The Roavi Blog
Stories from people who live there.
Travel tips, city guides, and local insights from the Roavi team.
1173 articles
Travel Guides · Santo Domingo
Santo Domingo in April: Warm, the First Rains, Semana Santa in Some Years, and Low Season Prices After Easter
April in Santo Domingo is around 30°C with the first short rains of the year arriving after a dry winter. When Easter falls in April, Semana Santa empties the capital toward the beaches and fills the Zona Colonial with processions; after it, prices drop to low season. Weather, what Holy Week changes, what to do, prices and packing.
Oscar Garcia··2 min read
Travel Guides · Santo Domingo
Santo Domingo in May: The Rainy Season Arrives, Dominican Mother's Day, and the Cheapest Warm Month
May is when the rainy season settles over Santo Domingo: around 31°C, humid, with a heavy afternoon shower most days and sunny mornings. It is low season, among the cheapest months for hotels, and the month of Dominican Mother's Day on the last Sunday, the biggest family day of the year. Weather, how to plan a wet-season day, what is on, prices and packing.
Oscar Garcia··2 min read
Travel Guides · Santo Domingo
Santo Domingo in June: Hot and Humid, Hurricane Season Opens on Paper, Corpus Christi, and Schools Break
June in Santo Domingo is around 32°C and humid, with afternoon storms and long sunny mornings. Hurricane season opens on June 1 but June rarely brings anything to the island; the real risk is August to October. Corpus Christi is a public holiday, schools break at the end of the month and the summer crowds of visiting Dominicans begin. Weather, the holiday, prices and how to do the heat.
Oscar Garcia··2 min read
Travel Guides · Santo Domingo
Santo Domingo in September: The Hurricane Peak, the Cheapest Month of the Year, and Las Mercedes on the 24th
September is the peak of hurricane season and the cheapest, quietest month in Santo Domingo: around 31°C, humid, storms most afternoons, schools back, the diaspora gone. Most years nothing hits the capital; some years a storm costs you days. How to decide, what insurance and flexibility buy you, Las Mercedes on the 24th, and what the city is like with no tourists.
Oscar Garcia··2 min read
Travel Guides · Santo Domingo
Santo Domingo in October: Still Stormy, Still Cheap, and the Winter Baseball League Opens
October in Santo Domingo is around 31°C with afternoon rain and the second half of hurricane season, which eases through the month. It is still low season and cheap, and it is the month the winter baseball league opens, the best night out in the country. Weather, the risk, the baseball, prices and what the end of the month brings.
Oscar Garcia··2 min read
Community · Punta Cana
Punta Cana Travel Forum: TripAdvisor, Reddit, the Facebook Groups and the Board Where Dominicans Answer
There are four places to ask a Punta Cana question and they answer differently. The TripAdvisor forum is the biggest and is mostly other tourists. Reddit is blunt. The Facebook groups are resort by resort. Roavi Community is the small new one where the people answering live in the Dominican Republic and you can message them. Which to use for which question.
Oscar Garcia··3 min read
Community · Santo Domingo
Dominican Republic Travel Forum: TripAdvisor, Reddit, Facebook Groups and the Board Where Dominicans Answer
Where to ask a Dominican Republic travel question in 2026: the TripAdvisor forum for resorts, Reddit for blunt answers, the Facebook groups for expats and resorts, and Roavi Community, the small board where Dominican Local Friends answer and can be messaged. Which forum for which question, by city.
Oscar Garcia··3 min read
Community · Medellín
Medellín Travel Forum: TripAdvisor, the Subreddit, the Expat Facebook Groups and the Board Where Paisas Answer
Medellín has more forum traffic than almost any city in Latin America: safety questions, neighbourhood questions, nomad questions. Where each kind gets a good answer: the TripAdvisor forum, the Medellín subreddit, the expat Facebook groups and Roavi Community, where Local Friends who live in Medellín answer and can be messaged.
Oscar Garcia··3 min read
Community · Bangkok
Bangkok Travel Forum: TripAdvisor, the Thailand Subreddits, the Expat Facebook Groups and the Board Where Bangkokians Answer
Bangkok's forums are enormous and mostly expats. Where each kind of question gets a good answer: TripAdvisor for hotels and transfers, the Thailand and Bangkok subreddits for honest opinions, the expat Facebook groups for living there, and Roavi Community, where Thai Local Friends who live in Bangkok answer and can be messaged.
Oscar Garcia··2 min read
Travel Guides
Rent a Friend in the Dominican Republic: Yes, It Exists. How It Works, What It Costs, Who Is on the Platform
Yes, you can rent a friend in the Dominican Republic. Roavi lists Dominican Local Friends in Santo Domingo, Santiago, Puerto Plata, Punta Cana and other cities who show visitors around for an hourly rate they set. Platonic, in public, no commission. What it costs, what people do, and how to message one.
Oscar Garcia··4 min read
Travel Guides
Rent a Friend in Colombia: Yes, It Exists. Medellín, Bogotá, Cali and Cartagena, What It Costs, How to Do It Safely
Yes, you can rent a friend in Colombia. Roavi lists Colombian Local Friends in Cali, Medellín, Bogotá and Barranquilla who show visitors their city for an hourly rate they set. Platonic, in public, no commission. What it costs, what people do, and why Colombia is where this makes the most sense.
Oscar Garcia··3 min read
Travel Guides
Rent a Friend in Mexico: How It Works, What It Costs, and Where Roavi Has Locals Today
Yes, rent-a-friend exists in Mexico, and Roavi is honest about where: Mexico is one of the most-searched countries on the platform and one of the thinnest for Local Friends today. How it works, what it costs, where there are locals now, and how to use Community for the cities that do not have one yet.
Oscar Garcia··3 min read