WHERE TO STAY IN PUERTO RICO – PEÑA MAR
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- FAJARDO, PUERTO RICO
Awhile back I shared a bit of our trip to Puerto Rico because I want to incorporate more travel into my blog. I showed you Luquillo Beach in THIS POST, but I really wanted to show you where we stayed. Where you stay can set the mood for your entire trip because you want to be happy and comfortable where you sleep! After all you are on vacation! We always stay in the city of Fajardo which is in the northeast region or Puerto Rico. When most people think of where to stay in Puerto Rico they immediately think of San Juan but it can be a bit pricey since its more touristy.
Fajardo is about a 30-40 minute ride from San Juan and it’s in the perfect location. We stayed in a gated community of condos called Peña Mar Ocean Club. It was our second time staying here and ya’ll…..This place is one you must stay at if you come to Puerto Rico. Some people actually live here but I think the majority of the units are vacation rentals. Fajardo is also budget-friendly since like I said ….it is further from Touristy areas.
"There are no foreign lands. It is the traveler only who is foreign"
About pena mar
We stayed here during the first half of our trip and it was perfect. The first time we stayed here was back in 2006 and our cousin recommended it. This time we found it via TRAVELOCITY and our place was around $160/night for a 2 floor condo with 3 bedrooms, 3 bathrooms & a full downstairs apartment with a fenced patio overlooking the ocean. This apartment could easily fit 10 travelers or more so if you split the cost you are paying next to nothing! If you are traveling with fewer people you could obviously find a smaller condo to rent in this community but it’s definitely budget friendly! I linked 3 of the units below the post if you are interested as well as a couple other places that are similar.
the amenities
There are 3 pools including the infinity one pictured that overlooks the marina and ocean. One of the pools even has a water slide for the kids! Sadly, it was under maintainence so we couldn’t use it. The kids didn’t care though because the infinity pool also has a hot tub…..so we were all in heaven at that pool! There are also tennis courts and a clubhouse.
security & safety
One thing about Pena Mar though is that it is gated and when you rent one of the units, the security guard has the names of all people staying with you and they do check every time you enter the community so security is very tight there. Unless you make friends with the security guards don’t plan on having any huge parties there or bringing a ton of people back to your condo! Unless you slip them a $20….then they may let you slide haha!
Location
If you do choose to stay in this town, it’s pretty much a suburb. Not a huge city but not completely out in the country. Because it is farther away from the big cities there isn’t much nightlife here. We saw a few bars and restaurants but they seemed pretty dead all week and even on weekends. There is a Wal-Mart about 2 miles away which is perfect for stocking up on food. There is also a Pueblo supermarket close by as well. I highly suggest stocking up on ‘Palo Ready’ which is my favorite thing to drink when in Puerto Rico. I have yet to find it here but it’s basically like a capri sun for adults with Rum in it. It comes in several flavors and you can freeze it or not! Just be careful because it will hit you fast!
nearby attractions
The town is also home to an amazing bio-luminescence bay that you can kayak through at night. The water glows due to the microorganisms that live in it. Unfortunately, we missed the rain prevented us from going on the kayak tour. The bay glows due to tiny micro-organisms in the water that are making their own food through photosynthesis! Puerto Rico is home to 3 bio bays like this so I highly recommend checking one out.If you are a beach lover like me it, has some really cute beaches like Seven Seas beach which is very family-friendly with some cute little bars and restaurants For the absolute best beach though you will need to leave at 5 am and take the ferry from Fajardo over to Culebra Island. The ferry ride is about 2 hours but well worth it. That is where you will find Flamenco Beach which is one of the top beaches in the world! I will post more on that tomorrow though!
Erica
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That is a beautiful condo! I think I could be happy just sitting by the pool. We often try to stay in out of the way areas just to avoid the higher priced, crowded, touristy areas.
That’s such a pretty pool! Lovely guide you have here dear, and really cute photos! Thanks for sharing.
Jessica | notjessfashion.com
That condo is so beautiful! I wish I were sitting by the pool right now.
The pool!! Looks like a great place to stay. I haven’t been to Puerto Rico, but your photos makes me want to plan a trip.
Pinning this because I am dying to go there! It’s on our honeymoon list.
This place looks incredible! I have to save this for the next time I visit!
This looks absolutely breathtaking! I love building and food in PR. I’d love to visit soon!
This looks so beautiful, my uncle in from Puerto Rico so I’d love to visit sometime from the UK