*thinking* about PR in january for the first half of the month as this is our best time to travel. any one have experience down there that time of the year? place to stay? crowd? waves? this is a surf trip for us but not 100%. we want to have some fun out on the town too so any input would be great. found flight for mid 300's and a hostel for 25 a piece per night. if you have better ideas on where to go i will surely take it into consideration cause what i have right now is just a thought. budget is $1500, but just as a guideline really.
me and a friend. from oc'md, but not relevant. maybe one or two unreliable people but not relying on them for our plans
ya, puerto rico is good trip for January. Rincon on the west coast is the most popular and US friendly town. But, if you go there, I would highly recommend to get a rental car to drive around the Northwest coast. There are plenty of bars and restaurants around the area.
Been there twice. I stayed in Isabela which is north of rincon, on shacks beach. we went to a few spots, jobos being most relevant. its fun but if youd dont get swell its a bummer, just ride up and down the coast and look for a spot. try wannasurf.com, by the way, if you like basketball then bring one, they have courts everywhere, the one in isabela is fun a lot of people play there.
We are going from the 7th-27th of January i would reccomend staying in Isabella there is a place called juniors pizza and above it are little hotel rooms.. and below is a pizza shop with very good pizza...plus you can walk from jobos and is a short drive from middles,sauceys,and los dunes. but also close to the Ramey Base where they have wilderness and surfers beach im not sure on the price but i think it was $300 for a week. Also up the road is a nice restaurant with the best coconut shrimp and there is a hangout bar around jobos..and if you stay at juniors pizza when you pull put take a right and follow the road up the hill and there is a sandwich shop which is open early and they make like egg sandwiches and stuff plus they have a bunch of snacks.Also there is a gas station closeby and pelicano surf shop.There is a Basketball Court with lights too Sorry if this is all jumbled up im not the best writer.
Theres almost always something at Domes too if you stay in the Rincon area. Last year i went right after Christmas for a few weeks and the week after i left they got that huge swell with everyone towing at Tres. So bummed i missed that. Would have loved to see huge Tres.
if your looking for long point break style rights, go to rincon. If your looking for a little more punch and some barrels, stay in Isabella. Either way get a car, I recommend getting a car, so you can explore between these areas.
awesome thanks for the help. im going to check on those places for sure. we found flights for 350 from DC to Aguadilla so we are pretty stoked on that. we found a hostel in rincon for 25 a night so we were thinkin about that for the first few nights and checkin around for a better place after that? anyone experience a hostel before?
Rincon is great, especially for swell this time of year. From what i hear, the surf hostels are for the most part ver friendly. The car is a must, and there is plenty of nightlife: Bungers, Casa verde, and Tamboo. Calypso and Shopwreck are great resturants too. Just North of Tres Palmas theres a great little deli for breakfast sandwiches that are amazing. It's tough to explain but the car is crucial in navigating around, especially to surf; everything is real spread out. I should be staying right in a house on the beach at Dogmans/Maria's from Jan 1 - Jan 8, CAN'T WAIT!!!
Hostels are alright down there, if you want to save money. Most places have rooms with bunk beds or something that you might, or might not share with other people. Overall, PR is pretty sick... Good waves, but like everyone said, that is the busiest time of year down there, but on the upside, the nightlife is usually good. You can catch live music and drink as many beers as you can handle. Definatly get a car if your of age, if not be prepared to pay a good deal extra for the underage fee. Check out Target rental cars once you get in to the airport, assuming you fly into San Juan. They are usually cheaper... BTW, what hostel were you looking into?
the rincon inn is the the hostel i saw. two blocks from the beach, we might just do that the first few nights then look for a better place. anyone ever rent scooters there? or stick to car? how much is car rental down there? is the underage thing 25 or 21? are the crowds going to piss me off?
Scooter rental is not a good option, not even sure if you can rent them. Just get a car. The minimum age is 25... And the crowds, thats another story. It will be crowded if you surf rincon, period, unless it is huge. It depends on the spot too, some crowds are def aggro. Lots of boogies that will hoot you off every wave, but be respectful and youll get your fair share. Best bet for less crowds is up north, and the earlier the better...
I've stayed in many hostels and usually they are hit or miss. One might have bed bugs and sleep 25 to a room while others may have breakfast and dinner provided with 3 beds to a room. Either way they are a bargain. There's one in old san juan that I stayed in that had 15 foot ceilings but no windows, felt like a closet. If the surf is down and you have a car, I would recommend a few things - 1. Bioluminescent Plankton - glowing plankton that lights up when its moved in the water - can be found in a few spots in the south and the northeast corners of the island. 2. Waterfalls/Cliff jumping - ask the locals and you can probably find some of these hidden spots. 3. El Junque Rainforest - pretty cool, some good hiking and pretty good views. 4. Old San Juan - pretty cool architecture, good restaurants, clubs ect If there is surf then don't bother with any of this just go enjoy the surf
I stayed at the Rincon Inn a few years ago. Its a nice little spot on a budget, but keep in mind that two blocks from the "beach" is not two blocks from the surfing beaches. Its almost all the way around the point, so its like a 5-10 min. drive up to marias/domes. Let me know if you have any questions about the place.
