Explore Paradise The Smart Way!!!
Gurabo is one of those little towns in Puerto Rico that many people just ignore. It’s east of Caguas, a larger city, and south of San Juan, the Island’s capital. So it’s on the way to something, next to somewhere, but not something in itself. Right? Wrong!!! Gurabo is great. I actually spent an entire day there with my wife Continue reading…
It’s finally here! The mega post where we answer 45 of your most pressing questions about Puerto Rico has finally arrived! We went through the hundreds of emails asking about the Island and identified the most frequent. These are questions that come to mind if you’re coming to Puerto Rico for a week or if you’re planning an extended stay. Continue reading…
In Puerto Rico we have a saying: “Los pueblos que no conocen su historia están condenados a repetirla” (People who don’t know their history are doomed to repeat it). However, it’s not a local phrase. It was first coined by the Spanish poet George Santayana at the dawn of the 20th Century. However, that’s one of the first questions that Continue reading…
Puerto Rico is all about beaches. After all, it’s an Island, so it’s surrounded by water. Right? But that doesn’t mean that all beaches are the same. Fortunately, many of Puerto Rico’s best beaches are right next to you, like the “Balneario de Carolina”. That is, if you landed at Luis Muñoz Marín International Airport (SJU), and you’re staying within Continue reading…
Old San Juan is one of those wonderful places that people pay a small fortune to visit and I have it for free. Why? Because it’s 12 ½ miles away from my home. And it’s beautiful. That’s God’s honest truth. When my children were kids (they’re all now in their 30’s) I took them so many times to Old San Juan Continue reading…
Puerto Rico has one of the longest Christmas seasons in the world. It starts on Thanksgiving day and ends with “las octavitas”. These are the eight days that follow “Three Kings Day”, which takes place on January 6. Another event that usually coincides with “las octavitas” is “Las Fiestas De La Calle San Sebastian” (The San Sebastian Street Fiestas), which Continue reading…
You never get a second chance to make a first impression. Marketers have known this for years. And it goes for good and bad ones (first impressions, that is). So, if this is the case, and we’re all on the same page on this basic marketing principle, why do we see so many poor images both in digital and printed Continue reading…
Millions of habitual tourists have decided to stay close to home or even stay put altogether. Can you blame them? It’s called virtual tourism. According to “Recommend” magazine only 44% of Americans are planning leisure travel in 2020. Of those, 81% will take a day trip and 72% expect to take overnight vacations. Most importantly, the overwhelming majority don’t expect Continue reading…
We need to repave Old San Juan. It’s overdue and the city is falling apart. We also need to convert Old San Juan into a pedestrian city. So here’s a 10 step plan to do just that. My name is Orlando Mergal. Think of me as a guy with a camera, a computer and the Internet. I’ve been visiting Old San Continue reading…
Puerto Rico started 2020 on the wrong foot. The earthquake that hit the southwestern portion of the Island on January 7, 2020 destroyed many structures and peppered the region with refugee camps. Cabo Rojo wasn’t hit particularly hard by the earthquake, or the aftershocks that still occur to this day, but tourism in the area has certainly felt the brunt Continue reading…