Las Américas International Airport is Santo Domingo's international airport and the one to fly into for the Malecón. It sits east of the city, and the drive to the Malecón is a little over 30 kilometers. In normal traffic that is about half an hour, so you can be in your ocean-view apartment not long after you clear customs.
This page walks you through the arrival from the gate to the front door: immigration and customs, money and phone cards at the airport, every way to get to the Malecón, the route itself, and the longer drive to our pool villa in Boca Canasta, Baní. It ends with the trip back to the airport. If you have not done your paperwork yet, read entry requirements first; the e-Ticket has to be done before you check in for your flight.
The airport
The full name is Las Américas International Airport José Francisco Peña Gómez, often shortened to AILA, and its code is SDQ. It was built at Punta Caucedo, east of the capital, and its runway is 3,354 meters long. The airport is run by Aerodom, part of VINCI Airports, which also operates La Isabela, the city's second airport, and the airports at Puerto Plata, Samaná and Barahona.
Aerodom is building a new terminal to work alongside the existing Terminal 1, an investment of more than US$350 million with room for about four million passengers a year. Construction is scheduled to finish in December 2028. While the work goes on, long-term parking is limited and Aerodom runs remote lots with a free shuttle. For arriving guests this mostly matters if someone is picking you up by car or if you plan to park there yourself.
The airport's address is Ruta 66, La Caleta. From the city, drivers follow the signs for Aeropuerto Internacional Las Américas, and the airport exit is on the right just after the toll booth on the highway.
Terminal A and Terminal B
The passenger building has two sides, Terminal A and Terminal B, with departure lounges on the second level of each. The letter matters mostly on the way home: check which side your airline uses before you set off for your flight.
Before you land
A few minutes of preparation on the plane make the arrival easier.
- Have your e-Ticket QR code saved on your phone, or printed. The form covers immigration, customs and health in one, and you need it for arrival and for departure.
- Know the full address of your apartment, with province, municipality and sector. You will have put it on your e-Ticket, and a driver will need it too.
- If you plan to use Uber, install the app before you travel and check that your card works in it.
- Keep your passport and your return ticket together. Airlines check the onward flight before you board, and officers can ask to see it on arrival.
Immigration
The walk from the gate leads to passport control, staffed by officers of the General Directorate of Migration. They check your passport and documents, and they take your fingerprints and a photograph before admitting you. Have your passport open at the photo page and your e-Ticket QR code ready.
Dominican passport holders over 18 can use the Autogates, the airport's biometric e-gates, once they have registered. Registration is free, takes under five minutes and is done once, at a Migration office in the city or at the airport itself. If you come home to visit family several times a year, registering once means the gates are ready for you on every later trip.
Bags and customs
After passport control you collect your bags and walk through customs. Within the normal limits, you do not have to declare what you carry: clothing, toiletries, books, your phone and your laptop are all personal items. The customs declaration is part of the e-Ticket, and only adults fill in that section.
Declare cash over US$10,000, or the same value in another currency, and declare food you bring with you. Medicines for your own use are fine; carry the prescription for anything controlled. The full list of allowances, from bottles of rum to golf clubs, is on our entry requirements page.
If a bag does not arrive
Report a missing, delayed or damaged checked bag to your airline before you leave the baggage hall; the airline handles those claims, not the airport. Something left on the plane is also the airline's to find. For anything lost inside the terminal, the airport's Lost & Found desk is at Customer Service on the second floor, at lostandfound@aerodom.com or 1-809-412-5888, extensions 2225 and 2060. Give the airline your apartment's full address and a local phone number for the claim.
Families and travelers who need assistance
The airport has family bathrooms, larger and accessible, with baby changing tables and child safety seats, and there are changing tables in the regular restrooms too. A free lactation room has been announced.
If you need wheelchair help, ask your airline for it when you book. For getting around during your stay, a mobility scooter can be rented in the country through a toll-free line, 1-844-283-8989, or at scootersdr.com.
