Puerto Rico, In My Experience

Let’s see how well I can remember all of the details while they are still fresh in my mind…

First of all, I want to say that some of the things I had read online about what Puerto Rico was going to be like did not end up being true. For example, I had read that when you get gas, you have to give the gas station attendant your ID while you fill up at the pump. I got gas only 1-2 times, and this did not end up being the case! So don’t let the idea of someone running away with your ID scare you.

I also read that people often ran red lights. I didn’t see anyone run any red lights while I was there. I did notice while I was driving that there were no stop signs or traffic lights at times (mostly in the suburbs or on back roads), so when you came to the end of the road, you had to stop and just check to see if anyone was coming, and then turn, without any obvious prompting to stop. I even had read that you should not stop at red lights late at night because it’s possible that people will be parked there waiting and will come and try to steal from you. I didn’t drive at this time of night, so I can’t say for sure that it won’t happen, but I highly doubt it. It seemed like the travel advice I got online from strangers consisted of worst-case scenarios. As a female traveling by herself, I felt very safe there. BUT I made a point to never be out after dark.

It was very useful for me to rent a car, and the process was very easy. I used Alamo right outside of the airport and had no problems. They provided an electronic toll reader at no extra charge, and I should see the total cost of tolls on my statement within the next couple of weeks. I am already home and still do not know how much each individual toll costs, but we shall see! I also never bothered to look up what the price of gas was in gallons, because in Puerto Rico, it’s measured in liters. Renting a car is advisable if you are staying 15-30 minutes or more from San Juan because parking and driving in San Juan can be tough (or so I’ve heard). Plus, the cost of Uber rides that you would take to get around San Juan might be the same as the cost of renting a car, or less, and less trouble.

There were lots of potholes. What was fun was seeing huge iguanas in the middle of the road and trying not to hit them. I also saw some stray dogs and one time a large dog, maybe a Golden Retriever or Yellow Lab type breed, walking down the street with a huge iguana in its mouth. Good eats!

My coworker (who was born and grew up in Puerto Rico) had advised me that there would be windy roads, especially when traveling through El Yunque Rainforest. I found that the roads were indeed windy, but there were no crazy drop-offs or ledges without railings that would have instilled the fear of God into me. Honestly, driving around in El Yunque was NOT anywhere near as scary (or as hard on your brakes) as driving up Mt. Washington or up the road in Rocky Mountain National Park. My coworker also HIGHLY suggested that I take the ferry to Culebra, but I decided not to for personal reasons. If I get another chance to visit Puerto Rico and if I have someone traveling with me, I will definitely prioritize visiting Culebra and/or Vieques.

While I was traveling, I had posted in a Puerto Rico travel Facebook group about visiting El Yunque after it rains. I did a lot of research beforehand, and I wasn’t sure if there would be lots of mud or a chance of flash flooding. I like to cover all of my bases (or at least as many as I can) because I’m a young woman who travels by herself, and so I want to minimize risk. People were advising me not to go, to wait 2 days after it rains to visit the rainforest. Others were saying that it rains there all the time and not to let it disrupt your experience. I decided to go that day. After all, the heavy rain had occurred overnight, and it had been several hours since I had planned to get there. It was sunny the whole time I was there, and the roads were paved. Everything was fine. I think it turned out so well because my plan was to drive to the top (Mt. Britton area) and then back down, as opposed to hike the actual trails (which I do regret not doing – and if that was what I intended to do, or what you intend to do, you probably should wait a couple days before you visit so that you don’t have to deal with mud… and wear hiking boots).

I did not get to see as much of the island as I’d hoped. I only had 5 days to explore, with 3 full days and 2 days of traveling there and back. I planned on visiting El Yunque, the Luquillo Kiosks and beach, doing a tour of Cueva Ventana, and strolling through Old San Juan. I did get to accomplish all of those things and then some, but I would have loved to visit Ponce, Rincon, Aguadilla, and the mountains and beaches in the Central/Western parts of the island. A friend from Puerto Rico, whom I had met in high school, told me that I should visit the Western part of the island because it has the best beaches. With my limited time, I didn’t want to use 5 hours of the day to travel there and back. I also burn really easily (damn my Irish genes!), so I can’t stay at beaches for too long anyway, even when I do apply layers of sunscreen.

