15 Things to Do in Puerto Rico Besides the Beach

From rainforest ziplining to rum tours, there is so much more to Puerto Rico than the beach.

Things to Do in Puerto Rico Besides the Beach

When thinking about Puerto Rico, the first thing that comes to mind is the beach. And with good reason — the island is blessed with countless beaches that are amongst the most beautiful in the Caribbean.

You definitely want to spend a lot of time in the water, but it's also a mistake not to realize that Puerto Rico is so much more than sand and sea. The Isle of Enchantment is impressively biodiverse, with wet and dry tropical forests, salt flats, caves and other contrasting landscapes. There are also cultural institutions with world-renowned collections, food routes that will leave you oh-so-satisfied and historic sites that tell the island's history.

To get you started, here are 15 amazing things to do in Puerto Rico (that aren't the beach).

15. Do a Mixology Class at the Bacardi Factory

Did you know piña coladas were invented in Puerto Rico? The island's official drink is made with rum, so it's only natural that the Bacardi Factory would offer a mixology class to teach you how to make them and mojitos. We love tours that let you take skills back home!

Besides the gift of a great souvenir, you'll get to tour the Bacardi Family Museum and try some of their best rum.

How to Do a Bacardi Mixology Class

Hours: 10:30 a.m.-4:30 p.m.

Price: $75

Best for: Friends and couples

Tip: The tour is 75 minutes and is only open to people over the age of 18. You can take a taxi from San Juan to the factory.

14. Do a Walking Tour of Old San Juan

The beautifully colorful Old San Juan is made for pictures. Brightly painted, old colonial houses contrast the quietly strong forts that surround the city. Beyond the stone walls lies a deep blue sea that crashes against the fort with full force.

It's entirely possible and enjoyable to just walk around Old San Juan on your own, but a tour will let you see past the pretty facade of the buildings and into the really interesting part: the history. You'll learn about the indigenous Tainos, colonization and the culture of the island.

Tripolin Tours will take you to all the important sites, including the San Cristobal Castle, the San Juan Cathedral, the Main Square and La Princesa Walkway. For an experience that combines sightseeing and food, book a tour with Spoon.

How to Do a Walking Tour of Old San Juan

Hours: Varies

Price: $35-$55

Best for: Everyone

Tip: There are many walking tours of Old San Juan, so try to book one led by a local.

13. Explore Camuy River Cave Park

Cueva Clara, Camuy River Cave System Park

If you're into unique eco-adventures, you can't skip visiting Camuy River Cave Park, home to the third-largest underground river on the planet.

Believed to have more than 1,000 caves (many yet undiscovered), you'll get to go deep into the underworld and see hanging stalactites, bats and the powerful rushing Camuy River, responsible for this natural wonder.

To go in, you'll have to join a guided tour, which usually leaves right on the hour. The tour takes two hours, which is more than enough time to enjoy the cave system.

How to Visit Camuy River Cave National Park

Hours: Wednesday-Sunday, 8:00 a.m.-3:00 p.m.

Price: $18 for adults, less for children under 12

Best for: Friends, solo travelers, families with older children

Tip: Quebrada is the main entrance to the park. It takes about an hour's drive from San Juan.

12. Go on a Chinchorro Tour

Chinchorros are casual food stalls serving traditional Puerto Rican food. You can find them around the entire island, which has given rise to one of the best Boricua traditions: chinchorrear (the act of visiting multiple chinchorros).

Because food is life, Puerto Ricans like to drive around the island, hopping from one chinchorro to the next while stuffing themselves with amazing food and cold beer. Join them to partake in an incredibly fun tradition that will also help you see different parts of the island.

So that no one needs to be a designated driver, many people simply book a traditional bus (called a chiva) to take them along to different stalls. If you can gather enough people, we highly recommend booking a chinchorro bus tour.

How to Do a Chinchorro Tour

Hours: Flexible

Price: $25-$45 per person

Best for: Friends

Tip: Go on Facebook groups for travelers to see if you can gather at least 25 people to hop on the bus tour with you.

11. Go Dancing in San Juan

Puerto Rico is the birthplace of reggaeton and one of the cradles of salsa, so to say music is important to the island would be a huge understatement.

To really get to the soul of Puerto Rico, you need to have at least one night out in San Juan. There is a place to fit any style: go to Taberna Los Vazquez for a laid-back vibe, to El Boricua for live music, to La Respuesta for hip hop and to Aguardiente for an all-night party.

How to Go Dancing in San Juan

Hours: Varies

Price: Varies

Best for: Friends

Tip: Take some salsa classes to get the full experience. Piso Viejo offers free ones on Thursday nights.

10. ATV or Horseback Ride in Hacienda Campo Rico

Only 30 minutes away from Old San Juan, you'll find one of Puerto Rico's best adventure sports destinations. Campo Rico boasts several trails that you can explore on horseback or on ATVs.

