Rincon vs. San Juan

[DawnPatrolSUP]

I recently made a post about going to San Juan for my honeymoon this coming October but after talking to everybody on here and doing a lot of research, it's looking more and more like Rincon is the area to go. This is my honeymoon so I won't be spending every day surfing, especially since my fiance doesn't really surf, so we want to be able to split our time between surfing and exploring the other parts of the Island so we can have that romatic time, mixed with some adventure if you know what I mean. We're looking at staying at the Rincon Beach Resort, which i've heard a lot of good things about, and then there is that guy at 787 or whatever that you can hire for lessons / guided tours. Does anybody have any 1st hand knowledge of this place or that guy over at 787?

[Aguaholic]

Rincon is a good choice. Check out Maria's. They have a surf school there. Get there early or there will be 50+ people out. The reef is forgiving, and pretty mellow when it's not firing. Just don't drift down towards Indicators (toward the light house) as the wave gets pretty hollow and breaks in real shallow water. After you surf, go grab a drink a El Bohio.

[BMur723]

Casa Islena is a nice little spot right on Sandy Beach in North Rincon. Its worth a look. I stayed there and loved it.

[stayabovetheweather]

Pools Beach Cabinas was a great little spot in Rincon area check that out too!

[Earl of Funk/Duke of Cool]

Roger at 787 is a good friend of mine. Check out his web site. He will rent you boards and you can tag along when he is giving lessons so you get the local knowledge which is key around Rincon. He'll guide you to the north side or south side depending on which is breaking better. and his place is nice but it's not on the beach. He can point in the right direction towards inland activities too.
Stay Above the Weather is right too. Pools Beach Cabinas is nice up on the north side. 787 is down below Rincon on the South side. About 5 minutes from Marias/Dogmans.
Damn, I miss living there.....

[leethestud]

As far as surfing, thats a no brainer. Rincon. I cant say enough about Rincon and its awesomeness. Your girl will love the lazy parrot inn and the adjoined rum shack. Casa verde seemed sweet too.

I didn't buy a ring or anything but my girl and I took an AMAZING pr trip together that was very honeymoon-ish this past November. We stayed 3 days and nights in the condido and Old san juan area, rented a jeep and drove to Ponce (2.5-3 hours) for a day and a night, then drove up to rincon (another 2.5-3 hours probably) for the last 3 days. We went swimming in a water fall at El younque (sp?), did the bio-luminescence kayak tour at a beach on the south coast about a half hour from ponce, We checked out the Camoy Caves on the way out of rincon, I got barreled, she got a tan, and we both had a freaking blast. I can't stress how much fun the whole "puerto rico road trip" thing was. I mean, the place is the size of Connecticut and car rentals are dirt cheap.

The rincon crowd "doesn't go to san juan" but really the night life there was amazing. Any given saturday there is a street festival about ... whatever. We happened to catch the "Condido Culinary festival" was was a real treat. I ate fresh pulled pork and downed $3 mojitos until I couldn't see straight. One block from our hotel.

Ponce is a must see but try to also time that for a weekend because the place shuts down mid week, it was a ghost town when we arrived on thursday and a carnival on our way out friday. The city is ancient and much more low key than SJ. The surrounding mountains are some of the most beautiful roads you will ever drive.

Rincon nightlife is ok if you like crowded bars and people with cooler stories than you. Most nights we just ended up on the balcony with a bottle of rum. The sushi joint behind pools beach is great too. (pools is such a fun wave)


Haha thats enough for now I could go on all day. Feel free to PM me.

[DawnPatrolSUP]

Roger at 787 is a good friend of mine. Check out his web site. He will rent you boards and you can tag along when he is giving lessons so you get the local knowledge which is key around Rincon. He'll guide you to the north side or south side depending on which is breaking better. and his place is nice but it's not on the beach. He can point in the right direction towards inland activities too.
Stay Above the Weather is right too. Pools Beach Cabinas is nice up on the north side. 787 is down below Rincon on the South side. About 5 minutes from Marias/Dogmans.
Damn, I miss living there.....

Thanks again man, you responded in my last thread too, so I appreciate all the advise. it took a little convincing but my fiance finally agrees that it's probably best we stay in the Rincon area rather than San Juan. What i think we'll end up doing if nothing else changes is we'll probably stay at the Rincon Beach Resort and then we'll look your buddy Roger up so we can hit the best spot available at the time for surf. I'm looking for a nice longboard wave, or even better something I can take an SUP out on. I have been surfing mostly SUP this past year and have progressed pretty well so far, not ready for anything over head high at this point, but if it's possible, i'd like to rent one of those for a nice waist to chest and glassy day. If not, i'll grab a LB and paddle out. As far as lessons go, i'd like to take my game to the next level, as I have lots of room for improvement, athough i've been at it 15 years off and on. Hopefully the reef situation isn't too bad, as I do plan on falling often HAHA

[DawnPatrolSUP]

I cant say enough about Rincon and its awesomeness. Your girl will love the lazy parrot inn and the adjoined rum shack. Casa verde seemed sweet too.

I didn't buy a ring or anything but my girl and I took an AMAZING pr trip together that was very honeymoon-ish this past November. We stayed 3 days and nights in the condido and Old san juan area, rented a jeep and drove to Ponce (2.5-3 hours) for a day and a night, then drove up to rincon (another 2.5-3 hours probably) for the last 3 days. We went swimming in a water fall at El younque (sp?), did the bio-luminescence kayak tour at a beach on the south coast about a half hour from ponce, We checked out the Camoy Caves on the way out of rincon, I got barreled, she got a tan, and we both had a freaking blast.

I can't stress how much fun the whole "puerto rico road trip" thing was. I mean, the place is the size of Connecticut and car rentals are dirt cheap.

Feel free to PM me with any specifics

Good stuff man, thanks for all your help. Being that this is my 1st trip out of the country it's going to be a little overwhelming at 1st but i'm sure i'll settle in just fine. We definitely want to exlore the island and renting car seems ideal for that, especially if it doesn't cost too much. Looks like Rincon Beach Resort is our destination if all works out as planned, but now I have several options to consider thanks to everybody's feedback. The bio-luminescence kayak tour sound pretty awesome, we'll definitely be looking into that. Surf is only half the trip so things like that are much appreciated, so the little lady can enjoy and not get bored waiting for me to return to the beach every day HAHAHA

[leethestud]

Good stuff man, thanks for all your help. Being that this is my 1st trip out of the country it's going to be a little overwhelming at 1st but i'm sure i'll settle in just fine.

FYI it's not another country. No passport required. It is a US territory. Cops speak english, businesses take US dollars, the usual laws apply. It's just like home, but with waves and big booty brown girls (and not the kind that hang out near atlantic city.... different shade of brown)

[DawnPatrolSUP]

Rincon is a good choice. Check out Maria's. They have a surf school there. Get there early or there will be 50+ people out. The reef is forgiving, and pretty mellow when it's not firing. Just don't drift down towards Indicators (toward the light house) as the wave gets pretty hollow and breaks in real shallow water. After you surf, go grab a drink a El Bohio.

Good call, Maria's sounds / looks pretty solid, and can't go wrong with a stiff drink after a nice sesh, El Bohio here we come!