Holiday in Santo Domingo

What makes Santo Domingo special as a destination?

Santo Domingo is the oldest city in the New World founded by Europeans — established in 1496 by Bartolomé Columbus, the brother of Christopher Columbus, on the banks of the Ozama River. The Zona Colonial (UNESCO World Heritage) preserves an unparalleled density of 'firsts': the first cathedral, the first hospital, the first university, and the first paved street in the entire Western Hemisphere. Here began, for better or worse, the European colonization of America. The Catedral Primada de América (1521) is the architectural jewel: a mix of Gothic and Renaissance in honey-colored coral stone, where Columbus' remains (allegedly) rest. The Calle de las Damas, the first paved street in the Americas, is lined with palaces and fortress walls that demonstrated the power of the Spanish crown in the Caribbean. The Alcázar de Colón, the palace of Diego Columbus (Christopher's son), overlooks the river and today houses a museum with furniture and artifacts from the colonial era. The Faro a Colón, a cross-shaped mausoleum, projects a giant light cross into the sky at night, visible from large parts of the city. Beyond the colonial zone, modern Santo Domingo pulses: The Malecón, a 14-kilometer-long waterfront promenade along the Caribbean Sea, is the meeting point for joggers, Merengue dancers, and rum drinkers at sunset. The city is the birthplace of Merengue and Bachata — two dance styles that come alive on every corner, in every bar, and at every party.