Santo Domingo City Tour

This city tour explores Santo Domingo, the oldest city in the New World. Indeed, it was founded in 1498 and its colonial quarter is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Moreover, with around three million inhabitants it is also the liveliest metropolis in the country.

The Colonial Quarter and Its Landmarks

Pick-up is at 09:00 at the port exit, and travel is in a comfortable air-conditioned minibus. The tour visits the Alcazar de Colon, the palace built for the son of Christopher Columbus, and the first cathedral of the Americas. Along the Calle Las Damas, the oldest paved street in the New World, pastel facades line the way. Above all, the National Palace and the busy Calle El Conde show the modern city alongside the historic one.

Tour Highlights

The Alcazar de Colon palace
The first cathedral of the Americas
The Calle Las Damas, oldest street in the New World
The National Palace and Calle El Conde

Five Centuries in a Few Streets

Santo Domingo was the base from which Spain explored and colonised the Americas. Indeed, almost every institution of the New World began here: the first cathedral, the first university, the first hospital and the first paved street. As a result, the colonial quarter holds an unusual density of firsts within a few blocks. Moreover, the buildings survived because the city later lost its importance to Havana and Mexico City, so nobody tore them down to build anew. Above all, the quarter is still lived in rather than preserved as a museum, so shops, bars and homes occupy the old buildings today.