July 2025
Puerto Rico gives you the feeling that you’ve gone to another country. While politically part of the United States (an unincorporated territory), it feels culturally distinct due to its strong Latin American influences, language, and unique history. It’s beautiful blue ocean, Puerto Rican culture, lively nightlife, bright colored buildings, and historical sites offer so much to see and do.
Mike had a meeting in San Juan, so I decided to tag along on the trip. We flew from Frankfurt, Germany to San Juan on a Monday (arriving Tuesday evening) and flew back to Germany on Friday. We’d been to Puerto Rico before, but it was fun to experience San Juan again – even if just for a couple of days.
Puerto Rico is easy to get to from the US and easy to visit for US travelers as you don’t have to worry about passports, Visas, etc. While it doesn’t offer loads of high end, all-inclusive resorts like other Caribbean islands, it still has something to offer those who choose to visit.
San Juan is the capital of Puerto Rico and the most populous city on the island. It sits on the Atlantic Ocean and is just a 15-minute drive from the airport. San Juan offers a combination of old (forts, cobblestone streets, colorful buildings) and new (craft cocktails, fantastic restaurants, great shopping, and a vibrant nightlife). From the beach front on the Isla Verde resort strip to the cobblestoned streets of Old San Juan, there is plenty to see and experience.
WHAT TO DO
1 – Wander around Old San Juan – I love wandering around cities looking at the sights, observing the people, seeing what they have to offer, and getting a feel for what it’s like to be there. And wandering through Old San Juan does not disappoint. From the old, colorful buildings…
To the I heart SJ sign…
To the La Casa Estrecha (The Narrow House), one could enjoy wandering Old San Juan for hours.
Measuring a skinny five feet, three inches across, this house was once a neglected alleyway before it was transformed into a house. Despite its slim stature, the house has all the basic amenities of a home, including a living room, dining room, kitchen, bathroom, and bedroom. The bathroom’s design, however, is a bit tricky: without enough space for a separate shower area, the floor was fitted with a drain under the sink area, so all the water goes down in one spot.
2 – Visit Castillo San Felipe Del Morro – Castillo San Felipe del Morro, most commonly known as El Morro, is a large fortress and citadel in the Old San Juan historic quarter of San Juan. We had such a short time in San Juan that we chose not to tour the fort. We did wander around the grounds to enjoy the view of the fort and the ocean beyond.
El Morro is perhaps the most iconic fortification built by the Spanish in the Americas. It covers a 140 foot-high promontory at the entrance to the Bay of San Juan. This fortress consists of 6 levels facing the Atlantic Ocean, all of which were designed to create a devastating artillery fire over enemy ships. Construction began in 1539 and by the time of its completion around 1790, it had the reputation of being unconquerable and was the most feared of all the Spanish colonial fortifications.
3 – Explore San Cristobal Castle – Named after the saint patron of land travelers, Saint Christopher, Castillo San Cristóbal, is considered the largest fortress built in the Americas. It was built for the purpose of protecting the city of San Juan from attack by land from the east. It is a fortification with three levels and an extensive series of outer defenses – and it took over 150 years to complete. While we did not visit on this trip, below are some pictures from when we visited it last time we were in Puerto Rico.
4 – Check out Puertoa de Aguas – The entrance to Old San Juan is known as Puerta de Aguas or Puerta de San Juan (San Juan Gate). It is one of the most colorful and known of all the entrances to the walled city and it has stood tall for centuries. The gate is 16 feet tall and 20 feet thick and leads you to the romantic Paseo La Princesa.
5 – Go Inside Cathedral Basilica de San Juan – This church is located in the Old San Juan district and is one of the oldest buildings in both Puerto Rico and the Americas, the oldest cathedral building in the US, the oldest purpose-built cathedral building and second-oldest existing cathedral in the Americas, and the third cathedral to be constructed in the Americas. It contains the tomb of the Spanish explorer and settlement founder Juan Ponce de Leon.
