Because life is short & the world is big
After indulging ourselves on pinchos (kebabs) at a little food truck park on the way, we spent a peaceful weekday afternoon at Playa Santa, a quiet neighborhood beach in Guanica on the south coast of Puerto Rico.
There were no restrooms, though it looks like on weekends it’s quite lively, and you can take advantage of food kioskos and kayak rentals. The surf is calm and the kids are plentiful.
INFO
Puerto Rico is more than beaches and rum, coffee and conquistadors. It’s also pork!
For a glimpse into the real Puerto Rico, with a little tourist kitsch thrown in, we suggest you pay a visit to the Pork Highway, or La Ruta del Lechón.
Locals and visitors alike gather together friends and family for a day trip to the lechoneras of the mountain town of Guavate.
They drive along winding Route 184 up a mountain to feast on lechonera after lechonera serving slow-roasted whole pork (also chicken), heaping portions of rice and pigeon peas, yuca al mojo, mofongo, and other traditional Puerto Rican dishes, all in a party atmosphere. Get ready to dance!
Don’t worry, vegetarians – the yuca and rice are also outstanding.
Lechón means roasted whole pork, cooked for hours over hot coals or an open flame, so that the skin gets crispy while the meat remains tender and juicy. This is a dish you can typically only get in the countryside of Puerto Rico.
LINKS:
Discover Puerto Rico Guide to the Pork Highway
El Rancho Original
El Nuevo Rancho
Map
One of our favorite beaches on the northeast corner of Puerto Rico is Playa Peña Blanca, a secluded beach in Aguadilla distinguished by white cliffs and interesting snorkeling. It’s tucked away behind a neighborhood, and almost impossible to find, with hole-pocked dirt roads that aren’t found on GPS.
If you require amenities, don’t come here. There are no bathrooms, no official parking lot, no food stands or restaurants. But if you’re willing to pack your own food and drinks, have a sense of adventure and want to experience something different, by all means, come!
We paid a local to park in a yard in the neighborhood, not wanting to receive a parking ticket as we had done at Playa Montones a week earlier. It was $5 well spent. The walk to Playa Peña Blanca from the neighborhood was short, though a little rugged closer to the beach. We came back another day via a back road not found on GPS, which took us to a small parking area right beside the beach.
Playa Peña Blanca is a clean, intimate, secluded spot with crystal clear waters and interesting snorkeling. The left side is a little wilder, with stone steps down a hillside to where white karst cliff walls and caves abut the golden sand.
It’s hard to describe the appeal. You just have to experience it yourself!
Crash Boat Beach in Aguadilla is one of Puerto Rico’s most popular beaches. It’s a party beach with a festive atmosphere, highlighted by the colorful pier perfect for diving off of or snorkeling beside.
Bring the family and enjoy the gentle surf and the pincho (kebab) and smoothie kiosks.
It’s supposed to have bathrooms but we couldn’t find any.
Feel free to enjoy our video about snorkeling Crash Boat – the undersea world is astonishing. It’s at https://youtu.be/HOsYt4y6pYY
Info: https://www.discoverpuertorico.com/profile/crash-boat-beach/8911
Balneario Carolina and Terraplen La Posita de Piñones are among the most popular local beaches for people living in San Juan, Puerto Rico. Here’s why.
Balneario Carolina is a lovely public beach and a local favorite just east of Isla Verde in San Juan, Puerto Rico. You pay $5 for parking, and in return have a clean white-sand beach with minimal waves, as well as clean bathrooms, showers and food stands. Is there anything better than enjoying a mojito from your beach chair while you watch the waves? The beach has attractions for every age and stage, with watersports, a Beach Volleyball court, and a small water park for the kids. At the far end, a stage is sometimes set up for major concert events.
For an even calmer and distinctly Puerto Rican experience, head a little farther east to & Terraplen La Posita de Piñones. You’ll park (for free) on the road or in one of several small parking lots, and there are no facilities. However, there is a beach chair vendor and several little eateries to buy your Puerto Rican frituras (various fried foods). This is a great beach for families because a reef protects the shoreline from waves, so small children can play in the shallow water without causing their parents worry.
Info:
Balneario Carolina
Terraplen La Posita de Piñones
Maps:
It’s a long haul to get to breathtaking Playa Sucia, one of the most beautiful beaches in Puerto Rico, but worth every mile and bump in the road.
