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Prices and rules verified October 2026 · US$1 = RD$61Santo Domingo timeContact
BLUE PASSPORTTravel · Dominican RepublicDominican Republic
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Budget Calculator

Estimate what a Dominican Republic trip will cost in US dollars and pesos: an all-inclusive resort or hotels and meals on your own, the 18% ITBIS and 10% service charge, tips, transfers, buses, excursions and a rental car.

Verified October 2026
Travel style
How you'll stay
One price per night for two covers your room, meals and drinks.
1 room
Days in the country are nights plus one.
Enter your own round-trip fare in US dollars. The $450 default is only a placeholder.
When
Resort and hotel prices drop from May to November; we take 20% off room rates then. Christmas, New Year, February, March and Easter cost the most.
RD$61 per dollar, the Banco Central reference rate in late October 2026. Your card's rate may differ.
Optional. Leave blank for the typical rate for your style.
Optional. Leave blank for the typical rate for your style and area.
Optional. For the whole group, each way; private transfers on long routes are often well over $100.
One-way trips per person on Caribe Tours, Metro Tours or Expreso Bávaro, such as Santo Domingo to Punta Cana.
Optional. Most long routes cost RD$400–700 (about $7–12); Expreso Bávaro lists RD$400.
Rent for the days you explore; Uber and buses are easier in the cities.
Optional. Compacts run roughly $40–80 a day before insurance and fuel.
Optional. The rental company's collision damage waiver and supplemental liability, on top of the basic legal cover.
97 km
About $5.20 a gallon.
Optional. Most booths charge RD$100 (about $1.60).
Counted at about $110 each, the middle of the $70–150 most excursions cost.

Estimated total

$0

Per person
Per day, in the DR
Per person per day

Assumptions used

ItemAll-inclusive nightsIndependent nights

About these numbers

Typical costs come from the fall 2026 prices in our money guide, all-inclusive and where to stay pages, using this site's tiers for a room for two: $ under $100, $$ $100–250, $$$ $250–500 and $$$$ over $500 a night, with all-inclusives priced per night for two with everything included. A mid-range all-inclusive lands in the money guide's $250–500 a night for two once taxes are added; the Budget level is an older or basic resort and the Comfort level a luxury resort or Cap Cana. Independent days use the money guide's daily budgets per person as a check: RD$3,500–5,000 (about $57–82) on a shoestring and $120–200 for comfortable independent travel. Rates are for one room shared by two people; the calculator adds a room for every two travelers and charges children as adults.

Resorts and hotels usually quote rooms before tax, and Dominican bills add the 18% ITBIS (sales tax) and a 10% service charge, 28% in all, to rooms and to restaurant and bar bills. The calculator adds that 28% to every room rate unless you tick the box, and to the sit-down meals on independent days. Because the 10% is pooled among staff, the Mid-range and Comfort levels also leave the 5–10% cash tip that Dominicans give for good table service. Resort tips follow the money guide's common pattern: $2–5 a day for housekeeping, $1–2 a round for bartenders and $5–10 per couple for each à la carte dinner. Excursion prices are in US dollars per adult, with a $7.50 tip for the guide (the guide's usual $5–10 per person); the Saona, Scape Park and whale watching prices come from our excursions page, and we estimate the rest within the $70–150 most trips cost. Airport taxis charge fixed zone fares per car: about $30–40 to Bávaro and $40–50 from Santo Domingo's airport to the Zona Colonial, and UberX from Punta Cana airport to Bávaro was around $16. In the cities, independent days use Uber, taxis and the Metro (RD$20 a ride in Santo Domingo).

The car line uses the compact rental price on our Punta Cana page (roughly $40–80 a day before insurance and fuel), plus our estimate for the rental company's collision damage waiver and supplemental liability, the setup our driving guide recommends. Fuel uses the price you enter and about 30 US mpg, our estimate for a compact with the air conditioning on; the RD$317.50 default is regular gasoline for the week of October 24–30, 2026, and the government publishes new prices every Friday. Tolls are RD$100 (about $1.60) per booth on most highways, and Santo Domingo to Punta Cana runs about RD$400–600 each way; our estimate spreads that over the share of your driving on toll roads. Parking adds a few tips for a guardacarros (informal parking attendant) at RD$50–100 and, at the Comfort level, hotel parking in the city. Not included: spa treatments, premium liquor and other resort extras, motorized water sports, golf, shopping, travel insurance and overstay fees. See getting around and Santo Domingo.

Save money

Compare the all-in price with taxes for your exact dates, and travel from late April to June or in November, outside US holiday weeks, when resort rates are often much lower. Outside the resort, eat where Dominicans eat: a comedor lunch costs a quarter of a tourist restaurant meal. Pay in pesos, choose pesos on every card terminal, take Expreso Bávaro or Caribe Tours instead of a private transfer between cities, and pack $60–100 in $1 and $5 bills for a week of resort tips.