Image Credit: Wikimedia Commons User Mtmelendez

Five million or so tourists pass through San Juan, Puerto Rico every year, but relatively few bother to stay and look around. Lynn Langway shows them what they’re missing in this vibrant capital city.

San Juan is a city that’s often visited, but seldom seen. Most travelers breeze through its bustling airport to board a cruise ship or a plane that’s going elsewhere. But if they’d only linger, they might experience one of the coolest cities in the Caribbean.

Sightseeing in San Juan

Colonized by Spain in the 1500s, built by African slaves, and administered as a U.S. territory—now commonwealth—since the Spanish-American War, San Juan has become a cosmopolitan melting pot, where all these cultures blend like reggaeton, the infectious  Puerto Rican mix of salsa, reggae and hip-hop.

Over the course of three days and four nights rediscovering a destination we’d zipped through so many times, we found offbeat pleasures—intriguing galleries and museums, imaginative restaurants, invigorating walks—we’d overlooked before, and learned ways to outwit the throngs that can descend when cruise ships dock.

Even return visitors should start their expedition with a walk around Old San Juan, the 500-year-old treasure of cobblestoned streets and plazas on the Western edge of the city that is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

But don’t do what everyone else does and begin at El Morro, the more famous—and crowded—of the two fortified castles that flank this 7-block square area. Instead, hit San Cristóbal, the eastern fortress, by opening time at 9 a.m. and you may even have the fascinating exhibits to yourself. Be sure to see the well-preserved military uniforms and explore the tunnels and dungeons; notice the ship one mutineer etched in the wall while he was awaiting execution.

Image Credit: Wikimedia Commons User Johnnygo

Then you can walk along the city walls, past the deceptively pretty slum of La Perla, to El Morro, to enjoy the panoramic seascapes from the battlements outside; don’t miss the sensationally scenic restrooms, with terraces overlooking the Atlantic breakers below.

Continue to follow the ancient wall down to enter the heart of the city at the San Juan gate and see the medieval-meets-gothic Cathedral, burial place for the city’s founding conquistador, Ponce de Leon.Check out worthwhile museums dedicated to Puerto Rico’s African heritage, and renowned cellist Pablo Casals.

Art & Nature

Or duck out of the sun, as we did, for a tasty lunch of avocado stuffed with fresh tuna at Café el Punto, a local hideaway tucked into a small shopping mall where the walls are covered with prints for sale, and you may well be the only tourists.

For more art appreciation, stroll to two outstanding galleries: Galeria Obra, a sleek showcase of modern art overlooking the bay, and Galeria Botello, where a fountain trickles in the mansion’s courtyard, surrounded by striking collages, paintings and sculptures—and an impressive collection of antique santos, the wooden statues of saints carved by rural folk artists.

If you have a second day, sample some non-urban pleasures. Beaches beckon close to the city, but we opted to drive about 25 miles southeast to El Yunque, the only tropical rainforest in America’s National Park system.

Rangers offer guided walks, but to make it “our own,” we booked a half-day birding tour with Adventours, a nature specialist. Our personable, English-speaking guide, Sergio Colon-Lopez, took us to a vantage point where we could watch red-tailed hawks below circling their prey and courting their mates. We never did spot the elusive, highly endangered Puerto Rican green parrot (except in a portrait at El Portal Visitors’ Center).

But on the nature trail behind the building, bordered by brilliant red and orange ginger and hibiscus, we watched a trio of bright birds flit across our path: two yellow bananquits and a Puerto Rican tody, a tiny whirligig of red, green, yellow and white.

After lunch in the treetop snack bar, we took off on a hike. While you can drive through El Yunque, the most rewarding—and least crowded—way to enjoy it is on foot. There are more than a dozen trails, many less than a mile long; ask the ranger at El Portal to help you choose one that suits your schedule and fitness.

Since it was raining (yes, there’s a good reason to call this a rainforest) we picked a 45-minute hike up to the Mt. Britton Observation Tower. The leaf canopy offers shelter much of the way, though the climb was sometimes steep and slippery. But it was worth it when we stood atop the two-story stone tower.

The peak of El Yunque was still shrouded in mist, but the sky around had cleared so you could see the Atlantic and the Caribbean, all the way to St. Thomas and the two Spanish Virgin Islands: Vieques and Culebra.

Those fortunate enough to have a third day in San Juan can explore city neighborhoods like Santurce, a former industrial zone that’s been evolving into a funky cultural district.  A performing arts center is here, and artists and photographers have been converting old Art Deco buildings into studios.

The hub of the action is the stunning Museo de Arte de Puerto Rico, a remodeled 1920s hospital building that houses paintings, and sculptures from 1500 to today. Be sure to see the provocative modern installations on the second floor, including the recreation of a 1950s barbershop, and the sculpture garden.

You may also want to visit the smaller Museum of Contemporary Art a few blocks away. But we wanted to make it to the nearby Plaza del Mercado before closing time. By day, this is a great place to buy mango, pineapple, and other tropical fruits and veggies … or a straw cowboy hat. But on Thursday and Friday nights, the place turns into a nightlife hotspot, surrounded by dive and dance bars frequented by young San Juaneros. Since this was Saturday afternoon, we settled for a coco frio—chilled coconut milk in the original container—slurped while lounging outside on the giant bronze sculptures of avocados.

Visitors will do well staying in either Old San Juan or new, but we split the difference at a perennial favorite, the Caribe Hilton, which is located in its own tropical gardens between the two. Aging gracefully—with a few nips and tucks—this grande dame boasts a stellar gym where you can watch the waves crash beyond your treadmill, and an open-sided bar that lays claim to concocting the first Pina Colada back in 1954. As early-rising birders, we also appreciated the on-site Starbucks for 5 a.m. breakfasts.

Where to Eat

Image Credit: Wikimedia Commons User MusikAnimal

San Juan serves some of the most inventive cuisine in the Caribbean, and we never had a dull meal. Some notable stops:

Marmalade, a stylish bistro on trendy SoFo (South Fortaleza Street) offers attentive service and terrific list of wines by the glass (try the splendid scallops mojito, accented with coconut, pineapple and rum, and the steam-poached red snapper with baby clams and chorizo).

In Old San Juan, there is Baru, an elegant Spanish tapas restaurant (try halibut Criolla and cloudlike guava cheesecake). As for nightlife, it pulsates all around you in Old San Juan on a Saturday night, where music spills from open bars on every square (and the cops patrol every corner.)

A few minutes from Old San Juan is the hotel-and-casino Condado district, which boasts the Cuban-Puerto Rican Ropa Viejo. Order the flaky little empanaditos, and definitely summon the courage to have the succulent braised goat, which is delicate, not gamy.

The famed Nuyorican Café remains a magnet for its enduring tradition of showcasing live music, spoken word and poetry. For a lesser-known experience, head across the street, to the tiny Café Celeste, known for its jukebox full of old-school salsa.

For more information about visiting Puerto Rico and other parts of the Caribbean, check out:

• Ask the Locals Travel Guide: Puerto Rico
• America’s Gypsy: Puerto Rico In Chicago
• What’s New In Caribbean Travel In 2011
• Birding In Belize On An Independent Shore Excursion

By Lynn Langway for PeterGreenberg.com. Lynn Langway is an award-winning editor, writer and journalism teacher. Visit Lynn on the Web atwww.lynnlangway.com.