Five-Day Sensory Voyage: Puerto Rico Walking Tour

Immerse in the Afro-Caribbean rhythm at Loíza Aldea with a lively demonstration of traditional Bomba y Plena dance and music, embodying Puerto Rico’s pulsating culture. Hands-on culinary adventure awaits as you craft the island’s cherished Mofongo dish, a savory experience that tantalizes your taste buds. Set sail to the island of Vieques, where nature’s canvas unfolds. Traverse its scenic beauty and paddle through the radiant waters of its bioluminescent bay on a kayak tour, illuminating the natural wonder that Puerto Rico encapsulates.
Old San Juan, Puerto Rico
Vieques Island, Puerto Rico
Bomba y Plena

Your Tour:

8 nights

9 days

14 meals

Up to 4 miles / day

Tour overview

Terrazas
Trnidad-Atardecer
Callejón Hamel8 scaled
Embark on a sensory voyage through Puerto Rico’s tapestry of past, present, and future in a five-day itinerary. This fusion of color, flavor, sound, and nature encapsulates the vibrant boricua culture that reveres its history while embracing the future. Through immersive activities and walking tours, not only will you discover Puerto Rico, but feel it resonate through your five senses.

Program activities, schedules and personnel may change due to local circumstances.

In such an event, we will alert you as quickly as possible.

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Day by Day

Day 1

Overnight: San Juan

The tour coordinator will greet everyone, and we will review the program schedule, emergency procedures and answer questions. After orientation, we will set out with our tour coordinator to take a walk and explore the area around the hotel. At a restaurant, we´ll enjoy a welcome dinner with a delicious set menu.

Day 2

Overnight: San Juan

After breakfast, we will depart by bus to the town of Cataño, from where you will see the breathtaking view of the Bay of San Juan and El Morro Fort. From Cataño, we will take a ferry to cross the Bay of San Juan where we will enjoy a walking guided tour around San Juan, covering the major points of interest. After the tour, we will take a break for lunch. Afterwards, we will take the bus to move to the Afro-Caribbean Community of Loíza Aldea, where we will enjoy an authentic performance of Bomba y Plena music and dance.  

In the late afternoon, we will return to San Juan.

Day 3

Overnight: San Juan

After breakfast, we will visit the MAC, or Museo de Arte Contemporáneo, where we will learn about current cultural trends. The permanent collection includes pieces  by Puerto Rican, Caribbean and Latin American artists. After this visit we will enjoy an amazing hands-on cooking workshop. There, we will learn how to cook the renowned and most traditional dish of Mofongo and we will have lunch of our own creation.

Following lunch, we will continue our cultural route through the famous neighborhood of  la Perla, a poor area of San Juan. Located across the wall, where the seawaves break, this neighborhood has been the backdrop of several music videos. Currently, the community seeks to revive this area with a variety of murals and activities.  

Our route will conclude with views of San Juan’s sunset from a cruise ship in the bay. Newcomers are struck by the colors and the sea breeze that infuse this intense moment with beauty

Day 4

Overnight: San Juan

 After breakfast, we will depart from the hotel by private bus to Ponce. Nicknamed “La Perla del Sur,” it is Puerto Rico’s second largest city after San Juan.  The bus trip will take us past emblematic sites such as the Fuente de los Leones and the Plaza de Las Delicias. We will make a stop at the  Castillo de Serrallés, a palace turned museum on the sugar industry and its impact on the Puerto Rican economy. We will continue on to  Ponce and pass Parque Bombas, a striking red and black building that housed the first fire station in Puerto Rico, included in the National Register of Historic Places on July 12, 1984.

Following a break where we will all have lunch on our own, we will visit Hacienda Buena Vista, a historic center of the coffee industry, which   contains restored structures more than a century old and a one-of-a-kind hydraulic turbine. Set in motion by the course of  the Río Canas, the mill continues to function as a motor for other equipment from the era.

Day 5

Overnight: San Juan

After breakfast at the hotel, we will depart for a day trip to visit Casa Pueblo in Adjuntas, a town in the center of the island, a community self-management project that is committed to the appreciation and protection of natural, cultural and human resources. The visit includes a guided tour to visit different areas of interest of the place such as:  their solar energy system, and their solar cinema, their hydroponic system, plant nursery, and will visit their butterfly garden and laboratory.  We will also enjoy a demonstration on the toasting, grinding and packing of the coffee they cultivate, Madre Isla, a self-sufficient, organic coffee venture. 

