What is the best time to visit Puerto Rico?

Best time to visit Puerto Rico? In my day to day interactions with friends, family and people I meet this question always comes up when they hear about our vacation rentals in Puerto Rico. The question usually goes like this. That is great you have property on the island, what is the best time to visit.
Not an easy question to answer since it is different for everyone depending on your likes, interest and life style. We love to spend the Christmas holidays in Puerto Rico and it is our best time to visit. But it is not always possible and it is our busiest time for the rentals as Puerto Ricans flock to the island during Christmas holiday season to enjoy them with family. You really need to plan a Christmas trip early in the year starting in June/July and not any later. The reason for this is that all travel related prices will go up the later you make your travel plans; example is a round trip airline from PHL to SJU is about $450 if purchased in June/July and the same seat in Nov/December is about $950 or higher. Same goes for car rentals and housing accommodations.

January/Enero: Ok back to the question at hand; what is the best time to visit the island?  What are you interested in will be the question to answer the question. January is still Christmas time in Puerto Rico at least until January 06; Dia de los Reyes (three Kings Day). There are two other reasons to spend January on the island. First is Juana Diaz; home of the traveling three kings who wander around the island celebrating the voyage of the Reyes Magos before returning to their home town. Second is Old San Juan which has a wonderful parade where you can take the kids to the Governor’s Mansion in La Fortaleza to get gifts. There are other festivals, Ceiba host a children’s festival on the 7^th. Jan 15-18 Fiesta de San Sebastian in Old San Juan’s farewell parade to the Christmas season. And Whale washing season gets underway in Rincón.

February/Febrero: Ponce Carnival, the region's preeminent classical music festival in the Caribbean.
Feb 01: The Harlem Globetrotters bring their unique brand of basketball to the Coliseum with their Fans Rule World Tour.
Feb 6-8: Dubbed the "Best Half Marathon in the World." the San Blas Half Marathon brings athletes from around the world and an expected 250,000 spectators to Coamo.
Feb 8-9: If you're a fan of equestrian events, don't miss the 25th Annual Felix Santiago International Championship in Ponce, and catch the majesty and pageantry of paso fino horses.
Feb 12-16: Think you're a daredevil? How would you stack up against these guys? Launching from Arecibo, Xtreme launches its annual freefall festival just before Valentine's Day.
Feb 14: Valentine's Day is quite popular on the island. Check my blog for special deals and dinner offers at hotels and restaurants. Or you can catch über-crooner Enrique Iglesias at the Coliseum.
Feb 15-16: Puerto Rico's first Circo Fest, or International Circus & Street Performers of Puerto Rico Festival, comes to Old San Juan's San Francisco Street. Admission is whatever you feel is worth it for the performance.

March/Marzo: Great month for sports and music lovers; Surfing, Golf, Iron men and classical music festival just to name a few of the events in March.
Through March 15: The internationally renowned Casals Festival continues into March, and you can still buy tickets to see outstanding artists like pianist André Watts, cellist Amit Peled and pianist Noreen Polera, among others. Events will be held at the Luis A. Ferré Performing Arts Center in San Juan.
March 1: Rums of Puerto Rico hosts the 5th annual A Taste of Rum along Old San Juan's Paseo de La Princesa. Spend the day strolling along this pedestrian-only promenade beneath the walls of the old city and sampling the island's favorite liquor, along with local food and live music.
March 6-9: Golf's rising stars take on the seasoned pros at the Puerto Rico Open, which takes place at the Trump International Golf Club; it's been voted the most fan-friendly event in the PGA Tour, so you can expect a great turnout.
March 8: Jerry Seinfeld, the man who made something about nothing into something spectacular, brings his stand-up act to the Coliseo de Puerto Rico.
March 8-9: The 25th edition of the Corona Extra Pro Surf Circuit kicks off with a 2-day contest at Domes Beach in Rincón. A $12,000 purse is up for grabs for the women's competition, and a $25,000 purse will be handed out to the men.
March 14: Rock band Paramore perform with Tegan and Sara for one night at the Coliseo de Puerto Rico.
March 15: Sangriafest, Puerto Rico's only sangria festival, is back for its 5th year at the Puerto Rico Convention Center. It's a great chance to sample sangrias from all over the world.
March 20-23: The annual Heineken Jazz Festival is one of the most important musical events in the Caribbean, and draws global talent to the Tito Puente Amphitheater in San Juan.
March 22: Coors Light Soundfields presents an evening of electronica with acts like Empire of the Sun, Rusko and DVBBS performing at Old San Juan's Pier 15.
March: This is the start of turtle-watching season in Culebra, a big deal on the island. It is strictly monitored so that nesting turtles are protected, but there are excursions available. One good resource for more information and tours is the Mamacitas Guesthouse turtle-watching program.
So yeah there is plenty for the sports and music lover in March!