Money at the airport
Most prices in the country are in Dominican pesos. Shops in tourist areas often take US dollars, but at a less favorable rate than a bank, and the airport is a fine place to get some pesos for the first day.
Las Américas has two bank branches on level 1, in the arrivals area. Banco Popular is open Monday to Friday from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. and Saturday from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Banreservas is open Monday to Friday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Saturday from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Both are closed on Sundays.
For late arrivals, the exchange booths matter more. Banreservas and Globocambio both run currency exchange booths in arrivals and in departures, open 24 hours a day, every day. The airport also has ATMs.
Our advice: change a modest amount for the taxi and your first purchases, then use ATMs in the city as you go. An ATM gives you pesos at the day's rate, and Dominican banks all use the Central Bank's daily rate as their benchmark, so the difference between banks is small. In the city, banks close at 5 p.m. on weekdays, branches in shopping malls stay open until around 7 or 8 p.m., and ATMs are in supermarkets and malls.
Two numbers help with your first dinner bill: the sales tax, ITBIS, is 18% on most purchases, and restaurants, bars and hotels add a 10% service charge automatically.
Phone and internet
The airport has free Wi-Fi, so you can message us or call a ride as soon as you land.
For a local number, Claro and Altice both have stores on the first level, in the public area. Claro is open Monday to Saturday from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. and Sunday from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Altice is open Monday to Saturday from 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. and Sunday from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Bring an unlocked GSM phone and your passport. A local SIM costs less than US$5, plus whatever credit you add for data and calls, and it saves you the cost of international roaming. The country code is +1, the same as the United States and Canada, and local numbers use the area codes 809, 829 and 849.
Ways to get to the Malecón
You have four practical choices: the airport's official taxis, Uber, a transfer booked ahead, or a rental car. The airport's own access guide describes the trip into town by private car or taxi, so plan on one of these.
Airport taxi
The taxis at Las Américas are run by SICHALA, a drivers' union authorized by the Ministry of Tourism to operate at the airport. Their stand is at the main entrance on the first level. SICHALA runs 24 hours a day with uniformed drivers and has offices at the airport.
SICHALA publishes fixed fares in US dollars for one to four passengers. The fare from the airport to Santo Domingo is US$35 one way, or US$70 round trip. The published fares apply to reservations; if you walk up to the stand without one, the price can vary slightly. You can pay in cash, by credit card or by PayPal.
The airport's taxi phone numbers are 1-809-549-0245, 1-809-549-0011 and 1-809-549-0364, and SICHALA's WhatsApp number is +1 829 280 6819.
Uber
Uber picks up at Las Américas around the clock. Rides can be booked as soon as you land, or reserved up to 90 days ahead with Uber Reserve, which you can cancel for free until one hour before pickup. For a family with several suitcases, choose UberXL or Comfort when you book, since trunk space varies by car. If the bags do not fit, cancel and request a larger car. A group can also split up: one account can request up to three rides at the same time.
Uber drivers do not provide car seats, so bring your own for small children. Traveling with a dog or cat, choose Uber Pet, or ask the driver once you are matched.
Book only inside the app. Do not accept offers from people outside the terminal who say they drive for Uber, and match the plate, the car and the driver's photo before you get in. Drivers can take a little longer to arrive for very early or very late flights.
Once you are settled, Uber and dispatch taxis are also the easiest way to get around the city. Most 24-hour dispatch taxi companies charge a fixed rate of about US$5 one way for trips within Santo Domingo. Our guide to getting around Santo Domingo covers the city side.
Transfer booked ahead
If you like to have a driver waiting with your name, SICHALA takes bookings online at fixed door-to-door rates, with options for groups. Booking ahead is also a good idea for the villa in Baní, which is a longer trip.
