After years of passing through the San Juan Airport, I finally made it out to explore the beautiful island of Puerto Rico! Just like many Spanish speaking countries in Latin America, Puerto Rico’s history, culture and food was strikingly similar to my home country of St. Lucia and many other neighboring islands, something that instantly drew me to this beautiful island.
Getting to San Juan
With numerous flights from Miami and the major hubs of the US, getting to San Juan has never been easier and cheap. Flight deals here can be under US$300 round trip! Put on your Google Flight tracker using Google Flights to catch a deal to this beautiful destination today.
Getting around in San Juan
Moving around San Juan was very easy with Uber readily available at any time at a lower rate than you’d pay in the US. All the drivers were friendly, I felt safe at all times, and would highly recommend using Uber as an easy way to get around. If you want to book a tour (which is a must), check out my friends at Caribe Tours. They have plenty of options that allow you to immerse yourself in Puerto Rico, and visit places off the tourist map!
One you get into Old San Juan look out for the Garita Free rides, these golf carts will take you to all the hot spots in the city for FREE! Think hop on hop off bus, golf cart style.
Where to stay in Puerto Rico
Only a 10-minute drive from Old San Juan the Sheraton Hotel & Casino is next to the convention center and the perfect place to stay for business or a quick weekend trip outside the city.
If you’re looking for a quaint boutique hotel in the heart of Old San Juan, checkout The Cannon Club also known as The Gallery Inn. This historic hotel was part of the restoration of Old San Juan has so much to see with numerous paintings, sculptures and resident birds on the property.
With 6 floors and a combination of 6 buildings, you can certainly spend quite a bit of time walking around, enjoying a drink on their roof top terrace, or wandering around the many rooms. Plenty of famous people have stay here too, like Naomi Campbell & the Obama’s.
Even if you don’t stay here, take some time to visit in the piano bar in the evening, it opens at 5pm.
Where to eat in San Juan
There’s so much good food in Puerto Rico, a food tour with The Spoon Experience is the only way to get through it all! With their specially curated menu exclusive to The Spoon Experience, 5 star service (we skipped the lines, VIP style) and our knowledgeable guide Pablo, we enjoyed every bit of our time with The Spoon Experience, a must do when visiting Puerto Rico. Here’s a glimpse of the places we visited on our tour, checkout my Instagram stories to see more!
Stop 1 – Caldera Café
Coquito for breakfast? Yes Please! At this cute coffee shop we enjoyed a mix of Coquito, a rum infused milky drink (think Baileys) con café, a truly delicious drink to start off our day. Come to the Caldera Café for a local breakfast, sandwiches, soup and of course, Coquito.
Stop 2- Choco Bar
Chocolate Martini before 12pm, yes please! Voted one of the best restaurants in the Caribbean, the world famous Choco Bar was easily my favorite place on The Food Experience food tour.
Started by the Cortez family in 1929 , this family owned chocolate company not only provides an authentic chocolate experience in their Choco Bar, but has been giving back to the community for many years producing their own comic books to encourage and teach kids how to read.
There are so many delicious chocolate infused items here, it’s hard to decide what to order! Some of my favorites are the Mallorca, chocolate infused butter inside local bread and the chocolate martini. Sounds delicious right?
Stop 3- Hecho en Casa
Before coming to San Juan I had actually never tasted Mofongo, a local treat with smashed plantain served with a variety of meats (chicken, beef, pork). As a lover of all things plantain myself (we have many plantain dishes in my home country of St. Lucia), Mofongo quickly moved up as one of my favorite dishes here in Puerto Rico. Checkout Hecho en Casa to get a sample and grab a Pina Colada while you’re there.
Stop 4- Deaverdura
Serving a Puerto Rican sampler with only locally sourced ingredients, Deaverdura was another favorite on The Spoon Experience tour. By the time we got here our bellies were about to burst but the food here was so delicious we couldn’t resist to push our bellies a little further! My favorites here were the pulled pork, avocado and tomato salad, rice and beans and Barbados Cherry Juice (not sure why Barbados got the credit for this, many other islands have the same cherry juice! Lol).
Stop 5- Senor Paleta
With a few locations around the city, Senor Paleta serves a delicious variety of Sorbet & Gelato popsicles; Dulce de Leche, Oreo, Ferrero Roche, Guyanaba (Sour Sop), Chocolate Brownie & much more. Visit there location in Old San Juan to grab a treat and take a walk in the park across the street to enjoy the views of the port of San Juan.
Things to Do
Castillo San Felipe del Morro
As a national historic site in San Juan the Castillo San Felipe del Morro fort hosts over 500 years of history within its walls complete with a beautiful backdrop of the Caribbean Sea. If you have time, have a picnic here to enjoy the sea breeze, people watch and the ocean views. There is a small fee to go inside the fort but you can relax outside if you’d like also.