With the mention of what is happing in Puerto Rico in the first three months of the year I guess you get the idea as to what would be the best time for you to visit. There is always plenty to see and do; it’s just a matter of when you can get away and what is happening when you do arrive. We all need a to pack a bag and get away from the day to day grind of work, school and our home surroundings to rest, energize our bodies, mind and soul. Any time you turn and ask your family or friends if they would like to spend a week or more in beautiful, tropical paradise that is Puerto Rico the answer will usually be yes.  Your family and you Deserve It!

For more on what is happening on the island visit: Puerto Rico DayTrips Calendar of Events page

For great clean, safe, comfortable and secure accommodations across the road from the beach; visit Villasde Costa Mar Vacation Rentals or just give us a call to get your questions answered and start talking about your trip. You know what you like and when you can get away and where to stay so calendar of events to plan and call to us for accommodations that a plane ticket, rental car to start your vacation in our little piece of paradise!

We await your call and look forward to servicing your accommodation needs!

Vacation Rental Amenities

A question came up the other day; “Why do we supply our guest with flat screen TVs’, Xbox Consoles, Xbox live, Stereo system, internet access and Dish Network service if they are on vacation to explore and enjoy what the island has to offer?”

They went on to say that most guest just use the accommodations to crash at night and are up and gone in the morning. When they are on vacation their main focus is where to next and what do we want to do today. So why waste money on all the appliances, electronics and services we provide?

My answer was that this is our vacation home and we have equipped it with all the appliances, electronics and services we use back at home. When we visit and we do visit our vacation home each year for two weeks. We want to have all the comforts of home when we arrive; we quickly settle right in and don’t miss anything because we have it all available to us. It’s a great feeling to get home each day and be able to relax and do the different things we do on a daily bases. Watch TV, browse the internet, hear some music, play our games. It’s all what being home is all about. So we want the same comforts at our vacation rental. We love exploring the island going out for diner visiting friends and family, relaxing on the beach. We also love the felling we get after a long day of sun and fun when we arrive back at our vacation home to relax and unwind maybe stay in tonight and throw something on the grill, have a few drinks, enjoy the rooftop terrace by watching the sunset.

A vacation home also alloys us the opportunity to invite our family over for a visit and enjoy their company also; and they love to come for the beach.

It’s all about giving our guest the same experience we love and enjoy when we have our vacations. We can save on breakfast, lunch, snacks and diner if we want to; we have the option to do so and that is always a good thing.

We all need to get away and by providing our vacation home to others they all have somewhere to go and relax and enjoy the same way we enjoy it. Different people will all do different things when on vacation and enjoy their visit in different ways; what we offer is a safe, clean, comfortable accommodation with all the comforts of home for when they arrive back at the end of the day! The choice to spread out, use the balcony for reading, rooftop terrace, master bedroom, guest bedroom, dining area table, living area and the fully equipped kitchen.  Much more room that a cramped hotel room with a lot more options that allow them to plan and save for other things they want to do on your vacation.

That feeling of it’s been a great day, we had a great time but we are glad to be back to the comfort of a place to relax, unwind and re-energize for the adventures tomorrow will bring. It’s all about the comforts we want in our vacation home and being able to provide our guest with the same!

Plan early use the resources on our website and give us a call for the BEST DEALS :}! not a cheap deal :{.

Flipkey Poised tobe Number One!

One of the oldest and largest travel websites is TripAadvisor.com. They are presently positioning themselves to take over the number one spot presently held by homeaway.com. for vacation rental listings. Their new vacation rentals listing site is Flipkey.com.

