San Juan, Puerto Rico

price varies

Optimum Seasons:  Winter, Spring, Summer, Fall

Me on my husband went here in the winter of 2009 on our mini-moon. This had a lot to do with me being too lazy to renew my passport and very little to do with my actual desire to go to Puerto Rico over the million other sexy places the Caribbean has to offer for people who just got married and have no children.  If I were to do this all over again, I would have waited to have children and until they were teenagers before going to Puerto Rico. 

We stayed in El San Juan hotel.  This was a decent hotel literally 5 minute drive from the airport.  It is right next to the Ritz Carlton which is a few notches above in class and probably price.  I wasn't too impressed by the color of the ocean and nothing about the grounds or hotel was particularly so beautiful.  They had a few great restaurants in the hotel lobby.  They also had a taco bell and pizza hut located on the street right outside the hotel in case you're a fan of fast food!  The big problem with this strip is that there isn't much else to do.  

One night we decided to go to dinner in Old San Juan, a very charming and colonial port town located in San Juan.  You are able to walk the cobblestone streets and see the whole town probably in short of two hours.   This is definitely a must.  It was a good 20 minute cab ride from our hotel, however the hotels closer to Old San Juan don't have sand beaches like those of ours so that is why we chose to stay at El San Juan hotel.  

Also, Puerto Rico is all about nature and exploration.  Me and my husband did our first and last hike up of our entire eight year marriage on this trip.  We wanted to go see a waterfall in the mountain.  This is probably as close to doing something exotic as I will ever get.  But I'm sure this is much more beautiful in Hawaii or other places in the world. This was also a half hour cab ride from our hotel.

We also were convinced to go canoeing in a bioluminiscent bay (where you can see the animals in the water at night because of the reflection of the moon...which makes them appear to glow.  Or at least I think that's the reason).  This ended up being the worst money we ever spent in our lives.  If your husband doesn't know his right from his left, and neither of you have ever canoed before, be prepared to have your canoe toed.  Literally, a neighboring canoe had to throw a rope our way so they can get us back to shore.  

Basically, the only thing I really adored about Puerto Rico was the proximity to New York and Old San Juan.  No other Caribbean island has a town this historic and beautiful (maybe they do, but I haven't been to them yet).  

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