Santo Domingo: The Modern City
Beyond the Zona Colonial is a fast-moving metropolis of almost three million people, where upmarket suburbs rub shoulders with bleak-looking shantytowns and where quiet parks and museums provide a respite from the capital’s frenetic traffic. The city radiates inland from the river and coastline, moving from compact 19th-century barrios to the spread-out commercial districts of the modern uptown. Spanish and Caribbean influences, expressed in wrought-iron balconies and ornate gingerbread-style woodcarving, give way to functional concrete office blocks and suburbs.
1. The Malecon
Stretching several miles eastwards from the port, the Malecón – also known as Avenida George Washington – is the city’s breezy seafront boulevard, lined with highrise hotels, restaurants, and bars.
2. Ciudad Nueva
Next to the Zona Colonial, this low-level neighborhood of narrow streets and plazas contains fine examples of 19th-century architecture and maintains the atmosphere of a traditional barrio.
3. Los Tres Ojos
This impressive 50-ft (15-m) limestone cave is located in the Mirador del Este Park. At night the caves are illuminated. Visitors have the option of either taking a walking tour or exploring the cave by boat.
Los Tres Ojos, Mirador del Este Park • Open 9am–5pm daily • Adm US$2
4. Gazcue
A leafy middle-class suburb dating from the 1930s, Gazcue’s eccentric mix of buildings includes imitation chalets and half-timbered English-style architecture and a number of cafés and galleries.
5. Museo del Hombre Dominicano
Part of the Modernist 1970s Plaza de la Cultura complex, this collection of artifacts reveals the day-to-day life and rituals of the pre-Columbian Taino people (for further details see Museo del Hombre Dominicano).Museo del Hombre Dominicano, Plaza de la Cultura • 809 687 3622 • Open 10am–5pm Tue–Sun • Adm US$3
6. Palacio Nacional
Although the presidential palace looks impregnable, you can visit this 1940s exercise in Neo-Classical pomp, with its mahogany furniture and hall of mirrors. It houses government departments.
7. Palacio de Bellas Artes
An austere Neo-Classical façade announces the aesthetic credentials of the city’s Beaux-Arts headquarters. Decorating the stairway are murals by José Vela Zanetti.Palacio de Bellas Artes, Máximo Gómez & Independencia • 809 687 0504 • Free
8. Botanic Garden
In the northern suburb of Arroyo Hondo, the 450-acre (182 ha) garden showcases the tropical wealth of the country’s flora, featuring palms, a Japanese garden, and 300 varieties of orchid.Botanic Garden, Av República Colombia • 809 385 2611 • Open 9am–5pm daily • Adm US$5
9. Parque Mirador del Sur
A haven for joggers and walkers, this park is located in the affluent diplomatic district. The limestone cliffs on the southern edge contain a series of caves, one of which houses a restaurant and another vast discotheque.
10. Columbus Lighthouse (Faro a Colon)
Inaugurated in 1992 to celebrate the 500th anniversary of Columbus’s arrival, this marble-clad monument attracted criticism as a waste of money. But the sheer scale of the cross-shaped edifice is impressive. It is also the site of Columbus’s tomb.Columbus Lighthouse • Open 10am–5pm daily • Adm US$3
Gleave’s Lighthouse
JL Gleave, a 24-year-old Manchester architecture student, beat over 450 rival designs in 1929 in an international competition to commemorate Columbus’s landfall. Funds for construction failed to materialize, and work began in 1986, 20 years after Gleave died.
Tip: On the corner of Calle El Conde and Calle Hostos, the Mercure Comercial hotel offers an air-conditioned bar and other facilities. Tip: To request a free tour of the Palacio Nacional (Tue–Fri), call 809 695 8359. Permission takes 15 working days, and you are expected to look suitably dressed.