If you want to see a completely different side of the island that is not linked to the sea, this is a great place to start.

How to Have an Adventure in Hacienda Campo Rico

Hours: 8:00 a.m.- 5:00 p.m.

Price: $75-$210

Best for: Friends, couples, families with older children

Tip: Hacienda Campo Rico can arrange transportation from old San Juan for $15 per person.

9. Do a Day Trip to Cabo Rojo Wildlife Refuge

Located in the southwest corner of Puerto Rico, Cabo Rojo National Wildlife Refuge is often overlooked by tourists. But those who know better make the effort to get to this side of the island, where they can see pink salt flats right next to a white-sand beach with turquoise water.

The salt flats are truly a sight to behold. Still in (moderated) operation, they are dry and beautifully quiet at first, but once you get near the shore, they get slightly flooded, inviting sandpipers and other birds to wade around it.

Right behind the end of the salt flats is Playa Sucia, a crest-shaped beach considered one of the best in Puerto Rico. (Yes, we cheated a bit, but you'll be seeing other things besides the beach.)

Those who want to take the whole view in from above can do a short hike to Los Morillos Lighthouse, one of the oldest on the island.

How to Visit Cabo Rojo Wildlife Refuge

Hours: 9:00 a.m.-4:00 p.m.

Price: Free

Best for: Everyone

Tip: If using a rental car, make sure to drive slowly through the refuge, as the road can be bumpy.

8. Get Cultured at the Puerto Rico Museum of Art

The Museo de Arte de Puerto Rico in San Juan is the perfect place to see local art. You'll find works by Puerto Rican artists who work with different mediums, housed in a beautiful historic building that was once destined for demolition.

In the south of the island, there is also the Ponce Art Museum (MAP), which boasts one of the most important pre-raphaelite collections in the world. Sadly, the museum is closed while it undergoes reconstruction after the earthquake of 2020. But if you're in Ponce, make sure you check to see if the museum is hosting any events.

How to Visit the Puerto Rico Museum of Art

Hours: Friday-Sunday, 11:00 a.m.-5:00 p.m.; Thursday, 11:00 a.m.-8:00 p.m.

Price: $6 for adults, $3 for children

Best for: Friends, couples, families

Tip: Before or after visiting the museum, walk around the Santurce neighborhood, which is famous for its street art.

7. Get Your Caffeine Fix at a Coffee Farm

Puerto Rico's mountainous central region hides numerous coffee farms within the folds of its hills. If you love a great cup of brew and want to support the local economy, don't hesitate to book a coffee farm tour.

One of the best places to visit is Hacienda San Pedro. Owned by the same family for four generations, this hacienda is a Puerto Rican institution and is famous for having some of the best coffee on the island. You can visit the property and roam around freely and then head to the on-site cafe to get one of the freshest cups of Joe you'll ever try.

But if you really want to get to the heart of coffee production, you can take a guided tour through the hacienda, where you'll learn about its history and the process of making high-quality, hand-picked coffee.

How to Do Visit Hacienda San Pedro

Hours: Tours: Weekends at 12:00 p.m., 2:00 p.m. and 4:00 p.m.

General visit: Thursday and Friday, 12:00 p.m.-5:00 p.m.; weekends, 10:00 a.m.-5:00 p.m.

Price: $10

Best for: Everyone

Tip: If you can't make it to the farm, you can still try Hacienda San Pedro's coffee at one of its coffee shops in San Juan.

6. Try Gourmet Chocolate at Semila Cacao Farm

If you want something a little more unique than a coffee tour, why not do a cacao one instead?

Semila is one of the coolest agrotourism projects in Puerto Rico. Using agroforestry practices, Decenia Vega Rodriguez has created a grafting model that increases yield and quality in environmentally sustainable ways. The best part is that Semila doesn't keep the knowledge to itself but shares it with established and aspiring farmers in Puerto Rico — and lets visitors in on some secrets, too!

On a cacao tour of Semila — often led by Vega Rodriguez's very knowledgable husband, Abel Velez Ruiz — you'll get a crash course in agroforestry and growing cacao. You'll even have the chance to graft your own cacao plant. After touring some of the property and learning how different plants work together, you'll get to the best part: chocolate tasting.

Besides a chance to try the cacao fruit, which you won't ever find at a supermarket, you can taste the seed roasted, crushed and covered in chocolate. There will also be plenty of the farm's gourmet chocolate for you to taste but only after Velez Ruiz explains the correct way to place it on your palate so you can fully enjoy its rich flavor.

How to Visit Semila

Hours and price: There are only two tours a month, though you can book a private tour with a large enough group. Contact Semila directly for more information.

Best for: Everyone

Tip: As this is a working farm and not a hacienda, facilities are limited.