Family or friends picking you up
If relatives are meeting you, they have two options. The curb in front of arrivals, on the first level, is for quick pickups only; it is a no-parking zone, and cars left there can be towed and fined. For a longer wait, the short-term lot costs RD$150 for the first hour and RD$200 for up to two hours. Ask them to park and meet you at the arrivals exit.
Rental car
Fifteen rental companies have counters at Las Américas, among them Alamo, Avis, Budget, Dollar, Enterprise, Europcar, Hertz, National, Payless, Sixt and Thrifty, plus local firms such as Honda Rent-a-car and Nelly Rent-a-Car. The counters are in the corridor of the centralized exit, next to the North Terminal.
Your home driver's license is valid in the Dominican Republic for the length of your legal stay, which for most visitors is the 30 days of the tourist card. The highways are modern. In the city, drive defensively and keep an eye out for motorbikes and pedestrians. Almost all of our Malecón apartments include free parking on the premises, so you do not pay to park.
A car makes most sense if you plan day trips outside the city or you are heading to the villa in Boca Canasta. Inside Santo Domingo, taxis and Uber are the simpler way to move around.
The route
The drive from Las Américas to the Malecón is between 32 and 33 kilometers on the fastest route, and in normal traffic it takes 32 to 35 minutes. The slower alternative along the frontage road is about 34 kilometers and 40 minutes.
From the airport you join the Autopista Las Américas and head west toward Santo Domingo. The highway is a toll road. Near the city you take the exit for Expreso 27 de Febrero, Avenida Las Américas and the Juan Bosch and Juan Pablo Duarte bridges. After the bridge you continue along Avenida Francisco Alberto Caamaño Deñó and then onto Avenida George Washington, which is the Malecón itself.
The Las Américas toll plaza on this highway charges RD$100 for a car, a rate set in January 2025, and the other main tolls around the city, on the Duarte, 6 de Noviembre and Sánchez roads, charge the same. If you are driving a rental car, keep some pesos handy for the booth.
Arriving at your apartment
Most of our Malecón apartments have self check-in with a lockbox, so you can arrive at any hour and let yourself in. Almost all of them have free parking on the premises for guests who arrive by car.
The Colonial Zone is about five minutes away by car, so on your first evening you can drop your bags and be at dinner in the old city without a long trip. Our guides to the Malecón and the Colonial Zone have ideas for that first walk.
Late-night and early-morning arrivals
Las Américas handles flights at all hours. On a recent night, United's flight from Newark was due at 10:46 p.m., JetBlue's flights from Boston and Fort Lauderdale were due at 2:04 a.m., and Arajet's from Newark at 5:29 a.m. Departures run early too: JetBlue's Boston flight was scheduled at 3:15 a.m.
The currency exchange booths are open 24 hours. SICHALA's taxis run 24 hours a day. Uber is available at all hours, though a driver can take longer to reach you very late at night. With self check-in, the hour you land makes no difference at the apartment. If you are landing near midnight, a reserved Uber or a SICHALA transfer booked ahead is the most relaxed way to do it.
The villa in Boca Canasta, Baní
Our pool villa is in Boca Canasta, Baní. It has five bedrooms and sleeps 16, so plan the transport for the whole group: a rental car or two, or a larger vehicle booked ahead.
From Las Américas the drive is about 87 kilometers and takes around 1 hour 10 minutes in normal traffic. The fastest route crosses the city and follows the Carretera Francisco del Rosario Sánchez to Baní; an alternative uses the Autopista 6 de Noviembre and Autopista del Sur and takes a few minutes longer. Both routes have tolls.
SICHALA's published fare from the airport to Baní is US$110 one way for up to four passengers, or US$220 round trip. A larger group should ask for a quote for a bigger vehicle, by WhatsApp or through the online booking.
If you spend a few nights in the city first and then move to the villa, the drive from the Malecón to Boca Canasta is about 59 kilometers and takes around 50 minutes. Our Baní and Boca Canasta guide has the beaches and food stops along the way.
Flying into La Isabela
Santo Domingo has a second airport, La Isabela International Airport Doctor Joaquín Balaguer, code JBQ. It handles regional flights, mainly within the Caribbean, on a 1,680-meter runway.
On a recent day its scheduled arrivals came from Cap-Haïtien in Haiti on Sunrise Airways, and from Santiago de Cuba and St. Maarten on Air Century. If you are arriving from one of those places, JBQ is a short trip to the Malecón: about 21 kilometers and roughly 24 minutes by car.
The airport is on the La Isabela road. Coming from central Santo Domingo, follow the signs for Aeropuerto Internacional de La Isabela; the exit is on the right after the Sabana Perdida area. Access is by private car or taxi.
Flying into Punta Cana
If you are weighing a flight into Punta Cana, count the drive. Punta Cana International Airport is about 194 kilometers from the Malecón, a little over two hours on the Autopista del Coral and the Autovía del Este, both toll roads. That works if you want a few beach days there first; if you are coming straight to Santo Domingo, Las Américas saves you most of that drive. Our flights pages list the nonstop routes into Santo Domingo itself.
Traveling on from Santo Domingo
If your trip continues to another part of the country, you do not need to go back to the airport. Air-conditioned coach lines, among them Caribe Tours, Metro Tours and Expreso Bávaro, connect Santo Domingo with places such as Punta Cana, Samaná, La Romana and Puerto Plata, with fares under US$10. A night or two on the Malecón at the start or end of a longer Dominican trip fits easily around those connections.
Useful numbers at Las Américas
- Airport customer service: 1-809-947-2225 or 1-809-947-2297
- Airport taxis (SICHALA): 1-809-549-0245, 1-809-549-0011 or 1-809-549-0364
- Lost & Found: 1-809-412-5888, extensions 2225 and 2060
- Airport customs: 1-809-549-9933
- Migration, for stay extensions: 809-508-2555
Going back to the airport
Leave the Malecón about three and a half hours before an international flight. The airport asks passengers to be there three hours ahead, and the drive takes around half an hour in normal traffic.
SICHALA's published fare from the Distrito Nacional to the airport is US$40. You can also reserve an Uber for your departure time the day before. If you are returning a rental car, allow extra time for the return and the walk to the terminal.
Before you leave, make sure you have the departure QR code from your e-Ticket on your phone. Most airlines open online check-in 48 hours before the flight, and each airline sets its own cutoff for checking bags. After check-in you go through security screening and then immigration.
The US$20 departure tax is already in your ticket. If you stayed more than 30 days, the stay fee is paid online before you go or at the immigration section after security.
Packing rum and other liquids
If a bottle of Dominican rum or a jar from the market is coming home with you, pack with the liquid rules in mind. In your carry-on, liquids go in containers of 100 ml (3.4 oz) or less, up to 10 containers and one liter in total, inside a single clear resealable bag of 20 by 20 cm. Anything larger goes in your checked bag.
The exception is the duty-free shop past security. Liquids you buy there can go in your carry-on even above 100 ml, as long as they stay in the sealed, tamper-evident bag with the receipt, and the purchase is no more than 48 hours old. Liquid medicines and baby food are also allowed above the limit; carry a note from your doctor for medicines.
Lounges
If you have time before your flight, Las Américas has five lounges. Sala Caribe by Before Boarding, on the second level of Terminal A, is open 24 hours; SKY The Lounge, also in Terminal A, opens from 6 a.m. to 11:59 p.m. On the Terminal B side, the Copa Club is for Copa passengers and the American Express lounge is for Amex cardholders, open from 5 a.m. to 10 p.m. The Before Boarding premium lounge on the first level serves both arriving and departing passengers around the clock. The independent lounges may charge for entry, so ask Before Boarding at 1-809-549-0202.
When you are ready to plan the trip, choose your apartment on the Malecón.