My life in the Dominican Republic
Why I Chose to Call the Dominican Republic Home
My life in the Dominican Republic began in 1998 with a standard family holiday. We spent two weeks in Puerto Plata, where my partner and I completed a PADI Advanced Open Water Diver course. Diving into the warm, tropical waters of the Atlantic for the first time was unforgettable—and we knew it wouldn't be our last.
The following year, we headed to the southern side of the island for another two-week getaway, this time to a sleepy Caribbean town called Juan Dolio. Little did I know, this holiday would rewrite my future forever.
During the trip, I completed my PADI Rescue Diver course and was immediately offered a PADI Divemaster internship. It was an opportunity I couldn't resist: a four-month escape filled with unlimited diving and a professional certification. We quickly returned to England, arranged for someone to look after our house, and started packing.
By October 1999, we were back in the Dominican Republic. Though we hadn't planned beyond the internship, this was just the beginning. When I qualified in February 2000, I was invited to stay on for the Instructor Development Course (IDC). Swapping a freezing British February for the tropics was a total no-brainer.
By March, I was a fully certified PADI Open Water Scuba Instructor. Just before we had to return to the UK, fate stepped in again. I met Katie, who—along with her husband—had just secured a contract to run a brand-new diving and watersports centre at a superb hotel. She asked me to join their team.
We flew back to the UK one last time to tie up loose ends, then made the permanent move. We rented an apartment, enrolled our daughter in a local school, and officially began our new life.
Between 2000 and 2003, we still returned to the UK for a few months each summer to avoid the tropical low season, when tourism slows down and the hurricane season brings intense heat and rain.
But by 2003, we were ready to commit fully. We sold our UK property and bought a lovely villa with a pool and massive gardens right in Juan Dolio. It was a fixer-upper, which kept the price well within our budget and allowed us to buy a home that would have otherwise been out of reach.
Eventually, the hotel contract ended, prompting me to launch my own dive and excursion business, H2O Diving. As the company found its footing, I also worked freelance for three other dive centres, solidifying my place in the community I now call home.
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