Flamenco Beach (Photo: Lena Katz)
By Lena Katz
You don’t exactly swim in the limpid blue-green sea off the shore of Puerto Rico’s famous Flamenco Beach; you bob like a cork. The warm, calm water and soft sand make this one of the most swimmable beaches in the Western Hemisphere — and hardly trafficked compared with others of its stature. This is only one of many surprises that make Puerto Rico one of America’s favorite Caribbean vacation destinations.
Though it hasn’t been given statehood, Puerto Rico’s much more a part of the U.S. infrastructure than most people realize. This is immediately obvious when you step off the plane, passport in hand, to discover that you can whiz straight to bag check and thence to your hotel without passing through Customs. Then once you’re out, behold! Real modern roads, normal taxis and bilingual signage. Walgreens, Haagen-Dazs and Starbucks cater to the everyday needs of the numerous East Coasters who shuttle back and forth from Boston/Jersey/New York to San Juan on a regular basis.
El San Juan Hotel
While the presence of the familiar makes Puerto Rico comfortable, the exotic and unique sense of place is what makes it fun. There are the impromptu rumba parties Saturday evening at Ocean Park Beach. In Placita el Mercado, vendors blend up fresh banana batidas, and stalls display a busy rainbow of tropical fruits, plantains, random root vegetables and wicked-looking little chilies. When going out for a Friday night on the town — barhopping on Fortaleza Street or merengue dancing in the lobby of the magnificent El San Juan Hotel — locals dress and act like they’re going to a grownup prom. And in the daytime, people take a table smack-dab on the sand at Dos Palmas or Terraza and spend the entire afternoon sipping sangria or Dos Palmas’ signature fresh juice mimosas (passion fruit, tamarindo, grapefruit and more).
Food is a huge part of life in Puerto Rico…and sadly, because of the key ingredients (plantain, yuca, beans, rice, cheese, roast pork) and the cooking methods (fried, fried, stewed, fried) it can only be a Caribbean vacation indulgence for most of us. Dishes like mofongo (fried mashed plantains stuffed with meat or seafood) and arroz con pollo are the ultimate in comfort food. You might not think you can manage them on a tropical 90 degree afternoon, but guess what? After a few glasses of sangria or an ice cold beer, you’ll get in the spirit of things.
Look around at places like Raices Restaurant in Old San Juan — every table is full, with people ages 8 to 80 feasting on fried things and merrily clattering their tin cups on the wooden tables. Lunch is a sport here! Local pit stops like the Luquillo Kioskos offer an endless assortment of fritters, empanadas, and little fried dumplings. And if you tire of traditional dishes, eat a chorizo-stuffed hamburger or Medalla beer-battered tilapia washed down with white sangria at El Jefe Burger Shack, a newcomer to the Kioskos.
There are big, once-in-a-lifetime sights to be seen on this island. Vacationers often make a day trip to El Yunque Rainforest, also known as the Caribbean National Forest. Or they take a night paddle to Laguna Grande in Fajardo or Mosquito Bay in Vieques, where bioluminescence causes the protected waters to glow blue-greeny-silver. But don’t pack each day and night full of activities. Spontaneity serves you well here, especially if you’re staying on Condado Beach or in Old San Juan.
Caribe Hilton
If you’re in one of the bigger hotels, you won’t need to leave your property to have a fully blissed-out Puerto Rico vacation. At the Caribe Hilton, beachfront hammocks and a bird sanctuary lend tropical flourish to the self-contained luxury resort experience. At Hotel El Convento, which used to be a Carmelite convent and was later a guesthouse for VIPs and diplomats, Colonial history and Old World elegance are preserved, while amenities and services are fully modernized.
Marriott San Juan Resort and Stellaris Casino
And at the Marriott Stellaris, business groups mingle with vacationers on permanent happy hour in the vast lobby lounge, while families and honeymooners splash in the pools or play in the Condado Beach surf. In the 12,700-square-foot casino, the action goes round the clock. And at night, the Marriott Stellaris lobby lounge becomes one of the busiest spots on the island. Grab a table before 10 p.m., because even though it seems like this vast space could never fill up, it actually gets packed with salsa-dancing, people-watching, mojito-drinking patrons.
Related Orbitz resources:
Lena Katz is the author of SUN: California and SIP: California, part of the Travel Temptations series published by Globe Pequot Press.
