D.C. Area Nesties
Day 4: Rent Jeep from Carlo's Jeep. Drove to Flamenco beach. Swam and looked at fish. At lunch at kiosks near the beach. The best empanadas. Drove to Tamarind Beach, Zoni Beach, and Melones Beach. Explored the island. Swam at Melones beach, but very rocky. Melones was right by the ferry. Lots of underwater life, would probably be a good place to snorkel. Hit up Milka's grocery to buy supplies for dinner. Grilled chicken, salad, and tostones. The breeze on the patio was wonderful.
Day 5: Returned the Jeep - the island was out of gas, but Carlos was nice, and didn't overcharge us. At brunch at the bakery - delicious and cheap ham, egg, and cheese sandwiches. The guava pastry and cafe con leche were also excellent. Rode the ferry back to the main island. Stopped at the Luquillo beach kioskos, and went to Luquillo beach. Dinner at La Parilla, near the end of the kiosko row. The beach was closed (it closed at 5), but we just drove in through the exit!
Drove to Hampton Inn in Isla Verde Carolina, and checked in. Got an upgrade to a suite for $10 extra per night. Score!
Day 6: Went to Areceibo, to see the Areceibo Observatory. Stopped at the Barcardi factory on the way for a free tour (and, two free drinks! Woo!) The torched cherry rum was good, as was the melon rum mixed with orange juice and cranberry. Ariceibo observatory was quite a drive to the top of the mountain, but, we thought it was worth it. Would be great for kids a little older, interested in science. Stopped at Playa Mar Chiquita on the way back. The waves were HUGE! So, not a great swimming spot. Went back to the hotel, and had dinner at The Palm for our 4th anniversary!
Day 6: Drove back to Farjado and went to Seven Seas beach. Decent beach, a little dirtier than some of the others, and DH got stung by a bee. Left Seven Seas, and drove to Guavate for a late lunch/early dinner of roast pork. There were heavy downpours on the way to Guavate, so that extended the drive a bit. The cafe up the hill from the lechoneras had great coffee. Yum. Back to the hotel to enjoy the pool and hot tub (and, the rest of our bottle of Bacari Rock Coconut!)
Day 7: Last day. Walked to the beach near the hotel... it was nice, but a little seaweedy (maybe because of the rain?). Fine for the last day of swimming, though - especially since it was raining on and off. Stopped at Bebo's BBQ on the way to drop of the rental cars. Way better than the McD's next door!-------------------------
Selected Reviews:Andalucia Guest House, Ocean Park. Great! Had the room next to the parking/street. Liked it because it was private (although some people might be bothered by street noise?). Loved their hot tub, and great location. Just a few blocks to a nice beach, and walking distance to some great local eateries. The owners were really nice, and very helpful with directions. Clean.
Bebo's in Ocean Park. Good. The food was OK, but nothing to write home about, in my opinion. But, they did have a good selection of Puerto Rican food.
Burro's in Ocean Park. OK. The pork taco was pretty good. But, the cinnamon cranberry margarita was outstanding! Kind of a weird tex-mex experience overall, but was a quick and relatively cheap option.
Kasalta Bakery in Ocean Park. Great! Loved the coffee, mallorca bread, and the carne empanadas. Cheap and fast.
Parrot Club in Old San Juan. OK. A decent place to stop for lunch, but a little overpriced. My $8 lunch special was a good deal. Their beans were good.
Ferry to Culebra - get there early. Take the 1PM, not the 9AM. Avoid travelling on rough days, if possible! Cheap.
Casa Ensenada. Great! Clean and spacious. Good value. On the route to the beach. Nice patio/dock area. A very short walk to "town." Could stay here without a rental car, if you're only planning to go to Flamenco beach.
Dingy Dock, Culebra. OK. A little overpriced, but the fried grouper was good.
Flamenco Beach. Excellent! Best beach ever. Clear, calm water. Good food at the kiosks.
Hampton Inn, Isla Verde/Carolina. Excellent! Great location. Near airport, highways, beach, clubs, casino, and restaurants. Nice pool with a swim up bar and grill. Got a very good rate with the government discount.
El Mojito Lechonera, Guavate. Good. Great roast pig, but the flies were annoying.
La Parrilla, Luquillo. Good. The fried pork was really good. The snapper was just OK. Wish we would have both gotten the pork - especially considering it was $7.50, versus $25 for the snapper! Bebo's BBQ. Excellent! Lots of yummy food for $17. Great for our last meal.
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Puerto Rico Travel Reviews (LONG!)
I always find it helpful when people give trip reports... so, here's mine!
Overall, I think it's a great place to vacation - not too expensive, not too far away. I think we spent a total of around $4K for a week total (for 2 adults, one kid), including plane tickets, lodging, food, and spending money.
