What does Santo Domingo lack to be a competetitive tourist destination??

Natu · Jul 30, 2014

The title says it all...

Some of you may not know, but the dominican government has plans to transform Santo Domingo into a city for tourist. Of course, the tourism in the big city is not going to be the same type of tourism you see in other tourist destinations in the island.. But for some reason, one might think that there's actually nothing interesting here for a tourist to spend hundreds of dollars in a ticket to DR to be in the capital for a week. But there are alot of activities that are available in the city, its just that some of these activities are directed to local costumers and only locals know about them.. Another thing is that this city is made for dominicans, and it gives and anti-tourist environment (short and sometimes non existent sidewalks, anti-pedestrian behaviour in drivers, alot of mugging and pickpocketing and general underdeveloped chaos).. Now, is there anything specific yet crucial for Santo Domingo to atract tourists??

I'm a native and would love to hear your opinions, this way we dominicans can have a better idea of what we have to work on and start making things better.. Sorry for my english

mountainannie · Jul 30, 2014

I live here and so am not a tourist. And I love it here in SD. And sometimes I think of inviting my friends down but then, really, I have to say that I am just really embarrassed. That is it. Now I live right on Independencia between two of the high end tourist hotels, the Sheraton and the Jaragua, and to walk from one to the other, you have to walk by a huge pile of garbage every day from the condo next door. Evidently there is no sort of fine or anything, you can just Throw the trash on the street. No problem.

You can cross the street, if they let you. Then you have the broken sidewalks and the amazing smell of sewer gas coming up from the sidewalks. When you walk, as I do, as tourists do.. Now, of course, on Independencia, one of the most beautiful streets in the world, with the gorgeous old trees, sacred trees, I belive, in the Santeria tradition, you are assaulted by the trucks. Semis, 18 wheelers... all that. But even before they were here, and after they are gone, there will still be incredibly ugly publicos, held together with duct tape, windshields cracked, doors hanging off, cramped 7 people full, spewing fumes, advertizing POVERTY POVERTY POVERTY right alongside with the BULK of the cars, the new Jeepetes always clean, one person to a car, advertizing. I DON:T CARE. I DON:T CARE > I DON:T CARE.

There is SO much garbage piled up here. Right on the corner, by the Episcopal Church, across from where they have the medicals. It is a garbage DUMP. Has been for YEARS. Garbage. RATS in the DAY TIME even. Lovely.

There is a hole in the sidewalk right across from the PLD HQ which they are building up to three stories. The hole is big enough to crack your entire KNEE in. That is only ONE of the holes in that Sidewalk. At night, the other side of the street, is PITCH dark.

Mind you, this is RIGHT in front of the TWO historic Malecon hotels. Well neither of them bother to clean their sidewalks much. Because they figure everyone takes cabs? What? There have been Haitian kids sleeping on Indpendencia right in front of the Jaragua for days... Ditto in front of the Episcopal Church. Ok I am all for the homeless.

You have NO parks to speak of. OK nice job with that new one. But you did such a horrible job with the tiny boxes down by the Clinca tearing down all the trees that no one can use it in the day time.

You need to make the place walkable. You need to get those publicos that spew fumes off the street. You need to make the politicians WALK for an hour ,, ok .. even in the morning.. from the Jaragua, say.. to the Zona.. to feel the way a tourist would.

Try it.

Would it be against your religion to open the cemetary? In the States we visit old cemetaries. I would love to visit the cemetary.

Could you put plaques on the houses to tell us when they were built?

ALL of Gazcue is an amazing architectural gem. Gorgeous. Lovely.

Could you start REALLY Protecting the few remaining beautiful homes that are here? I see more and more of them going to ruin? Can you not see what you have? No, obviously you do not.

But really you treat your City as if the most beautiful thing to you are the highway overpasses and the malls.

Why should tourists come to see those?

The City needs to buy up vacant lots and start to build pocket parks. The idea that putting a swing set in the middle of four lanes of traffic is building a park.. well.. that is just another

I DON"T CARE .....

Funny. Before the elections there were SWARMS of street cleaners here. Now. None.

This end of the City is Filthy.

And this is really the only end of the city worth seeing.

What is there to see in Naco? Piantini? Bella Vista? nothing.

But you are going to let all of Gazcue be destroyed and put up little bitty blue glass apartment condos which will sell for 200 and 300k and you will think that you are rich and smart men

and then you will look around and see that you have nothing

mountainannie · Jul 30, 2014

Manhattan Landmarks-Greenwich Village | Historic Districts Council

This is the neighborhood I grew up in and one of the reasons that I love Gazcue.

