By Lisa T. Bergren

I was late to the party, as per usual, when I found out about Vieques, a favorite stop for travelers from around the world. We were heading to Puerto Rico—en route to Nevis, West Indies—and I wondered what all we could do in Puerto Rico and beyond. Both Vieques and Culebra (with one of the US’s top 10 beaches) are favorite escapes for Puerto Rico’s citizens. And I can see why…for about $15, you can ride the ferry from Puerto Rico to either island. Because of the time it takes to get from the San Juan International airport to the ferry stop (watch out for traffic—and know that a taxi ride for a family can be about $150), we rode on a tiny charter plane called Vieques Air.

Vieques Air is a very low-key operation. The same guy who takes your luggage, shows up to take your ticket stubs at a tiny corner gate. (It was soooo good my mom didn’t know we were doing it.) We climbed aboard a pretty old twin engine plane and made the short hop over the water to Vieques, and after a short wait for our rental car, began our stay at At the Waves, on the north shore.

Ian Macintosh runs a lovely villa there, with three spacious condos, perfectly maintained grounds, a pool and access to a beach that offers terrific snorkeling. It’s a bit hard to find, so take down good directions and pay attention to landmarks. Ian directed us to a good grocery store and we left to get our provisions for our four-night stay (he usually only rents by the week, but if he has room, he might accept a shorter reservation like he did with us).

One of the main reasons we chose to go to Vieques is because they offer the world’s best bioluminescent bay, a fabulous experience for anyone! Pay attention to the moon’s cycle, because if the moon is too full, they won’t be running trips. We only had one possible night we could go, and we were so glad we did! We drove over to the other side of the island (near Esperanza) to meet up with Island Adventures, and shared some nachos and a drink before we left on the tour.

The company takes you by bus to Mosquito Bay and then out on an electric pontoon boat (very green). You learn what factors help this bay—and its bioluminescence—to flourish and our guide was pointing out constellations with a hand-held lazer our 5-year-old wanted to steal. In the middle of it, they stop, letting you get out and swim for about 20 minutes. It’s otherworldly…the bioluminescent algae (invisible to the naked eye during daylight hours), glow every time you move. Everyone looks like space aliens and even fish and boat waves glow with a neon blue!

Our kids (13, 10 and 5) were a little nervous about getting in the water at night, especially with jellyfish possibly being about, but we coaxed them in and it is now a favorite memory for them. (No jellyfish stings on our trip, and there were about 40 people!)

Other than that, we hung out for two days at the fantastic Green Beach, where you have a wonderful  view of Puerto Rico. You take a VERY rough dirt road (a 4-wheel drive with good clearance is worth the extra bucks) that isn’t clearly marked, but just keep moving; the good part about an island is that you can’t get too lost! There is lovely snorkeling and beaches here, too. And make sure you pack food and beverages in a cooler so you can settle in and enjoy for hours.  (Lawn chairs and floating devices are nice too.)

We never ate out, electing to make all our own meals. But it was a great stay and one we’d recommend to other families, especially those heading to Puerto Rico. Don’t just stay on PR…venture out to Vieques.

Check out our earlier Puerto Rico trip including an El Yunque adventure!