- Thread starter Castro156
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SANTO DOMINGO vs SANTIAGO
Santiago hands down... the only things Santo Domingo has more of is .........more garbage,more traffic and of course higher prices,
Santisgo de los Caballeros is a better and cleaner city (shh, don’t let the Capitaleños hear that.)
A little known fact about Amelia Vega is that she is actually from Santo Domingo. Her entire family is from Santiago, but she was actually born in SD.
A little known fact about Amelia Vega is that she is actually from Santo Domingo. Her entire family is from Santiago, but she was actually born in SD.
Why would you move to a Caribbean island and live in a big city with crazy traffic and no beach?!?
Exactly! I've lived in Santiago for about 3 months and in SD for about 2. Both times I thought WTF am I doing here? If I'm gonna be far away from the beach and deal with the traffic might as well stay in Toronto. Sosua here I come and I'm never leaving you again! 😁
Each to their own. Santiago isn't that far from the beaches, plus there are numerous clean river swimming spots within 20 minutes of the city. Traffic is bad at times in Santiago but if you know the city you can avoid much of that and still get to your destination. We go to the beach from Jarabacoa about once a month, overnight then return home. Beaches are ok, but not a necessary component for living on a tropical island. This is a big island, lots to see and do that has nothing to do with beaches.
There are several threads started by a former member (Rey, and this mention of Rey does not mean to go off topic and start posting about him in this thread) that compare Santo Domingo and Santiago. I looked through some of the threads and if you can get past some of the "off topic" comments, many of our DR1 posters gave some good insight with the comparison of the two cities.
Like you say; "each to their own". To me the point of living on a tropical island is getting up in the morning, putting on shorts and a t-shirt, slippers on my feet and being able to walk into any restaurant/bar without looking like a bum, in STI or SD (probably Jarabacoa too) you cannot do that. Also having a beach 2 minutes walking distance away is paradise.
I think Santiago is a better choice, but both the capitaleños y los santiagüeros can't wait to leave and go to the beaches on holiday weekends. The only reason most Dominicans live there is because that's where the work is.
lol, for me it is sitting on my balcony sipping locally grown coffee and watching the sun play with the shadows on the mountains and listening to the birds in the mahogany tree behind my house. I can be swimming in a clean pool in the river in 15 minutes from my house.
- Cleanest (big) city in the whole island and compared to other cities
- Mountain view all 360
- Clean air
- 30-45 minutes to all river spots: Amina, Inoa, Tavera, Sajoma, Jarabacoa, Jacagua, Salcedo, Puerto Plata rivers
- 45-1hr minutes to the beach (either Moncion, Sosua or Cabarete via Moca)
- Much better work/life balance compared to SDQ (depending the neighborhood you can drive/walk to work without long commuting times)
- Santiagueros (and cibaeños in general), compared from people in SDQ have a slow pace of doing things: sundays are sacred, prioritize family meetings
- And for almost 3/4 of the island you literally don't have to pay tolls to go from STI to the rest of destinations in DR, lol
Agree 1000 percent!!
Some folk act like driving 45 mins to a beach is a long commute. Santiago is my choice and has been for many years.
The Capital is way to stressful for me, I go overnight and can’t wait to get on that highway, stop to eat at Jacaranda or if I wanna spend a little more, Típico Bonao for the atmosphere and good food then make a pit stop at Salcedo and then up to Santiago again.
Well, not everyone goes to the beach everyday. Some people (including myself) come or live in DR for many reasons.
Lifestyle, culture, exploring the countryside, different pueblos,the mountains, rivers and waterfalls, food, friends, family, etc etc…. A beach town or the beach is only one part of the Dominican Rep.
I much prefer Santiago over the capital. The only exception would be the ZC. I really like that place and its vibe. From what I have seen, traffic is comparable in both cities. However, Santiago is much cleaner. I actually followed a woman once and witnessed her tell her little kid to hold on to his trash until they could find a receptacle. Never seen in Boca Chica or the Capital.
For me, I started out in Santo Domingo (late 80's early 90's) so back then it was not as congested as it is today. We grew right along with it. It made sense for us back then, airport access, etc... At this point in life, I think living outside of a large city would be our choice.
Santiago is slightly cooler than the Capital, especially in the evenings, nights and mornings. You will find say at 8am you’re weating in SD during the warmer months, yet at that same time you aren’t sweating in Santiago. It can be less humid too. The risk of a hurricane being felt full force is less in Santiago than in Santo Domingo. The last truly major hurricane to land near SD was Georges in 1998. After that one, none that have been felt in the Capital has been as strong or stronger. The city is due for a really strong one in the next few years (who knows, could be this one.)
I don’t doubt that, it’s a growing city but we are comparing the 2 cities overall, not just the traffic.
I do know that the traffic is insanely worst in Santo Domingo and that’s a fact!