Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
SOUTH COAST ROAD TRIP
Since the south coast offers visitors a chance to soak up the charms of Puerto Rico's
Caribbean coast at a leisurely pace, it's crucial to get off the highways and travel on
the older system of back roads, Hwy 1 and Hwy 3. Weaving your way through
scrappy coastal towns, visitors can break at the roadside kiosks for a smoky plate of
pork and join the weathered codgers for a few cold Medallas and a few bets on the
mechanical horse races, known as
picas
. Don't expect much by way of beaches - the
only place for any kind of quality hidden swim in the area is off Hwy 333, near
Guánica - but for a deep dive into the essence of the region, you have to get off the
highway.
You'll see plenty of the crumbling brick smokestacks of former sugar refineries
east of Ponce. Tiny dots on the map such as Arroyo and Aguirre (a ghost town) are
largely abandoned, standing in picturesque disrepair. It may not match the postcard
vision of the Caribbean, but there's no chance of suffering the tourist mobs of the
north.
