Hacienda La Esmeralda Day Trip from Santo Domingo

Your chocolate tour from Santo Domingo starts with hotel pickup for the drive to Hacienda La Esmeralda, a chocolate farm and factory about 87 miles (140 km) north of Santo Domingo near San Francisco de Macoris. When you arrive, enjoy a welcome tasting of chocolate.
Following the ‘Cacao Trail’ (El Sendero del Cacao), learn about the chocolate-making process, from plant to the finished product, with chocolate makers and other experts. Watch and participate in the planting of cacao seeds, and learn about harvesting, removing grains from the pod, fermenting and drying, all of which contribute to the quality of the chocolate.
Hear about the Dominican Republic’s environmental conditions that produce great cocoa, and then head to the chocolate factory to watch the final steps of turning cocoa into a decadent piece of chocolate. Here, surrounded by the mouthwatering aromas of different types of chocolate, you can help make your own chocolate bar before sitting down to a traditional Dominican lunch in the farm’s beautiful natural setting.
Your day tour ends with return to Santo Domingo for hotel drop-off.