Puerto Rico Road Trip
Once the Puerto Rico surf season came to a lull around the end of April and beginning of May, we planned to take a road trip to explore the rest of the island. We had been staying in Rincon for almost two months at that point, and neither of us had been to San Juan, so we decided to make the trip. This blog from the Traveling Teacher helped me a lot in planing out the route, and I recommend it if you’re taking a road trip through Puerto Rico.
We were starting from the west side whereas most people fly into San Juan on the east side, so we reversed the usual route. We took a week of from work to relax, adventure, and see what we could find.
Arecibo
Our first stop took us to Arecibo, 1.5 hours from Rincon and about the mid-point of the island. We stopped to see the Cueva del Indio and hike around the area. The views of the water were beautiful, and if you pass through a tiny hole in the rock, it opens up to a cave where you can see native petroglyphs. Bailey and I did not pass through because, as you can see, the rock hole wasn’t very dog-friendly, and Bryan didn’t pass all the way through because it also wasn’t very tall man-friendly.
We stayed up on the cliffs and walked around the rocks and down the beach. It was pretty hot that day, but Bailey seemed to enjoy herself.
Afterwards, we stopped for a plateful of empanadas and beachfront views at El Clandestino Bar and Grill. Then we were off to San Juan.
San Juan
As we walked past the colorful houses decorated with flowers and the streets opened onto the beach, I could see what just about everyone in the US loves about San Juan. It definitely makes for a picturesque and fun vacation destination. We stayed at the cute and quiet Oasis Inn in the Ocean Park neighborhood. We were most impressed by all the street art in the Santurce neighborhood.
We also paddle boarded on the Condado lagoon right after a rainstorm and saw a beautiful rainbow, fish and starfish, and (possibly in my imagination) the hint of a manatee. I didn’t bring my phone with me to take pictures, so here’s some more street art.
We ate delicious, traditional mofongo and explored the city. One highlight was doing a walking tour through Old San Juan. It felt totally different from where we stayed on the other side of town.
Since it’s right on the water, San Juan reminded me a bit of our trip to Cartagena, Columbia earlier this year.
After sweating through the walking tour, we stopped at La Factoría – one of the city’s most famous cocktail bars – for a drink. Then it was off to our next stop.
El Yunque
When I used to teach introductory Spanish classes in grad school, there was a textbook chapter on Puerto Rico’s rainforest, El Yunque. Since then, I’ve always wanted to see the lush, green forest for myself. I convinced Bryan to join the quest, and we spent a couple of days connecting with nature.
The view from our Airbnb porch was pretty breathtaking:
El Yunque is quite remote, so we definitely needed a car to get around. We did about a six-mile hike to El Yunque Peak and saw a few waterfalls on the drive in. The national forest was such a gorgeous, peaceful place. In hindsight, I wish we’d spent more time here before I rushed us off to the next destination…
Vieques
Bailey caught her first ferry, and we all became golf cart people (and dog) for our time in Vieques. We left our Jeep at the ferry terminal and rode across the water to the tiny island.
Some parts of the visit were really enjoyable and unique, like riding a golf cart around the island to pristine beaches (we went to Playa Negra, Caracas, and La Chiva) and watching wild horses roam free. We loved Kristy’s on the Caribe for breakfast and went back on day two for more. We also got to take a night tour of Mosquito Bay which has the most bioluminescence in the world.
Other parts of the visit were a bit difficult. Because it was low season, some of the best restaurants were closed. The locals aren’t overly friendly to tourists, and a lot of the island is a bit run-down. We were lucky our rickety golf cart made it out to the beaches and back without breaking down.
But we came for the natural beauty and the wild horses, and that’s what we got.
After the ferry back to the “mainland,” we were in for a long drive back to Rincon. We made a mid-journey stop for lechón (roast pork, yum!) and arrived home later that night.
Overall, it was a really enjoyable trip with a decent amount of time spent in each place. If you haven’t had the chance to visit Puerto Rico, I highly recommend it. I look forward to going back to see more of the island someday!
