Sightseeing
Phosphorescent Bay Photo Caption
Be dazzled by the Brilliance of the Phosphorescent Bay
No words can describe the excitement of a visit to the Phosphorescent Bay at La Parguera on a moonless night. The black sea becomes alive with millions of sparks of light, rivaling the dazzle of the stars in the tropical sky.
Even before the boat reaches the bay an eerie light illuminates its wake. The show is generated by billions of microscopic dinoflagelletes, "the fireflies of the sea," which light up when disturbed by movement. Boat hands toss buckets of diamond-filled water onto the deck so you can closely observe the effect..
Hacienda Buena Vista Photo Caption
Experience the past at Hacienda Buena Vista
Hacienda Buena Vista, one of the properties of the Conservation Trust of Puerto Rico, is a nineteenth-century coffee plantation and corn mill. The Hacienda has been rebuilt after years of careful research and intense work. The land, buildings and machinery are outstanding examples of Puerto Rico’s natural, cultural and technological heritage.
Educational Activities at Buena Vista
Educational programs at Buena Vista have been created to help make this nineteenth-century Hacienda come alive. The Conservation Trust’s guides and demonstration staff on the site will help the visitor to see and learn how the Hacienda actually worked.
General Information
Admission to the Hacienda Buena Vista is by reservation only. Open to the public from Wednesday through Sunday. It is closed New Year’s Day, Epiphany, Good Friday, Independence Day (4th of July), Commemoration of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico (25th of July), Thanksgiving and Christmas. Tours lasting approximately two hours, are scheduled four times daily: 8:30 am, 10:30 am, 1:30 pm and 3:30 pm.
Reservations and Information
Conservation Trust of Puerto Rico
Telephone: (787) 722-5882 Weekends:
(787) 284-7020
Serrallés Castle Photo Caption
The Serrallés Castle is a magnificent example of Spanish Revival architecture, popular in the 1920's
On a high hill overlooking the city of Ponce is the Serrallés Castle, once the baronial estate of one of Puerto Rico's most powerful rum-producing families. It is not really a castle. Ponceños gave it that name because its elegant clay-tile capped towers, its graceful arches, its log galleries and landscaped terraces suggest a medieval castle.
Its rooms now delight visitors with their preservation of an elegant era and their exhibits of artifacts from the rum and sugarcane trade.
Tibes Indigenous Ceremonial Center Photo Caption
Walk in wonder through an Ancient Indian Village
Authentic evidence of two rich and ancient cultures can be found at the Tibes Indigenous Ceremonial Center. Seven bateyes (ball fields) and two ceremonial plazas were discovered along with the remains of 187 Igneri and Pre-Taíno Indians among a rich vegetation in a valley in Ponce.
Ponce Museum of Art Photo Caption
Marvel at masterpieces in the Ponce Museum of Art
Like a jewel on an elegant lady, the Ponce Museum of Art graces this serene southern Puerto Rico city.
The building alone, designed by famed architect Edward Durrel Stone, is worth the one hour (or so) trip from San Juan. Art lovers should not miss the fine collection of more than 850 paintings, 800 sculptures, and 500 prints culled from five centuries of Western art.
Guánica State Forest Photo Caption
Hike the trails of an exotic tropical dry forest!
The Guánica Forest is one of the best
representations of the tropical dry coastal forest in the World.
Puerto Rico's Department of Natural
Resources urges you to "take only photos, leave only footprints"
in the 9,200 - acre Guánica State Forest, but nature-lovers will also
leave their hearts along its fascinating trails.
The Forest, a United Nations Biosphere Reserve, is the place to bird watch. More species inhabit its sun-bleached hills than any other location in Puerto Rico.