Saona Island & Cotubanamá National Park (2026): the official fee, the rules and starfish etiquette

The entry fee: RD$250, and how it compares

The Ministry of Environment sells protected-area entries through SINAP, its online visits portal. Its public park list gives Parque Nacional Cotubanamá a fee of RD$250 for Dominicans and RD$250 for foreigners. For comparison, the same list prices Cueva de los Tres Ojos in Santo Domingo at RD$100 for nationals and RD$200 for foreigners, Parque Nacional El Morro in Monte Cristi at RD$100 and Valle Nuevo at RD$150 (all read 18–19 October 2026). Cotubanamá is the only one of these four with no surcharge for foreigners.

The SINAP list also shows a 'daily capacity' of 600 for Cotubanamá. We could not find an official explanation of what that field covers, and it is clearly not a cap on Saona boat visitors: the ministry itself counts more than a million visitors a year to the island (Medio Ambiente). Treat it as an internal figure, not a booking limit.

Why you may read RD$500: in April 2017 the ministry raised the park bracelet from RD$100 to RD$500, Bayahibe's tourist transport stopped work in protest (Diario Libre), and two days later the increase was withdrawn after a meeting with tour operators (Infotur Dominicano). Older blogs never caught up.

Most tours include the fee. SeavisTours lists park fees among its inclusions and Caribbean Saona says the Cotubanamá tax is included (SeavisTours, Caribbean Saona). Ask in writing if yours does; if not, carry pesos.

What a Category II national park allows

Law 202-04 on protected areas puts national parks in Category II. Their purpose is to protect the integrity of ecosystems and to 'avoid intensive exploitation and occupation' that alter them; the permitted uses are scientific research, education, recreation, nature tourism or ecotourism, and protection, research and public-use infrastructure only in the zones the management plan defines and the ministry authorizes (Articles 13 and 14, Law 202-04). Violations are handled under the sanctions chapter of the general environment law, Law 64-00, Articles 165 to 187 (Articles 33 and 34).

In practice this is why beach clubs and new buildings on Saona are contested. The ministry says the Mano Juan community, about 500 people, predates the 1975 declaration, but that it will not allow anything outside the law or the management plan, and that structures built in violation of the 2021 village design manual for Mano Juan and Catuano will be corrected and sanctioned (Medio Ambiente).

Punta Cana · Photo: Leonardo Rossatti / Pexels

Starfish, coral, turtle shell and conch: the decrees

The ministry's guide to regulated coastal and marine species is the clearest official statement of the wildlife rules visitors run into (regulated species guide):

Starfish: the guide says many people touch starfish and take them out of the water for photos, which kills them from lack of oxygen, and that they are also collected for crafts. At the Palmillas sandbank (the 'natural pool'), stand still, look, and keep them underwater.

Turtle shell (carey): Decree 288-12 prohibits making, trading and selling crafts from hawksbill or other sea-turtle shell. The hawksbill is listed as critically endangered. Do not buy jewelry or combs sold as carey.

Coral: Decree 318-86 prohibits extracting and trading several coral genera in all Dominican waters. Black and red coral jewelry is the main market; skip it.

Conch (lambí): Decree 499-09 bans its extraction and sale during the breeding season, 1 July to 31 October. Several tour menus offer seafood lunches on the island; Quetzal, for example, stops its lobster upgrade from 1 March to 30 June (Quetzal). In conch season, ask what you are being served.

Bayahibe's 2024 enforcement measures, and what they mean for you

In November 2024 the Navy, the Ministry of Tourism, the environmental protection service SENPA, the tourist police POLITUR, hotel association ASONAHORES and the main Bayahibe operators agreed to tighten checks on the permits and authorizations from Mitur, Medio Ambiente and the Navy that every excursion needs, and set up a joint working group to reorganize the area. The Navy also reinforced the ban on repairing and painting boats within 60 metres of the high-tide line. The government puts Bayahibe at about a million tourists a year, 18% of all tourist visits to attractions in the country (Presidencia).

For a visitor, the useful takeaway is simple: book an operator that can show its tourism licence and Navy dispatch for the boat, and be wary of beach sellers offering a cheaper boat on the spot. The ministry's own Saona Sostenible project (2021–2024) also lists a new pier, upgrades to the Mano Juan and Catuano docks, reorganized gift shops and solid-waste management among its works, so expect the landing points to change.

Wildlife worth knowing before you go

The ministry has recorded 112 bird species inside the park, eight of them endemic to Isla Saona and eleven to the Caribbean, and names sea grape, bayahonda and mahogany as its signature plants. It calls Cotubanamá the protected area with the most visitors in the country (Medio Ambiente). A quieter boat, an early departure and a walk away from the main beach give you the best chance of seeing more than the crowd.

Ceremonies and private events on the island

Small ceremonies happen on Saona through licensed operators: Caribbean Wedding Agency publishes a Saona Island package at US$2,750 for two people, which it describes as about 1 hour 15 minutes by road plus a 40-minute boat ride from Bávaro (Caribbean Wedding Agency). The park rules above apply to every guest, and anything built on the beach (arches, décor) has to leave with you. Our eloping in the Dominican Republic guide compares Saona with other small-wedding options.

What we left out

Several travel sites list further rules (no chemical sunscreen, no drones, no single-use plastic, fines at the natural pool). We could not find those in an official Medio Ambiente text, so we do not present them as law. They are still good practice. We also found no official published maximum number of boats or visitors per day for Saona.