Things to see and do Santo Domingo & Area

It was one of the accesses to the city by land, built in 1543 in the style of a medieval fortified gate. In this place, Francisco del Rosario Sanchez, Ramon Matias Mella, and a group of patriots began the struggle for independence from Haiti on February 27, 1844. On the west side of the gate, the remains of the two small bastions that completed it are still visible. It owes its name to a small chapel built nearby in 1842, where the inhabitants went to implore for mercy.

At the end of Avenida del Conde, this Altar of the Homeland is located in one of the oldest squares in the capital. The remains of the three Fathers of the Homeland (Juan Pablo Duarte, Francisco del Rosario Sánchez and Matías Ramón Mella) rest here in a huge white marble mausoleum whose main door is marked with the national coat of arms. Inside, three impressive statues, some ten metres high, represent the national heroes. They are the work of the Italian sculptor Arrighini. A monument to visit.

Dating from the 17th century, originally called the bastion of San Genaro, the Puerta del Conde is part of the fortified wall that surrounded the city. It is one of the greatest symbols of the city. The gate is named after the Count of Peñalba, governor of the island, who defended the city against the English in 1655. Its two solid square towers are connected by a stone arch. It was the site of the first acts of independence of the Republic. Today the Puerta del Conde is one of the main entrances to the Independence Park.

Located at the very end of Calle Mercedes, this most important strategic place was a link in the great chain of garrisons and military forts built for defensive purposes in the course of the 17th century by the Italian military engineer J. B. Ruggero. The Fort of Conception is located on the edge of the colonial zone, next to the Independence Park. It is made entirely of stone and was used as a tramway station in the 19th century. A monument that you will not miss to discover during your visit to Santo Domingo.

Built in 1991, this aquarium gives a good idea of the local underwater fauna. The turtles and sharks evolve in basins connected by open-air walkways. Unfortunately, the explanations are not translated. Avoid the weekend, crowded with families. The cafeteria is located in a beautiful garden overlooking the sea. Near the Aquarium, on the other side of the road, there is an aquatic centre with slides, wave pool and water games. You can rent large inflatable buoys to propel yourself down the waterfalls.

A breath of greenery that stretches over 7 km in length. The first ecological park of Santo Domingo, one of the largest green spaces of the city. The Dominicans practice jogging and cycling there at the end of the day, and lovers stroll there in the evening. Embellished with sculptures, fountains, an artificial lake, bars and cafeterias, the park is a restful stop that you will never stop visiting. From the Mirador del Sur avenue, you have a beautiful panoramic view of the western part of the city. So take a deep breath and breathe out without delay.

The park covers an area of 10 km², and it's worth noting the obvious care taken to recreate the animals' natural habitat. No cages, no fences. However, due to a lack of resources, the zoo is becoming increasingly impoverished and does not make for an unforgettable visit. If you're an avid birdwatcher, don't miss the large aviary, where you can admire all kinds of rare birds with their variegated plumage. This can be an interesting place to visit if you're bringing the whole family and want to introduce your children to some of the fauna.

The Botanical Garden being next to the zoo, the visit of the two parks can be done simultaneously. This garden, dedicated to Dr. Rafael Moscoso Puello, famous Dominican botanist and founder of the Botanical Institute, is the most extensive in the Caribbean. You can visit it by train, by carriage or on foot. You will find many species of tropical flora, some of which are preserved today. Don't miss the Japanese garden, the orchid garden and the bromeliad pavilion. A cafeteria is welcome after the visit.

The long, three-storey National Palace is built in pure neoclassical style. As if it weren't imposing enough, it has been topped by an 18 m radius dome. Built from 1944 on Trujillo's orders and inaugurated in 1947, the National Palace is the seat of executive power: it houses the government offices, but not the president's official residence. The neoclassical style of the palace was designed by Italian architect Guido D'Alessandro. The presidential chapel is in the same style.

This foundation, the result of collaboration between scientists and companies, develops programs for the benefit of national archaeology. The exhibition, housed in the Pepsi-Cola company premises, features a very rich collection covering the Paleo-Indian, Meso-Indian and Taino periods. Among the many domestic and ceremonial objects on display are amulets, body ornaments, ceramics and objects used in the cohoba rite.

