I just got back from a long-weekend trip to Puerto Rico!  An amazing place to visit and get away from the cold, the friendly people, beautiful beaches, natural landscapes, colorful architecture, and unique culture made it one of my favorite trips so far.  In Puerto Rico, there’s so much to do and see that you could easily spend weeks there without running out of activities.  It’s a perfect place for family getaways, spring break, or like me, just to escape the brutal cold of a hard winter.

Language

• The official language of Puerto Rico is Spanish
• … but, nearly everyone speaks English! (this can be tough if you want to try to practice your bad Spanish, as the friendly Puerto Ricans will help you in English)

Immigration & Customs

• The official currency of Puerto Rico is the US dollar; Americans will not need to exchange money.
• If you are legally in the US as a citizen, greencard holder/permanent resident, student, etc, you don’t need a visa to visit the territory of Puerto Rico.
• On your way back to the US, you can bring as much duty free alcohol as you can carry with you on the plane.
• You will not pass through immigration or customs on your way there or back; it’s just like flying between states.

Weather

• Plan for weather in the 70-80s, year-round
• Bring an umbrella; Puerto Rico rains a lot (70% of days), and you may not want to be caught outside in a shower
• Bring sunscreen, the strong equatorial sun will burn light skin
• Drink lots of water and stay out of direct sun

Where to Stay in San Juan

• Condado, a hotel strip adjacent to a long sandy beach.  Within easy taxi range of old San Juan
• Old San Juan, the city’s historic district, with beautiful painted shops and buildings, museums, and the two forts
• The Sheraton at the Convention Centre, close to Old San Juan, and across the street from the convention center

How to get around in San Juan

• If you are in Condado, you can take the B-21 bus (down Ashford ave.) to Old San Juan (787-767-7979 for route info)
• Taxi fares are generally in the $10 – $20 range

Places to Go / Activities

(your hotel can arrange most tours)

• Old San Juan to see Forte El Morro / Forte San Cristóbal.  Walk through the blue-cobblestone streets past brightly coloured shops and homes.  Dine and shop, buy souvenirs.
• El Yunque rainforest, the only rainforest in the US national parks system.  Take a hiking tour to see La Mina falls.
• Kayak the Laguna Grande biobay in Fajardo and see how the 1.1 million dinos per litre of water bioluminesce in your hands.
• Rio Camuy cave park / Arecibo observatory has some awesome tours.
• Museo del Arte has a great collection of Puertorican art and an outdoor sculpture garden.  Good if you can spare 2-3 hours.
• Jam Rum Bar & Restaurant has great drinks, awesome live music (prog jazz Amplitúd, for example), and good food.

Places to Avoid

• Plaza las Americas, which is a mall, and as boring as its stateside counterparts.
• The Bacardi Rum Factory.  While the tour is free, getting there by ferry and waiting for your tour will try your patience.
• La Perla, a shantytown / slum located walled behind the east side of old San Juan.

Best Beaches

• Condado beach strip in San Juan
• Luquillo beach, 30 miles east of San Juan
• Isla Verde beach, just east of Condado

Drinking / Drugs / Consent

• The legal drinking age is 18, in contrast to 21 in the United States (I was never carded in PR)
• Possession of marijuana is a felony with up to three years in prison
• The age of consent is 14, with more details from Interpol

More Puerto Rico

Check out these other posts in the Puerto Rico travelblog series:

• Fort El Morro, Fort San Cristóbal
• Old (viejo) San Juan
• Puerto Rico Photos Album
• Puerto Rico Museum of Art
• El Yunque Rainforest
• Bio Bay Kayaking in Laguna Grande
• Plaza Las Américas mall

This entry was posted on Wednesday, February 23rd, 2011 at 11:46 pm and is tagged with easy taxi, ashford ave, weather plan, puerto rico travel, natural landscapes, free alcohol, equatorial sun, hotel strip, hard winter, drink lots of water, light skin, puerto ricans, amazing place, sandy beach, permanent resident, old san juan, forts, weekend trip, sheraton, travel tips. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback.