Kimpton Las Mercedes Santo Domingo

Rooms and decor

Picture a girls' school nearly 500 years old in a World Heritage old town, taken on and fully restored by a design-hotel brand like Kimpton — that is exactly what happened with Kimpton Las Mercedes Santo Domingo, the first Kimpton in the Caribbean. The clever part is that the architects kept almost everything they could of the original: thick old stone walls a metre deep, wooden beams bowed with age, and colonial arches running around the central courtyard. All of it is mixed with modern furniture, bold contrasting colours, tilework drawing on Dominican art, and well-designed lighting — like walking into a historic building that just woke up in this century. The 96 rooms and suites are spread across the main building and an extension. Many have high ceilings that show off the old beams, some have a small balcony looking down on the courtyard and pool, and the upper suites get rooftop views and the edge of the Caribbean Sea in the distance. The beds are soft and the bathrooms are thoughtfully designed. Whether you are in a small room or a big suite, the charm of sleeping under wooden beams and stone walls hundreds of years old makes every night feel a little special.

Food and amenities

The strongest thing here might be the food and the way you eat, because there are 3 restaurants and bars in one place to match your mood. The main dining room serves contemporary Dominican food, pairing local ingredients with European technique. The courtyard café is open all day for breakfast and afternoon snacks among big trees and the sound of water in the pool nearby. The highlight everyone talks about is the rooftop bar on the top floor, where glass on every side opens up views of the spire of Catedral Primada de América — the first Catholic cathedral of the New World, built in the 16th century — the terracotta-tiled roofs of the old town, and the blue line of the Caribbean Sea far off. Sunset is the best time to be up there. The drink not to miss is Mama Juana, the Dominican national drink of herbs and bark steeped in rum and red wine, warm and full-flavoured in the evening sea breeze. The courtyard pool is another heart of the place, ringed by old stone walls and big trees with sun loungers to read on all afternoon, like a quiet retreat hidden in a busy city. There is also a fitness room and spa service, plus the things Kimpton fans love worldwide — a Social Hour in the lobby in the evening with free wine for guests to sip and say hello over, a pet-friendly policy that welcomes pets at no charge, and Forgot it? We've got it., which lends you whatever you left behind, from a charger to yoga clothes.

Location and getting there

The location is genuinely the best card here. The hotel sits in the heart of Zona Colonial, Santo Domingo's old town, listed as a UNESCO World Heritage site since 1990 — the first European city in the New World, built by the Columbus brothers in the early 16th century. Step out the door and you are in cobbled colonial lanes that twist and turn, with stylish cafés, pastel buildings and little squares tucked into every corner. Catedral Primada de América, the first cathedral of the New World, is about a 5-minute walk. Plaza España and Alcázar de Colón — the palace of Columbus's son, now a museum — are a few minutes' walk too, and the hotel sits right next to Calle El Conde, the old town's main pedestrian street lined with craft shops, restaurants and cafés to wander all day. For getting in and out of the city, Las Américas airport (SDQ) is a 30 to 40-minute drive, while a trip to swim at Boca Chica or Juan Dolio takes about 40 to 60 minutes. If you like the kind of trip where you ditch the car, walk the old town all day and come back to a hotel hidden in a historic lane, this location is a perfect ten.

Things to know before booking

To help you decide, a few honest points. First, this is not a beachfront resort. Santo Domingo is a historic capital, not Punta Cana or La Romana, so if the trip in your head is lazing by the sea all day, this may not be the answer — you would drive about 40 to 60 minutes to a beach outside the city like Boca Chica or Juan Dolio. Second, the price, starting around $205 a night and rising to about $385 for a suite, sits at the high end of the old-town zone and is noticeably more than a typical boutique hotel in Zona Colonial, in exchange for Kimpton-brand design and 3 restaurants. If your budget is tight there are cheaper options in the same district. Third, noise: Zona Colonial gets lively on weekends and at night, with bars, live music and people strolling the nearby lanes, and some reviews from street-facing rooms mention the buzz drifting in. Light sleepers should ask for a room facing the central courtyard or an upper floor. Finally, because this is a restored historic building, the size and layout of each room varies, so if you have a specific need — a single king bed, or a courtyard balcony — it is worth telling the hotel in advance so they can match you to the best room.

Our take

From the real guest reviews our team gathered, Kimpton Las Mercedes Santo Domingo is a hotel that sells the charm of a 16th-century school building, bold modern design, a location in the heart of a World Heritage site, and friendly Kimpton-style service so distinctively that it is hard to find anything quite like it in Santo Domingo. If you love the story of an old town, want to explore colonial lanes on foot, sleep under wooden beams and stone walls 500 years old, then head up for a Mama Juana on the rooftop in the evening looking at the spire of the New World's first cathedral and the edge of the Caribbean, this is a place that stays with you for a long time. It suits couples after a romantic, culture-led trip and design lovers who value the restoration of an old building and an atmosphere with a story. But if the heart of your trip is a beach to swim at all day, or a budget stay in the old town, there may be a better fit. Overall we give it 9.0/10.