Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Conservation Trust of Puerto Rico
WILDLIFE TOURS
( 787-722-5834, ext 242;
www.fideicomiso.org
)
Wildlife lovers should seek out the
frequent and well-priced outings of the Conservation Trust of Puerto Rico. Its Old San Juan
tours focus on birding ($20) and the city's natural habitats ($5).
Flavors of San Juan
FOOD TOURS
( 787-964-2447;
www.flavorsofsanjuan.com
;
tours$80-95)
If eating your way around
the old town is more your style, Flavors of San Juan conducts walking tours that give you
a crash course in the local cuisine.
URBAN WATERWAYS OF SAN JUAN
If you're interested in digging deeper into the cultural and natural history of San
Juan,
Excursiones Eco( 787-565-0089;
www.excursioneseco.com
; walking
tours $10, boat tours $35-55)
lets you get a rare glimpse beyond the city's deve-
loped sand beaches, myriad highways and soaring high-rises. With a minimum of
four people, Melba Ayala, a young community leader, guides visitors through the
Caño de Martín Peña, a 3.5-mile tidal channel that connects the Bahía de San Juan
with the Laguna San José. Passengers explore its mangrove forest and bird habitat
while learning about its history and current struggles of the low-income neighbor-
hoods surrounding it. Melba also offers walking tours that visit these underserved
former squatter communities, which now house close to 27,000 people.
The area is at the center of a burgeoning environmental justice fight. The canal is
slated for dredging to improve water quality and access, and some families will need
to be relocated because their homes - some without sewage systems - are regularly
inundated during seasonal floods. Though these communities were permitted in 2004
to form a land trust - the first in Puerto Rico - that gave them the right to collectively
own and manage this land, the government abruptly rescinded it in 2009, taking
away much of their bargaining power. They are now fighting large-scale displace-
ment and presumed redevelopment.
A number of tours are available, including boat trips that continue past the airport
and end up at Laguna la Torrecilla in Piñones. Reserve two weeks in advance if pos-
sible.
