• January 13, 2010

The Dominican Republic (DR) Ministry of Tourism says that the island sustained no damage from the earthquake that hit its neighbor, Haiti, but that it is providing relief effort staging areas at some of the international airports located on the island.

Punta Cana, the major global tourism destination in the DR, is located approximately 400 miles (633 kilometers) east of Haiti's capital, or a 10-12-hour drive, with numerous mountain ranges separating the two countries.

The country says all eight international airports are open and receiving flights. All of the DR's cruise terminals and seaports are open; all of the DR's beaches, hotels, resorts and tourism businesses are conducting normal business operations; and no flights or group tours to the DR have been cancelled.--Karl Greenberg