Dominican Republic - Santo Domingo

Founded in 1496 by Bartholomew Columbus, brother of Christopher Columbus, as the capital of the first Spanish colony in the New World. Santo Domingo is situated on the southeast coast of the island of Hispaniola, at the mouth of the Ozama River, and is the oldest permanent city established by Europeans in the Western Hemisphere.. Its walled, cobblestoned historic core, the Zona Colonial, has buildings that date to the 1500s, including the cathedral, which was the first built in the New World.