Families can come together to experience endless activities and sporting adventures at Casa de Campo, Dominican Republic. From horseback riding along the Chavon River, polo lessons at the Equestrian and Polo Club, catamaran sailing at the Marina, and shooting at the Safari Club, Casa de Campo activities read like a life’s bucket list rather than resort options. Additionally, families can enjoy more traditional resort sports together such as golf on five Pete Dye courses featuring Teeth of the Dog, the No. 1 course in the Caribbean. Sounds like too much to cover in one vacation? I think not! I did it all in four days. Casa de Campo is a 7,000 acre tropical, sporting paradise.
Our scenic, family-friendly horseback ride led us through the picturesque resort, along famed golf courses, and through luscious green fields with views of the Caribbean Sea and Dominican mountains. We had opportunities to walk, trot, and canter on the horses and bask in the golden Caribbean sun. With a minimum 1.5 hour duration, you really get a feel for horseback riding in the Dominican Republic.
“Donkey Polo” is a casual game for families, where donkeys are hired for light-hearted stick and ball tournaments. With trained instructors by your side, it is fun for the entire family. Besides, what other resort gives you the opportunity to try “Donkey Polo”?
The Casa de Campo Marina extends over more than 90,000 square meters and is the most modern marina in the Caribbean. While at the Marina, I experienced a catamaran sunset sail, toasting the beautiful Dominican sunset. The catamaran is so massive that sea sickness is unlikely, making it friendly for families with children or without.
Amid tropical sunshine and sparkling turquoise waters, Casa de Campo is home to a 245-acre Shooting Club nestled in the dense foliage of the Dominican jungle. Casa de Campo’s Shooting Club offers more than 200 stations for trap, skeet, and sporting clays, as well as pigeon rings and an open-air Safari Club Bar with artifacts. The first station I experienced projected clay targets away from us as shooters to stimulate a bird in flight, fleeing from a predator. Next up was sporting clays that provided a realistic hunting simulation of rabbits. All clays moved at different heights and speeds to test our range of skill. While I have zero desire to shoot actually animals, the skeet shooting adventure was one of my favorite all-inclusive experiences. A team of instructors offer basic shooting orientation for guests ages 12 and up, as well as advanced instruction if requested.
On my final day at Casa de Campo, I took a golf lesson from professional Jim McLean. Nestled among 7,000 acres of the Dominican Republic southeastern coast, Casa de Campo features five world-class courses designed by internationally-renowned golf course architect and World Golf Hall of Fame member, Pete Dye, as well as the only Jim McLean Golf School in the Caribbean. With 63 holes of awe-inspiring golf – including legendary Teeth of the Dog and Dye Fore courses – Casa de Campo offers a dynamic experience on the greens challenging both the highly-skilled golfer, as well as novice or casual weekend players. Although I am a sports enthusiast (I’ve coached basketball, volleyball, and soccer at the high school level and played high school and university basketball), I’ve never played golf. My lesson was beyond my wildest expectations. It was calming and affirming and beautiful. I had never felt that way in sports before. Jim was a fantastic coach and within less than an hour, I was hitting the ball and feeling confident. Whatever expectations I had for a professional lesson were passed a thousand times over. I’d even recommend lessons for experienced golfers. What a difference in perspective! My lesson saved me hours of stress and got me hooked on a sport I may not have enjoyed otherwise.
Casa de Campo focuses on the sporting life. I left feeling refreshed and excited about all of my new, unique experiences. Rather than just relaxing at the pool or hanging out on the beach, Casa de Campo gets you out of the chair and into your list. The opportunities are endless; my list just got a lot shorter at Casa de Campo.
Bucket List Publications 
not a bad swing there at the golf
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I’m so inexperienced, I’m not sure if you’re serious of making fun 😉
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i’m dead serious and don’t worry about inexperience, everybody has to start somewhere, nobody is born with experience.
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Well thank you! I appreciate it. 🙂
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Beautiful! Love all the activities too. A fitness pro’s type of place : http://wp/me/p3XZqY-9F
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It’s certainly ideal for the active enthusiast. What’s your favorite sport?
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Track and Field … former scholarship athlete 🙂 thx for asking! What’s yours?
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What did you hit with that swing? Four hundred? Nice.