Would that you would treat your historic district as well.

Julia31 · Jul 30, 2014

I lived in Santo Domingo for 3 weeks in march. For me Santo Domingo has a lot of potential but it would take a LOT of money to fix it..they are already seem to work on the zona colonial a lot but in my opinion the biggest let down is the malecon..this could be great..lively bars and restaurant a beach right at the city but right now they only have a few small things there. I dont know if the water is polluted with sewerage but if they would do something against all the trash swimming in the water and lying on the beach you could actually go swimming. It was pretty frustrating for me to see the blue ocean but I could not take a dive on a hot day. (I saw 1 gringo and maybe 1-2 dominicans doing that but I was not brave enough lol)

texan · Jul 30, 2014

I have just visited Santo Domingo. I think the Zona Colonial is easy to walk around as a tourist and spend some time. There might be other parts of town that are nice to see but it would be harder to get to or walk around. Then you have this Taxis that overcharge tourist and a lot are in bad shape. We did go to the Malecon and yes it is not that impressive. We just walked around a little and ate lunch where we had an ocean view.

It does look like you could develop a lot in and around the Zona Colonial area. There are buildings everywhere that could be restored. Depending on where you are coming from the malls and some of the stores might be interesting. But if you are coming from the US there isn't much point in going to the malls or stores unless it is just to kill time. But people coming from other parts of the Dominican Republic might be going there to shop.

A lot of people are here for a short vacation and want to see a beach and have no hassles. A lot are also escaping a large city and want to get away from traffic and the big city life.

HUG · Jul 30, 2014

The city can not be a tourist destination, not a place people will want to spend an entire vacation. We have things, but nothing that people go home and tell all their friends about. 'Wow, you should see the Zona Colonial in Santo Domingo, get that place on your bucket list.........And the Zoo, phwoa, mind blowing'. Nah, Santo Domingo is a place people come to have a walk around where they can, spend the day in the zona and the evening on the malecon while listen to bad karaoke and being runover by toddlers in little cars, then they are looking to fill the newt few days in. And nothing good exists, the botanical gardens? yeh, a nice walk, but not really what people expect to be resorted to to fill time when on vacation.
Also everything is a million miles away from everything else and so taxis are tourists only real option. Not many people want to rent a car in the capital, not if they are tourists, there is no real touristy friendly public transport, remember tourists are paranoid of using what we residents don't think twice about. Even if the metro was alluring, none of the stops actually stop anywhere of use to a tourist.
And then we have the military on every street corner. If I did not know the capital since before it went all war zone like and I visited for the first time, the amount of military standing on street corners would make me rather uneased, and certainly destroy any confidence I had in travelling around the capital independently to have a bit nosey.
Everything MA mentioned about holes in roads and sidewalks, rubbish all over is the same everywhere else in the capital, doesn't matter where you are the place is scummy, smelly and not in the slightest bit attractive.
The Zone/Cap ingeneral it could be said holds no real beauty, no real attraction in the least. I spend little time there these days and see students and mainly people from other parts of the country doing business, or shopping, no real tourists. I rarely see foreign families having a great time, there is no tourism in Santo Domingo, I can not understand why the idea is to improve it. To improve it would mean that there is something to improve.

With all the malls and investments in useless things nobody needs or wants you might think things would improve, but you can't polish a turd. Even if the money invested was invested correctly, it still couldn't become tourist friendly, the entire layout of the capital is designed to make life difficult. You can't change that unless you start again.

JohnnyBoy · Jul 30, 2014

I like SD. Then again I grew up in the Bronx so Im not exactly a highbrow traveler. I will say that for SD to become a world class city it will require infrastructure updates.

Trash nothing says third world like detritus and rats in the streets. Its very off putting.

Sewage I understand its an island but a sewage system needs to be created or fixed. The odor of sewage permeates most places that I have been.

Pedestrian access tourists love to walk and look at things. Some kind of walkways or bike paths. Traffic is muy peligroso

Crime granted SD is a city and cities inherently have higher crime rates but tourists will flock to AIs unless they are very adventurous.

SD is coming along. I think personally they are overbuilding with those money laundering hi rises but whatever it takes to bring in some cash. If the city began renovations to try to preserve some of the historic places it would be a step in the right direction.

What it will take to fix SD is lots of money. Something that they dont have.

waytogo · Jul 30, 2014

mountainannie said:
I live here and so am not a tourist.