Day 1 (Saturday): Leave IAD, fly to San Juan. 3.5 hour flight. Mad chaos at the Enterprise car rental counter - like, wait in line for an hour and a half chaos. WARNING: don't get the "economy car" from Enterprise. It didn't even have power windows or door locks, and it was a super PITA. Drive to Andalucia Guest House in Ocean Park. Swim at the beach, 3 blocks from the guest house. Guest house provided towels and sunscreen. Dinner at Bebo's near the guest house. Soak in the hot tub. Trip to Walgreens for snacks, supplies, etc. Sleep. Day 2: Old San Juan. Guest house provided great maps/directions. Park at Central Parking structure near the tourist info center (parking was around $5.) Lunch at Parrot Club. Visit the forts. Taxi back to car ($20), tons of traffic. Dinner at Burro's, across from guest house. Great cranberry/cinnamon margaritas. Day 3: Breakfast at Kasalta bakery. Ferry to Culebra - took the 1PM ferry (around $10 for roundtrip tix for 2 adults, 1 infant under 3y.o.). Get there early, the ferry terminal is a little nuts. Pouring rain - making the sea VERY rough (like, motion sickness puking rough). Sucking on mints helped a bit. Walk to Casa Ensenada guest house. Walked to dinner at Dinghy Dock. Pouring rain. Sleep.Day 4: Rent Jeep from Carlo's Jeep. Drove to Flamenco beach. Swam and looked at fish. At lunch at kiosks near the beach. The best empanadas. Drove to Tamarind Beach, Zoni Beach, and Melones Beach. Explored the island. Swam at Melones beach, but very rocky. Melones was right by the ferry. Lots of underwater life, would probably be a good place to snorkel. Hit up Milka's grocery to buy supplies for dinner. Grilled chicken, salad, and tostones. The breeze on the patio was wonderful.
Day 5: Returned the Jeep - the island was out of gas, but Carlos was nice, and didn't overcharge us. At brunch at the bakery - delicious and cheap ham, egg, and cheese sandwiches. The guava pastry and cafe con leche were also excellent. Rode the ferry back to the main island. Stopped at the Luquillo beach kioskos, and went to Luquillo beach. Dinner at La Parilla, near the end of the kiosko row. The beach was closed (it closed at 5), but we just drove in through the exit!
Drove to Hampton Inn in Isla Verde Carolina, and checked in. Got an upgrade to a suite for $10 extra per night. Score! Day 6: Went to Areceibo, to see the Areceibo Observatory. Stopped at the Barcardi factory on the way for a free tour (and, two free drinks! Woo!) The torched cherry rum was good, as was the melon rum mixed with orange juice and cranberry. Ariceibo observatory was quite a drive to the top of the mountain, but, we thought it was worth it. Would be great for kids a little older, interested in science. Stopped at Playa Mar Chiquita on the way back. The waves were HUGE! So, not a great swimming spot. Went back to the hotel, and had dinner at The Palm for our 4th anniversary!
Day 6: Drove back to Farjado and went to Seven Seas beach. Decent beach, a little dirtier than some of the others, and DH got stung by a bee. Left Seven Seas, and drove to Guavate for a late lunch/early dinner of roast pork. There were heavy downpours on the way to Guavate, so that extended the drive a bit. The cafe up the hill from the lechoneras had great coffee. Yum. Back to the hotel to enjoy the pool and hot tub (and, the rest of our bottle of Bacari Rock Coconut!)
Day 7: Last day. Walked to the beach near the hotel... it was nice, but a little seaweedy (maybe because of the rain?). Fine for the last day of swimming, though - especially since it was raining on and off. Stopped at Bebo's BBQ on the way to drop of the rental cars. Way better than the McD's next door!-------------------------
Selected Reviews:Andalucia Guest House, Ocean Park. Great! Had the room next to the parking/street. Liked it because it was private (although some people might be bothered by street noise?). Loved their hot tub, and great location. Just a few blocks to a nice beach, and walking distance to some great local eateries. The owners were really nice, and very helpful with directions. Clean.
Bebo's in Ocean Park. Good. The food was OK, but nothing to write home about, in my opinion. But, they did have a good selection of Puerto Rican food.
Burro's in Ocean Park. OK. The pork taco was pretty good. But, the cinnamon cranberry margarita was outstanding! Kind of a weird tex-mex experience overall, but was a quick and relatively cheap option.
Kasalta Bakery in Ocean Park. Great! Loved the coffee, mallorca bread, and the carne empanadas. Cheap and fast.
Parrot Club in Old San Juan. OK. A decent place to stop for lunch, but a little overpriced. My $8 lunch special was a good deal. Their beans were good.
Ferry to Culebra - get there early. Take the 1PM, not the 9AM. Avoid travelling on rough days, if possible! Cheap.
Casa Ensenada. Great! Clean and spacious. Good value. On the route to the beach. Nice patio/dock area. A very short walk to "town." Could stay here without a rental car, if you're only planning to go to Flamenco beach.
Dingy Dock, Culebra. OK. A little overpriced, but the fried grouper was good.
Flamenco Beach. Excellent! Best beach ever. Clear, calm water. Good food at the kiosks.
Hampton Inn, Isla Verde/Carolina. Excellent! Great location. Near airport, highways, beach, clubs, casino, and restaurants. Nice pool with a swim up bar and grill. Got a very good rate with the government discount.
El Mojito Lechonera, Guavate. Good. Great roast pig, but the flies were annoying.
La Parrilla, Luquillo. Good. The fried pork was really good. The snapper was just OK. Wish we would have both gotten the pork - especially considering it was $7.50, versus $25 for the snapper! Bebo's BBQ. Excellent! Lots of yummy food for $17. Great for our last meal.
Luquillo Kioskos. Not so good. Make sure you go to one where they advertise "fresh fried." I think that would have been better.
Re: Puerto Rico Travel Reviews (LONG!)
Love reading your reviews, makes me miss it there! We went twice this year while I was pregnant, and I can't wait to go back again!
I thought I'd chime in to answer this question -
DH and I flew there in October and April. In October, we got airfare for $205 each round trip, non stop. In April, we our tickets were $220 each, round trip, one layover in Charlotte (there) and Atlanta (back). I did a lot of price shopping to get those rates. I definitely recommend going to Puerto Rico in the Fall (October) with trip insurance - because its hurricane season, everything is super quiet and not crowded at all, but as long as there isn't a hurricane, the weather is still amazing...aka, get insurance in case there IS a hurricane, so you don't lose out if you can't go