The country's capital and largest city, Santo Domingo is the oldest city in the Americas. It was Spain's first colonial headquarters in the New World. Today, the city remains important as the country's economic hub, as well as one of the Caribbean's top business centers. It has the island's most exciting nightclubs, restaurants, shopping, and historic and cultural sites. Like other large Latin-American cities, it also has sprawling slums and shantytowns. Even so, it's a magnet for Dominicans as well as foreign visitors, which means you'll likely be seeing the sights alongside interested visitors from the country's hinterlands.