MA, I agree on a lot of subjects you write about, but on this statement I beg to differ...........
I have lived in Santiago for over 8 years and my experiences here have taught me one thing above all the rest.....
I will always be "The Americano"......No more, no less...........
Close friends, for the total 8 years, and there are numerous, have never called me by my first name...........
When I hear them conversing to one another about me, it is always "The Americano".............
This has never offended me because in fact, I am not one of them, and I never will be...........
I doubt I will ever be "Barry" to them.........
Dominicans are a close knit society, and even through all their internal problems, they will stick together to the end, especially when the opposition is a foreigner. Every foreigner here is a tourist......we are all just visitors.......just because you have been here a longer period of time, AND, have a card in your dresser drawer stating you are a "Permanent Resident".....to the local population.........you look like, and will always be, just a tourist........a person with money.......

B in Santiago

wrecksum · Jul 30, 2014

For a tourist, there has to be a reason to go and visit a place, be it culture, scenery,weather,challenge,gastronomy,viniculture,sights and sounds unusual to a visitor,sports etc.

Santo Domingo has nothing to go there for, but it does have,

-- a thousand reasons to want to get away as quick as possible........

Bryanell · Jul 30, 2014

The Colonial City and its immediate surroundings have at their disposal all the history of the first Christian city in the Americas, and could potentially be the "Vatican of the New World" with the ceremony and pageantry that accompanies that. The colonial buildings and inner port area once restored could become tourist attractions in the same way as similar areas elsewhere in the Caribbean have become - see Viejo San Juan, Curacao etc., etc., etc.

Get the garbage of all kinds off the streets, the pools of stagnant sewage off the sidewalks, encourage the residents to renovate and maintain their houses, enforce compulsory purchase and restoration of abandoned and derelict properties, give incentives to absentee landlords, clear derelict lots and establish mini-parks and shaded recreation areas. Have a promotion program for local businesses to go "tourism friendly" instead of the constant rip-off mentality.....the list is endless and the potential rewards phenomenal but it requires a change of mindset and adoption of aims and ideals that don't end with unscrupulous individuals from all walks of life and social status shoveling as much cash into their own pockets as possible. Properly developed and maintained, the zona would generate enough for everyone to benefit handsomely, the residents, the local institutions, the business community, the tourists and the Dominican State as a whole.

Did I say a change of mindset? That will be the biggest hurdle to overcome in moving the country into the 21st century, which has much more to offer the population than internet, mobile telephones, cable tv and yipetas.

Dream on..................

JMB773 · Jul 30, 2014

RAAAY said:
Fantastic idea. With the Dominican government planning to do the transformation, it will obviously be very professionally done. Santo Domingo certainly has the ingredients required to be an amazing tourist destination. It has everything, oceanfront, beautiful big wide sweeping boulevards, small quaint streets. Shopping, nightlife, beautiful buildings.

Might I make just a small suggestion to the powers that be who are going to do this transformation. First organize a big convoy of buses, then bus out every Dominican in the city and never let them back.

.

You maybe confusing Panama City with Santo Domingo. If you walk on the malecon in Santo Domingo then hope on a plane to Panama City and hangout on Avenida Balboa at night within seconds you will see how PC is a much better city.

It will take Santo Domingo YEARS just to catch up to a city like Panama.

texan · Jul 30, 2014

A lot of times where the tourist goes is not where the locals go. A lot of tourist will look around time square in NYC and the locals will probably avoid that area. The Zona Colonial area is a good start. There is history there and some places do not have that. It is nice to be a tourist where you can stay in a hotel and walk to most of the destinations. It will never be like NYC, London, Paris, etc. But a place like New Orleans is kind of a dump. New Orleans just has a place where you can walk around, eat, drink and listen to live music. The have enough tourist and I guess their locals to support all those businesses. Also some business travelers.
A place like Austin, Texas has a great area for tourist. Austin is a nice city but the tourist normally go to one area where they can walk around eat, drink and listen to live music. More live music and a variety of live music would be could for tourist.

There are a lot of baseball fans that would probably go to a game. I haven't been to one yet so I don't know how nice is the stadium, food, restrooms and how to get there and back.

JMB773 · Jul 30, 2014

Natu said:
The title says it all...