We were approached by Flipkey in February of 2010 to list our vacation rental with them for a 60 days free trial listing. This was an opportunity to get more exposure with what I thought to be one of the best travel related sites. We were contacted by Flipkey again at the end of our 60 days with instruction on how to pay and keep our listing. I wrote back and expressed that we had not received any viable inquiries because we did receive two inquiries but none of them had phone numbers. We do not count inquiries without phone numbers as serious or true inquiries because anyone could be sending them in. They came back with an extended sixty days and then we finally received several more inquiries with phone numbers and booked one of them. We continued to get inquiries and soon realized that most of our inquiries were coming from Flipkey.

I started to research them and realized that not only was my listing on Flipkey but they had also added a vacation rentals tab to TripAdvisor.com and were also showing our listing and we were receiving inquiries from TripAdvisor.com also.

They do something very unique in that once someone inquiries about a property they also offer up other options to send the inquiry to. This is great because if someone inquires about another rental in the same area they offer up our rental asking if they want the inquiry to come to us also.

VRBO and Homeaway have gotten bad raps for the way they handle the testimonials site allowing the owner to pick and choice which ones are posted, Flipkey has a process in place which we also like as they allow us to select who we want to ask for a testimonial and they post it once received.

Another great feature is that they allow you to post as many pictures as you which at no addtional charge.

With their ten million plus visitors to their websites I think these guys are poised to take the number one spot for vacation rental listing site in just a few more months or by 2013.

What this means to all property owners is that they are the site to list with so run do not walk over to the site and get your property listed for the ten million plus visitors they have to offer.

Get Your Sixty Day Trial Today!

Al & Nelida Rios
Owner Operators
Villas de COSTA MAR

• Dorado Vacation Rentals

Attractions in Puerto Rico

One day I was visiting a community discussion board/forum and came across a member’s request for more information, on what attractions were near where they were staying. I was amazed by one of the responders that wrote “Other than golf and the beach there really was nothing much to do in that place“ Puerto Rico is only one hundred miles long by 35 miles wide, in view of this you can drive to just about any part of the Island and back in one day. You can pick up a map in any Walgreens store on the island! Here is a list of a few of the main events on the island.

• El Morro, in Old San Juan
• La Fortaleza, in San Juan
• Roig Refinery, in Yabucoa
• El Faro Lighthouse, in Rincon
• Snorkeling & Diving in Culebra
• The Faro de Fajardo, in Fajardo
• Carite Forest Reserve, in Patillas
• Caribbean Raceway Park, in Carolina
• The Fiesta de Reyes Isabelinos, in Isabela
• Plaza Colon Yaguez Theater, in Mayaguez
• Punta Borinquen Golf Course, in Aguadilla
• Caja de Muerto Beach, in Caja de Muertos
• Vieques National Wildlife Refuge, in Vieques
• Parque de Las Ciencias Luis A. Ferré, in Bayamón
• Bahia Beach Plantation Golf Course, in Rio Grande
• Ojo del Buey & Dorado Del Mar Golf Club, in Dorado
• Skatepark Roller Vertical Exploration, in Quebradillas
• Observatorio Astronómico & The Shiraz Charters, in Humacao
• Casa Museo Joaquin de Rojas & Monte Torrecilla, in Barranquitas
• Tibes Indian Ceremonial Center & Museo de Arte de Ponce, in Ponce
• La Parguera Phosphorescent Bay & Punta Ballena Reserve, in Guanica
• Cabo Rojo Artisans, Museo de los Próceres & The Salinas Salt Flats in Cabo Rojo

These are only a few of the attractions available to the visiting tourist to this Island paradise. If you are looking for cultural attractions’ you should head over to old San Juan, walk the narrow, winding, cobblestone roads and sample the Architecture and visit the Museums. If shopping is your fancy there are great shops all through Old San Juan you can spend a day in and out of these shop selling just about anything from crafty handmade articles to gold and jewelry.

All the fast food chain and restaurants found on the main land have a presence here, McDonald, Burger king, KFC, Macaroni Grill, Sizzler just to mention a few. Alternatively, you can enjoy Pollo Tropical, Martin Chicken or any of the local food eateries that serve just about anything you can imagine. Seafood lovers would love our restaurants that serve fresh seafood caught by anglers that go out daily for the catch of the day.

