Pétion-Ville travel guide

Pétion-Ville is a commune and a suburb of Port-au-Prince, Haiti, in the hills east and separate from the city itself on the northern hills of the Massif de la Selle. Founded in 1831 by president Jean-Pierre Boyer, it was named after Alexandre Sabès Pétion (1770–1818), the Haitian general and president later recognized as one of the country's four founding fathers.

Pétion-Ville is in the hills east and separate of the city itself on the northern hills of the Massif de la Selle. It was named after Alexandre Sabès Pétion (1770–1818), the Haitian general and president later recognized as one of the country's four founding fathers. The district is primarily a residential and tourist area. Pétion-Ville is part of the city's metropolitan area, one of the most affluent areas of the city, where the majority of tourist activity takes place, and one of the wealthiest parts of the country.

Getting in

Port au Prince airport (PAP) is served by several major airlines - primarily American Airlines and Delta - as well as smaller flights from the Dominican Republic, Cuba, and other spots in the Caribbean. Taxis from the airport to your destination in Port au Prince will be about US$20 for standard fare. Try to bargain down to US$15. Tap taps going to all places past the airport and will cost about G10 (gourdes) (25 cents). Traffic is bad in and out of Petion-Ville but many roads are quite scenic, looking back towards Port-au-Prince.

Getting around

Tap-taps run along prescribed routes throughout the city. Most routes cost G10, though to get across the city you may need to use multiple routes, each of which charges separately. These can be rather intimidating if you aren't familiar with them. Taxis are typically about G500 and should only be used during daylight. After dark, prices rise substantially and you are at substantially greater risk of being mugged.

Wikivoyage contributors, CC BY-SA 4.0; excerpted.