Honeymoon in Puerto Rico
Hello my loyal readers! Can you believe it’s already July, and we are in the long (and hot) dog days of summer? Something I always enjoy this time of year is seeing where everyone goes on their family vacations and trips. This year my husband and I decided to have a staycation to save money and put towards home improvement projects. Our last real vacation was for our Honeymoon to Puerto Rico two years ago, and I am still not over how amazing, beautiful, and perfect it was. With not going anywhere this year what better time to go back to the memories than now!
Why we decided to go to Puerto Rico:
When it came time to plan where our honeymoon would be there were many places we discussed. We talked about Hawaii, the New England Area, and the Florida Keys. When looking at Hawaii the type of trip we wanted was way outside our budget we had allocated for the honeymoon, and we knew we wanted to thoroughly enjoy Hawaii when we visit there.
New England we felt was nice, and rich with History, but an area we would love to visit during a different season like in the Fall or Spring.
With the Florida Keys we felt it was gorgeous, but that it would be more of a good anniversary option since it wouldn’t take too long to get there if we flew down directly. With being off for almost a week and half after the wedding we knew we wanted to savor the time away.
One of my best friends, and person who got my husband and I together, recommended we look into Puerto Rico. She had made a trip there a few years earlier and was able to speak about the island, how gorgeous it was, and reminded us we didn’t need passports for it. The year was 2022, and travel was just starting to come back to life post-covid, so we knew we wanted to go somewhere that we could easily get to. After some research of the island and things we could do we decided Puerto Rico is where we wanted to go.
Where we stayed:
During our research of Puerto Rico we decided to spend the majority of our time on the island Vieques, and to spend two nights in San Juan. The idea of being on a remote island full of beaches and protected wildlife sounded like the most glorious thing after planning a wedding for 1.5 years.
Our trip down there was one of the longest travel days I have ever had. We had left our house at 3:30am, and I believe we were finally settled into our Airbnb by 8:00pm that night. We took a flight from Asheville to Atlanta, and Atlanta to Puerto Rico. Once we landed in Puerto Rico, we took an hour long taxi ride to the ferry and road over to Vieques. Needless to say we were exhausted, and ready for some solid sleep that night.
Start and end of travel day, followed by enjoying our first morning at the Airbnb!
Highlights of the Trip:
Day 1-Life at the Beach
I will never forget our first day on the Island. We decided to go to Playa La Plata Beach, and for the first few hours we had the beach all to ourselves. It was like a dream and the most magical place on earth. Even two years later I still visualize the beauty of that unpopulated beach when I am trying to drift off to sleep at night. We spent time swimming, sun bathing, reading, and resting. We went down to La Chiva Beach for our picnic lunch before we headed back to the Airbnb that night to get ready for dinner.
That night we went into Esperanza for dinner and walked Sunbay Beach after. My husband tried Mofongo and I had Paella, which were both scrumptious. It was the best day full of relaxation and beaches!
Day 2-Beach Day 2
The second day on the island we wanted another beach day, but knew we would more than likely stay put where we ended up at. We went to Playa Caracas Beach, also known as Red Beach. Apparently it’s where a Victoria Secret photo shoot was at one point. It was certainly busier than the beach the day before, but it was the most beautiful and serene water I have ever been in. It reminded me of a wave pool you would play in at a water park that is how gentle it was. I was also amazed at how clear it was and the fact I could see my feet even when I was waist deep. If every beach was like that I would have no fear of going into the ocean and touching the ocean floor.
That night we went back to Esperanza for dinner, where we got to try some octopus, and got to enjoy watching the sunset from the pier.
Day 3-Adventure Day and Bio Bay Tour:
By Day 3 we were feeling mostly rested from the trip down, and ready for some excursions and exploration. We decided to go find and explore the Sugar Mill Ruins, walk Mosquito Pier, and looked at the over 300 year old Ceiba Tree.
One of the biggest reasons we decided to stay on Vieques was getting to see the bioluminescent bay, and our tour was that night. Vieques has the brightest bio bay in the world, and was like magic every time you touched the water. It was truly breath taking and one of our favorite parts of the entire trip! I compare it to moments in life when you are just in awe with your surroundings, and getting to experience and feel such a wonder in your life. Kayaking in that bay was one of those moments for me, and I am beyond grateful I got to enjoy it with the love of my life. It’s something I would urge everybody to do if you can make the trip down there to see it someday.
Photos provided by Viator, Tripadvisor, and Discover Puerto Rico.
Day 4- Black Sand Beach:
Our last day on Vieques we knew we wanted to soak up some more beach time. We went back and spent the morning at Playa La Plata, and made it to the famous Black Sand beach that afternoon. One of the things Hawaii is famous for is their black sand, so it was nice we could see it on our side of the USA.
It took us a little while to find it, but once we did we loved every minute of it. After enjoying and walking the black sand beach it was time to eat dinner, pack, and get ready to finish out the honeymoon in San Juan.
Day 5-Travel to San Juan and Walking Tour:
The next morning we got up for our plane ride over to the main island. I am not the biggest fan of flying especially in little planes. It was maybe a 20 minute flight so nothing too bad, but it was great to see both Vieques and the main island of Puerto Rico from above. Once we landed we got to our Airbnb, get our bearings of our new surroundings, and enjoyed a solid lunch. We had booked a walking tour for that evening in Old San Juan, and it was breathtaking to see that part of Puerto Rico at sunset and to learn about the history of it. I absolutely loved the color of all the buildings in the city!
We ended up grabbing dinner after the tour concluded, and got some delicious gelato. Seriously, I need more ice cream like that in my life! We made it back to our Airbnb around 11:00 that night and both of us passed out.
Day 6- El Yunque Forest Adventure:
For our final day in Puerto Rico we booked an excursion to hike the El Yunque Rain Forest. One thing about me that my husband and best friends would say is I am NOT the most adventurous type. I am afraid of heights, bugs, and will always question doing something that pushes me far outside my comfort zone. Going into the excursion I knew I would enjoy the hike and scenery, but I wasn’t going to pressure myself to participate in the extra components. However that day I was feeling brave, and reminded myself you only live once.
Once our group got to the swimming hole I decided to continue with the group and make the climb up so I could go down the natural rock slide. We were seriously climbing up rocks to get to it and I was thankful to have tennis shoes on. I made my husband climb up things behind me so he could catch me if I were to fall or slip. Once we went down the slide, I decided to jump off a rock cliff into the swimming hole instead of hiking down to it. It was around a 6 foot cliff for me, and my husband jumped off a 25 foot cliff. At the bottom I decided to swing off a rope swing, which was honestly the scariest part because you really did have to let go. I was terrified and so nervous, but with each thing I tried it made me want to try the next thing. My husband was so proud of me and so was I.
Looking back, our honeymoon really was amazing and one of my favorite weeks of life thus far! We rested, we adventured, but most of all we just really enjoyed each others company. Which is good because we were married after all.
I certainly would recommend a trip to Puerto Rico for your honeymoon, anniversary trip, or just because you need some adventure in your life. Between the scenery, the history, and the food it really is a magical place!
The piece of advice I would give is make sure you have one extra night in San Juan. My husband and I both think one extra day and night in-between the walking tour and forest excursion would have been great. We also recommend you pack ear plugs if you are staying in Vieques because the roosters really are no joke there, but the wild horses make up for it.
Until next time,
