# Friends and family, the biggest motivation for visiting DR

Canonical-URL: https://turismo.news/en/digest/friends-family-motivation-tourists-dominican-republic
Text-Version: https://turismo.news/en/digest/friends-family-motivation-tourists-dominican-republic.txt
Markdown-Version: https://turismo.news/en/digest/friends-family-motivation-tourists-dominican-republic.md
Language: en
Published: 2026-08-01T14:32:35.831Z
Modified: 2026-08-01T14:41:22.493Z
Author: Joan Sanz
Topics: Destinos
Summary: Friends and family, online promos and travel agencies are the main reasons tourists pick the Dominican Republic.

## Article

That word of mouth drives destination choice isn't new, but now there's data to confirm it. According to [Arecoa](https://www.arecoa.com/destinos/2026/07/31/amigos-y-relacionados-la-principal-motivacion-para-los-turistas-que-visitan-rd/), friends and relatives, online promotions and travel agencies are the main channels through which tourists decide to visit the Dominican Republic.

For hoteliers, this isn't a curiosity, it's a roadmap. If personal recommendations rule, the guest experience is your best campaign. And if online promotions weigh so much, you need to make your visible offer on search engines and social media shine. Travel agencies are still alive, no matter how many people wrote them off.

My read: Dominican tourism marketing has to work on all three fronts at once, without neglecting word of mouth. A happy guest brings their friends and creates content to boot. That's not bought, it's cultivated. The opportunity lies in measuring better who influences each booking and giving people who already visited us the reasons to tell the story.

## Sources

- Arecoa: https://www.arecoa.com/destinos/2026/07/31/amigos-y-relacionados-la-principal-motivacion-para-los-turistas-que-visitan-rd/

## Citation

Friends and family, the biggest motivation for visiting DR. Turismo News. 2026-08-01. https://turismo.news/en/digest/friends-family-motivation-tourists-dominican-republic