Santo Domingo
Stone houses from the first years of the sixteenth century, a seafront avenue on the Caribbean, and a business-aviation airport inside the city limits.
- Arrival
- Las Américas International · SDQ
- To the city
- About 30 minutes to the Malecón by car
- Private jets
- Universal Aviation terminal at La Isabela
- Best time
- December to April
The city
Coral stone and the Caribbean.
Santo Domingo is the oldest continuously inhabited European settlement in the Americas, and its Colonial City is still a working neighbourhood. Several of its old buildings now take guests: three stone houses of 1502 on Calle Las Damas, a convent whose walls have stood for some 450 years, two restored villas around a palm courtyard. Further west, in Bella Vista, El Embajador has received visitors since a world fair in February 1956.
The capital has more city than beach, and suits a short stay on the way to the coast. December to April is the drier season: about 30 °C by day, and the sea at 26 to 27 °C. From May to October rain passes 150 mm a month, and the storm risk is highest from August to October.
- Calle Las Damas Described by the MICHELIN Guide as the oldest paved road in the New World, lined with houses of 1502.
- The Colonial City Squares, churches and coral-stone mansions, with the cathedral and the Alcázar de Colón among them.
- The Malecón George Washington Avenue, running west from the old town along the Caribbean shore.
Arriving
An airline hub to the east, a jet terminal in town.
Las Américas International, about 20 km east of the centre, has a runway of some 3,350 m and handles the airlines. Private flights can also use La Isabela International, on the north side of the city, where Universal Aviation runs the general aviation terminal.
- Miami 2 h 05
- Palm Beach 2 h 10
- Los Cabos 5 h 40
- San Francisco 7 h 25 long-range jet
- Milan 10 h 15 long-range jet
When to go
December to April.
The capital sits in steady heat, 29 to 32 °C by day, beside a Caribbean at 26 to 29 °C. December to April is the dry stretch, under 75 mm a month; May brings the first heavy rain, and August to October carry the risk of tropical storms.
- 29° J 63 27°
- 30° F 54 26°
- 30° M 49 26°
- 31° A 69 27°
- 31° M 202 27°
- 31° J 153 28°
- 32° J 157 28°
- 32° A 179 28°
- 32° S 174 29°
- 32° O 181 29°
- 31° N 103 28°
- 30° D 75 27°
Where to stay
A hotel of 1956, and a courtyard in the old town.
Shown for information. We have no arrangement with any of these hotels.
- El Embajador, a Royal Hideaway Hotel Opened in 1956 for a world fair, set in about 12,000 square metres of tropical gardens near Mirador del Sur Park, with a spa and a Royal Level on its upper floors.
- Casas del XVI, Vignette Collection Eight restored colonial houses around Calle Padre Billini with 21 rooms and suites, in IHG's Vignette Collection since September 2026; the only hotel in the city with a MICHELIN Key.
Where to dine
The best tables in the city.
No MICHELIN Guide covers the Dominican Republic. These three head the 2026 Santo Domingo list of the Macarfi guide.
- La Cassina Macarfi 2026, Santo Domingo top 10 Italian $$$$ Piantini
- Don Pepe Macarfi 2026, Santo Domingo top 10 Spanish Santo Domingo
- Ajualä Macarfi 2026, Santo Domingo top 10 Creative Dominican Santo Domingo
Elsewhere in Dominican Republic
More reasons to come.
Flying to Santo Domingo?
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A Business or First Class seat on a scheduled airline, or an aircraft of your own. Tell us the date and how many are travelling, and we reply with one final price, our margin included.