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I had to ask my husband if 400 was good or bad lol
I figured, coming from you, it was a compliment. 🙂
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As in 400 yards… 🙂
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WOW! What a great spot you found – donkey polo, golf, sunset cruises etc etc – divine! Great write up too!
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Thanks! It was amazing! Every day I went to bed hurting, exhausted, and overjoyed at the fun I had.
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Heyyyy, it looks like a fun place to go! Active holidays are my way of traveling. Thank you for sharing….noted and now just need to find the right moment to GO! 🙂
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With the great weather in Dominican and the endless options at Casa de Campo, any time is the right time 🙂 Have you been to Dominican Republic before?
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Not yet 🙂 My focuss was Europe and Asia… but it’s time for a change 😉
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I visited Casa de Campo (near La Ramona) in 2007 and loved the resort. I enjoyed the beach, having our own golf cart to explore the large grounds. The food was fabulous. I’m glad you had such a great time there and experienced the sailing, horseback riding, golfing and all of the activities. I heard that Michael Jackson and the Bush family spent time there, because it is so private. I’d go back in a heart beat!
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Michael Jordan was there recently 😉
I loved driving my own golf cart but I did get terribly lost one morning and worried that I was going to miss my horseback riding experience. It was extremely early and no one was around. It almost brought me to tears but I figured things out.
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Have you ever encountered such a resort before Lesley? Shooting range and polo? Not the typical activities one sees when traveling. Great post!
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That’s why I loved it so much! I’ve tried most of the typical resort activities. I wanted something new!
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It looks wonderful. I would go just for the horse back riding.
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I have to say, I’ve only started reading your blog and I’m happy to find a true kindred spirit. I saw an actor recently on a talk show who said when he was struggling he found it easier to surround himself with other like minded people. Thank you this is my first year and my dreams are beginning to come true. Set your mind to positives and the results are unbelievable. 🙂
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I recently wrote a post, https://bucketlistpublications.org/2013/09/15/5-ways-to-make-your-dreams-a-reality/, that said the exact same thing 😉
I’m now following you and I will check back regularly.
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My family and I used to go to Casa de Campo every December from the time I was 1 until I was 14 (we had a second home there). The house has since been sold but it was La Baranca 21 – just off the golf course. I always had an amazing time there – did you get to go to Altos De Chavon? If not, try to go next time – it’s worth it! Glad you had a great time!
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Not a bad place to vacation regularly 😉 Do you have a favorite experience/adventure there?
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My favorite experience at CDC was probably swimming at the main pool – the one with the bar in it. As a kid we always hung there (no, not to drink) and go to know the bartenders.
Going to Altos de Chavon was always a great treat too – we always stopped at the Bodega that had soda in glass bottles with REAL sugar. Just the little things 🙂
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I am not really an resort activity kinda guy, but donkey polo is something I desperately need to do. The word alone makes me excited. Thanks for sharing and have a nice day.
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I was presently surprised to participate in such diverse activities. Have you ever played polo before?
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Well, drunken polo.
It a common variety of it’s aristocratic predecessor.
Luckily it is very easy to learn. Of course you need an even count of participants and, as the title suggests, to be drunk. After that it is pretty much self-explanatory. Do the thing with the sticks and try not to hurt your horse surrogate.
Have you tried the donkey kind?
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That looks like fun, although I don’t think I’ve ever wanted to play golf or ride a donkey in my life. I do have a bucket list drawn up, and it has one thing on it — get my legs working again so I can walk to the grocery store. When that one is accomplished, number two will be to walk even further. I’m getting tired of MS ruling my life and taking away my favorite activity, namely, walking. So, that’s my bucket list for now. May take a while, but it WILL happen, because I said it will, and KY gals are stubborn.
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Anything is possible, right? I love your positive attitude. I wish you a lifetime of happiness and success. Please stay in touch and let me know how things are going. It always helps to be surrounded by other positive people. 🙂
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Absolutely!
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With riding and sailing on the list, it is guaranteed to meet with my approval!
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Great to see that you came to my country! For a next trip you should visit ‘Los 27 charcos de damajagua’ in Puerto Plata, an adventurous journey within 27 waterfalls. You should also consider climbing el ‘Pico Duarte’, the highest spot in the caribbean!
Keep up the good posts! 🙂
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Looks like great fun!
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Love a resort with a shooting range. Whole experience sounds wonderful. Thanks for visiting my blog. Yours is great! Thanks for sharing your travel experiences!
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never been there 🙂
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