Some of you may not know, but the dominican government has plans to transform Santo Domingo into a city for tourist. Of course, the tourism in the big city is not going to be the same type of tourism you see in other tourist destinations in the island.. But for some reason, one might think that there's actually nothing interesting here for a tourist to spend hundreds of dollars in a ticket to DR to be in the capital for a week. But there are alot of activities that are available in the city, its just that some of these activities are directed to local costumers and only locals know about them.. Another thing is that this city is made for dominicans, and it gives and anti-tourist environment (short and sometimes non existent sidewalks, anti-pedestrian behaviour in drivers, alot of mugging and pickpocketing and general underdeveloped chaos).. Now, is there anything specific yet crucial for Santo Domingo to atract tourists??

I'm a native and would love to hear your opinions, this way we dominicans can have a better idea of what we have to work on and start making things better.. Sorry for my english

I do not think Santo Domingo will ever become a tourist destination because of the norms in Santo Domingo. Majority of the things classified as "normal" in Santo Domingo will be a major "BUZZ KILL" for your average tourists.

It takes a very special tourist to see the beauty in Santo Domingo. I like SD but I will NEVER endorse the city to my close friends and co workers.

ROLLOUT · Jul 30, 2014

MA summed it up in a nutshell more eloquently than I could hope to have done. The changes required would take planning and forethought, both of which I feel are in short supply. A drastic adjustment in the attitude of the entire population of the city would be required. I recall my first visit, riding down the street, sipping jumbos. The ex actually got p1$$ed when I opted to wait on a trash container, rather than throw the empty bottle out of the car window.

texan · Jul 30, 2014

JMB773 said:
It will take Santo Domingo YEARS just to catch up to a city like Panama.

I don't like Panama City much. I have been there three or four times but never lived there. It does have a lot of high-rises and they are redoing their old part of town. We bought some a small piece of property in Boquete, Panama so I have been there also. I need to learn more about Santo Domingo but I liked what I saw more then Panama City.

I did got to Trump's place and had lunch by the pool which overlooks the ocean. Any place could use those bars and pools that are part of a high-rise and have a great view. As far as going to eat and drink in Panama City I wasn't that impressed either.

Curacaoleno · Jul 30, 2014

texan said:
I don't like Panama City much. I have been there three or four times but never lived there. It does have a lot of high-rises and they are redoing their old part of town. We bought some a small piece of property in Boquete, Panama so I have been there also. I need to learn more about Santo Domingo but I liked what I saw more then Panama City.

I did got to Trump's place and had lunch by the pool which overlooks the ocean. Any place could use those bars and pools that are part of a high-rise and have a great view. As far as going to eat and drink in Panama City I wasn't that impressed either.

Casco Viejo is small and needs a lot of maintenance. Zona Colonial en SD is much more impressive but also needs maintenance.. No nice beaches in PC either. I do find good restaurants in PC and not to expensive. PC seems to have less crime and so far my experiences with Panama cops is that they were correct and in some cases they let me go without a hassle and didnt ask for a 'tip' where in DR I would stay a night in jail or pay a tip...

Curacaoleno · Jul 30, 2014

One major thing SD lacks is a good connecion from the airport to the city with for example a 'tourist bus'. You can find that in most major tourist destinations. Get a hop off and on bus for tourists.

Clean up the city, no holes and make the Malecon like the Copacabana and maybe even create a city beach. Get rid of the underaged prozzies in the colonial zone.

Natu · Jul 30, 2014

First of all, if you have all your documents you don't have to give them no tip.. If they throw you in jail for not giving them a tip, which they will NOT do, you should get a lawyer right away and denounce the **** out of those scumbags.. Now if one of your documents are missing, then the best thing you can do is give them 100 - 200 pesos and they'll most likely just leave you alone. Remember, in this case, you're the outlaw.. You shouldn't be driving around without your licence, insurance and registration. Being a foreigner is not gonna make any difference.. They do this to locals too, ALOT.

Natu · Jul 30, 2014

mountainannie said:
I live here and so am not a tourist. And I love it here in SD. And sometimes I think of inviting my friends down but then, really, I have to say that I am just really embarrassed. That is it. Now I live right on Independencia between two of the high end tourist hotels, the Sheraton and the Jaragua, and to walk from one to the other, you have to walk by a huge pile of garbage every day from the condo next door. Evidently there is no sort of fine or anything, you can just Throw the trash on the street. No problem.

You can cross the street, if they let you. Then you have the broken sidewalks and the amazing smell of sewer gas coming up from the sidewalks. When you walk, as I do, as tourists do.. Now, of course, on Independencia, one of the most beautiful streets in the world, with the gorgeous old trees, sacred trees, I belive, in the Santeria tradition, you are assaulted by the trucks. Semis, 18 wheelers... all that. But even before they were here, and after they are gone, there will still be incredibly ugly publicos, held together with duct tape, windshields cracked, doors hanging off, cramped 7 people full, spewing fumes, advertizing POVERTY POVERTY POVERTY right alongside with the BULK of the cars, the new Jeepetes always clean, one person to a car, advertizing. I DON:T CARE. I DON:T CARE > I DON:T CARE.

