Saona Island

SAONA ISLAND
Saona Island (in Spanish Isla Saona) is a tropical island located a short distance from the mainland on the south-east tip of the Dominican Republic, near La Altagracia Province. It isa government protected nature reserve and a popular destination for tourists from all over the Dominican Republic, who arrive in fleets of catamarans and small motorboats on organized excursions everyday. The Island is famous for the natural beauty of its beaches, and has been used on many occasions by film-makers and advertisers looking for a stereotypical "desert island" setting for their filmor product. It is promoted amongst European visitors as the setting for the famous Bounty chocolate bar adverts.
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History
The island was baptized "Saona" by Christopher Columbus, who discoveredit in May 1494 during his second voyage to the Americas. The name was meant "... to honor Michele da Cuneo, [Columbus'] friend from Savona." Columbus named Michele da Cuneo the first governor of theisland.
Saona Island and Savona (now part of Liguria, northern Italy) still have twinning relationships. The small powerplant in Saona Island is a gift of Savona.

Geography

Panoramic view ofSaona Island
With an area of 42 square miles (110 km2) Saona is the largest Dominican offshore island and forms part of the National Park of the East (Parque Nacional del Este).
The seas around theIsland are rich in wildlife, with many species of birds and tropical marine fish, and there are large areas where natural sandbars offshore
bring the depth to just a few feet. These are once againpopular with the tourist trade, with small boats stopping hundreds of meters off the beach and disgorging tourists into the waist-deep shallows where they snorkel, drink and check out the fields ofstarfish indigenous to the region.
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Isla Saona and the Caribbean Sea
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Saona Island Beach

Saona |
Native name: Isla Saona |
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Saona Island (Dominican Republic) |
Geography |...