We will take a break to have lunch together in a local restaurant.

Our itinerary will continue to Utuado, where we will visit Puerto Rico’s most important archeological complex. The site was included in the National Register of Historic Places in 1992, and it was designated as a National Historic Landmark in 1993. The park has aptly employed its natural setting and nowadays is also a botanical garden.

Return to San Juan

Day 6

Overnight: Vieques

After an early breakfast, we will depart by private bus to Ceiba to take a ferry to Vieques island, located in the east side of Puerto Rico. When we arrive at the island, we will check in at the hotel and we’ll have a quick walk around the surroundings.

After taking a break for breakfast, we will stroll through the Esparanza neighborhood, on the south side of Vieques, a waterfront of unique beauty. We will stop at the Centro de Conservación de Vieques, responsible for fostering, protecting and conserving the  natural, archaeological and cultural resources of Vieques. One example of this commitment has been the effort made to conserve and study the island’s  bioluminescent bays. 

We will continue our route with a visit to Kiani Lagoon,  one of the natural bioluminescent wonders of Puerto Rico with gorgeous healthy mangroves. There is a boardwalk through the mangroves that lead to the beautiful lagoon with gorgeous views, a great place to watch birds.

At night, we will have dinner together  at a local restaurant. 

The day will conclude with  the most exciting activity of the trip: a kayak tour through bioluminescent Mosquito Bay.

Day 7

Overnight: Vieques

Following breakfast at the Hotel, we will visit the famous Vieques breakwater, an area with abundant marine life, corals, reefs, a diversity of fish, turtles and even crabs. Contemplate the vastness of the sea and the greenness of the Vieques mountains. We will continue our visit to the Girasol Fort where we will have a delicious lunch at Fortin. 

We will visit the fort, the last fort built by the Spaniards in America. It is located on top of a hill overlooking the town of Isabel, second in Vieques and the nearby cays. The fort was never completed and there are now houses, an art and history museum, as well as the Vieques historical archives and a radio station.

After the visits we will relax with free time at Playa Negra, a unique beach due to the color of its sand and its volcanic origin.

Day 8

Overnight: San Juan

 

Breakfast at the Hotel. We will take the ferry back to Ceiba and our hotel in San Juan. 

We will have free time to pack, explore or rest.

In the evening, we will have a farewell dinner.

Day 9

Breakfast at the hotel. Transfer to the airport at the indicated time.

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Tour Inclusions

Tour Pricing

Price per person based on double occupancy. Single supplement $570.

For a minimum of 15 pax.

Additional Experiences

Customize your trip according to your interests by adding any of these once-in-a-lifetime experiences.

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Music and Dance Workshop

Puerto Rican Music and Dance Workshop

A local music group will explain the names and sounds of instruments used in traditional Puerto Rican song, along with the typical clothes used in different clothes associated with different dances and music genres. Finally, we will learn the basic movements of emblematic dances such as Bomba y Plena, salsa and cuembé.
International Study Trip Students Traveling Abroad with Alandis Travel

Day Trip to “Casa Pueblo”

Through this innovative sustainability project in Puerto Rico, you will discover the Casa Pueblo Community. Since 1980, this community has been working to value and protect natural, cultural and human resources.
Mofongo Cooking Class

Hands-On Cooking Mofongo Class

Learn to prepare the island’s most traditional Creole dish, Mofongo. Our expert will teach us step by step the elaboration of this treat and once finished, we will try our creation.
Alandis Students horseback riding

Horse Riding at a private ranch

Enjoy the lush surroundings of San Juan, Puerto Rico in a two-hour horseback route on a private ranch. Enjoy stunning views of the coastal plains and mountains and witness species in their natural habitat.
Charter a Helicopter

Charter a Helicopter

Customize an amazing tour by air. From Old San Juan to beaches of the outer islands, this aerial perspective will give your clients the best views of the Island. See San Juan from the sky in a helicopter tour.
Craft Beer Adventure

Craft Beer Adventure

Puerto Rico is home to an emerging artisan beer scene. We will visit two establishments where you will sample a variety of beers.