Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Ecolodge offers a welcome antidote to the modern Puerto Rico of crowded beaches and
spirit-crushing traffic. Ten cozy rooms rise just inches from the ethereal green forest, and
a covered communal patio replete with games and books encourages multilingual guest in-
teraction. To top it all, the lodge even guards its own private trail to a nearby waterfall and
natural swimming pool. For something a bit more upscale, ask about its three Sierra Palms
rooms (doubles with breakfast $130) just down the road. It also operates a nearby restaur-
ant in season.
Casa Picaflores
INN $$
( 787-874-3802;
www.casapicaflores.com
; off Hwy 191; studio incl breakfast $149,
3-bedroom villa incl breakfast $345; )
Spend the night in a luxurious three-
bedroom house or nestled into a cozy casita (small house), surrounded by abundant fruit
trees and majestic mahogany boughs. The lodgings are furnished with organic bedding and
linens, and the grounds contain a vegetable garden fertilized by the waste from its tilapia
nursery. A river-fed pool is in the works.
Eating
Yuquiyú Delights
PUERTO RICAN $
(Hwy191Km11.3&Km4.0; )
The small food concessions situated next to the Sierra
Palm picnic area and inside the El Portal Visitors Center are the only real 'restaurants'
in the forest. It does decent burgers ($7 to $8),
comida criolla
(traditional Puerto Rican
cuisine) and smoothies and should replenish your legs ready for a few more miles of hik-
ing. The Sierra Palm location has the larger menu. A few smaller kiosks sell snacks and
soft drinks around Km 7 on Hwy 191.
Information
First port of call for aspiring rainforest explorers should be the
El Portal Visitors Center
( 787-888-1880;
www.fs.fed.us/r8/caribbean
;
Hwy 191 Km 4.3; adult/under 15yr/
senior$4/free/2; 9am-5pm,closedChristmasDay)
. Built in 1996, El Portal is an in-
telligently landscaped visitors center that offers reams of information about both El Yunque
and tropical rainforests in general. The facility has interactive exhibits, a 17-minute film in
both English and Spanish, a walkway through the forest canopy and a gift shop. You can
also pick up free basic maps and information on the forest. If you don't feel like paying
