•Puerto Rico is in the Caribbean/tropics. Puerto Rico is a US territory and therefore, US citizens are not required to have a passport to visit.
•Some northern beaches, such as Condado Beach, Ocean Park, and Mar Chiquita are notoriously more rough and dangerous, than the beaches that are generally ‘safe’ in the San Juan and northeast area, such as: Condado Lagoon, Isla Verde, El Escambron, Balneario de Carolina, Porto Nuevo (west of San Juan in Vega Baja) and Las Pocitas de Piñones (located in Loiza, just east of San Juan/Carolina).
•Eastern beaches such as Las Picuas in Rio Grande, Luquillo Beach and Balneario de Monserrate (both in Luquillo) and Seven Seas in Fajardo are almost always ‘safe’ and family-friendly.
•The beaches on the Eastern Puerto Rico islands of Culebra, Culebrita, Vieques, as well as St. Thomas and the beaches in the South/Southwest (Cabo Rojo, La Parguera, and Aguadilla) are generally the calmest, overall.
•We are going into our high season. You may see extravagant prices! They will fluctuate a lot and we often run out of cars! We are an island; they can’t borrow more from the next state! If they’re out, they’re out!
•Make arrangements for airfare, hotels, tours, excursions and rental cars sooner than later!
•The weather app almost always says it’ll rain, ESPECIALLY in Rio Grande, where most of the rainforest is located. It usually passes fast; sometimes you won’t even notice it rained.
•Use a live radar app for the most accurate information. It can be raining in one place and dry 20 minutes away. By looking at the radar, you should be able to circumvent unforeseen weather conditions!
•Always check US National Weather Service San Juan Puerto Rico for updates
•Follow the signs/flag system posted on the beaches
•Follow the natives lead/advice–they know the land best. If there is no one in the water, it is usually for a reason.
•Be super careful anytime you’re near any body of water.
•Do NOT enter rivers or waterfalls when there’s ANY rainfall. Flash flooding can instantly occur, anytime, without warning!
•Hardly any beaches in Puerto Rico have lifeguards! Only Balnearios (municipal-maintained beaches) do-if you’re seeking a lifeguard, go to one. Please keep this in mind!
•Be especially careful (everywhere), but be even more mindful in El Yunque, Vieques, Culebra and the mountains! It can be hard to get signal and/or take a long time for help to get to you. A lot of tourists die from drowning, every year. Please be careful!
•Don’t worry! Anything you “forget” at home can be purchased here!
•Don’t want to waste your precious vacation time in traffic, shopping and waiting in long lines? You can have your order delivered to you (available in most parts of the island). The PR Planners has an order form if you’re interested.
•Buy your flights and accommodations, rental cars, etc with a card with INSURANCE, have a AAA plan with travel insurances, or if neither apply, consider purchasing a third party travel insurance. We are available to help you with that, as well as any other travel or tour/excursion needs.
•Sargassum, or sargazo, is natural and very common throughout the Caribbean. It’s also been a very active couple of years for sargassum-all throughout the Caribbean. It’s unpredictable and can show up anywhere, anytime at this time of the year. It’s Mother Nature’s way of doing her thing. We can’t control it! Usually you start seeing more around April, but it’s been coming sooner and lasting longer.
•Going off the main island? (Vieques/Culebra): PLEASE make sure you have a logistically sound trip planned. Round trip flights and/or ferry tickets-if you’re going in/out of Ceiba you will also need to arrange transportation back from the Ferry Terminal/airport ahead of time! Also, check the Bio Bay calendar and know that Vieques requires an overnight stay. Most companies don’t go out when the conditions are not good for it, or they’ll inform you and give you the choice. To Be Noted: it appears they’ve taken the last Sunday of the month Culebra to Vieques route off the February ferry schedule.
•Cash/Card?: Some places will only take cash or ATH Móvil (you need a PR Bank account to use this app) or PayPal. Always carry some cash, but not an excessive amount! You can also get cash back certain places, like $100 per transaction at Walmart-though it doesn’t work at Walgreens with ‘US debit’ cards. We use US Dollars, but we DO NOT have US banks, like Bank of America, TD, PNC, Chase, Citi, Cap1, etc. Even our Banco Popular isn’t the same one as the one in the states or Dominican Republic. We have ATMs, of course. You can use Visa/Mastercard at ~80% of places, less the roadside kiosks or some small businesses. When an establishment uses certain POS, they’re even able to accept Apple Pay. Few vendors have Zelle, Venmo or CashApp.
•Airport transportation: there is a taxi stand/line (fixed rate, will post in comments), as well as Uber access at the airport; we don’t have Lyft.
•Uber: Uber seems to be expanding. Even still, it is not anywhere near reliable islandwide! It is reliable the majority of the time in the Metro area but in the night, it may be hard getting a ride even 25 min from the airport. It is also not guaranteed you can get an Uber back from Fajardo, Luquillo, or Rio Grande, etc.
•El Yunque: Map posted in comments! Reservations are still required to get past the red FOREST ENTRANCE GATE. It’s only $2 per car, but the process can be tricky! The visitors center, El Portal, which is absolutely breathtaking and educational, does not require reservations, however there is an entry fee of $8 per adult; children are free. It has a paved trail and ramps and is fully staffed. There is a gift shop, learning exhibits, and a small cafe. Uber cannot go to El Yunque; I don’t suggest just taking an Uber and just getting dropped off there. Service is also spotty in the forest. Beginners Trails: Juan Diego and Angelito’s Trail!
•Rental cars: the best company for you varies-depending on the date and time you’re coming, your age, how many days you need the vehicle, and how many people are in your party as well as where you’re picking up and dropping off. The rental car industry, like most of the travel world, is a supply and demand based one. Each company has their own requirements for insurance coverage; some require higher deposits for certain vehicle categories. Also, some stateside car insurances don’t cover PR rental cars. Generally, insurance and tolls are OPTIONAL add ons. I don’t consider those to be ‘extra fees’ - they are optional. We have access to a brand new, local fleet, and can get you a quote upon request.
•Transportation: we work directly with each of the well-known companies on either side of the island. We can accommodate large groups as well.
•Accommodations: Where to stay depends on what you’d like to do, your groups dynamics, if you’re renting a car, and your budget-amongst several other factors.
•Cell Phone Providers: T-Mobile works best here. AT&T and post-paid Verizon also work fine here as well as most other major providers, including Boost and Metro PCS. There are no additional long distance or roaming charges. StraightTalk, Consumer Cellular, and a few other less known companies DO NOT work on the island or require a roaming SIM card to function.
•Maps: Google Maps is the best (download offline if you’re going somewhere rural)-you can also use Waze. Don’t bother with Apple Maps; it’ll have you lost! Also residential locations often have different physical and mailing addresses and sometimes don’t even have an address. In some cases it’s best to ask for a pin (location).
•Cancellations: Safety is always our highest priority. If the weather isn't cooperating, we try our best to find better weather. Any tours scheduled are NONREFUNDABLE if cancelled within 48 hours of your scheduled tour, unless we have cancel due to an unforeseen circumstance.
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