5. Make Your Own Cheese at Vaca Negra

If you love to eat local and are a fan of artisanal cheeses, you absolutely have to visit Vaca Negra. Located in Hatillo, the dairy capital of Puerto Rico, Vaca Negra makes its own cheeses and yogurts. The owner, Wanda Otero, is a licensed microbiologist who taught herself how to make cheese. Going by the quality of the cheeses, she clearly succeeded in mastering the art of cheesemaking.

After learning about the process and tasting different cheeses, you'll get to add different spices to create your own wheel of cheese. If you live within the U.S., you can get it shipped home once it's ready. It'll be one of the coolest souvenirs you'll ever get.

How to Do a Cheese Tasting Tour in Puerto Rico

Hours: Saturdays at 10:30 a.m. or 2:00 p.m.

Price: $95 single person, $125 per couple

Best for: Everyone

Tip: If you can't make it on Saturday, you can still visit Vaca Negra's cafe, where you can taste artisanal cheeses paired with wine or simply relax with a cup of coffee.

4. Glamp Under the Stars at Hacienda Verde Tahiti

Glamping in Puerto Rico Hacienda Verde Tahiti

Sometimes, it's necessary to leave the "real" world behind and get away from it all. In Puerto Rico, Hacienda Verde Tahiti provides the perfect opportunity for that.

At its heart, the hacienda is a pitahaya farm and a plant nursery whose clients include Sir Richard Branson himself. But for tourists, these activities mostly provide a scenic backdrop for one of Puerto Rico's best glamping spots. You can stay in a tiny house or a two-story glamping site, both of which will provide comfortable and peaceful accommodations for up to two people.

During the day, you can walk around the 25-acre property, admiring the natural beauty of the island's arid region, playing with the resident dogs, horseback riding or getting to know the farm's friendly owners, Ingrid Rivas and Radames Arroyo. At night, guests tend to congregate in common areas, lit by hanging string lights, talking or watching movies projected onto a large canvas.

Idyllic seems like too soft a word to describe this experience.

How to Visit Hacienda Verde Tahiti

Hours: Flexible

Price: $125-$225

Best for: Everyone

Tip: If you can't stay overnight, you can book a tour of the property.

3. Soar Along the Largest Zipline Course in the Americas

There are numerous places in Puerto Rico where you can zipline. And while they're all great, none beats The Monster at Toro Verde Adventure Park.

Located at the center of the island, Toro Verde boasts of having the largest zipline course in all of the Americas. Of course, you can choose lines that are not as intense, but you won't get the bragging rights of saying you went down an 8,300-feet cable at almost 95 miles per hour.

It'll be terrifying for a moment but provide a great travel story for a lifetime.

How to Visit Toro Verde

Hours: Wednesday-Monday, 8:00 a.m.-5:00 p.m.

Price: $90

Best for: Friends, couples, families with children over 7

Tips: You can watch Jimmy Fallon riding the Monster and get a glimpse of what the experience is like.

2. Spend a Day in El Yunque National Rainforest

Few places define Puerto Rico as much as the large, dense and breathtaking El Yunque National Forest. Home to many of the island's most important species, El Yunque provides a natural respite for anyone tired of cities and noise.

But we wouldn't say that this is a place to relax. On the contrary, the forest is known as an adventure destination. The hikes themselves are exciting, but you can rappel down tall and forceful waterfalls, go down natural waterslides or zipline through the canopy. You also have the unique opportunity to see petroglyphs made by the Taino people.

El Yunque is without a doubt one of the reasons why Puerto Rico is considered one of the best islands in the Caribbean.

How to Visit El Yunque

Waterfall at El Yunque National Forest in Puerto Rico

Hours: 8:00 a.m.-5:00 p.m.; reservations must be made in advance

Price: Free

Best for: Friends, couples, families with older children

Tip: Unless you're familiar with the area or an expert rainforest hiker, we suggest booking a tour with a local guide.

1. Swimming in a Bioluminescent Bay

We said no beaches, but we never said anything about bays, which is where the ethereal experience of swimming in glowing water happens.

Puerto Rico has three of the world's five bioluminescent bays, places where phytoplankton shine brightly when disturbed by movement. All three bays are incredible, but we recommend visiting La Parguera, which is the only one where you can swim.

You'll barely see anything above the water, but once you jump into the darkness and start swimming, you'll find that your entire body is glowing with tiny dots. It's like swimming in a firefly forest, except you're the one who's shining.

How to Visit La Parguera Bioluminescent Bay

Hours: 4:00 p.m.-8:30 p.m.

Price: $85 for adults, $42.50 for children

Best for: Friends, couples, solo travelers, families with children over six

Tip: Do a joint sunset/bio bay tour with Paradise Scuba & Snorkeling to see mangroves as the day ends, and then go for a dip in the bioluminescent water.