Dominican Republic – Santo Domingo
23 – 27 May 2026
Hotel: W&P Hotel, Piantini
23 May – Arrival
Landed at SDQ around 6 PM. Immigration was surprisingly fast thanks to the pre-filled online form. Took a taxi to the hotel (40 USD, ~40 minutes).
Dropped my bags and went straight to Ajualä, one of the best restaurants in the city (15 min Uber). The food and ambiance were excellent. Be careful with the wine list — I ordered one glass of Spanish wine without asking the price and ended up paying 80 USD for it.
24 May
•Morning workout in the hotel room (12 min, 120 kcal)
•Walked to the supermarket for Greek yogurt and pineapple
•Found Arista Specialty Café — was the only guest at 9 AM
•Continued to Zona Colonial under rain. Had lunch at Buche Perico, then coffee & carrot cake at Casa Barista next door.
•Explored the entire Zona Colonial on foot despite the rain.
•Took an Uber back to the hotel (only 5 USD).
Total steps: 20,000 — not bad for the first full day.
25 May
•Hotel breakfast: boiled eggs, tuna, Greek yogurt with nuts & flaxseeds
•Tried several cafés and found Atenea Café — a new modern one. But i was the only customer, obviously too fancy for many locals.
•Second breakfast at La Dolcerie (eggs benedict)
•Uber to Zona Colonial, walked along the Malecón
•Private Muay Thai session at Eagle Muay Thai — absolutely excellent, very intense. The trainer even sent me a video afterwards.
•Dinner at El Taquito Norteño (Mexican) — decent but a bit overpriced.
26 May
•Same hotel breakfast as usual
•Back to Storia Café in the morning
•Walked to Blue Mall, had an espresso at SBG Café
•Went to Tres Ojos in the rain. The free viewpoint area is actually very nice — didn’t do the paid boat ride.
•Lunch again at Buche Perico
•Relaxed at the hotel, then had dinner at Asadero Los Argentinos (solid but not spectacular).
27 May – Last Day
•Morning at Storia Café again (definitely my favorite spot)
•Muay Thai session at 10:30 AM — learned several new exercises
•Checked out of the hotel
•Lunch at Ajualä (very good, around 85 USD for starter + main + dessert + coffee)
•Spent the afternoon at the Botanical Garden — surprisingly nice and peaceful
•Light dinner at Blue Mall before heading to the airport
Final Thoughts
Santo Domingo exceeded my expectations. I managed to go way beyond the tourist bubble, trained Muay Thai, discovered great cafés (Storia being the highlight), and saw the real social contrasts of the city.
4–5 days was the perfect amount of time. Definitely worth it.