This crescent-shaped stretch of sand is at the end of the road in the extreme southwest corner of the island, Cabo Rojo. It’s framed by Los Morillos Lighthouse on the bluff to the right and rock arches and the beach La Playuela to the left. It offers breathtaking views and plenty of wilderness to explore. The beach is part of the town’s nature reserve, with no services, not even bathrooms, but plenty of shady spots among the mangroves. It requires a little walking from the limited parking; arrive early to get a spot. On the way in you will pass the famous Salt Flats.
Bring lots to drink and eat because you can’t buy anything there. Bring hiking shoes and a camera for the spectacular cliffside trail around the lighthouse.
Info: https://www.discoverpuertorico.com/profile/la-playuela-playa-sucia/8976
Travelers to Puerto Rico who stay in Isla Verde at first behold a cluster of high-rises soaring above the palm trees. But behind the tall hotels and condos is a clean, bustling tropical beach in the heart of the city, one of the finest urban beaches you’ll find anywhere.
Info: https://www.discoverpuertorico.com/profile/isla-verde-beach/9457
When we started looking for a home in Puerto Rico, realtor after realtor recommended that we buy in Palmas del Mar, a massive oceanfront resort development on the southeast coast. The largest planned resort development in the Caribbean, Palmas del Mar bills itself as “Puerto Rico’s #1 vacation destination.” But is it? Not for us.
The many rings of gated security work for some people, but for us they made us feel disconnected from real Puerto Rico. We visited the beach and were underwhelmed, and access to it is extremely limited.
Palmas del Mar started as a vacation spot and evolved to include residential opportunities, and features a golf course, tennis club, athletic club, equestrian area, a forest (Bosque Pterocarpus), marina, school (Palmas Academy), shopping area, hotels, restaurants and more. The residents ride around in golf carts, and their association has regular social events.
So what’s it like? Take a tour and see if it’s your cup of tea. We decided it’s not ours. Lisa calls it Gringolandia.
Info
Palmas Promotional Brochure
Map
Alina Santiago, CC BY-SA 4.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0>, via Wikimedia Commons – Palmas Marina
Alina Santiago, CC BY-SA 4.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0>, via Wikimedia Commons – Palmas
Alina Santiago, CC BY-SA 4.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0>, via Wikimedia Commons – Golf course
Bjoertvedt, CC BY-SA 4.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0>, via Wikimedia Commons – Houses
Col Nesty Delgado, CC BY-SA 4.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0>, via Wikimedia Commons – Palmanova plaza
Let’s take a quick tour of Isla Verde, a beachfront high-rise neighborhood on the eastern end of San Juan, Puerto Rico, that offers a wealth of amenities and options for upscale travelers and residents.
Isla Verde is a resort strip of San Juan known for its beautiful urban beaches. This neighborhood offers a plethora of dining and lodging options for upscale travelers to the Enchanted Island, as well as for well-to-do homeowners with deep pockets. Its popular white-sand beach backs up to high-rise hotels and condos, with shade trees and many dining and drinking options.
Most travel articles describe Isla Verde’s exquisite urban beach in the heart of the city, but we thought we’d show you the other side of the neighborhood: the avenue that offers all the amenities you need to enjoy your time on the eastern end of San Juan, Puerto Rico.
Enjoy our mini-tour!
Turtles and ducks and iguanas, oh my!
The Humacao Nature Reserve offers a wonderful kayaking experience, through a creek dodging turtles among the mangroves into a large lagoon. Breathtaking! The lake of course boasts a couple of Puerto Rican flags, since residents’ pride in their island is displayed everywhere you go. Our adventure also offered the chance to see a large variety of birds, turtles, and even a couple of huge iguanas.
The tour guides give you a laminated map so you can follow a specific marked route and learn about the flora and fauna of the region.
Humacao Nature Reserve, also called the Punta Santiago Nature Reserve, is located in the southeastern coast of Puerto Rico, between the municipalities of Humacao and Naguabo. In addition to kayaking, which only cost $15, the reserve has trails for walking, hiking and mountain biking. The birdwatching is spectacular, and you can also go fishing. There are large, clean bathrooms and even showers.
Info: https://www.discoverpuertorico.com/profile/punta-santiago-reserva-natural-de-humacao/7844