Beware of heavy cruise ship days, Old San Juan and the hot spots mentioned can get very crowded when 2-3 of the big ships are docked!
After you take your food tour with The Spoon Experience checkout one of the most fascinating places in the town, The Cannon Club! This stunning boutique hotel is a hidden gem in the heart of the city used by President Obama as his base when he was running for his reelection campaign. Michelle Obama and Naomi Campbell have also been guest here!
Even if you don’t stay overnight, stop in to take a drink in one of their many piano rooms or head up to the roof top for 360 degree views of the city. Beware of the parrots roaming the property, real & fake!
Take a Rum Tour
Did you know that over 70% of the rum consumed in the US was made in Puerto Rico and that Bacardi actually originated in Cuba? With so much rum flowing through Puerto Rico I’m sure you’re wondering what the most popular one is with the locals. Even with a bit of debate, most people agree that the winner is Ron de Baralito, meaning small barrel of rum.
This family owned distillery has been around since 1880 now open to the public for rum tours, including an actual tour of the area where they store all the barrels of rum (this is not allowed in every distillery as toxic levels could be high).
Only a 20 minute drive from San Juan (or more during high traffic hours), come here for a taste of history, some cool photos and to learn all about rum making from local experts.
Drink a Pina Colada at it’s origin
Located in a colonial building over two centuries old, Barrachina in Old San Juan is said to be where the Pina Colada was invented! Stop here for a drink in their courtyard and take some time to stroll around.
Nightlife & Bars
Old San Juan is another hot spot for nightlife with many small bars and clubs offering drink deals, salsa dancing and plenty vibes.
One of my favorite spots is La Factoria voted one of the top 50 bars in the word! This famous bar has 7 rooms varying with different music all inside an old warehouse looking building outfitted with the original architecture. Stick around the main room to enjoy locals dancing the night away and even join in yourself, things usually get busy on a Friday night after 11pm. Taking an Uber here is also very easy, they will drop you right outside. Getting one back to your hotel will also be easy, there are plenty waiting outside until the late hours.
El Batey Bar
Looking for a hole in the wall spot with plenty of vibes? Checkout El Batey Bar in the middle of the city offering cheap drink options & the opportunity to write your name on the wall inside!
Asere Cuban Kitchen & Bar
Located in the heart of La Placita, a street full of bars, salsa dancing and street artist (the perfect place to stroll on a Friday night), Asere Cuban Kitchen & Bar is the perfect place to sit and have a drink at their speakeasy bar upstairs or a yummy meal in the restaurant. Be sure to make reservations, this place is one of the hot spots in La Placita.
La Verguenza Viejo
After stopping at the El Morro fort, take a drink and have some yummy eats at La Verguenza Viejo complete with a rooftop view of the beautiful Caribbean Sea. Try the tacos, fried fish and the rum punch, you will not be disappointed!
Take a day trip to Ponce
For our day trip to Ponce we were lucky enough to take a sea plane courtesy of Fly Tropic! It was my first time on a sea plane and to be honest I was very nervous about it but excited all at the same time. All the planes at Fly Tropic are new, their staff are professional and courteous and really made this a memorable experience!
Things to do in Ponce
Visit the Ponce Municipal Fire station
A very cool insta spot in the city of Ponce is the Fire Station painted in bright red & black, an eyesore in the city! Inside you’ll find original architecture and even old fire fighting cars. A really cool place to take kids or adults. Word on the street is that there’s a really cool ice cream spot nearby- something I missed!
Museum of modern art
Honestly, I’m not an art gallery kinda gal but if that’s your thing there is a beautiful Museum of Modern art in the middle of Ponce run by a local government official. Here you will find masterpieces and collections from all over the world with a small coffee shop inside.
Where to stay in Ponce
As part of our day trip to the beautiful town of Ponce, we visited Hacienda La Mocha, an amazing boutique hotel nestled in the mountains of Ponce on a coffee farm, the perfect place for a small destination wedding or peaceful weekend getaway.
While staying at Hacienda La Mocha you’ll get a chance to learn about this family owned estate, how they have preserved the ruins around the property and harvest and roast their very own coffee beans all in an eco-friendly way.
During your stay they will also take you on a trip through the coffee plantation stopping for wild strawberries on the way, what better way to spend a relaxing weekend! Breakfast and stunning views are also included in your stay here at Hacienda La Mocha. If you’re looking for a perfect destination for a small, intimate wedding, you can also rent out the entire house!
Things we missed
There are so many things we missed in Puerto Rico it would be hard to list them all here! Checkout Caribe Tours PR for more info on the best beaches, rain forest adventures, special events and much more this beautiful country has to offer. Visit my Instagram stories to see more from my 3-day experience here!