6 – Soak up the sun on the beach and/or at the pool – Puerto Rico is a great place to spend some time on a beach or at a pool. I enjoyed the pool at the Caribe Hilton the day Mike was at work and we both spent a little time on the beach after our trip into Old San Juan.
7 – Taste some rum in Puerto Rico’s oldest distillery – While we did not visit the Ron del Barrilito Rum Factory due to time (20 min from Old San Juan), we did taste this famous rum and purchase some to bring home with us.
Don Pedro Fernández founded Ron del Barrilito more than 145 years ago and they still make the rum the same way and in the same place.
If you do want to visit, you can visit Hacienda Santa Ana, located in Bayamón, Puerto Rico. Tours include rum tastings and/or cocktail making and tasting, as well as a trip through their historic warehouses and the opportunity to view one of the last windmills still standing in Puerto Rico.
They are open 7 days a week and tours can be booked online. It’s recommended that one books in advance if planning to tour.
WHERE TO EAT AND DRINK
We weren’t the most adventurous in the food department on this quick trip so this section will be short 😊 We ate at our resort restaurants every night, as we got there late in the day the first day, grabbed food after Mike got back from work the second day, and decided to stay at the resort to eat after a day of visiting Old San Juan and hanging at the hotel beach. We did visit a few restaurants / bars in Old San Juan.
Morton’s Steakhouse – We ate dinner at Morton’s two of the three nights we were at the Caribe Hilton resort. Yes, this is a US chain restaurant, but the food was fantastic and the service was exceptional. We ate in the bar both nights and had a lovely view of the beach and ocean. We had some great steaks, yummy martinis, a fun wine sampler, and fantastic sides.
Barrachina – Since we were in Old San Juan, we HAD to go to the place where the pina colada was invented, Barrachina. (although see note below on origination of this drink)
We found Barrachina on a cute old street in historic Old San Juan.
We sat at the bar and each ordered a pina colada. The day we were there just happened to be the exact day the pina colada was invented – 62 years ago! So they were celebrating that anniversary. How about that???
Note – At the Caribe Hilton, they had signage indicating that the pina colada was invented there. Not sure which is true but we tried them both. The one at Barrachina was WAY better so I’m going to go with it being invented (and perfected) there!
Verde Mesa Restaurant – I’d read about Verde Mesa online before we went and I’m so glad we went! The food was incredible and the experience was so worth it. Verde Mesa is a small, adorable, eclectic restaurant in the heart of Old San Juan. Other words that come to mind to describe it include warm, rustic, cozy, friendly, comfortable, amazing!
We were the first people to arrive on the day we had lunch there. I’d fallen a week earlier and skinned both of my knees. In our travels around San Juan before getting to the restaurant, I’d managed to skin the scab off one of my knees. The first thing the waitress did was notice my bleeding knee and bring me wet towels, antiseptic lotion, and bandages from their first aid kit. She could have just ignored my knee under the table but was so friendly, caring and helpful!
Once we got that taken care of, it was time to order lunch!
They have a super fun botanical elixirs menu so I started with the Red Potion with vodka (combines black tea, hibiscus, ginger and five secrete sweet spices. It had the taste of warmth and yummy spices and came with a cinnamon stick burning in it.
For appetizers, I had the Yellowfin Tuna ‘tirado’ and Mike had the Local Tomatoes. Both were beautiful and incredibly good! The tuna was served raw over a passionfruit and sesame seed vinaigrette. The tomatoes came with starfruit and a vinegar dressing.
For main courses, I chose the Pork Cheeks Stew and Mike chose the Verde Mesa Rice with Sirloin. The Pork Cheeks Stew was so flavorful and had amazing sweet potato gnocci and dried pork skin to add some crunch. The Rice is their signature dish and was sooooo good too – and adding the steak to it was a fantastic choice.
This amazing farm to table restaurant was delightful. They serve Mediterranean-Caribbean fusion cuisine, focused on indigenous tropical ingredients and fresh local produce. If you are vegetarian, there are plenty of yummy options available.