I stayed in an Airbnb in Canovanas. I highly recommend it, and I’ll link it here. My hosts were very sweet, and I got the chance to talk to them a few times. They rent out the top portion of their home, which I described as like an in-laws suite. It sits in the rear center of a large and sunny deck with plants and chairs for lounging. That was really what sold me on this rental, as well as the close proximity to the rainforest. Although the Airbnb was located right on the outskirts of El Yunque, it was still a 30-minute drive to El Portal Visitor Center. Speaking of the visitor center, I don’t think it was worth it for me to stop there and spend the $8 entrance fee. I had read that it was worth visiting, but looking back, the best parts of my trip were spent in the actual “recreation area”, which is free.

It had been advised to get to El Yunque early in order to be let in, since it is first-come first-serve, but I arrived around 12pm or 1pm and got in just fine. It was 30 minutes drive to the top if you don’t make any stops. I had also been advised to arrive in Old San Juan early to avoid tourists, and I definitely found that to be true and wish I had gone earlier in the day instead of around 2pm when the day was at its hottest! It was kind of overwhelming, with the heat, all the people (who seemed to be visiting for the day while their cruise ship was docked), and all of the music. But I get overstimulated easily, so take that with a grain of salt.

Speaking of getting overstimulated, I had visited Cueva Ventana and took a tour that lasted a little over an hour, one day. I was not prepared for how HOT it would be in that cave, and there is no airflow. There were lots of bats, and you were not supposed to shine your flashlight on the ceiling (no flashlights for kids, for that reason – they can’t be trusted!), otherwise it will freak out the bats and cause them to poop on you. The best part of the cave tour was the view at the end and seeing the petroglyphs. But it isn’t really for the faint of heart.

Something that I like to do before I travel to new places is to book an appointment with my local travel clinic. I’ve been there a few times now, and I always get some really good information about where I’m going and advice to follow while I’m out and about. You may not know that there is Dengue or Yellow Fever where you’re going, for example. You may not realize the importance of applying bug spray, or to do it AFTER you apply sunscreen. My travel clinic advised me both for Puerto Rico AND for Vietnam to worry about mosquito bites, to not drink tap water (only bottled – that includes brushing your teeth with the bottled water), not to eat fruits that are pre-peeled or any food that is sitting out, not to eat from establishments that don’t look clean, and not to swim in waterfalls after it rains because the rain carries animal poop into the waterfall.

Don’t take this as medical advice, but it is worth meeting with a travel clinic before you travel to learn more about where you’re going and what you should or shouldn’t do. I don’t take their advice as gospel, but I do like to be equipped with that knowledge and then make my own decisions from there (for example, I DID brush my teeth with tap water, and I DID eat street food, and I am still feeling okay, knock on wood!). My doctor had also prescribed some antibiotics to take in case of emergency, and I was up to date on vaccines from a prior trip.

One last thing I want to mention is that when I was visiting (April 2026), there was news of a tourist recently dying because they swam in water that was dangerous to swim in. Apparently, the beaches in the North can be the most dangerous. So, if you are planning to stay in the Carolina area or Fajardo or anywhere West of San Juan that is in the North, I would strongly advise you to find beaches with naturally protected swimming areas, or when you visit a beach just stick your feet in or walk around and take pictures. Or drive to a different part of the island where it is safer to swim. There should be signs posted that say “warning,” but I would do your due diligence and do some research before you swim.

So, yeah, I just wanted to pop on here to give some travel advice from my experience. Luckily, I didn’t have to deal with extremely long TSA lines or anything, because the TSA agents started getting paid again before I left for my trip. I tried to get TSA Pre-Check in advance, but I didn’t even get it in time for my return flight, so I can’t give you any insight into how that works.

OH – I want to shout out this business – I found out about it too late, but it looks like you can get salsa/bomba dance lessons on Saturdays for an hour at this place in Loiza. I would have LOVED to do this if I had happened to be in Puerto Rico on a Saturday. Please support her business and learn more about Afro-Puerto Rican culture!

I hope this is helpful for you if you are thinking of visiting or currently planning your trip to Puerto Rico! If it was, feel free to comment or share. Also, let me know if anything I said was crazy or not factual, so I can make an edit.