves visit and alcoholic beverages. The Samana: Visit Samana, Los Haitises Park, and Cayo Levantado option at from $59 lists boat transportation, entrance to the national park, caves and mangroves, lunch at Cayo Levantado and beach time.

Punta Cana departures are where the inclusion arms race happens, because operators must justify a full day on a bus. The Bacardi Island Excursion with Catamaran at from $115 is the balanced pick: breakfast, lunch, snorkel gear, hotel pickup and free cancellation all listed, with a 4.7 rating from 72 reviews to back it. The El Limon Waterfall and Bacardi Island tour from $149 trades some polish for the waterfall: buffet lunch with two drinks, a guide and an air-conditioned bus, across 11 to 12 hours.

Santo Domingo runs the longest days on the roster, 14 hours each. The Los Haitises + Cayo Levantado tour from Santo Domingo at from $135, rated 4.1 from 18 reviews, lists free cancellation and hotel pickup; its sister listing at from $179, rated 4.5 from 17 reviews, adds lifevest and alcoholic beverages to the lunch. Puerto Plata has one option: the from $147.25 Los Haitises and Bacardi Island tour, 11 hours, with full breakfast, buffet lunch, soft drinks, park fees and both boat and catamaran legs included.

Whale season changes the arithmetic. From mid January to the end of March, the whale watching and Cayo Levantado full day tour from Samana, from $84 and rated 4.7 from 224 reviews, becomes one of the strongest bundles on the site: boat ride, guide, whale watching, buffet lunch at Bacardi Island, water, soft drinks and local snacks in one price. Two Punta Cana listings fold whale watching into their waterfall combos for the same window. The whale watching combo guide compares those in full.

Do Any Cayo Levantado Tours Include Free Cancellation?

Yes, free cancellation is explicitly listed on most Punta Cana, Santo Domingo, Las Terrenas and Puerto Plata tours and on many Samana tours including the whale watching full day trip and both budget boat options. Several Samana listings do not state a cancellation policy at all, including the day pass and one whale tour, so treat an unstated policy as a reason to check the live listing before paying.

For a decision this small print matters. The Samana: Cayo Levantado Day Trip by Boat at from $28 lists free cancellation despite being the cheapest product on the roster. The buffet lunch boat trip lists it too. The Los Haitises National Park and Cayo Levantado day trip from Samana, the catamaran or boat Los Haitises tour, and the Samana whale watching tour from $65 all leave cancellation unstated, which on a windy-day activity like a boat crossing is worth thirty seconds of checking.

What free cancellation really buys you is weather flexibility, since a boat day on Samaná Bay is exactly the kind of plan a passing front can spoil. Boat crossings can be choppy, and plans change. Meanwhile, if you are flying in, note that all passengers entering on commercial flights complete the free electronic E-TICKET form before travel, while cruise passengers and ferry travelers do not need it. Entry paperwork is never part of a tour's inclusions, but it is part of the same morning's checklist.

The complete price picture, including which fees sit outside the listing price, is in the tour prices guide, and a side-by-side of every product on the roster is in the tour options comparison. The short version of both: the inclusions line is the price. Read it before the review score.

Common Questions About Cayo Levantado Tour Inclusions