Has anyone been to Vieques Island, PR? I'll be in Puerto Rico in April and would like to visit there. I was wondering if there's a ferry or boat trips from the coast. <BR>

My husband and I spend four days there in January. It is very laid back, beautiful, quiet and a real change from San Juan! There is a ferry from Fajardo. We flew from San Juan via Vieques Air Link round trip $100 and it was worth it. A neat little trip.

We are going to Culebra, north of Vieques, in April, also. You can get a ferry to either island from Fajardo and it's pretty cheap. You can also fly to Culebra from San Juan airport -- Isla Pena airline does it for $95 round trip, but it's a good idea to reserve ahead of time. Probably about the same fare from San Juan to Vieques -- if you do go to Vieques, do not miss the bio-lumenescent bay -- I hear it is awesome at night. Good luck -- maybe we'll see ya there! <BR> <BR>By the way, if you are staying on the mainland, you might want to check out a restaurant called Tulio's in Punta Santiago. It doesn't look like much, but WOW! We ate there last Good Friday and loved it. It's hard to find but worth it. <BR>

<BR>Well, I'm afraid I'm in an extreme minority. I went to Vieques about five years ago, and didn't like it much - I thought it was a pretty much of a slum. <BR>That said, there are some features you may like. It's not hard to find an isolated beach, and the water is quite beautiful (although not much to see if you're snorkeling). Also, a night boat ride to a phosphorescent bay is very cool. <BR>If you're looking for places to stay, I'm limited to knowledge of where I personally stayed - La Casa del Frances. Definitely a mixed bag there. The building and grounds are lovely, staff is very friendly, pool is nice, food is delicious - rooms <BR>are TERRIBLE! <BR>You can walk to a nearby beach, but it's pretty crowded; better to rent a car and find a more private spot. (I wouldn't rent one of the cars from the Casa, though; I rented one with an acquaintance, and got splashed with mud coming up from the road, since the floorboards were all rusted out. They're not big on maintaining the on-site vehicles.)

We were limited as I wedged the trip in at the end of a business conference. I'd love to have stayed at Hotel Tamarindo or Inn on the Blue Horizon -- they are the two classiest places on the island. Cafe Blu is probably one of the best restaurants in the Caribbean. We stayed at Tradewinds in Esperanza and it was quite basic, but only $65 a night. The restaurant there is very good. The owners are wonderful and very helpful. Rent a "jeep." The bio-luminescent bay is unforgettable. I've never done anything quite so unique in my life. Wow. You can drive to beaches where you are nearly alone. Remember to pack drinks and snacks, but then the island is so small, you can just pick up and go into town after a morning swim, then head off for a different beach in the afternoon. After a week of business-social at the San Juan Marriott, I found Vieques with my husband to be the perfect retreat. The little airport in Vieques is one of the nicest I've seen anywhere.

Between Vieques and Culebra both reached by the same ferry. We like Culebra better and you don't have to go on US miltary grounds to find a good beach. You can find more info at http://www.culebra.org/.

How long is the ferry ride??? do you remember how much it cost? Also, can you make it in a day trip for snorkelling or is the distance too far for a day trip... which of the two islands would you recommend to go to! <BR> <BR>Thank you. <BR> <BR>Lori <BR>