Puerto Rico is an island paradise with beaches on every coast; they feature beautiful warm blue waters with some of the best scenic views in the world. There is plenty of nightlife in San Juan and Isla Verde with casinos in many of the major hotels. You could spend a whole week taking in all that Puerto Rico has to offer and not cover one third of what we have mentioned here in this article. If you want more information on attractions visit our attractions page at: Villas de Costa Mar/Attractions

Also great accommodations for a family of five or smaller!

Picking a Vacation Rental

More and more people are finding that vacation rentals by owners are the new way to vacation. Weather you rent from a property owner or property management service here are some very important things to help you select the best vacation place in the listings.

The number one thing when making a vacation rental decision should not be the price. You get what you paid for is still the theme to remember here. There are a lot of different vacation rental accommodations by owners and selecting the perfect one is not hard. If you do your research, ask the right questions and follow the below you will be fine and have a great vacation.

Look for vacation rental accommodations that have plenty of pictures of their rentals. You should only deal with owners that are willing to call and speak to you. Owners who like to qualify their potential guest are ones who care about who stays in their rentals. This is a good thing since they are concerned about keeping their rentals in prime condition. They want guest who will take care of their place and things.

You want to rent from someone who has plenty of testimonials from prior guest. This is your best source of information about the accommodations, services and the general area where the rentals are. Always look for rentals that offer off street parking off  and  safe secure and comfortable accommodations. The testimonials are a great place to confirm this is true.

If you are still note sure speak to the owners and ask if they can provide you with references and or review the testimonials for emails and names of prior guest and ask for permission to contact them.

Price should not be the determining factor in your selection. If you have a price in mind, speak to the owner and negotiate with them. Always remember that the more inquiries they get for the same time period and the more popular their rentals are the faster you need to move to secure said rental. Ask them if they have availability and if there are other inquiries for the same time period.

If you have never been to said destination ask questions as to how the area is during the time of year you will be visiting. A lot of beachfront rentals will get a lot of local traffic during high beach season for said area. Look for rentals that have their rentals listed on multiple paid for listing sites. Better yet look for rentals that have a professionally build website. The website should have their contact information.

Look for owners that take credit cards even if you pay by check. This guarantees you are renting from an establish rental owner. You should always be able to pick up the phone and contact then and not just via email. Never rent from an owner who will only deal with you via emails! Never pay for a vacation rental via Western Union, as these funds are not traceable. Communicating with the owner and asking questions is the best way to guarantee you get a safe, clean, secure and proven rental accommodation.

Always read the rules and regulations in advance and know exactly what you are paying for. Know what the amenities are, these should be clearly listed on the website. Prices should also be clearly listed on the website along with information on the area and attractions. The final price should be in writing in an email and always insist on a payment confirmation with every payment made. Owners that have property managers who meet and greet you and show you the rentals are always a nice touch. They will usually be your point of contact. Owners should also provide you with a phone number you can contact them at in the event you cannot reach the property manager.

Always do your research and contact the owners at least four to five months in advance. The decision process should take three to four days of back and forth telephone conversations after the initial email. Most owners will email you information and follow-up with a phone call to review the details on the email and get to know who they are renting to. Always provide a call back number and the best time to call you back.

What you will finally get is a great vacation rental accommodation that will be like a home away from home with all the comforts of home. Vacation rentals are great for a family of three or more as you will have room to rest and relax in after a day of exploring, hanging out by the beach, whatever the area has to offer. Vacation rentals are a lot better than cramp hotel room that you will probably pay twice as much for as you will for a vacation rental. Plus you will always have the option of eating in or going out for your meals. Another great thing about a nice vacation rental with a master bedroom is that you will be able to spend some private time with your loved ones after the kids are tucked in for the night.



Villas de
Costa Mar

Enjoy you next vacation rental we all need to get away. Visit Rentalbot.com for all your vacation rental destination needs. If your destination is Puerto Rico check-out VillasdeCostaMar.com for the best beachfront vacation rental apartments in Dorado Puerto Rico.

Villas de Costa Mar Vacation Rentals Puerto Rico

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