Hola from the dreamy beaches of Puerto Rico! This little bird flew south for a few days of sunshine, palm trees, and 80 degree weather in mid-April. My last trip to Puerto Rico was 2016 for a mother/daughter getaway where we lounged by the pool and sipped piña colada for four days and it was heavenly (highly recommend Condado Vanderbilt in San Juan for a relaxing vacation). This time around, by the time we’d driven 20 minutes from the airport I’d already seen more of Puerto Rico than last time 😉.

I flew direct to San Juan from DCA via JetBlue (I strayed from OneWorld because I wanted to fly direct) and honestly...it was pretty great. I paid an extra $40 to sit in an exit row and board early, and between the seat back entertainment and free wifi JetBlue had a strong showing.

We spent most of our time in Ceiba on the eastern coast of the island, an oceanfront town an hour away from the crowds of San Juan and home to the former Roosevelt Roads Naval Station. Ceiba is a bit of a transportation hub these days with a ferry terminal serving nearby island Vieques and Culebra. Ceiba is bordered by Naguabo, Fajardo, and Luquillo — all towns we ended up spending time in.

COVID

COVID guidelines required a negative PCR test within 72 hours of arrival. All I had to do was upload my results to the online travel portal, fill out information about where I would be staying, and receive a QR code to present at the airport to exit. All in all, it was not a huge hassle — especially when there was a handsome, smiling face waiting for me on the other end! The backstory of this trip is that my boyfriend was spending a month in Puerto Rico working remote with friends, so I popped down about halfway through for a long weekend.

When I was there, the island was still under a 10PM curfew; this didn’t impact us much except we had to be mindful of not waiting too late to head to dinner. The one night we spent in San Juan cops were stopping cars to ask where you were headed as the curfew neared.

Beaches

What can I say about the beaches other than every beach we went to looked like it was a Microsoft screensaver. I’m sure I sounded like a broken record all weekend but it really was paradise. We spent most of our time at small to medium sized beaches dotted along the coast, some you pay a couple bucks to park in a big lot and some you just find a spot on the side of the road and walk a few steps to the sand.

Playa Mar Chiquita — a gorgeous half-moon bay created by two large limestone formations; climb on the rocks to see the waves crashing and take a turn tossing in the waves if you’re up for it...probably one of the most beautiful beaches I’ve been to.

Playa Tortugureo — we discovered this beach at sunset by accident while driving along Rt 686; we pulled over into a small pull-off area, walked through the trees, and found ourselves on an almost deserted beach!

Seven Seas Beach — this was one of the larger beaches we went to and is equipped with amenities like ample parking, restrooms, showers, and concession stands; this is definitely where people come to party or get together with big families! We paid $3 to park on a Saturday. (Stop at La Estación afterwards for a delicious BBQ meets Caribbean mashup in a magical indoor/outdoor space)

Playa Escondida — if the crowds at Seven Seas aren’t your thing, simply walk 25 minutes through the mangrove forest at the western end of Seven Seas beach and you’ll come upon two “hidden” beaches, Playa Colora and Playa Esondida. We spent a lovely afternoon in the calm, shallow waters of Playa Escondida.

Luquillo Beach — there are a string of beaches to choose from here (plus parking, restrooms, etc.), all one right after the other. We set up camp (and a hammock) between the palm trees not far from Los Kioskos de Luquillo, a roadside strip of bars and restaurants just off the beach.

Adventures

Slap some Tevas on my feet and call me an outdoorsy gal because if five beaches in four days wasn’t enough, we also snorkeled and climbed a waterfall.

We booked our snorkeling through Pure Adventure and truly had one of the best days. We took the thirtyish minute boat ride from Ceiba to the western tip of the island of Vieques where we splashed around on an empty, private beach before heading out to deeper waters for snorkeling. We saw sea turtles, schools of colorful fish, lobster, and even a stingray. I think I can accurately speak for the group when I say our expectations were low, and we were pleasantly surprised by how fun the snorkeling was and blown away by what we saw.

We also spent an entire day exploring El Hippie waterfall and swimming hole, seriously one of the coolest places I’ve ever been. Tucked away in the outskirts of El Yunque National Forest in Naguabo, El Hippie is a hidden gem (not among the locals, of course) where you can swim, climb, explore, and test your fear of heights by jumping off the rocks that form the falls. This was party central the day we went, with groups streaming in with speakers and food ready to hardcore chill. After paddling around in the chilly waters, we set off for a trek up the waterfall — this is where the real adventure begins! Scurry over the rocks and higher up into the mountain and discover a secret oasis of private, hidden pools and rushing water. This exercise isn’t for the faint of heart but a few deep breaths and a supportive partner helped me conquer my fears. Back at the basin, we watched from the water as an unofficial diving competition began among locals young and old (spoiler alert the old guy won in our book) as music blared and the crowd lined the rocks to observe. There are no facilities here and the parking consists of pulling off the side of the road and hoping for the best, but that’s what makes it such a great adventure.

General Puerto Rico travel tips:

In order to really see all Puerto Rico has to offer, you must rent a car! Be warned, driving can be aggressive and the left lane is actually for slower traffic (I only learned this as I was researching for this blog post but in retrospect it makes total sense.) There are endless toll roads so ensure your rental car is equipped with an EZ-pass device. I would also recommend an SUV if you can swing it as road conditions vary widely across the island.
Bring small bills, this will come in handy if you have to pay a couple bucks to park at a beach.
Don’t forget to pack water shoes! If you want to do any sort of adventuring or exploring (climbing rocks at the beach, heading into the jungle, splashing in a swimming hole) these will come in extremely handy.
Google maps is a great resource for finding beaches. When all else fails, simply scroll along the coastline to find a sandy hideaway!
A cooler backpack would be a great investment for a trip to Puerto Rico. The terrain isn’t always conducive to rolling a cooler, but there’s nothing better than an ice cold beer on the beach in paradise.

Four days in Puerto Rico was not nearly enough time, and from what I heard neither was four weeks! The island is absolutely begging to be explored — from the rainforest, to the world’s longest zip line, to archeological sites, salt flats, and more...do not sleep on this destination (not to mention the flight is quick and no passport required!)