La Vega Vieja

Concepción de la Vega was founded in the 1490s in the fertile Cibao valley, close to the gold-bearing rivers that drew the first Spanish settlers inland, and it grew into one of the most important towns in the early colony, with a fort, a monastery and one of the first royal gold foundries in the Americas. On the second of December 1562 an earthquake destroyed it, and rather than rebuild the survivors moved to the site of the present city. The ruins were left in the fields. What is visible now are brick and stone foundations of the fortress and the Franciscan monastery, standing in a quiet archaeological park with a small museum of the objects recovered.

What you actually see

• The fortress foundations - brick walls of the early colonial fort.
• The monastery ruins - the Franciscan foundation beside it.
• The site museum - ceramics, coins and tools from the excavation.
• Santo Cerro - the hilltop church and viewpoint over the valley nearby.

When to go

November to April is drier. Mornings are cooler. The site is almost always empty except during the La Vega carnival season in February, when the modern town nearby is full. Combine it with Santo Cerro above.

Honest expectations

There is not much standing: low brick foundations and outlines, which need the museum and some reading to make sense of. Signage is limited and in Spanish. It takes an hour. The site has suffered from underfunding and parts are overgrown at times.

Nearby

Santo Cerro is five minutes uphill; Jarabacoa is an hour south.