Our story
It started with a photograph
A single photo on a cruise stop in 2009 grew into a friendship, and then a company. Now we're here to help you make memories of your own in El Valle and across the Samaná Peninsula.
How El Valle Samaná Tours began
2009
A photograph
Mario first came to El Valle on a cruise to Samaná. During that visit he took a photograph of a local teenager named Leo — a small moment, easily forgotten.
Fifteen years later
An unlikely reunion
Mario returned to El Valle, and by an incredible coincidence Leo — now an experienced local guide — ended up leading his tour. A chance encounter turned into a friendship.
A company is born
Putting down roots
As Mario kept coming back, he fell for the people, culture, and natural beauty of El Valle. Eventually he bought land in the community and partnered with Leo to create El Valle Samaná Tours.
Today
Local knowledge, done right
We pair Leo's lifelong local knowledge with Mario's sense of what North American travelers are looking for. Together we work with trusted local guides, captains, drivers, and small businesses — authentic experiences that support the community that brought us together.
Meet the team
Leo & Mario
Leo was born and raised in El Valle and has spent his life on these trails, falls, and beaches — there's little about this coast he doesn't know. Mario first arrived as a traveler and now calls El Valle a second home. Between them, every trip is planned by people who genuinely know the place and the people in it.
We keep groups small and work hand-in-hand with local guides, captains, and drivers — so your day supports the community that made it.
What makes us different
We out-class, we don't out-shout
El Valle specialists
One corner of Samaná, known deeply — not a hundred destinations done thinly.
Back on time, guaranteed
Every cruise day is timed to your ship, with buffer to spare.
A real partnership
Leo's lifelong local knowledge, Mario's read on what travelers want.
The real thing
Working farms, family kitchens, and beaches that still feel found, not sold.
Our promise
Local, licensed, and back on time.
We're a small, local-owned team, and every trip runs on the relationships behind it — trusted guides, captains, and drivers from right here in Samaná. If you're on a cruise, we build the day around your ship so you're back aboard with time to spare.
The number-one cruise-day fear is missing the ship. We time every cruise excursion around your all-aboard time, with buffer to spare — so you're back at the pier with room to breathe.
El Valle · Samaná
Come see the real Samaná.
One small team, the trails and water we grew up on, and a promise we keep every time — back on time, every time. Tell us your dates and we'll plan the day around you.