There is SO much garbage piled up here. Right on the corner, by the Episcopal Church, across from where they have the medicals. It is a garbage DUMP. Has been for YEARS. Garbage. RATS in the DAY TIME even. Lovely.

There is a hole in the sidewalk right across from the PLD HQ which they are building up to three stories. The hole is big enough to crack your entire KNEE in. That is only ONE of the holes in that Sidewalk. At night, the other side of the street, is PITCH dark.

Mind you, this is RIGHT in front of the TWO historic Malecon hotels. Well neither of them bother to clean their sidewalks much. Because they figure everyone takes cabs? What? There have been Haitian kids sleeping on Indpendencia right in front of the Jaragua for days... Ditto in front of the Episcopal Church. Ok I am all for the homeless.

You have NO parks to speak of. OK nice job with that new one. But you did such a horrible job with the tiny boxes down by the Clinca tearing down all the trees that no one can use it in the day time.

You need to make the place walkable. You need to get those publicos that spew fumes off the street. You need to make the politicians WALK for an hour ,, ok .. even in the morning.. from the Jaragua, say.. to the Zona.. to feel the way a tourist would.

Try it.

Would it be against your religion to open the cemetary? In the States we visit old cemetaries. I would love to visit the cemetary.

Could you put plaques on the houses to tell us when they were built?

ALL of Gazcue is an amazing architectural gem. Gorgeous. Lovely.

Could you start REALLY Protecting the few remaining beautiful homes that are here? I see more and more of them going to ruin? Can you not see what you have? No, obviously you do not.

But really you treat your City as if the most beautiful thing to you are the highway overpasses and the malls.

Why should tourists come to see those?

The City needs to buy up vacant lots and start to build pocket parks. The idea that putting a swing set in the middle of four lanes of traffic is building a park.. well.. that is just another

I DON"T CARE .....

Funny. Before the elections there were SWARMS of street cleaners here. Now. None.

This end of the City is Filthy.

And this is really the only end of the city worth seeing.

What is there to see in Naco? Piantini? Bella Vista? nothing.

But you are going to let all of Gazcue be destroyed and put up little bitty blue glass apartment condos which will sell for 200 and 300k and you will think that you are rich and smart men

and then you will look around and see that you have nothing

Every single word of this is true...

Alot of harsh yet very constructive responses, and some downright negative not helpful at all.. But the great majority of you said a great deal of things that are true.

The model that the government wants to implement in Santo Domingo is more cultural than anything else.. The opportunity to encounter with the average dominican and see the culture, also nightlife is starting to pickup again.. A series of hotels are being built throughout the city.. But the aspects expressed in this thread should really be taken into account. Thanks for all your comments and advice.. They're all appreciated

JMB773 · Jul 30, 2014

texan said:
I don't like Panama City much. I have been there three or four times but never lived there. It does have a lot of high-rises and they are redoing their old part of town. We bought some a small piece of property in Boquete, Panama so I have been there also. I need to learn more about Santo Domingo but I liked what I saw more then Panama City.

I did got to Trump's place and had lunch by the pool which overlooks the ocean. Any place could use those bars and pools that are part of a high-rise and have a great view. As far as going to eat and drink in Panama City I wasn't that impressed either.

I agree a lot of what you say about Panama, but come on you have to admit is a much better place then Santo Domingo. Do not get me wrong I enjoy SD, but Panama City have more places I can just sit back and chill. El Cangrejo is one of my favorite barrios followed by Obarrio, Albrook, and Casco Viejo.

Casco Viejo IMO is a MUCH BETTER place to buy and invest then the Colonial Zone. Have you seen some of the prices in Casco Viejo for a condo????? I really enjoy the square at night in Casco Viejo then I enjoy hanging out on Balboa watching the people go by.

BTW Notice how you see the SAME OLD people in SD doing the same OLD THING, but in PC you always see something new going on in the city and new people from all over the world.

I have an uncle married to a Haitian woman in Panama who he met in Colon. They recently moved to David and like it more the Panama.

I am not anti Santo Domingo, I am just pro Panama City.

I enjoy both of the cities but if I had to choose a place to live it will be PC hands down.

What does Santo Domingo lack to be a competetitive tourist destination??

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