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San Germán, Mayagüez, Caguas, Humacao, Utuado, Jayuya, Cayey. All of PR has historical sites, but those I mentioned earlier are considered just as important as San Juan in terms of historical sites by my judgement.
Depending on your length of stay, you might consider several days in the San Juan area for the history lesson, then several days in Rincon, for relaxation and surfing for the kids...
Old San Juan is your best bet for a historical site, but San German is nice too. If you come to Ponce, the Tibes Indigenous Ceremonial Center, Parque de Bombas and 25 de enero Street are very interesting. I would recommend you plan on going to one of the smaller islands, like Culebra or even a day trip to Caja de Muertos for the fun in the sun.
start in old san juan - see san cristobal & el morro. san cristobal in my opinion has cooler stuff. its hot. they cut down the trees to el morro years ago. bring shade. its a long walk. jump on the trolley - free - and just ride that bad boy around town.
walk the walls from el morro to the gateway. see the statue of the bishop. used to be a lady who sold limbers in ahouse. if shes there buy some. look at the governors mansion. climb the hill. see the cathedral whre ponce de leon is buried. walk down cristo, grab an overpriced drink, what the hell you on vacation. see the chapel at the end of the street and find out the legend. go into the park and feed the palomas for 1$ wash yer hands.
head down hugging the walls. end up at the boardwalk, walk down it some. if you go to the end you're back at the gate by the governors mansion.
leave san juan - maybe you want to see isla de cabras. i have. i rememeber nothing. on second thought maybe you shouldnt bother. you could choose to see the rum factory instead.
in camuy go see the caves. its a drive off the highway but not bad at all.
go to Jobos in Isabela. see the pozo de jacinto, where jacinot fell in and died. theres a cow involved in the story. minor part. do you dare jump in? you really shouldnt but if you are lucky some body might be doing it and you can watch. nearest hospital is the one in aguadilla off route 2.
go to rincon. beach town, have some drinks. chill out with the surfers. surf at steps/marias/dome (see the nuclear dome!) snorkel at steps. have an empanadilla at Kaplash on rt 115
mayaguez has a zoo. wooo. i love mayaguez. eat mofongo at don quijote on mendez vigo.
go to joyuda, get sea food. you need a recent recommendation when doing joyuda. a place can go bad fast. there was aplace that fed tarpon off the balcony but that place is crap lately i heard.
go to boqueron for drinks and young people. nice beach with showers there too.
go to el combate and see the light house and drive past the salt flats.
how bout la parguera next? on a day that it hasnt rained, and little to no moon, try to find a boat to the phosphorescent bay. some one might have a great reco for a private tour.
after la parguera - ponce, is that plantation still open for visits? or castillo seralles. and then what the other poster said - tibes. there was a boat to caja de muerto island. long boat ride, pretty island. has a nice little cave with an indian princess legend. bet you they have nice snorkeling.
then drive back up thru caguas to san juan and you are done. dont forget to say hi to the tetas of cayey.
Good post Mym. I must have been jetlagged because I forgot to mention going kayaking at the Bio Bay near Fajardo and it is probably the most fun activity for guests I have found in PR (we like Pure Adventures but there are lots of companies leading boat rides). There is a zip line in PR (Toro Verde Nature Adventure Park) that your teens might enjoy as well. There is also, of course, the El Yunque rainforest which is pretty and has several places you can hike into.
The plantation near Ponce (Hacienda Buena Vista) was still open last I checked and it is pretty but I would not go out of my way to see it, likewise the tour of Castillo Seralles (a mansion turned museum). There is a nice art museum in Ponce as well (although not historical or necessarily fun for teens). You can reach the uninhabited island of Caja de Muertos from the La Guancha Boardwalk in Ponce and the boat ride takes about 45 minutes. The ferry schedule is limited (I think it is still run by Island Ventures) but you can hire a private boat as well for a higher cost and, yes, it does have great snorkeling (as does Culebra). If you stick to the island proper I would recommend going to a beach in Cabo Rojo (my favorite is Playa Sucia). One last activity you might consider is arranging to take a tour of a coffee or fruit plantation.
Resorts + historical sites aren't exactly compatible. Are there any resorts near historical sites?
Oh my GOD. I'm such an idiot. The Caribe Hilton is a resort near historical sites. Somebody slap me.
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not a lot of historical sites outside those 2 cities.
