Distrito Nacional · Dominican Republic
Where to stay in Santo Domingo
Santo Domingo is a city in Distrito Nacional, Dominican Republic, home to about 2,202,000 people. This guide covers 2 hotels in Santo Domingo.
- Places to stay in this guide
- 2
- Nearest airport
- JBQ13 km · La Isabela International Airport
- Currency
- DOPDominican peso
- Time zone
- America/Santo Domingo
- Language
- Spanish
About
About Santo Domingo
Santo Domingo, officially known as Santo Domingo de Guzmán, is the capital and largest city of the Dominican Republic and the largest metropolitan area in the Caribbean by population. As of 2022, the city center had a population of 1,029,110 while its metropolitan area, Greater Santo Domingo, had a population of 4,274,651.
Santo Domingo is the capital city of the Dominican Republic, and it prides itself in being the first European city in the New World. Founded by Christopher Columbus's brother Bartolome Colombus in 1496, it is the oldest continuously inhabited European settlement in the Americas and was the first seat of the Spanish colonial empire in the New World. For this reason, the city of Santo Domingo has a really rich historic and cultural heritage that makes any visit extremely worthwhile.
Wikipedia and Wikivoyage contributors, CC BY-SA 4.0; excerpted.
Things to do
What to see and do in Santo Domingo
See
Despite boasting a rich cultural, architectural and artistic heritage, Santo Domingo has not been exploited for all its tourist potential. You're pretty much on your own to discover this fascinating city. Make the most of your time there.
- Colonial Zone
- Basilica Cathedral of Santa María la Menor
- Fortaleza Ozama
- Malecon
- Plaza de la Cultura
- Eco-tourism
- Eastern Santo Domingo
- Faro a Colon
- Sundial
- Upscale Santo Domingo
- Presidencia de la República Dominicana
- Alcázar de Colón
Do
Santo Domingo is an excellent place to study Spanish off the beaten track and get immersed in the language.
- Kahkow Experience
- AquaMundo
- Playa Boca Chica/Playa San Andres
Wikivoyage contributors, CC BY-SA 4.0; excerpted.
Where to stay
Places to stay in Santo Domingo
2 places to stay from the chains this guide covers, each linked to its own website.
| Place to stay |
|---|
| Barceló Santo Domingo hotel |
| El Embajador, a Royal Hideaway Hotel hotel |
Schematic: the city centre in orange, each place to stay as a dot, distance rings in kilometres.
Where to stay
More hotels in Santo Domingo
18 hotels within 25 km of the centre, as recorded in Wikidata. Each name links to its encyclopedia article where there is one.
| Hotel | Opened | From centre |
|---|---|---|
| Aparta Hotel Plaza del Sol | 2.2 km | |
| Catalonia Santo Domingo | 2.8 km | |
| City Caribbean Hotel Boutique | 2.5 km | |
| Dominican Fiesta Hotel & Casino | 4.3 km | |
| Embassy Suites by Hilton Santo Domingo | 1.7 km | |
| Holiday Inn Santo Domingo Hotel & Suites | 1.5 km | |
| Homewood Suites by Hilton Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic | 1.1 km | |
| Hotel Aladino | 2.4 km | |
| Hotel Esmeralda Guest House | 2.6 km | |
| Hotel Real Bella Vista | 1.4 km | |
| InterContinental Real Santo Domingo | 0.7 km | |
| JW Marriott Hotel Santo Domingo | 1.2 km | |
| Malecon Premium Rooms | 2.2 km | |
| Plaza Florida Suites | 1.2 km | |
| Radisson Hotel Santo Domingo | 1.9 km | |
| Royal Palace Hotel | 1.4 km | |
| W&P Santo Domingo | 0.7 km | |
| Weston Suites Hotel | 0.5 km |
All 20 hotels in Santo Domingo, with their history and operators
When to go
The best time to visit Santo Domingo
Santo Domingo has no month that is both mild and dry by the measure used here. August is the warmest month, with average highs of 33 °C; September is the wettest, with about 176 mm of rain.