The museum was born of a private initiative, and offers a rich collection of paintings and sculptures by national artists of the ^19th and ^20th centuries. The exhibition highlights the different pictorial currents that marked this period. Three painters in particular stand out: Jaime Colson, Yordi Morel and Dario Suro. An interesting visit, although the museum is somewhat out of the way and only worth a detour for art enthusiasts. Mind you, access isn't easy either: you have to pass through the huge Honda store - surprising!

This two-storey building was built in 1554 by the Duke of Rivera, whose shield surmounts the door of the main entrance. The house owes its name to a strange character who lived in it and permanently masked his face. The legends say that he was the twin brother of a Spanish king or a disfigured leper. It is also said that prisoners from Mexico were locked up here and never showed their faces so as not to be recognized. Today the building is used for cultural events and art exhibitions.

Like all colonial buildings, the Casa de la Moneda (because it was located opposite the place where coins were minted) was built in the 16th century, in 1540. It is a fine example of the civil architecture of that period. Its plateresque portal with five medallions is superb. It is also known as the Casa de los Cinco Medallones. Since 1972 this house has housed the Numismatic Museum, which is not of great interest. It has been renovated several times, keeping its original style.

Only the ruins of the church built in the 16th century, destroyed by a cyclone in 1591 and then rebuilt, remain. Famous for having been built on the stone quarries which were used for the construction of the monuments of the colonial time, the church of Santa Barbara saw the baptism of Juan Pablo Duarte, hero of the Independence war. The facade is of Spanish colonial style with a baroque tendency. Inside we can see some beautiful baroque altarpieces. From the garden, one can enjoy a beautiful panoramic view of the colonial city.

It is in this modest house that Juan Pablo Duarte was born, on January 26, 1813, a hero of the war of independence. Born into a wealthy family of Spanish merchants, he developed a patriotic spirit at a very young age. He joined the Haitian National Guard and participated in the Reformation and the new Haitian government that resulted. Persecuted by the Haitian authorities, he embarked for Venezuela, from where he continued the fight for independence.

Erected in 1503 by order of Don Francisco de Garay, it is the first house built in stone in Santo Domingo. Francisco de Garay was a fellow traveller on the first voyage of Christopher Columbus and was the first notary of the island before becoming governor of Jamaica. The house owes its name to the cord of the Franciscan order, carved on the façade, an ornament frequently used in 16th century Spanish architecture. The building is now a cultural centre sponsored by the Dominican Popular Bank.

It is a long and imposing row of white buildings, all adjoining. This row of buildings was built at the beginning of the 16th century to house the customs and arsenal administration^_e this row of buildings was built at the beginning of the 16th century to house the administration of the customs and arsenal. This complex is a real architectural curiosity, and there is no similar one in America. Restored in 1972, the Atarazana now houses art galleries, bars, restaurants and shops. It is a must-see for anyone visiting Santo Domingo, and you should be no exception...

Built at the beginning of the sixteenth century, this two-storey building was the home of the writer Francisco del Tostado, a companion of Nicolás de Ovando, who died under the cannonballs fired by Francis Drake's troops. Built of stone, the Casa de Tostado has a remarkable geminated Gothic window on its north façade. Later, it housed the archbishop's palace. Today, it has been transformed into the Dominican Family Museum, and bears witness to the domestic customs and lifestyles of the island in the 19th century.

Built in 1530 in honour of the Virgin Mary, this church is particularly sober. It houses a Masonic lodge and an institution of the Catholic Church, a unique cohabitation in the world. Today it is the headquarters of the Academy of Dominican History. Outside, you will observe a hundred-year-old tree in the church square and a fountain. The complex is still standing and has survived human and weather attacks through the centuries.

It is the most famous building on the street. It is said that the six zoomorphic gargoyles that adorn its façade are typical of the Middle Ages! They were used as much to drain rainwater as to protect the building from harmful influences. They would have originally belonged to the cathedral. This building was the seat of the university of Santiago de La Paz. The national anthem was first performed here on August 17, 1883. The house communicates with the neighboring houses through interior corridors. A very interesting building to discover.

