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Overview of Fajardo, Puerto Rico for Seven Seas beach, Bio Bay kayaking tours, scuba, dining, and the El Conquistador hotel.
Our first experience with Puerto Rico was Old San Juan, and I was hooked! When planning our next visit, we knew we needed more time, and we wanted to explore several areas of the island. We started in beautiful Isla Verde, just outside of San Juan, then rented a car and headed out to Fajardo for a few days. Six months later, I find myself back in Fajardo.
Fajardo is an hour East of San Juan, at the meeting point for the Atlantic Ocean and the Caribbean Sea on the Northeast tip of the island. Fajardo boasts one of the world’s rare bioluminescent bays, a must-see at night during the new moon, when it is darkest.
For the luxury portion of our Puerto Rico vacation, we checked into paradise, officially known as the El Conquistador Resort, a Waldorf-Astoria property. It has that Latin America laid back culture, but quite posh at the same time.
El Conquistador pool view from lobby overlooking the Ocean
Our room was simple, with sunken bathtub and huge walk-in closet. The real in-room feature is the balcony!
View from the Balcony
The resort property is massive, with a little bit of everything. Just getting there involved driving through the enormous golf course (slight pun intended). There are several pools on each level, complete with poolside cafes, and many different restaurants. The engineering geeks (us) were very excited for the funicular, an inclined plane cable car, to carry passengers safely up & down the steep incline from the Lobby to a lower room level and the marina.
Outside of San Juan, just a few minutes from the Airport, is beautiful Isla Verde district of Carolina, Puerto Rico. Close enough to Old San Juan for the tourists, convenient for business in San Juan city center, and perched on the northern coast beach. We stayed at the Courtyard Marriott, but any of the beach front hotels in Isla Verde or Condado are a good choice. The area is a popular destination for business conventions, family vacations, and weekend getaways from the Mainland South and East Coast cities.
The most well-known Mayan ruins and archaeological sites are in the interior of Mexico and Central America which can be difficult to visit, often requiring long car or bus rides. The nearest airport to Chichen Itza is Cancun and then it is still several hours travel by car. There are two noteworthy Mayan sites located within Cancun.
El Rey
El Rey
El Rey is located along the Hotel Zone of Cancun, tucked away behind large trees and a small sign. For 43 pesos (per person) this hidden gem is an old Mayan village for exploration. The area surrounding the structures is cut back leaving very little shade. The site opens at 8 AM for the coolest temperatures. There are plenty of signs in both Spanish and English translation.
View of modern hotel in the distance at the El Rey site
The entire site takes less than an hour to walk and take a few photos.
The Mayan Museum, Museo Maya de Cancun, is just down the street from the El Rey site. The museum opens at 9 am, one hour later than El Rey, allowing for a full morning of Mayan history. At a mere 57 pesos, the entrance fee is one of the best bargains in Cancun!
The entire city of San Juan was a pleasant surprise. It is not quite modern America, but a blend between downtown Tucson and a historic town that time really does not closely pay attention to. At 18 degrees north of the equator, the weather is fantastic and warm year round on the beautiful little island.
We arrived at the port in San Juan and explored the old part of town on foot in a few hours. In old San Juan there are narrow cobblestone streets, historic forts, and gorgeous views of the water. All of that walking made us hungry, and thirsty. As a US territory, my smartphone had excellent coverage and thanks to Open Table we found Barrachina for dinner.
Barrachina courtyard
Famous for the origin of the Pina Colada, it was the best Pina Colada that I have ever tasted! The food was amazing and fresh. Barrachina is reasonably priced, providing great service, and amazing food.
We started with Grouper Fritters that were fresh, perfectly prepared (not too greasy for breaded & fried fish), and delicious. Due to all of our walking before dinner, these yummy appetizers did not last long enough for a picture.
Mofongo beef, chicken, and shrimp is a fried green plantain dish, that can only be described as a flavor explosion. My mouth waters just remembering how good it tasted. The spices reminded me of Spanish cuisine, complex and mild that would not count as “spicy” compared to any Mexican dish.
Red Snapper dish
The ultimate treat was the local caught, grilled whole red snapper fish with shrimp and putanesca sauce. Yes, it is a 24 ounce entire fish with scales, eyes, tail, and face. Admittedly, I skipped the eyes and tail. The fish alone could easily serve 4, then they added shrimp, rice, veggies, beans, and hearty tomato putanesca sauce. Two of us barely put a dent in this wonderful dish.
Sunset in old San Juan
With so much to see just in San Juan, we did not explored much of Puerto Rico and now I have another must-explore list to my future travel plans. We will definitely dine at Barrachina on our next visit to Puerto Rico, which I hope will be soon!
