I know that this is an odd place to post this, but I figure that people who love tropicals might love tropical places.
My family and I are considering a trip. We like hiking, beaches and good, secluded bed and breakfasts (bad back so no camping and I am not fond of crowds). I love elephant ears so visits to gardens/nurseries are good too!
Is this a place to go or is it too touristy?
I hear El Yunque rainforest is worthwhile to visit but I am uncertain it would be the place to have the hotel/condo/B&B as I will need sun and warmth after a few months of winter in Ohio.
Any ideas would be appreciated.
ROX
Anyone been to Puerto Rico?
I went to Puerto Rico in 1985. We stayed on a 6000 acre Estate called Casa De Campo. We had our own villa and it was breathtakingly beautiful. Columbus is buried there in one of the most beautiful churches I've seen. There are old ruins that are magnificent!!!!
The people are poor and the children broke my heart begging in the town square.
We had a good trip with friends and came home very appreciated of the things we take for granted here.
Jeri
Try "googling" Puerto Rico for info and see if there is a PR Consulate you could contact for tourist info. We were there last year but in conjunction with a cruise (departure and docking), and you would want to avoid dates like those if you go to San Juan.......the airport was a real nightmare with thousands departing, it seemed like every 10 mins a plane left. The rainforest is a worthwhile visit. Our overall view of PR is that it is a very expensive place to visit. There are some charming areas but a lot of poverty also........sort of like Mexico.
Sharon
Go to Vieques, which is an island off the coast, 2/3rds of which is the Carribean National Wildlife Refuge, largest in the region.
Check out www.elenas-vieques.com
Look up vieques and Flamboyan at tripadvisor.com for a wonderful new place to stay, or choose one of the many guesthouses at www.enchanted-isle.com.
On Vieques, you can go to a different, magnificent beach every day for a full week and never see more than a couple of people each place.
El Yunque is very nice, but it's pretty touristy.
Jeri, I'm thinking you may be mistaking Puerto Rico for the Domincan Republic!! I've never heard of a Casa de Campo anywhere else. And there's a famous myth Columbus is buried in that country --he really rests in Sevilla, Spain.
Puerto Rico is part of the United States (so there's no "consulate", bugme). That is very important for anyone seeking a tropical vacation, since you DO NOT need a passport to go there. You'll need one to visit any other Caribbean country, including Mexico, under some new rules. Having to go through a passport check slows down the arrival process tremendously. You will avoid all that in PR.
The San Juan airport is the most convenient in the Caribbean, by far, with dozens of non-stop flights arriving before noon from the US every day. We leave at 8AM and we're in PR by 11:45 (actually, 12:45 after we change the clocks tomorrow), and can still usually make a late lunch in Vieques.
If you don't like crowds, don't go to any major airport. San Juan's is no different from any other major facility anywhere.
Like any cruise destination, everything anywhere close to the cruise passengers trundling off the boats is overpriced and crowded. If you steer clear of those utterly phony places, you will have no problem. After all, 4 million people live their lives in PR, and most of them are not poor, (certainly not like you'd see around Casa de Campo), but are of modest means --so how could EVERYTHING be expensive? That's true only if you don't have the time or the inclination to find the real PR.
Same is true of Vieques. You can stay in a fairly expensive place, and spend $100 a head for dinner, if you want --some great restaurants out there, rivalling DC/LA/NY. But you can also rent an inexpensive house or apartment, meet real people, buy grocery store food and stay within a reasonable budget. On the island, some things are more expensive for everyone --they have to be shipped out there, for a fairly small population (only about 10,000 a 22 mile long island). But regular folks live there and all you need to do is what THEY do, and you'll be fine.
Check out those websites --I think you'll be intrigued. If you go, I guarantee you will not be disappointed. Email me directly if you want to know more specifics.
You can check on my plants if you go --I'd appreciate it.
This message was edited Nov 3, 2007 9:43 PM
This message was edited Nov 3, 2007 9:45 PM
I believe you're right!!! It was the Dominican Republic!!! As my DGS would say "My Bad!!!"
Jeri
I am looking forward to checking out the websites. Thanks for the great info.
ROX
PS I didn't understand the reference "You can check on my plants if you go --I'd appreciate it."
Do you have a nursery or did you mean your plant list?
I meant my plants at our little house in Vieques. I have them on automatic drip irrigation for long periods when we're not there, and I worry about them. Worry is too strong a word --most of them they're doing pretty well, I just wish they'd grow in faster.
If I go I'd be very happy to check on the plants for you.
ROX
OK, deal --here's a satellite shot of the island, with the East coast of PR (Fajardo, just beyond El Yunque) on the left edge. Note the two tiny islets mid-island off the southern coast.
just onshore from those little islets is the town of Esperanza. See the baseball diamond? Hop the center field fence, cross the street and walk toward the beach, our place is the first house, yellow and blue, on your right.
No cruise ships anywhere nearby. Horses wandering around, wild. Kinda cool.
JP
my close friend is from puerto rico and shares his pictures
another pic of puerto rico
Beautiful pics.
JP if we go, I'll hop the fence and lok for the house.
Jerry, where is that beach? It is beautiful.
ROX
i dont know where the beach is at because his whole family still lives there they know where to go to stay away from the crouds. the picture of the house is a light house in the last pic
another beach shot
one more
I could just sit and look at that last shot all day!! Talk about beautiful!!!
That's it!!!
Thanks for sharing that with us!!
Jeri
P. S. I mean the one before!!
This message was edited Nov 7, 2007 6:27 PM
Puerto Rico is really a beautiful place ---and part of the U.S., so no passport needed and your dollar goes about 50% further these days.
In the spirit of touristic jingoism....more pictures, these of Vieques.
This is a shot from a house we rented --the view is a ferry arriving in Isabela, the island's main town, with another of PR's historic lighthouses, or "mulas", out on the point.
This message was edited Nov 8, 2007 10:28 PM
The beaches of Vieques are magnificent, and almost always deserted.
This is Sun Bay, probably the island's "busiest", since it has facilities --a cafe, campground, and restrooms-- with lifeguards on duty.
This is a beach known as Navio --some nice surf, some caves, and cliffs to leap from. If you're into that sort of thing. Take a book if you're not. Tough life.
If you prefer ripples to waves, try Green Beach, on the lee end of Vieques, sheltered from the trade winds that make even the hottest days "a breeze" out there.
El Yunque, usually cloud-covered, dominates the vista to the West, across the 8-mile wide channel which links the Atlantic and the Caribbean.
OK, since this IS a plant-oriented community, here's one final shot --of the single most amazing plant on Vieques, which is a 400-year old Ceiba or cotton silk tree. Absolutely an amazing specimen!!
This message was edited Nov 7, 2007 10:49 PM
Whoa! That is truly breathtaking!
Rox, I have a trader friend in PR and I'll see if he has any info for you.....now I 'd like to go ,too. lol
That tree is gorgeous!
Trop, let me know if you get any info.
JP, I have contacted a few rentals from the website you gave me to check availability. :-)
ROX
If you are willing to stay in Old San Juan, check out the Gallery Inn...............
Hey Rox, here's what my friend says, he suggested looking on the internet for" Paradores de Puerto Rico" . 'These are a series of small hotels operated each one by a different owner or family they offer good quality accomodations at at a compartatively reasonable price and they are distributed all through the island. '
may be helpful, if you have a hard time finding it let me know :)