It is one of the oldest buildings in the city, built by order of Nicolás de Ovando (who ordered a total of fifteen). The Casa de los Jesuitas is a simple building with a colonial appearance typical of the period and a Moorish interior. The University of El Gorjo was transferred there under the supervision of the Jesuits until their expulsion in 1767. It was then inhabited by a few local families before becoming the property of the State. The adjoining church, now a national pantheon for some of the heroes of the resistance, was built from 1714 and finished in 1755.

Here again, only a few ruins remain of the first monastery in the New World, built in 1512 by the monks of the Order of St Francis. The old well of San Francisco and a reservoir where water was stored for the inhabitants of the town still exist. The site of the tomb of Alonso de Ojeda, one of the most intrepid captains of the conquistadors, is still visible under the ruined vault. Cultural events and concerts on Sunday nights.

Built in the 16th century, in 1564, the church belongs to the monastery of the Dominican nuns who lived in the country until the beginning of the 19th century. It is known as the first monastic church in the country. The façade of this solid construction is in the Plateresque style with Baroque elements. Inside, the choir is topped with wooden beams. The first two poetesses of the New World, Sor Leonor de Ovando and Elvira de Mendoza, lived here.

The Parque Duarte is decorated in its center with a bust of Juan Pablo Duarte, a hero of the War of Independence. In this very place, famous hangings took place, among them the one of the cacica Anacaona, queen of Jaragua, accused by Nicolás de Ovando of being the cause of an insurrection. This execution was followed in 1586 by the hanging of a number of clerics during the sacking of the city by Francis Drake. The square was also the scene of bullfights and popular religious festivals. It is also frequented by the LGBTQI+ community.

The church and convent were built around 1510 by the missionaries of the Santo Domingo order. In 1538, the convent became the original seat of the first university in the New World. It was named St. Thomas Aquinas, and today it is known as the Autonomous University of Santo Domingo. It was also here that the famous sermon of Brother Antonio de Montesino ("I am the voice that cries out in the desert") was delivered, calling for more humane treatment of the natives.

Built in 1522, initially dedicated to Santa Ana, the convent was the first to house nuns, Poor Clares, in Santo Domingo and in the New World, before they left for Havana in 1796. The church houses the tomb of Don Rodrigo Pimentel, patron of the convent. A practical man, he used the convent to house his mistresses, according to legend. Today, in the desecrated building, there is a school. An architectural complex to visit.

Built between 1540 and 1555, it is the only decorated gate in the city. It opened the access to the port. This is where goods and travellers entered the walled city. The gate is also called Puerta de la Mar. At the back stands the Fort of San Diego, whose two-level structure protruded into the waters of the Ozama River and which has undergone several destructions and reconstructions. The Calle de las Damas, which overlooks the San Diego gate, offers a beautiful view of the river and the Alcázar.

It was here that the very first religious services in the capital were held, before the cathedral was built. It was later used as a private chapel by the Davilas, a prominent family in the Spanish colony. The single-bay brick chapel, topped by a three-arched bell tower, dates from the early 16th century and was restored in the 19th century. In the chapel lies the body of Don Juan Alejandro Acosta, a hero of the resistance against Haiti.

The three houses that make up the palace were built by Nicolás de Ovando, founder of the city, during the first decade of the sixteenth century, when the governor general lived in Santo Domingo. The long and low façade is faithful to the austere gothic style of the time. The houses were attached to the Davila house at number 57 of the street when they were restored, and transformed into a tourist hotel in 1974 by the Dominican government.

Easily identifiable thanks to its blue, white and red flag which flies on its facade, this house shelters today the French embassy. Renovated in 1917, the house hosted the National Bank of Santo Domingo. In 1932, the land registry moved in and, from 1950 to 1978, it was the General Directorate of Taxes. In 1978, it was loaned to France by the Dominican government for a period of 50 years. The Gothic influence is perceptible.

The building now houses the Trampolino Museum for children. You can take a curious look at the interior garden. Archbishop Rodrigo de Bastidas, founder of the city of Coro, the first capital of Venezuela, and of Santa Marta in Colombia, took up residence here in the 16th century. His son, who bore the same name, was archbishop of San Juan de Puerto Rico. The house, next to the Ozama fortress, which has a beautiful garden shaded by large trees and surrounded by a deep gallery, was once a military hospital.

This six-storey palace, built on Trujillo's orders on a hill overlooking the city in the 1930s, is a massive concrete building with no particular charm. Its construction was entrusted to the engineer Henry Gazón. The dictator never occupied the place, but he had the walls decorated with frescos of the famous Spanish painter José Vela Zanetti (1913-1999). The palace was transformed into a hotel in the 1970s and then abandoned in the late 1990s, before renovations were undertaken.

On the same road as the mahogany house, here is the natural freshwater pool that was used by the dictator Trujillo at the time. Transformed into a playful swimming area, with slides and a relaxation area, the Toma is a privileged place for the inhabitants of San Cristobal and the surrounding area. Its cool waters are appreciated during the hot season, which is almost all year round, and there is also a playground and food and drink outlets. There is also a playground and food and drink outlets, as well as regular entertainment and concerts.

For those curious about the Trujillo era, the dictator's country house, once lined with mahogany on the inside (hence the name mahogany house), contains an important collection of objects that belonged to him. It is located a few kilometers from the city, at the end of a stony track that should be restored. To get there, in fact, you have to go towards La Toma and turn left at the aqueduct. This is not a priority visit on your trip, but it can be arranged while exploring the surroundings.

The church was built in the 19th century, in front of Trujillo's birthplace. It was to receive the remains of his family members. The church was named after Padre Ayala, a priest born in La Vega in 1789. He was taken prisoner by the Haitian Dessalines in 1805, took part in the Reconquest battles in 1809, then found his way by entering the orders in 1815. He was responsible for the construction of the Sagrado Corazón de Jesús, which he began in 1828 and completed about ten years later. He died in 1879 at the age of 90.

This church, built in 1949 at the request and with the financing of Trujillo, was built by the French architect Henry Gazón Bona. Nuestra Senora de la Consolacion was a gift from the dictator to his native city. The temple is decorated in its central nave with murals by the famous Spanish painter-muralist José Vela Zanetti. Unfortunately, the complex was destroyed in 1979 by the hurricane David, of sinister memory, and has been rebuilt since then.

The building, which houses the headquarters of the San Cristóbal Town Hall, was inaugurated in 1937. Easily recognizable by the small tower - on the top of which stands a clock - flanked by a one-story building, it was built entirely of reinforced concrete, in an architectural style of baroque-victorian inspiration, typical of the beginning of the last century. Because of its design and its representation in Dominican architecture, it has been declared "Cultural Heritage of the Dominican Republic". A construction that deserves a quick look.

Discovered in 1851 by a British consul, this geological formation, composed of some fifty caves, bears witness to Taíno rock art. More than 6,000 petroglyphs represent fish, reptiles and human figures. The caves, classified as a Unesco World Heritage Site, are home to large colonies of bats and were a place of veneration for the Taino people who performed rites there. The incredible wealth of rock art covering the walls of these caves makes the area the prehistoric capital of the Antilles.

The central park of Azua is surrounded by charming wooden houses with arcades. In the centre, a small yellow gazebo adds a cheerful note to the whole. On the side, the yellow and white colours of the church answer it. Opposite the central park, the Campo Santo is a typical cemetery of a small Dominican town. Don't miss the opportunity to visit it. The central park is the place where the inhabitants meet and relax. A small haven of peace where one could stay hours to read, write and simply stroll.

These are the remains of the old city, located 10 km south of Azua. According to oral tradition, the remains of the cacique Enriquillo were buried in the colonial church of Santa María de Azua. El Pueblo Viejo de Azua is still inhabited (about 5,000 people) and its population is still growing. But it is in the new Azua that the main activities are concentrated, obviously. A passage which does not have great interest but which can prove to be a stopover on your road and discovery of the Dominican Republic.