Comfortable means average daytime high between 18 °C and 29 °C and under 80 mm of rain in the month. Averages for 1991–2020 over the surrounding area, a grid square about 50 km across, so a coast or a nearby mountain can make the town itself warmer or cooler. Data: CRU TS v4.10, Climatic Research Unit, University of East Anglia (Open Database License).
Getting there
Getting to Santo Domingo: airports and arrival
The nearest airport with scheduled flights is La Isabela International Airport (JBQ), about 13 km from the city centre in a straight line; Las Américas International Airport (SDQ, 28 km) and Samaná El Catey International Airport (AZS, 92 km) are also within reach.
Getting around
Santo Domingo used to be a huge city (population nearly 4 million people) that was split into 5 independent municipalities: Distrito Nacional, Santo Domingo Este, Santo Domingo Oeste, Santo Domingo Norte and Boca Chica. Fortunately, nearly all tourist attractions and shopping, dining and entertainment venues are relatively close to each other in the Distrito Nacional, making it easy for you to get around and see the sights. Santo Domingo is not entirely a tourist-friendly city.
Wikivoyage contributors, CC BY-SA 4.0; excerpted.
JBQ · La Isabela International Airport
SDQ · Las Américas International Airport
AZS · Samaná El Catey International Airport
Local knowledge
Eating, drinking and staying safe in Santo Domingo
Eat
Santo Domingo offers a variety of cuisines from around the world from Chinese, Italian and Mediterranean to Brazilian. You can also find the main fast food franchises like McDonald's, Burger King, Pizza Hut, Wendy’s, and Taco Bell. Mid-grade and high-end restaurants can be quite costly for Third World standards, a dinner with an entrée, main course, drink and dessert can range from US$15-75 per person, plus 10% mandatory tip plus 16% ITBIS tax. Be careful and ask around as price doesn't always equal quality, especially in tourist areas.
Drink
Santo Domingo has an amazing variety of night life options. Most bars and clubs must close by law at midnight from Sunday to Thursday and at two in the morning on Friday and Saturday. Therefore, it is not uncommon for people to start partying at 20:00 on the weekends. Happily, the regulation is suspended on holidays and the last two weeks of December for Christmas partying. Usually the clubs located inside major hotels are exempt from this rule, although they aren't usually much fun. The Malecon is home to several options as well, depending on what's in style at the time. Check out Jet Set on Monday nights for live Merengue and Bachata shows from the most popular top bands.
Stay safe
Poverty, though not as bad as next door Haiti, is still rampant and it is best you take precautions. Do not flash obvious wealth in poorer or middle class sections of the city (lots of jewelry, expensive camera, big watches, etc.) Keep your bag away from the street when walking as it can be snatched by kids on mopeds and keep a firm grip on it. Keep your passport at your accommodation and in a safe (some maids can steal). If you are Caucasian or Asian (no matter how you are dressed), expect to have a lot of insincerely friendly people on the streets follow you and strike up conversation with you. They are only talking to you in order to get money from you.
Wikivoyage contributors, CC BY-SA 4.0; excerpted.
Questions
Santo Domingo: questions travellers ask
When is the best time to visit Santo Domingo?
Santo Domingo has no month that is both mild and dry by the measure used here. August is the warmest month, with average highs of 33 °C; September is the wettest, with about 176 mm of rain.
Which airport is closest to Santo Domingo?
The nearest airport with scheduled flights is La Isabela International Airport (JBQ), about 13 km from the city centre in a straight line; Las Américas International Airport (SDQ, 28 km) and Samaná El Catey International Airport (AZS, 92 km) are also within reach.
What currency is used in Santo Domingo?
Dominican peso (DOP).
Nearby
Destinations near Santo Domingo
Sources: city facts from Wikidata and Wikipedia; airports from OurAirports; climate from CRU TS v4.10 (University of East Anglia Climatic Research Unit), 1991–2020 monthly means, 0.5° grid; places to stay, guest scores and amenities from each operator's own public pages. How this guide is made.