How to get from Las Galeras to Santiago de los Caballeros - Dominican Republic

Posted: March 25, 2025 | Tagged: Dominican Republic

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This turned into an epic 360 km journey instead of the 220 km I had in mind. Keep reading to find out the reason why I covered so many kilometres on my travel from Las Galeras to Santiago de los Caballeros.

It started well. I took the guagua from Las Galeras to Samana. The ride took 55 minutes, and the fare was 150 pesos. I arrived at the Parada Samana-Las Galeras in front of the public market.

I had already checked things out in true Boy Scout fashion. There were buses to Santiago de los Caballeros 11 times a day. There was a schedule posted on the wall:

And the fare was 400 pesos.

But, for whatever reason, I got the infamous NIET treatment that was so common in Russia, except here it was Hoy, No. Not today. They weren't big on offering advice. No suggestion of, "you must take a bus to X and then change".

So I went with what I knew. Take a bus to Santo Domingo and then take another to Santiago, which is why I ended up travelling 360 km instead of 220 km.

The best-laid plans of mice and men oft' go awry - Robert Burns

So I took a Sprinter Van to Santo Domingo:

And everything worked out just fine, to catch the 10 am from Samana to Santiago:

Arrival point in Santiago de los Caballeros:

I had already checked the distance. To my hotel, it was 1.8 km. Normally, I would have walked. I am feeling tired these days, the high humidity doesn't help. I rode a motorcycle taxi.

Backpacking in the Dominican Republic: Top Sights in Santiago de los Caballeros

Posted: March 26 2025 | Tagged: Dominican Republic

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Santiago de los Caballeros or simply Santiago, is the 2nd largest city in the Dominican Republic. I took a bus from Samana, lodged at the Alegria Hostal, and backpacked the city over 2 days.

​Santiago de los Caballeros was founded in 1495 and was the "first Santiago of the Americas". It is also known as "La Ciudad Corazón" - The Heartland City.

​Here are my top 7 sights in Santiago de los Caballeros:

1. El Monumento Santiago

Also known as the Monumento a los Héroes de la Restauración. The 67-meter (220-foot) high monument is named in honour of  the heroes of the Restoration War (1863-1865) who died in the fight to regain the DR’s independence from Spain

Santiago's iconic white marble tower is circled on all sides by a multilevel garden and boasting panoramic views over the entire city and the Cordillera Central mountain range in the distance.

2. Monumento a Gregorio Luperón

Gregorio Luperón​ was the 20th President of the Dominican Republic between October 7, 1879  and September 1, 1880. The Primera Espada de la Restauración monument is located at the bottom of the hill of the Monumento a los Héroes de la Restauración above.

3. Estatua de Juan Pablo Duarte

Juan Pablo Duarte was a Dominican liberator, politician, businessman and poet who had an active participation in the first phase of Dominican independence. He was also the architect of the first coup d'état in the Dominican Republic which made him the first inspector general (commander in chief) of the Liberation Army of the Dominican Republic.

4. ​Monumento A los Mártires

5. Plaza de la Constitucion

The small square commemorates the 39 Constitutions it has been through when they gained independence from Haiti in 1844.

6. Fortaleza San Luis

​7. Catedral de Santiago Apóstol

The all-white St. James the Apostle Cathedral, with its Gothic and neoclassical styles, dates from between 1868 and 1894, after the original structure was destroyed by an earthquake in 1842.

It was named after James the Great, one of the twelve apostles of Jesus.

How to ride the Santiago de los Caballeros Cable Car

Posted: March 23 2025 | Tagged: Dominican Republic

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How to get from Santiago de los Caballeros to Santo Domingo - Dominican Republic

Posted: March 30, 2025 | Tagged: Dominican Republic

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I travelled from Santiago de los Caballeros to Santo Domingo on a Caribe Tours bus.

The main Caribe Tours terminal in Santiago de los Caballeros is at "Los Jardines":

There are 30 departures a day between Santiago and Santo Domingo.

According to the website, the first one is at 7:45 am and the last at 8:45 pm. Journey time is scheduled for 2 hours 30 minutes.

Arrival point is the Caribe Tours Terminal on 27 Febrero, the same terminal I used to travel from Santo Domingo to Samana.

The fare is 400 pesos. I bought my ticket the day before, directly at the station:

How to get from Santo Domingo to Punta Cana - Dominican Republic

Posted: March 30, 2025 | Tagged: Dominican Republic

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I travelled from Santo Domingo to Punta Cana on the Expreso Punta Cana bus.

Buses depart frequently from the Expreso Punta Cana depot next to the Parque Enriquillo:

No pre-booking this time. I just turned up and bought my ticket à la minute.

Sancocho Dominicano in Santo Domingo

Posted: March 13, 2025 | Tagged: Dominican Republic

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Desperate to try some traditional food here in Santo Domingo, I opted for the Sancocho Dominicano at the Cafetería El Conde de Peñalba on the corner of the Parque Colón, and I wasn't disappointed.

Dominican Sancocho is a soup with meats, tubers, vegetables, and spices blended together to form a thick broth. It is served with rice.

There are a wide variety of sancochos served across the Dominican Republic.

Mine consisted of beef and chicken, with plantains, yams, yucca and yautía. And after a hot and tiring walk to the Faro Colón and back in 85% humidity, I was in need of a hearty meal.

My wife would be impressed to see me eating so well. And it didn't break the bank. Including a bottle of water, for I am still off the beer, the cost with service was less than a tenner, £10. For such a meal eaten in the ​Ciudad Colonial, truely a great price.

How to get from Punta Cana to Punta Cana International Airport on a guagua

Posted: March 12, 2025 | Tagged: Dominican Republic

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Punta Cana is spread out. It was 20 km+/- from my backpacker hostel, EcoHostal, to the Punta Cana International Airport. There aren't many backpackers coming here. It's full of spring-breakers, and they and all the other tourists mostly stay in resorts, use private shuttle services, or just take a taxi, so getting to the airport took some leg work. 

I took a guagua from XXX to XXX where I changed and got another one to

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Posted: March 23 2025 | Tagged: Dominican Republic

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Top Sights in Colonial Santo Domingo - Dominican Republic

Posted: March 12, 2025 | Tagged: Dominican Republic

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Dominican Republic: This is my first backpacking trip as a married man and my first time in the Caribbean. The Dominican Republic is my 111th UN Member State and my 124th country and territory that I personally recognise (I recently deleted Israel from this list until Benjamin Netanyahu faces prosecution for war crimes).

The Dominican Republic, as it is now known, was first explored and colonised by Christopher Columbus on his first voyage in 1492. He named it “La Hispaniola”.

Santo Domingo was founded in 1496 it is the oldest European settlement in the Western Hemisphere. ​

Make sure you read this first: Dominican Republic Timeline.

Geographical Facts of the Dominican Republic:

• The Dominican Republic is located in the West Indies. It occupies two-thirds of the eastern part of the island of “La Hispaniola”, which it shares with Haiti.
• Duarte Peak, at 10,417 ft (3,175 m), is the highest point in the West Indies and is found in central mountain range of the Dominican Republic.

I flew from Mexico to the Las Américas International Airport, 30 km from the the capital, Santo Domingo with Arajet.

Having travelled from the airport to the city centre, I took a room for some days at the Caribbean Hotel Santo Domingo and then at the Hotel Renacer. These were not sponsored stays. I emailed a bunch of hotels asking for a complimentary room in exchange for a full blog post and received not one reply. I used to get pissed off but now I have adopted the attitude that they are the ones missing out of some very cheap publicity.

So any mentioning of the hotel is purely for reference.

Backpacking the Historical Charms of Santo Domingo

The Zona Colonial or Ciudad Colonial, is the historic centre in Santo Domingo, and it packs a powerful punch with some great tourist sights and I spent a week in the capital to bring you these top 12 places.

Fortaleza Ozama

Columbus Park

Nuestra Señora de la Encarnación

Pantheon of the Fatherland

Monument to Friar Antonio of Montesino

Fortress of Columbus

Altar de la Patria

National Palace of the Dominican Republic