La Romana, Dominican Republic, seen from Belara on the La Altagracia side of the Chavón

La Romana is the port city and provincial capital west of Cap Cana, on the Caribbean coast of the Dominican Republic. Belara is not in it: the building stands in Green Village, inside Cap Cana, in La Altagracia province, roughly 54 miles from central La Romana by road. The two sides of the Chavón River were one province until 1961, and the city across the river is still where a Cap Cana owner goes for a night at the ballpark or an afternoon in town. This page explains where the line runs, how it got there, and what each side offers an owner.

Is Cap Cana part of La Romana?

No. Cap Cana, and Belara inside it in Green Village, belongs to La Altagracia, the province that covers the eastern tip of the Dominican Republic and has Higüey as its capital. La Romana is the next province to the west along the Caribbean coast, and its capital, also called La Romana, is the city most people mean when they type the name into a search box. From Belara's map pin, the centre of that city is roughly 54 miles away by road and about 36 miles in a straight line.

You can tell when you cross from one to the other. On the open map data we used for every distance on this page, the line between the two provinces runs along the Chavón River where the Autopista del Coral crosses it, on a bridge roughly 47 miles from Belara. Most of what visitors know as La Romana sits beyond that bridge: the airport, the stone village of Altos de Chavón above the river, and the city itself. What a Belara owner needs day to day sits on the near side.

How did La Romana and Cap Cana end up in different provinces?

Until 1961 they were not in different provinces at all. The province governed from La Romana also took in Higüey and the whole eastern tip, the land where Cap Cana stands today. The split came in two steps. In January 1961 the executive sent Congress a short bill: the existing province, which at that moment was itself called La Altagracia, would be renamed La Romana, and the name La Altagracia would pass to a new province with Higüey as its capital. The Senate passed the bill on 24 January and sent it on to the Chamber of Deputies, and, as a national newspaper recounted in 2025, a law of August 1961 made La Altagracia a province in its own right.

The division was lopsided: the new province took about 1,160 square miles, and La Romana kept about 250. Today La Romana province consists of three municipalities, La Romana, Guaymate and Villa Hermosa, plus the municipal districts of Caleta and Cumayasa, and its economy rests mainly on sugar, free zones and tourism. So a Belara owner who drives across the Chavón leaves the province their home belongs to for the one it was carved out of.

1. Until 1961 One province, governed from La Romana Its territory takes in Higüey and the eastern tip, where Cap Cana stands today.
2. 17 January 1961 A bill goes to Congress It renames the province La Romana and keeps the name La Altagracia for a new province with Higüey as its capital.
3. 24 January 1961 The Senate passes it The bill moves on to the Chamber of Deputies.
4. August 1961 La Altagracia becomes a province The new province takes about 1,160 square miles; La Romana keeps about 250.

What do you pass on the road from Belara to La Romana?

One road does nearly all the work. From Belara the route runs about 7 miles through Cap Cana and out by the airport road, then joins the Autopista del Coral (RD-3) and stays on it for about 43 miles. The bridge over the Chavón comes first; beyond it, within a few miles of each other, lie the turnings for La Romana's airport and for Altos de Chavón, and then the streets of the city. Higüey, the capital of Belara's own province, lies north of the motorway on a different road, roughly 36 miles from Belara.

These are distances, not drive times. The routing engine also returns a time, but it assumes empty roads and no stops, so it would understate the trip, and we leave it out. Canada's official travel advice for the whole country says road safety varies considerably and accidents are frequent, and suggests that travellers consider hiring a licensed professional driver for road travel, advice worth taking literally for any trip back after dark.

Why make the drive from mid-October?

For baseball. Professional baseball in the Dominican Republic is played in winter, and La Romana is one of the cities with a home club in the national league. The 2026-27 season opens on Friday 16 October 2026 with three games, one of them in La Romana at 7:30 p.m., according to the league calendar as reported by the national press. The regular series runs to 150 games, 50 for each of the six clubs, pauses from 4 to 6 December and carries on into late December, before the semifinal and final rounds.

For an owner who spends the winter at Belara, that makes La Romana an evening destination as well as a daytime one. A home game means roughly 54 miles each way and a drive back well after dark, so plan the return before setting out: Canada's advice for the country warns that criminals target cars on the roads, especially after nightfall, and a hired driver or a night in town settles the question. Dates can move, so check the league's published calendar for home games before you go.

What stays on the Cap Cana side for a Belara owner?

Almost everything that touches daily life. Belara is a five-level building of 59 residences in Green Village, with direct access to the neighbourhood's central park, and its delivery is planned for Q4 2029. Its province is La Altagracia, so the provincial capital is Higüey, roughly 36 miles away by road, not La Romana. Inside Cap Cana, electricity comes from the destination's own isolated generation and distribution system and water from its own operator, so the supply contracts are something to confirm at handover. Punta Cana International Airport is about 20 minutes from Belara by car, while La Romana's airport is roughly 50 miles away by road, and Juanillo Beach is about 12 minutes from the door.

La Romana, in other words, is the city across the river rather than the one that runs your home. Its value to a Belara owner is the change of scene: a ballgame on a winter night, an afternoon at Altos de Chavón above the river, or a few hours in a working port city, with the same motorway back to Cap Cana at the end of the day.

Common questions

Which province is Cap Cana in?

La Altagracia, whose capital is Higüey, roughly 36 miles from Belara by road. La Romana is a separate province to the west, with a capital city of the same name roughly 54 miles from Belara.

When did La Romana and La Altagracia become separate provinces?

In 1961. A bill sent to Congress in January renamed the existing province La Romana and reserved the name La Altagracia for a new province with Higüey as its capital; the Senate passed it on 24 January, and a law of August 1961 made the new province official.

Where does the road from Cap Cana cross into La Romana province?

At the Chavón River, which the Autopista del Coral crosses on a bridge roughly 47 miles from Belara, on the open map data we used for our measurements. The airport, Altos de Chavón and the city all lie beyond it.

When does the baseball season start in La Romana?

The 2026-27 winter season opens on Friday 16 October 2026, and one of the three opening games is in La Romana at 7:30 p.m. The regular series of 150 games runs into late December.

Is La Romana's airport a good choice for Belara?

Rarely. Punta Cana International is about 20 minutes from Belara by car, while La Romana International is roughly 50 miles away by road, beyond the Chavón River bridge.