We started a tradition of using our long fall break from school as a time for a family vacation. We love exploring new places and enjoy exposing our kids to different cultures and this year we traveled to Puerto Rico. So come along with us as we share what we did with our seven days there!
Fall Break in Puerto Rico | Travel and Rest Day
We stayed in Fajardo, a tourist fishing town about 45 minutes east of San Juan. There is so much to do there including boats to private islands, multiple beaches and ferries that can be easily taken to other islands. So essentially a hub that could get us to all of the touristy places that we wanted to go easily, without being in a big stressful city. We arrived late on October 10th and used the 11th as a day to reset after traveling. We find that having a day to decompress after travel works really well for our family. We kept it really simple and just ate at a local restaurant and enjoyed leisurely walking some of the close beaches.
Fall Break in Puerto Rico | Day 2: Charco El Hippie
Day two, we still kept it pretty mellow. We went to Charco El Hippie, which is a swimming hole about 30 minutes away from Fajardo. My husband found this gem while scrolling TikTok, and we loved it! It's a natural swimming hole out in the middle of nowhere. It's kind of secluded and obscure but you get off the highway and follow the very unofficial signs to the parking lot, pay a $5 fee and walk around 3 minutes to the spring. The water is pretty warm and there are no animals living there, except for fish and since it's kind of in the mountains we didn’t have to worry about caimans. They did sell food at Charco El Hippie, kind of in the parking lot. We didn't end up eating there, and I totally regret it, it would have definitely added to the experience.
Fall Break in Puerto Rico | Day 3: Palomino Island Boat Tour
Day three we decided to do a boat tour. There are so many different boat tours out of Fajardo because there are multiple marinas and ferries that go out of there. We hired our own boat because with the four of us, the cost of doing a private boat was about the same as us it would have been to do a big group boat. The nice thing about the private boat is we got to dictate what we did. We didn't have to be beholden to somebody else's schedule. Our boat captain great, he took us out to Palomino Island, which is about a 15-minute boat ride. The island is technically a "private island" because there is a local hotel, the El Conquistador, that has a private beach, but the reset of the beaches are accessible. There were a fair amount of private boats that are able to dock there, allowing people to swim and play.
We arrived there around 9 AM and had the whole beach to ourselves for a solid 2-3 hours. Our boat also provided lunch, so we were able to eat burgers towards the end when more people started showing up to swim. We got pretty burned that day (SPF 100 works, but only if you reapply consistently) but other than that it was a great day enjoying the beach to ourselves.
Fall Break in Puerto Rico | Day 4: El Yunque National Forest
On day four we went to El Yunque National Forest, which was one of the main reasons why we stayed in Fajardo. Having this amazing national forest that close to us was absolutely incredible. There is SO much stuff to do there. There are two different towers and we chose the first one. You have the ability to just drive right up to it, park and climb the tower. The second one is a little more intense. You park and then you have to hike about 1.7-mile up to it with a 650-foot altitude increase, which is very steep, very quick. The nice thing is the whole thing is paved. It gets kinda steep in a couple of places, but my kids did great because we hike a lot at home. The view at the top of the tower which is at the top of a mountain is absolutely insane. Coming down was a little bit trickier. It's a little slippery because you're in this rainforest. Our 3 year old took a tumble and was not happy, but we made it.
After, we went to Juan Diego Falls, which is a famous creek where you can swim in the falls. I didn't go in the falls because the water was freezing but my husband and daughter did and had a great time.
Fall Break in Puerto Rico | Day 5: Carolina Children’s Museum, Viejo San Juan
Day five was our San Juan day. We went to a children's museum in Carolina, which is a suburb of San Juan, and it is amazing. I was floored. We got there, and the kids were SO excited. I would highly recommend doing this later in the day when it gets really hot if you go to Puerto Rico, just because the air conditioning inside is really nice to have. The museum has indoor and outdoor spaces and there is SO much to do.
After, we went to Viejo San Juan and did all the touristy stuff. We went to the pigeon park because my kids love animals. You can buy bird feed, and they swarm you to get it. This was not my favorite but the kids loved it. Then we went to a park that is a refuge for rescued cats. My daughter is obsess with cats so she was living her best life.
We didn't actually tour any of the forts because my kids weren't up for it by that point but they are really incredible to see and packed with history. We continued on to more of the town part of Viejo San Juan. We got lunch, and did a little bit of shopping and made our way back to our vacation home.
Fall Break in Puerto Rico | Day 6: Caguas Botanical Garden
Day six was our road trip day. my husband did a little bit of research and decided we were gonna go to Ponce. There's not a whole lot to do in Ponce, and it was really hot when we got there, but we were able to enjoy the beautiful scenery. We went on to Caguas, which was really lovely.
We went to a botanical garden in Caguas that had these animatronic dinosaurs all throughout. They have the dinosaur garden, as well as a fantasy garden. My oldest loved the dinosaur garden, my youngest did NOT like any of the animatronics. We ate in Ponce, and made our way back home.
Fall Break in Puerto Rico | Day 7: Marquesa Forest Park
Day seven was our last day, but our flight didn't leave until about 5:00 PM so we went to the Marquesa Forest Park, which was another TikTok find from my husband. This park is so fun. You have to drive all the way out there, and then park and take a gondola up into the mountains.
They have a butterfly garden, and a place where you can hang out with the birds, and three different playgrounds to play at. The view at the top is incredible. You can see both the East Coast and the North Coast of Puerto Rico. We tried to take some family pictures, but my 3 year old wasn't having it. Then we did a few things around town and headed to the airport.
We loved our trip to Puerto Rico and hopefully you enjoyed hearing about it. I'm loving this fall break trip tradition so stay tuned for our next family adventure next year!
