Things to do in Ponce
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Museo de Arte de Ponce (Map)
With an expertly presented collection, this commanding art museum is the vibrant heart of the city’s artistic community, easily among the best fine-arts centers in the Caribbean and itself worth the trip from San Juan. Set across from Universidad Católica, about 10 blocks to the south of Plaza Las Delicias, the museum’s expertly curated collection – some 850 paintings, 800 sculptures and 500 prints – represents five centuries of Western art that was donated in large part by former governor Luis Ferré. While typical museum etiquette applies, the intimate spaces are loaded with works presented in a fully bilingual manner, and visitors can get up close and personal to take i…
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Plaza Las Delicias
The soul of Ponce is its idyllic Spanish colonial plaza, Plaza Las Delicias, within which stands two of the city's landmark buildings, Parque de Bombas and Catedral Nuestra Señora de Guadalupe.
At any hour of the day a brief stroll around its border will get you well acquainted with Ponce - the smell of panderias (bakeries) follows churchgoers across the square each morning, children squeal around the majestic Fuente de Leones (Fountain of Lions) under the heat of midday, and lovers stroll under its lights at night.
Even as the kiosks selling lottery tickets and trinkets, the commercial banks and the fast-food joints encroach at the edges (a Burger King and a Church's mar…
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Island Ventures
You can reach Isla Caja de Muertos through Island Ventures. The name - which translates to Coffin Island - seems cribbed from the script from a swashbuckling adventure flick, but the big lizards here run a lazy show, trotting across dusty, cacti-lined trails and over the mangrove marsh. The morbid moniker itself even has a tame origin; it's thought to have come from an 18th-century French author's observation that the island's silhouette looked like a body in a casket.
But the opportunity for a refreshing, day-long escape from the congestion of Ponce is key, starting with some of the best snorkeling around and plenty of tranquil, if somewhat rocky stretches of beach. Day …
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Museo de la Música Puertorriqueña
This spacious pink villa designed by Juan Bertoli Calderoni, father of Puerto Rico’s neoclassical style, offers Ponce’s best museum experience, and is a must for those interested in the sound of the island. A guided tour of the museum showcases the development of Puerto Rico’s music, allowing hands-on demonstrations of the island’s indigenous instruments. The collection of Taíno, African and Spanish instruments – especially the handcrafted four-string guitar-like cuatros and three-sting trios – and careful explanation of Puerto Rican musical traditions are highlights. The museum also hosts a three-week seminar on drum building in July, and holds traditional con…
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La Guancha Paseo Tablado
One of Ponce's most successful urban beautification projects of the last couple decades was the boardwalk La Guancha Paseo Tablado, commonly known as 'La Guancha,' which lies about 3 miles south of the city center near the relatively lonely Ponce Hilton. Built in the mid-1990s, it's a haven for picnicking families and strolling couples to watch yachts slide in and out of the harbor.
Its chief points of interest include a concert pavilion, a handful of open-air bars and food kiosks, a couple of fine-dining restaurants, a well-kempt public beach and a humble observation tower. Monday and Tuesday are slow, but on the weekends the place picks up with a breezy, festive atmosph…
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Parque De Bombas
Ponceños will claim that the eye-popping Parque De Bombas is Puerto Rico's most frequently photographed building - not too hard to believe as you stroll around the black-and-red-striped Arabian-style edifice and make countless, unwitting cameos in family photo albums. Originally constructed in 1882 as an agricultural exhibition hall, the space later housed the city's volunteer firefighters, who are commemorated in a small, tidy exhibit on the open second floor.
Since 1990, the landmark has had a perfect function as a tourist information center - even the most hapless touristo can't miss it - where a pleasant, bilingual staff will sell you tickets for a trolley and point …
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Cruceta El Vigía
The 100ft reinforced-concrete Cruceta El Vigía looking over Ponce is one of the city’s more reliable points of orientation. The site was first used for a similar purpose in the 19th century, when the Spanish Crown posted lookouts here to watch for smuggling along the coast. Today, the site is on shared grounds with the Museo Castillo Serrallés and a scrubby Japanese garden, but it still offers an expansive view. The $3 elevator ride to the top is optional; the view is probably better in the open air at the base, without the hazy obstruction of grubby Plexiglas windows.
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Museo de la Historia de Ponce
This history museum is extensive for a city of less than 200,000, more evidence of Ponce’s reverence for history. Located in the 1911 Casa Salazar, on the same block as Teatro La Perla, the museum has 10 galleries displaying centuries of the city’s history in ecology, economy, education, architecture, medicine, politics and daily life. A refreshingly Ponce-centric perspective on the development of Puerto Rican culture, the building itself is an architectural treasure that blends typical ponceño criollo detailing with Moorish and neoclassical elements.
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Museo Castillo Serrallés
Try a tour of Museo Castillo Serrallés on the same property as the mammoth cross. Docents lead bilingual walking tours dedicated to the Serrallés, the first family of Puerto Rican rum, and their Moorish-style castle. When the somewhat exhausting hour-plus tour ends there aren’t freebie sips of the king-making product, but you can order snacks and drinks at the café and relax on the terrace under the red-tiled roof, enjoying a view of the city below and the quiet burble of the garden’s fountains. A combo ticket with Cruceta El Vigía costs $9.50.
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Casa Alcaldía
Facing Plaza Las Delicias on the south side of the plaza, Ponce’s current city hall started life in the 1840s as a general assembly house but soon became a jail. The last public hanging on the island happened in its courtyard, where you can see galleries that were formerly cells. The building has been Ponce’s civic center for most of the 20th century; its balcony has seen speeches by four US presidents – Teddy Roosevelt, Herbert Hoover, Franklin Roosevelt and George HW Bush. The waggish head of Carnaval, El Rey Momo, also makes his pronouncements from here.
