These places are the icons – the sights nearly every visitor sees at least once when visiting Puerto Rico. Most are in the San Juan metro area or a short drive.
| Attraction | Image | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Old San Juan (Viejo San Juan) |  |
Seven square blocks of blue cobblestone streets, pastel colonial buildings, and 500 years of continuous history – one of the best-preserved Spanish colonial cities in the Americas. |
| Castillo San Felipe del Morro (El Morro) |  |
A 16th-century Spanish fortress guarding San Juan Bay, with sweeping Atlantic views and a UNESCO World Heritage designation shared with the rest of the city’s fortifications. |
| Castillo San Cristóbal |  |
The largest fortification the Spanish built in the Americas – connected to El Morro by the original city wall. |
| Camuy River Cave Park |  |
The third-largest cave system in the Western Hemisphere; guided trolley-and-walking tours through vast limestone chambers. |
| Bioluminescent Bays |  |
Mosquito Bay (Vieques), Laguna Grande (Fajardo), and La Parguera (Lajas) – see Ecotourism for how to visit responsibly. |
| El Yunque National Forest |  |
The only tropical rainforest in the U.S. National Forest System, and the island’s single most-visited natural attraction. |
See Puerto Rican Landmarks for the deeper, town-by-town list, and Trip Itineraries to sequence these into a trip.