Colmado Bar Moreno – Jorge, the bartender at Barrachina, told us we needed to go to Colmado Bar Moreno and try the national shot of Puerto Rico – Chichaitos for $1 each. How could we not?
The Chichaíto is a Puerto Rican shooter made with a combination of equal parts anisette and white rum (preferably of the Palo Viejo brand). Both ingredients are shaken with ice (and you can choose to have it flavored), then strained into a shot glass.
It was a lively place (dive bar) with a group of locals and a few other tourists. People were singing and dancing and buying rounds of shots for everyone in the bar (which is not too hard to do when they are only $1 each!). We enjoyed the fun atmosphere for a while, had a couple of the shots, bought a round for everyone, and left.
Get a taste of Mofongo – When in Puerto Rico, one must also try the Mofongo. Mofongo is a popular dish in Caribbean cuisine, particularly in Puerto Rico. It is made with mashed green plantains, often fried, along with garlic, pork (typically chicharrón), and other seasonings. It’s known for its savory, starchy, and sometimes crispy texture.
I’d never had it before and ordered it in the Caribbean restaurant in the hotel lobby. I ordered mine with shrimp. It was good, but thinking there might have been other places I could have ordered it that would have been better!
OTHER THINGS TO KEEP IN MIND
Currency – As an unincorporated territory of the United States, the currency in Puerto Rico is the US dollar, so no issues converting money to spend there.
Official Language – Both English and Spanish are national languages of Puerto Rico. People working at any touristy locations will speak great English (they are part of the US, remember?). But it’s a great place to practice using your Spanish language skills as well.
Safety – People often ask if Puerto Rico is safe. Puerto Rico is generally safe for tourists, with a crime rate lower than many mainland U.S. cities. But like any popular destination, there are certain precautions one should take.
Checking out travel advisories before planning a vacation is always a good idea.
If you plan on going out and about, do some research about what areas are safe for tourists and what areas might not be as safe. I’d checked some websites as I was looking for things to see and do. I consistently found comments saying that the area of Old San Juan that tourists should avoid is La Perla. They mentioned that while the brightly colored buildings are inviting, it’s just not a place tourists should go.
But with research and safety consciousness, both times I’ve been to Puerto Rico, I’ve felt safe in all the places I’ve been.
Getting to San Juan – The local airport, Luis Muñoz Marín International Airport, can be easily reached from many locations in the US. San Juan is also a common port of call for Caribbean cruises, which is another way to get there.
Getting around – We used taxis to get to and from the airport and around San Juan. It was easy and not super expensive so worked out well for us.
WHERE TO STAY
There are tons of places to stay in Puerto Rico. I’m just going to mention the two places we’ve stayed while visiting there.
Sheraton Puerto Rico Resort & Casino – The first time we went to Puerto Rico, we stayed at the Sheraton Puerto Rico Resort & Casino. It is one of the very best in Puerto Rico when it comes to location. It is in Old Town San Juan so everything is walkable. It’s also convenient to the cruise ship port if that’s of interest.
Rooms area decent size, but bathrooms are a bit small. And they could use some updating. Ours had a view of the water, which was a bonus.
The hotel also offers restaurants, bars, and a rooftop infinity pool with a view of the ocean. Service was friendly service. And the free shuttle to beach and Old San Juan is a bonus.
Caribe Hilton – This time we stayed at the Caribe Hilton as that’s where Mike’s work team was staying. The resort is right on the ocean not far from the airport – so easy to get to.
Overall, I’d say it was fine. It had an open air lobby with a bar that served snack food, a selection of restaurants to choose from, several shops that sold beach attire, souvenirs and snacks, a pool area with multiple areas to sit, a walk along the beach wall, and a small beach with a bar and cabanas.
The rooms were ok, but dated. Our room was large so plenty of space. The bathroom needed to be updated and we had no hot water the entire time we were there. Showers were lukewarm at best. We did have a nice view of the pool area and the ocean from our room.
