Puerto Rico hosts the only tropical rainforest in the United States, and even if you don’t get a ticketed entry to El Yunque National Forest, you can still experience it! If you’re into massive hikes Puerto Rico might let you down—because it’s a small island and trail building in the jungle is tough, most of the trails are quite short by mainland standards. The longest ones we could find were about 6 miles long. But don’t underestimate the challenge of high heat and humidity in a dense forest—if you’re used to hiking in mainland US forests, you’ll find this a bit more demanding.
Our top picks:
Jungle:
This is managed by Para La Naturaleza and you can access it from both sides of the canyon. We checked out the top view (from the north side) and then hiked down to the bottom afterward, which felt like a good order. The hikes were well-maintained and quite short. That said, I highly recommend hiring a guide–there’s a lot more to this canyon than we were able to access without one. Check with Para La Naturaleza for more information.
This is a very adventurous hike! It takes about two hours to reach from San Juan and almost as long from Ponce, and the road is a windy warren of narrow mountain roads. Highly recommend a small car and careful driving! But it’s an absolutely beautiful drive. Then the hike itself is just as harrowing—someone on Alltrails called it “a very long short hike”, and that sounds right to me. It’s only 5 miles, but it took us almost 4 hours, which was twice what we’d expect for a hike with similar stats. Note that Alltrails’ distance is for the trail one-way, not both. The trail is very steep and at times involves hauling yourself up ropes. There’s no exposure so it’s not actually dangerous, but a fall would still hurt. More likely, you simply wouldn’t be able to ascend without the ropes, since there’s not much to hold onto. The view from the top is unbeatable, and the satisfaction is unmatched.
The dramatic viewpoint hike of El Yunque National Forest is a must-do if you get a coveted entry ticket to the restricted region! This park is still recovering from Hurricane Maria and is carefully managed by the federal government, so you must apply on recreation.gov. If you are able to get into the core area of the park, this is a highlight. It follows a lovely, well-maintained jungle trail most of the way to the summit, then descends via a paved service road. The last mile or so when we went in April 2023 was on a less-improved trail, much narrower right along a dramatic cliff, but we never felt unsafe. If you’re new to hiking, you might.
We saw some very cool wildlife on this hike — beautiful birds, a vibrant green lizard, and a Puerto Rican Semi-slug, which was definitely the weirdest critter we saw on the island.
If you don’t get a permit, you can check out other parts of El Yunque, like Angelito and El Toro, or other rainforest hikes.
This hike is more of a walk—up a paved road that has not been rebuilt post-Maria. But it ends with you at the very top of the island, which is quite an achievement! And the road to reach the trailhead is nearly as extreme as the drive to Tres Picachos.
Beaches
Between these two beaches is a very rough, adventurous little trail through the jungle. Both beaches are excellent for wave-watching; the first is best for surfing and the second for swimming. All along the trail and at Survival Beach are climbing spots—mostling bouldering, but some sport routes as well. This is a worthy hike even if you’re not a surfer or climber.
There’s not much of a hike here, but this beach does have a short trail around the promontory opposite the entrance, and the entire experience is very worth it. I’d say this was the most fun beach we visited in Puerto Rico, though not for swimming—there is a sheltered cove right near the entrance (you’ll see it), but the real star is the crazy rock formations on the bluff. Walk along the beach and then up between the palm trees, then go all the way out to the cliffs. The rocks are sharp and uneven, so wear good shoes. It’s one of the coolest places I’ve ever been, especially if you linger long enough to notice the tide coming in or going out, exposing new flanks of rugged rock.
Fajardo
The main attraction is Seven Seas Beach. From either end of it, you can walk to other beaches which are quite different, and worth checking out—there’s an easy 2-mile hike to Playa Colorá and Playa Escondido to the left when facing the waves on Seven Seas, and a complicated 5-mile loop (linking up these two trails) along the boardwalk and the beach to the right. I say “complicated” because part of it is jungle hike, part is along a road, part is on a boardwalk (which was partially closed when we visited), some along a bluff, and the last bit was wading hip-deep through the calmest ocean water I’ve ever seen. It was almost uncomfortable how calm it was—it felt surreal. But it was an incredibly fun hike overall!
