Caribbean Golf Vacation Destination
The Caribbean – Your Final Golf Vacation Destination
Have you thought of dreamed of vacationing in paradise with white sandy beaches, the best Golf Courses you will ever play, alive with vestiges of the past and a sunset that leaves you breathless. You have just found Puerto Rico – Travel to a tropical Island with miles and miles of beaches, plus an unbelievable rain forest, and the most exciting night life you will ever encounter.
Puerto Rico is alive with vestiges of the past – even though the Island is a commonwealth of the United States, it’s hard not to think you’ve stepped into a Spanish colony when you arrive at your hotel in San Juan. In fact, if it weren’t for the American flags waving throughout San Juan, you might as well be in Spain. Music is everywhere – salsa is impossible to avoid, but all music is heard and various other Latin-flavored beats pulsate through the night. For the young at heart, Puerto Rico tourism has also adopted a Cancun-like atmosphere, hoping to attract carefree teens on spring break; but the country especially San Juan, is alive with the country’s history. Few other places in the Caribbean have preserved the past as well – Puerto Rico history thrives in the carefully restored harbors and colonial architecture that remains from its days as Spanish colony.
One small downside to this beautiful Island. San Juan is nothing if not a polarizing city. One of the largest in the Caribbean. San Juan is an urban Jungle. This is, of course, a problem for many vacationers. Most visitors choose the Caribbean to get away. To disappear. And that is unlikely to happen in such a place as San Juan. Instead, the city has welcomed the crowds and aggrandized them as one of the main selling point of the Puerto Rico Tourism industry – thousands and thousands of people certainly cannot be wrong. Regardless, many move immediately from the airport to the Puerto Rico hotels in more remote locations on the Island. But those that ignore the capital city, and Old San Juan in particular, are missing out on one of the most fascinating locales in the sea. Though it has taken its rich Puerto Rico history and diluted with Americana and the carefully insinuated designs of the Puerto Rico tourism industry, San Juan is still a wonder to behold.
The capital city, San Juan also has easy access to some of the best Puerto Rico beaches. Who needs anything else when you’ve got sun and sand and fruity rum drinks at hand? the city beaches of San Juan are an anomaly – the ones closest to the urban areas are often the best Puerto Rico beaches imaginable. City high-rises almost melt into the warm summer sea. Executives on break, interns just off work and mid-level managers mix seamlessly with locals and tourists and there is always a beach side bar within walking distance.
There are plenty of fine Puerto Rico beaches all across the Island. The eastern side is growing in popularity. In fact, many Puerto Rico vacations are based solely on the Island’s Atlantic side, where the sand is more powdery, the crowds thinner and the surfing at its peak. many of the most luxurious Puerto Rico hotels are also located on this end, growing exponentially the further southward you travel.
There are Golf Courses that take you breath away. Close to San Juan you have Dorado Beach Resort & Club and Embassy Suites Dorado del Mar Beach & Golf Resort. Swing east, and you will find Bahia Beach Resort & Golf Club, Berwind Country Club, Trump International Golf Club Rio Grande, PR, the Wyndham Rio Mar Beach Resort. Further east you will fine El Comquistador Resort & Golf Club. Try driving south to El Legado Golf Resort, Where ChiChi Rodriguez make his home. A little further south you will arrive at Coame Spring Golf & Tennis Club, then to Ponce, PR, where you will find Costa Caribe Golf & Country Club. There are many more going West. You can find them all in the Puerto Rico Golf Course Guide at www.worldgolf.com. Hit them strait and far, and if not, post a good score.
After Golf and If fine dining is your specialty, while in the San Juan metropolitan area you will find the most exquisite restaurants in the Caribbean. first on the list of fine dining is Pikayo, located at Jose de Diego Ave, in Santurce. Plan to linger for several hours at this formal, white-on-white restaurant, set inside the Puerto Rico Museum of Art; the dishes here are as rich, complex, and deserving of careful appreciation as the surrounding art exhibits. Chef Wilo Benet, widely regarded as one of Puerto Rico’s culinary rock stars, draws on the country’s African, Indian, and Spanish flavors to create what he calls “exotic criollo” cuisine. The menu is seafood-heavy; three perpetual standouts are the sesame-glazed tuna carpaccio, served with a scoop of wasabi sorbet; the blackened salmon drizzled with caper butter, and the risotto, a must, mama mia! Tip: check out the interior walls, which are often alive with arty video installations.
The second restaurant that stands out from the rest is Los Chavales, located at FD Roosevelt Ave, in Hato Rey. Here you will find the most in Spanish cuisine. Typically a Spanish cuisine restaurant with an international flare, their menu is complete from seafood to steak to Paella, and their food preparation and presentation is second to non. They pride themselves in their hospitality, friendly atmosphere, and more important, fine dining. Their three perpetual standouts are the rice paella marinara, a combination of fresh fish, clams, lobster, shrimp, and mussels; fried whole red snapper with fried green plantain (tostones), and a NY strip sliced with a special sauce and a rich tasting rice. On Thursday and Friday you may find most of the CEO’s and Excutives from major companies along with some politician, chatting and exchanging views, a great place to socialize.
So, if your thinking of a Golf vacation filled with everything and close to home, think Puerto Rico, a never ending destination. Remember, there are no Passports or visas required for U. S. Citizens.
You will lavish in the most brightest sunshine, white sandy beaches and play the best Golf Courses ever, Puerto Rico your final destination.
