Are there mosquitoes in Samaná? A few, and the sand flies pick favorites.

Yes, though most visitors find the mosquitoes minor. Samaná province, which holds Las Terrenas, Las Galeras and Samaná town, is outside the CDC's malaria-medicine provinces, so no malaria pills are needed. What bites on the peninsula is mostly sand flies on dawn and dusk beach walks and after rain, plus the day-biting mosquito that spreads dengue.

Outside the malaria provinces

The CDC's Dominican Republic page recommends malaria prevention medicine only for the "Provinces (including resort areas) of Azua, Elias Piña, La Altagracia, San Juan, and Santo Domingo." For "All other areas," it says "No chemoprophylaxis recommended (insect bite precautions and mosquito avoidance only)." Samaná isn't on the list. Neither are Hato Mayor and Monte Plata, the other provinces Los Haitises National Park reaches, so bite precautions are the whole job, including on boats from Sabana de la Mar. Press coverage of the health ministry's 2026 malaria data named none of these provinces.

Punta Cana is the contrast. Its province, La Altagracia, is on the CDC's list, resort areas included. If you're adding Punta Cana or Santo Domingo, ask a travel clinic about those provinces 4–6 weeks before departure. Our Dominican Republic briefing covers the rest of the country.

Dengue in a busy national year

Dengue is endemic across the Dominican Republic. Nationally, confirmed cases more than doubled between late July and early October 2026 and passed 2025's count, according to press reports of the health ministry's bulletins. Samaná wasn't among the busiest provinces named in those reports. On October 20 the Pan American Health Organization reported dengue rising again across the Caribbean. The mosquito that spreads it bites in daylight, so repellent goes on over sunscreen in the morning and again before sunset. Chikungunya hasn't been detected in the country for several years, and the CDC doesn't recommend the yellow fever vaccine. None is required when you fly direct from the US.

Beaches, mangroves and whales

Most forum posters call mosquitoes on the peninsula a minor issue, though some advise bug spray all the time. Sand flies, the tiny biting midges called no-see-ums in the US, get mixed reviews. The bites tend to come after rain and on morning and evening beach walks, and some people are bitten head to toe while their companions get nothing. Las Terrenas's palm-backed beaches are more sheltered than the windswept resort strip in the east, so still days at dawn and dusk are the times to cover feet and ankles. Rinse off after the beach and keep beach bags out of the room. Our Barbados sand fly guide explains how midges behave.

The two signature outings sit at opposite ends. Los Haitises tours take a boat from Samaná into mangrove channels and caves with Taíno pictographs, and one reviewer advised bringing mosquito spray. The still air makes it the likeliest bite spot of the trip, so put repellent on before the boat reaches the mangroves and bring a light long-sleeved layer for the caves. The humpback whale boats spend hours on the open, breezy bay and are largely bite-free.

December to April is the drier season and the low point for dengue, which usually rises with the May to November rains. Early December may still catch the tail of the fall dengue season. The Environment Ministry opened the 2026 whale season in mid-January, Diario Libre reported.

Where you're going

Scores are for a December–April trip.

What travelers report

Paraphrased from a TripAdvisor thread and linked so you can read it in full. It describes an April 2012 trip, so read it as background for the peninsula rather than this season's picture.

• Bahia Principe El Portillo (Las Terrenas, Samaná) · April · 2012

  A repeat guest said mosquitoes had never been a problem for them at El Portillo. On an April 2012 trip they got bites they suspected were sand fleas, picked up off the resort. TripAdvisor ↗

One rule outlasts the trip. Any fever during or after the trip means a doctor visit, and you tell the doctor you were in the Dominican Republic. If you were bitten, bitten in a dengue zone covers what to watch for.

Traveler questions