Island Hoping - Part I

Puerto Rico is actually an archipelago. Going island hoping to one of over 100 offshore islands and cays is a great day trip idea... And most certainly you will find yourself in one of the most beautiful beaches you've ever seen and have the entire place for yourself.

Vieques

The island municipality of Vieques is six miles the eastern city of Fajardo. You can get there by air from San Juan or Fajardo or by sea in a government ferry, or you can join a group with a tour operator or charter a private vessel. Compared to the other outer islands, Vieques is large and lively—some 10,000 people live on the strip of land that straddles the center of the 21-mile long by five-mile-wide island. The settled part of the island has unique and interesting hotels and guesthouses, a score or so places to dine, a picturesque lighthouse, and a Spanish colonial fort. Most of the land is a wildlife refuge and a haven for fishing, boating, hiking, swimming or soaking up the sun. You’ll want to rent a jeep to navigate the refuge’s rustic roads to some of the most gorgeous and colorfully named beaches in the Caribbean (Red, Blue, Green, and Purple Beach are some examples). Sun Bay, a popular Puerto Rico National Parks Company beach, has changing facilities and allows camping (with a permit, call 787-741-8198). The most famous attraction in Vieques is the bioluminescent Mosquito Bay, where the waters are teeming with microscopic dinoflaggelates that light up with an eerie glow when disturbed. To plan your tip to Vieques, click here.



Culebra

Culebra is also an island municipality, with about 2,000 residents. Much of the seven-mile long by three-and-a-half-mile wide island—and all of the surrounding cays—are a wildlife reserve, open from dawn to dusk. Many of the beaches are accessible only by jeep except for the truly exceptional Flamenco Beach, a vast horseshoe of soft, white sand, a seemingly endless expanse of clear, waveless, turquoise water framed by emerald hills and backed by an impossibly blue sky. Flamenco Beach has been rated the second most beautiful beach in the world by the Travel Channel. To get there you can take a shuttle from the ferry terminal for a small fee. Flamenco also has wonderful camping facilities (787-742-0700). A slightly more remote (you will need to rent a Jeep) but no less impressive beach is Zoní. It is not as placid as Flamenco (there are waves) but you are more likely to spot a turtle than a crowd there. To plan your trip to Culebra, click here.

Ferry Information:

FEES:

Passenger Ferry
Fajardo to Vieques round trip = $4 per passenger
Fajardo to Culebra round trip = $4 per passenger
Children ages 3 to 11 = $1
Senior Citizens 60 to 74 = $1
Senior Citizens over 75 get to ride for FREE

Note: There is an extra fee for beach equipment going to Culebra, i.e., tent $2, sleeping bag $1

Car and Cargo Ferry to both islands
Compact cars = $15
Large cars = $19

Visa and Master Cards accepted.

ITINERARY:

VIEQUES

Passenger Ferry - Fajardo to Vieques
Monday(non holiday) thru Friday 9:30AM, 1:00PM, 4:30PM, 8:00PM
Saturday, Sunday and Monday(holiday) 9:00AM, 3:00PM, 6:00PM

Passenger Ferry - Vieques to Fajardo
Monday(non holiday) thru Friday 6:30AM, 11:00AM, 3:00PM, 6:30PM
Saturday, Sunday, and Monday(holiday) 6:30AM, 1:00PM, 4:30PM

Car and Cargo Ferry Fajardo to Vieques
Monday thru Friday 4:00AM, 9:30AM, 4:30PM

Car and Cargo Ferry Vieques to Fajardo
Monday thru Friday 6:00AM, 1:30PM, 6:00PM


CULEBRA

Passenger Ferry - Fajardo to Culebra
Monday thru Friday 9:30AM, 1:00PM, 4:30PM
Saturday and Sunday 9:00AM, 2:30PM, 6:30PM
Schedule may vary on local holidays.

Passenger Ferry - Culebra to Fajardo
Monday thru Friday 6:30AM, 11:00AM, 3:00PM
Saturday and Sunday 6:30AM, 11:00AM, 4:30PM
Schedule may vary on local holidays

Passenger Ferry - Culebra to Vieques
Monday, Wednesday and Friday 8:00AM, 4:30PM
Tuesday and Thursday 4:30PM

Note: On weekends if you are in Vieques and want to go to Culebra, you'll have to take the ferry to Fajardo and then to Culebra.

Note: You are subject to be searched as per federal and local laws while using or traveling in Puerto Rico Port Authority facilities.

*going to Vieques and Culebra on weekends might be near impossible, please arrive very early to get your tickets.
*Report to the terminal one hour before departure.
*Itinerary is subject change due to availability of passengers and weather