A Taste of Puerto Rico (and our New Home)
San SEBASTIÁN, PR | July 4 weekend, 2020
Gozalandia (Robles) Falls
Agenda:
July 4: Gathering at our new home (address below, click for map) for food, drinks, and dancing (salsa, duh); after dark, fireworks off the terrace
July 5: Chilling at our favorite neighborhood swimming spot, Gozalandia Waterfalls — just 6 minutes from our house — and dinner/drinks at local restaurant/bar El Ranchón de mi Abuelo
July 6: Breakfast at Hacienda el Jibarito (our favorite breakfast in the area, and also our recommendation for those seeking accommodations nearby)
Thinking of arriving early/staying late? Let us know — we know lots of great spots near our little town AND across the island, and would love to explore them with you and/or help you plan your own Puerto Rican adventure
Our House:
Bo. Hoyamala, PR 119 km 30.3
San Sebastián, PR 00685 (Map)
Accommodations:
There are several hotels near San Sebastián, including a bed and breakfast in the heart of the pueblo (town) itself, but we recommend the reasonable AND beautiful Hacienda el Jibarito, just 10 minutes from our place. The rooms are comfy, the coffee is the best in our part of the island, and they have a stunning poolside bar!
Old San Juan
Travel to Puerto Rico:
If booked far enough in advance, flights to Puerto Rico can be quite inexpensive. Most major US airlines (United, American, Delta, and discount carriers Southwest, Frontier, and Spirit) offer flights to San Juan, about 2 hours north east of our house in San Sebastián. All the other Puerto Rican airports are actually closer to our house, but getting to any of them almost always involves a stop in San Juan’s Luis Muñoz Marín International Airport (SJU), so keep that in mind as you are planning. San Juan is a beautiful tourist attraction itself; we are especially fond of old San Juan, with its historical sites and Spanish colonial architecture.
A direct flight from either Chicago airport is approximately 5 hours, but most routes involve at least one stop and so take all day. To arrive earlier (and, in many cases, to save money), fly to any south Florida airport the day/evening before and book an inexpensive 2-to-2.5 hour flight to San Juan first thing the next morning.
Puerto Rico is a US Territory; therefore, US residents do not need a passport to visit there. During the summer, the entire island of Puerto Rico is functionally on Eastern Daylight Time (1 hour ahead of Chicag0).
Renting a Car on the Island:
Unless you’re staying in San Juan, you’ll probably want to rent a car to get around the island during your stay. Fortunately, Puerto Rico is home to many of the same car rental companies familiar to US residents (Avis, Hertz, Enterprise, National, Budget, etc.), and any discounts you have with these companies in the US—or that you can obtain through discount merchants like Costco/Sam’s Club, both of which have stores in PR—will apply there as well.
A travel site like Kayak.com will help you compare rates between companies, just as you might do in the US. Some of the smaller, PR-based companies such as Popular Auto and Target Rent-a-Car offer even better rates than the national chains. However, they won’t show up on most US-based comparison sites, and their web presence is often inconsistent; in many cases, you’ll do better to call them directly to get accurate rates and secure a reservation.
IMPORTANT: Whether you are renting from a US- or PR-based company, do NOT reserve/rent a vehicle at any of the airport- or terminal-based locations! San Juan Airport imposes a $500 airport fee on all rentals made within the airport. Instead, take one of the free rental company shuttles OR a taxi (cash only - ATMs available on second floor of the terminal) OR Uber to an off-airport location (usually just a mile or two). Kayak.com includes this fee in the cost of the rental AND will let you opt out of in-terminal rentals when searching in San Juan, but be careful making reservations in rental companies’ websites/apps, as this fee may not always be disclosed.
Driving in PR:
As a US Territory, Puerto Rico’s system of highways will feel very familiar to US residents, with a few superficial changes: signage is in Spanish, distances are marked in kilometers, and gas is sold by the liter (about 1/4 gallon) without the option to pay at the pump. Note that speed limits are denoted in miles per hour (MPH), not kilometers, which can be confusing at first.
Despite the familiarity, be careful driving on the island. Especially once you leave the main roads, things can get very steep and/or very windy, very fast. Side roads are often narrow and poorly lit, which doesn’t slow the locals down one bit. For these reasons, we discourage night-time driving, especially if you’re going somewhere you’ve never been or trying a new route.
Driving to our House:
If you are driving from San Juan Airport to our house, we recommend the following route (click for the Google map):
From Av. Aeropuerto, get on Expreso Román Baldorioty de Castro/PR-26 (/2.5 km)
Take Expreso José De Diego/PR-22 W to the PR-129 S exit in Hato Abajo, Arecibo (toward Lares/San Sebastian; 83.5 km)
Follow PR-129 to PR-455 (right turn; 15.7 km)
Follow PR-455 to PR-119 (left turn; 11.6 km — this area is tricky to navigate so use your GPS!)
Follow PR-119 until just past the km 30.2 marker — our very steep driveway is the second on the left after the km 30.2 marker (left turn, 5.7 km)
House GPS coordinates: 18°20'50.0"N, 66°57'57.5"W
¡Nuestra casa es suya!