This official tourist information office has maps of the whole country. Do not hesitate to go and get some, because you will not necessarily have any with your rental car, more than useful if you do not have access to a GPS. Moreover, the website "Go Dominican Republic" is a mine of information to travel around the country and discover the capital Santo Domingo. Do not hesitate to have a look at it. A version in French is proposed. It only remains for us to wish you a good trip through the country.

If you want to do something off the beaten tourist track, we can't recommend the decolonial tour enough. On this tour, Ruth, your guide, will tell you about the little-known history of slavery and resistance on the island. She'll show you the historic monuments from a new angle, and tell you a thousand secret stories about the capital. The tour is suitable for the whole family and is conducted in French.

One of Santo Domingo's lungs. The Mirador Del Este park is a favorite spot for sports enthusiasts, with its wide-open spaces and numerous tennis, basketball and baseball courts. Here, you can watch Dominicans cheerfully challenge each other to one of these ball sports. Families also flock here for picnics amid the tropical vegetation, especially at weekends. Yet another snapshot of local daily life. Unfortunately, the upkeep of the park leaves much to be desired, as does the lighting after dark.

This monument pays homage to Antonio de Montesinos, a Dominican priest and defender of the American Indian peoples under the Spanish Empire. Donated by Mexico in 1982, the bronze and limestone structure depicts the priest delivering his famous sermon on December 21, 1511 against the injustices suffered by the natives. He even threatened excommunication and denied the sacraments to the large landowners who enslaved the natives in the mines and fields.

A Chinatown in the Caribbean? Yes, there are between 30,000 and 50,000 Chinese descendants in the capital, and since 2004, they've had their own neighborhood. A mini Chinatown along Avenue Duarte, just a stone's throw from the colonial center. Here you'll find the usual Chinatown bustle: laundromats, food stores and restaurants. Drop in on Sunday mornings to enjoy the large open-air market where Chinese and Dominican farmers and street vendors sell delicious food and drinks.

This huge artery runs along the Caribbean Sea from the colonial zone to the outskirts of the city for a distance of 15 km. On the plans, it is called Avenida George Washington (and includes the Paseo Presidente Billini south of the colonial zone), but for the Dominicans, it is the Malecón. Two obelisks were erected there during Trujillo's time. The first one called " La Hembra " ("female" because of its two columns) celebrated the repayment of the country's foreign debt; it marks the beginning of the colonial city and the beginning of the walls that once protected the Spanish city. The second obelisk, called " El barón " ("male" because of its single column!), was erected in 1936 and celebrated the first anniversary of the new name of the city, Ciudad Trujillo. It is in the central part of the Malecón, that is to say between the colonial city and Lincoln Avenue, that families and lovers stroll at night. This is the place to go to play kite and enjoy the nightlife of bars, ice cream shops, restaurants, cinemas and discos. Be careful, there are few shady areas, the sun is strong!

It is on the Malecón that the comparsas parade during the carnivals of the capital to the sound of Creole rhythms and African drums in July. Stands are set up all along the sea, orchestras play there every evening, drink counters invade the streets where the crowd never stops dancing and drinking until the early morning.

Born in 2004, the Cluster turístico y productivo de la provincia Barahona aims to boost tourism in the southwest region of the Dominican Republic. So much so that over the years, the actors of tourism in the area have gradually begun to collaborate among themselves. The group now offers about thirty quality hotels: about fifteen in Barahona itself, the others on the coast, in Paraiso, Los Patos or Polo. More information on the website of Go Barahona. A source of information not to be neglected to discover the southwestern zone.

The only vineyard in the country, the OcoaBay opens its doors to visitors who want to learn more about the process of making the very good local wine, but also about the vegetable crops that are specific to the climate of the area. The OcoaBay also has a restaurant that offers quality tapas (cheese and cured ham), which are naturally accompanied by the house wines. Overflowing swimming pool. A unique place. Perfect stopover between the capital and Barahona! We like it.