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Pontificia Universidad Católica de Puerto Rico
This Catholic university sits behind an arch on the south side of Av Las Américas, across from the art museum. It serves about 10,000 students with programs in all major undergraduate disciplines and a law school. While this is a commuter campus (like almost all universities on the island), its students shape Ponce’s nightlife. While the draw for travelers to visit here is somewhat limited, when school’s in session the grounds offer a bustling scene in pleasant contrast to quiet afternoons spent in the city’s museums.
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Nueva Plaza Del Mercado
Winding through crowds of shoppers on Paseo Atocha will lead you to the city’s most exciting indoor market, four blocks north of the Plaza. The selection of produce – freshly hacked off the vine – is marvelous, and can be complimented by less healthful options like cheapie sweets and fried snacks, as well as lottery tickets. Just up the block, the slightly more crowded Mercade Juan Ponce de León has stalls hocking pan-religious voodoo charms and salsa tunes on vintage vinyl platters, reconditioned boots and hand-rolled cigars.
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Teatro La Perla
The stately, 1000-seat Teatro La Perla stages theatrical and musical performances. The columned entrance, designed by Calderoni, the father of Puerto Rico’s neoclassical style and designer of the Museo de la Música Puertorriqueña, was completed in the 1860s. It took 20 years to rebuild after the disastrous 1918 earthquake, but has since played a crucial role in the city’s performing arts world, only underscored by the construction of the Instituto de Musica Juan More Campos, a music conservatory, across the street.
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Catedral Nuestra Señora de Guadalupe
The twin bell towers of this cathedral cast an impression of piety over the plaza, even as young punks gather to show off skate tricks on its steps. The structure was built in 1931, in the place where colonists erected their first chapel in the 1660s, which (along with subsequent structures) succumbed to earthquakes and fires. Its stained glass windows and lovely interior are picturesque, but be mindful of the fact that this is a fully functioning church, with a number of daily services.
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Cesar’s Comida Criolla
The ultimate hole-in-the-wall for comida criolla (traditional Puerto Rican cuisine), this humble joint might be rough around the edges, but the savory piles of pork, chicken and seafood (most served with rice and beans) are the city’s best home cookin’. If you can’t choose from the daily offerings scrawled on the chalkboard, ask Cesar and his wife Freda; they might even walk you back to the kitchen to glimpse in the steaming vats of bliss.
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Mark’s at the Meliá
Long regarded as Ponce’s final word in fine dining, the cozily lit (though somewhat stuffy) restaurant within the Meliá Hotel has been lauded in every foodie magazine on the island for comida criolla treated to ‘French’ technique. Though more inventive newcomers threaten Chef Mark French’s place at the top of Ponce’s food chain, this is the place for upscale mofongo (mashed plantains), or try the salmon plates ($25).
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Las Tias
This bilevel restaurant and lounge has an ideal corner spot and big balconies, making for exciting people-watching. The elegant French colonial atmosphere – wicker chairs and lazily turning fans – is backed up by a haute spin on regional dishes. The food alone makes it the best fine dining in the city center, even if the unhurried service and the atmosphere still need a little polish. The key lime cheesecake is killer.
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King’s Cream
On a pleasantly warm evening, lines stretch down the sidewalk at this excellent local institution, located across from Parque de Bombas. Within the smooth blended tropical licks are big chunks of pineapple, coconut, almond and passion-fruit, which come piled high for just over $1. If the line is too long, seek out the other location a few blocks north of the plaza on Calle Vives, between Calles Union and Marina.
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La Perla Del Sur
This chipper little bar attracts a crowd of amiable older gents who leisurely push pool balls around the table and practice their English swear words when nothing drops. The drinks are about as cheap as they come (a Medalla will set you back $1.50), making cheerful exchanges of rounds common. There’s no phone and the hours are random, but it’s usually open from about noon to dinner time.
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Rincón Argentino
With tinkling piano, soft lights and heavy palm fronds, this is one of the more romantic options in town, as long as mosquitoes aren’t feasting on diners who choose to sit on the patio. The mains veer toward slabs of garlicky red meat in a grilled Argentine preparation, but chicken, seafood and pasta creations round out the menu. It also boasts a lengthy wine list.
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Bar Code
This dance club is sweaty and riotous on the weekends, bringing in Ponce’s young and restless who tend to drink like fish, dance like dogs (the local term for a distinctive step) and party like every animal in between. Beware the Wasikoki, a five rum concoction that’s served out of jugs. Expect a thorough security check at the door.
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Café de Tomás
A lunch line hovers at this down-home eatery to see what’s coming out of the kitchen, usually a reliable assortment of comida criolla, many of which cost less than $7. Within the heavy French doors of the adjoining Tompy’s there’s similarly tasty food with sit-down service, tablecloths and slightly higher prices.
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Utopia
Selling colorful vejigantes (masks), santos (small carved figurines representing saints) souvenirs and Puerto Rican trinkets, Utopia is the nicest souvenir shop on the square. The bonus? The little bar up front will sell six-packs of beer to go, the only such place on the plaza.
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Candy & Magazine Store
This small shop has some dusty magazines (with an amusingly random assortment of English language titles including Mountain Biker ) and one computer with a printer and limited internet access (about $3 per 30 minutes). It ain’t much, but it’s easily found downtown.
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Edan Deli & Juice Bar
This bright lunch counter sits in the back of an organic grocery store, offering veggie and vegan salads and sandwiches and fresh organic juices. It’s only open for lunch, but the store keeps longer hours (8am to 6pm) and has the city’s best supply of natural foods.
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