Best cities to live in Dominican Republic

Glad you found your niche
Bob K

If your  usiness is tourism you need to be where they are! And the ones with money, not budget conscious.

We are currently working on our residency visa's and are finding this post most interesting. For our starting point we will be looking for a good international school for an 11 year old boy and a place where we can get by while we acclimatize and learn "panish". We will be following the advise of a Cuban friend who lived in DR for a while and not taking any extra Spanish lessons as if we do we think we will spend more time unlearning than we will learning. Although we know this will disadvantage us in many ways it will also make us immerse more to learn quicker. his method worked well for me in China and also for my wife in the UK. However, it will help if we start off somewhere where we can get b,y or have some English speakers nearby, or even Haitians, as my Creole is passable, and from listening on you tube I can communicate-with this.
I am given to understand though that many regard Haitians as second class citizens. Sorry getting off track.
We are looking for somewhere with a good school, where we can get by until our Spanish is good enough to stand on our feet. And eventually open a business possibly in hospitality or holiday rentals any recommendations? We do not think SD would be a good fit for us

MrD&MissyC
You are probably right in that SD is not the place to start.  A huge congested city.
You might look at the north coast (Sosua/Cabarete) area which has a large Expat community with a fair amount of English, Spanglish and Spanish spoken. Also a very good international school for you child.

Bob K


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Hi Bob, and thank you. Sosua and Peutro Plato are both on our list as good possibilities, but who knows? maybe some others out there can add some input of their own thoughts. All suggestions will be apprieciated as we will be coming for a protracted stay shortly and will view as many possibilities as we can while in DR

Good luck with your search

Bob K

Planner,

Last November you said you might need a reminder to post the websites for finding middle class neighborhoods in SD. You had suggested Miramar and Ensanche la Fe.

Thanks for you many, helpful posts.

Steve

Las Terrenas!   Some of the best beaches on our planet.  People are friendly & compassionate.  International community with yummy & diverse cuisine.  Visit and enjoy!

Gary
Niagara on the Lake, Canada
Ice Wine Capital of the World

Hi:  I'm in search of "safe"....any suggestsions?

Yup. It's all over the place. Safe can be found in every city and town.

Good afternoon, my wife are planning on moving to the DR in about 4-5 months once our house sells, and we drop our daughter off to college.  I am from Santo Domingo but left their many many many years ago, last time I went back to visit was back in 2006. So trying to just educate myself on the best neighborhoods to live in. We are not limiting ourselves to Santo Domingo.   My mother is from Santiago, from our visit my wife thinks the area is beautiful. Thanks for any resources you can provide and or just some good information.
Juan

Welcome to the forums Juan an soon welcome home.

What is important to you and your wife?

Thanks for replying,

Safety of course.  From what we have read will probably be best to not live in Santo Domingo.

Safety is available in santo domingo and santiago and punta cana and la romana and puerto plata etc

Safety isnt a place! Its how you live, the neighborhood you choose, the house or apt, tbe locks etc. Its who you associate with. Who you talk to. Etc etc

Hi I 'm a missionary that has been visiting DR for a few years. I work with a small group that caters to underprivileged children. Located in a town called Bayaguana, located on the northwest of the island, high mountains amongst rivers and waterfalls, very beautiful and rural. I was tired of the lack of power and decided  to a change of scenery and a break from my work. We chose  Puerto Plata. I absolutely loved it! Found a nice, safe place, close to everything all good except traffic, ;-) Now, I'm back in the US. Hoping to come back and find another great place, any suggestions? Open to move anywhere except The big cities.Most importantly, 24 hour Power!

There are many many beautiful places here with good power.

I was in Pedernales last year, and they told me they have their own power plant, and it's always on, unlike the disruptions in many other parts of the country.  Also, it's not an overcroweded, overpriced, gringo tourist trap place, like so many of the other areas.

I am living in Moca where my wife is from. There are several up and coming residential areas here. Only a short drive to Santiago or anywhere for that matter. I have found folks friendly  an easy to get along with, even with my very limited Spanish.  Ours is an oversized serviced lot (619 sq meters or 75 x 86 ft - the latter  being correct) at 3500dp/meter. Sub-division and a new road going in has already raised the value of the land.

That sounds awesome, do you have any contacts in the area that might be renting a 2 bedroom, reasonable prices?

Hi thanks for the suggestion, do you have any contact information on the Pedernales area for rentals?

Is Las Galeras in Samana province becoming the next destination of expats?
My family vacationed there last summer and found Italian, French, a Thai lady, Swiss, and a story about a UK family that went back.
Since I was a tourist, I did not learn anything about the real life in the area. Does anyone have any idea about Las Galeras?

My time spent on that area was not conducive for me to leave the Sosua/Cabarete area, 16 years( not all (consecetive) SP, has made me a devotee of the North Shore. All of this island offers unique areas to explore. You have the time to explore & find your place here. Welcome & be happy for your decisions.