Port-au-Prince

About Port-au-Prince

The Port-au-Prince metropolitan area is actually several large cities which have become subsumed into the larger capital city of Port-au-Prince. Most travelers arrive by plane into the international airport (located on the outskirts of Delmas and Tabarre, two suburbs of PAP) or by bus into private bus terminals in either Petionville (another suburb) or Tabarre. There are 2.12 million people living in the metropolitan area, from Carrefour on the west to Petionville and Kenscoff on the south, to the eastern and northeastern suburbs of Titayen and Bon Repos. The largest area of new growth in Port-au-Prince is Cannan, a sprawling city of 200,000 which was created by as camps to house displaced persons after the January 2010 earthquake. Though the area was never fully developed as promised (the American Red Cross only built a handful of homes after raising millions for the relief efforts), residents who were moved here had no other place to go and so many stayed, staked out yards, and built their own homes. The Cannan/Corail area now has its own police station, a smattering of small stores, and several primary schools. Most visitors to Port-au-Prince either opt to stay in the National Palace/Champs des Mas area or in Petionville. The latter has several popular hotels (namely the Olofson and Le Plaza, formerly the Holiday Inn) as well as easy access to sites such as museums, the national university, and the iron market. Petionville is south, about an hour in daytime traffic or 20 minutes at night, up the hill. It's full of restaurants, cafes, and discos. There are also many art galleries in both locations though Petionville is somewhat easier to travel within as most things are walking distance and roads of laid out in grid.