Africa is called the “Dark Continent” for its supposed mystery, Africa is probably the most diverse continent on the planet, offering such a verity and abundance of topography and landscapes, a vacation in Africa can be a wild safari ride as well as a laid back spa vacation with amazing golf breaks in the middle.
Located off the coast of Republic of Ecuador, the Galapagos Islands call for an ideal vacationing experience for travelers from all over the world. Whether in sea or in land, Galapagos Island Vacation offers you the most striking natural treasures on earth. The Ecuador Galapagos travel will offer you a perfect getaway with its unusual beauty and charm almost unparallel when compared to the great places on this planet. Invaded by the pirates and buccaneers, the islands offer the most mysterious and turbulent history to have a look. Today, the Galapagos Islands form to be the most impressive natural destination of the country. With the turn of 21st century, Galapagos Islands have been rediscovered as the most enchanted islands offering a pleasurable vacation for all you adventure lovers. A travel to Galapagos Islands will take you to a dream expedition where you get to enjoy scuba dive along with the attractive sea turtles, hammerhead sharks and see the pristine beauty that this place is known for. Galapagos holidays are not only for the adventure travelers; people looking for an escape to a quite and serene place to spend sometime with closed ones can also select it as their next holiday destination. All islands are isolated from the other ecosystems and each of them has evolved with an entirely unusual biodiversity with time. At present, the Galapagos tours make for a perfect location to spend time some in sheer enjoyment with friends away from home. In addition, all newly wedded couples looking to spend some time in togetherness away from the hustle and bustle of other holiday destinations can select Galapagos Islands as a honey moon destination to explore the natural reserves together. Ecuador Vacation Travel Guide offers you all kinds of comprehensive traveling information making your Ecuador Islands Tours a wonderful one in all respects. The traveling information includes different modes of transportation facilities available helping you out to reach the far off islands. With their map, you will be able to tailor and create your vacation tour chartering a cruise or a yacht with closed ones. Galapagos Cruises: Galapagos Islands Cruise will be the unique way to explore more secluded islands, which are located far away. There are a range of Galapagos cruises lined for you to offer you a memorable journey. Meeting your time and price range, the cruise journey can extend from a 4 day long journey to an 8 day long cruise journey. As each island includes its own distinct biological and geographical world, journeying in Galapagos cruises will offer you the best of the islands. You will be able to walk and experience along the volcanic rocks and the changing landscapes and the lush green highland forests. By far it will be a great learning and adventure experience to remember. Galapagos Island Vacation Yachts It's the Galapagos Yachts that calls for the most exciting and wonderful Galapagos Vacations. For some interesting and true expeditions to these islands, you can select yachts that offer great opportunity for scuba diving. Most people coming to Galapagos from different parts of the world feel that Ecuador Tours can never be complete without a trip to its most enchanting islands. Every traveler will find some or other activity to experience and enjoy a wonderful vacation. With a variety of recreational activities on offer, you will never want this journey to end. So the next time you come to Ecuador, look for recognized Galapagos tour operators that promise you to offer the best out of Ecuador vacations. There is no place on Earth quite like the extraordinary Galapagos Islands, an archipelago of volcanic islands distributed around the equator in the Pacific Ocean, 972 kilometers west of continental Ecuador. The islands are geologically young and are famed for their great number of endemic species (that is, species unique to a particular geographic location) which were studied by Charles Darwin during the voyage of the Beagle. Darwin's research there contributed to the inception of his theory of evolution by natural selection.

If you’re considering a but have previously toured the Mediterranean and the Baltic, another option awaits you: a river cruise.
Are you interested in vacationing in Mexico? If you are, have you already made your vacation plans? If not, you will have to start making those plans soon. When it comes to scheduling a Mexico vacation, you have a nubmer of different ways to make your reservations. You may be wondering which method is the best.
Depending on where you want to visit in Mexico, different resorts offer different facilities and attractions. Many people who choose to vacation in Mexico arrive at their resort and spend the entire duration of their stay at their chosen location. This is because many resorts in Mexico are well equipped with a wide range of accommodations and services, ranging from tennis courts and golf courses to fitness centers and spas. If you find yourself itching for activity outside of what your resort offers, there are plenty of other activities to be had as well.
With all of the romantic destinations in the world, you may be wondering why you should vacation in Mexico.

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