Although I've been to Bermuda, St. Thomas, and St. John, Puerto Rico is my favorite because it feels like you are a local when you visit. Although there are a lot of tourists, you feel like a tourist mostly because in PR you have to rent a car and drive yourself around if you want to venture outside of San Juan.
Even though it may be daunting to some people, I recommend eating at as many roadside stands as possible because it is authentic Puerto Rican. I recommend
lechon (pork),
papa rellena de carne o pollo (potato ball filled with beef (
carne) or chicken (
pollo)),
mofongo (fried plantain balls),
pastelillo/empanadas, and
quesitos (breakfast cheese filled pastry) with which you have to drink a Puerto Rican coffee, which is PR espresso with sugar and cream. It's absolutely wonderful and you can get it anywhere. At the stands on the coastal cities you can also get just about any kind of meat you want on a stick: beef, chicken, shark, octopus, etc. If you like fruit, the best place to buy it is also from a guy selling it out of the back of his truck. Try local fruit like
quenepa, but before you take them away, you may need the seller to show you how to eat them, they're definitely not like regular fruit. You should also always try the juices served at most restaurants. My favorites are
guanabana and
tamarindo, but they also usually serve
guava,
mango, and
parcha (passion fruit). Also, eat the 'ice cream' from the vendor along the city streets (found a lot in San Juan and Ponce). The ice cream is not milk based, but water based and served in three flavors,
pina (pineapple),
coco (coconut) and
parcha (passion fruit). It's only about .50 for a scoop and they'll give you a little of all three if you want. Try pina and coco for a 'pina coloda' taste. My favorite is coco and parcha.
The
coqui (pronounced ko-kee) is the animal of Puerto Rico. The reason it's so important to Puerto Rico is because this is the only place on earth they can live. Although they've been taken to other places, they never last more than a week or so. They are called coqui because the noise they make LITERALLY sounds like "koookeeeee!" They can be heard at night like crickets are heard.
Quick Tips:
Even though you can't always do this, to save money, try eating in roadside restaurants. One good website I've found with valuable information about PR is: www.elyunque.com. This site gives you scenic routes, places to stay, snorkel, hike and anything else you want to know about PR. When you start your journey around the island I would definitely go to a grocery store or convenience store and get a case of water and snacks to keep with you at all times in the car. Going anywhere, whether you're on the highway or backroads usually takes a minimum of 1.5-2 hours driving time, and that's if you don't get lost. Although maps help, roadsigns are not very good in PR, so make sure you know the basic direction (norte, sur, este, oeste) that you are headed towards. Major towns connected by the highway have symbols you follow on the signs:
Parrot Route: San Juan to Mayaguez
Tree Route: Humacao to San Juan
Horse Route: Mayaguez to Ponce to San Juan
Frog Route: Humacao to Fajardo to San Juan
Panoramic Route: panoramic views through the mountain region
All of these routes can be found in more detail at the following website: http://prboriken.com/rutas.htm. When you visit PR if you want to venture out of San Juan make sure you visit both a coastal town like Fajardo or Aguadilla and a mountain town El Yunque National Rainforest as they are very different.
If you enjoy snorkeling I would recommend the island of Culebra off the coast of Fajardo, Mayaguez, and Aguadilla.
In PR most people speak both Spanish and English, but when you go to smaller towns it does get harder to find English speakers, so if you are traveling around and don't speak Spanish, I would recommend knowing some basic words and phrases.
Best Way To Get Around:
The only way to get around the island is by renting a car and driving there. To get to the 2 other islands, Culebra and Vieques you must drive to Fajardo and catch the ferry for . A time chart for the ferry can be found here:
www.elenas-vieques.com/ferry.html. Also on this website can be found times and prices if you'd rather take a small plane or charter your own boat to the island.
In San Juan parking is hard to find, so if you're going to stay there most of the time I would recommend using a taxi.