Ferry to Samana

It used to cross the bay 4 times a day. It is a small boat for maybe max 10 people and you would buy your ticket at the small dock in Samana. At the Sabana end there is a small kiosk as I recall at the end of the long jetty which is to be/being renovated. I personally have not used it. I travelled there by car from Hato Mayor and Miches.

There is not much to do or see in Sabana except to transfer to the two hotels on the edge of Parque Haitises, Paraiso Cano Hondo or Altos Cano Hondo. They are about 10 miles out of town and good for trekking and a private boat hire into this wonderful park with history. It is a better way to see the park compared to organised tours from Samana or Sanchez imo. PCH is a quirky unique hotel and I wonder if the two geese still patrol the gardens?

Just a note of caution, Sabana de la Mar which is a small town, has a drug gang problem with shootings this past weekend. So daytime only in town would be advisable.

Thank you for such an informative detailed reply.  This will help us a lot and we will follow your suggestions when visiting there.  We've been to Samana several times for whale watching and enjoyed it but wanted to see and do a bit more and take the ferry versus driving there from Gaspar Hernández which is about a five hour drive.

Understood.

They call the ferry El Bote. Google it.

I strongly recommend a private boat trip down through the overhanging mangroves and into the bay (bahia lorenzo?) and visiting the sites, caves, bird sanctuaries, former pirate hangouts and banana traders relics in Parque Haitises and it can be arranged from the hotels mentioned above. Google them. They will help you plan your trip if arriving by ferry.

Curious what the ways to get to the cano hondo hotels from sabana del mar... do they have transportation? We want to see the park and although we are based over in samana, it sounds like the best way to be fully immersed in the park is to spend the night in the hotel there.  Thanks for your help!