[Need an exotic getaway that's simple to pull off? Getaway Girl® Casey Wohl is back with a tantalizing account of her trip to Puerto Rico. After reading this, you'll want to give it a try too!]

By Casey Wohl

For a summer Girls Getaway, my girlfriend and I decided to experience Puerto Rico.  With great air deals from the U.S. mainland, this English-speaking country requires no passport and you don’t have to worry about exchanging currency. We arrived in Puerto Rico late Friday night, so we were thrilled to wake up Saturday morning to an awesome view of the pool and beach from our room at the Marriott San Juan Resort & Stellaris Casino (www.Marriott.com/San-Juan). After a few hours of beach and pool time, we made our way to the spa for afternoon massages.  After a few unsuccessful attempts at the slot machines, we headed to Old San Juan for the Sofo Culinary Festival. The streets were packed with people sampling delicious cuisine, festive cocktails and enjoying live music and street performers.

We made our way to a restaurant called Marmalade (www.MarmaladePR.com), which is located on Fortaleza Street. We ordered a Pomegranate Martini and a Mojito, as well as Paella Bytes, Baby Field Greens with Honey Passion Fruit Vinaigrette, Tiny White Bean Soup with Black Truffle Oil, and Ceviche. Everything was absolutely amazing! I now have a new favorite restaurant. This place is a “must-visit” during your time in Puerto Rico.  Chef Peter Schintler, originally from Iowa, has been all over the world studying and preparing amazing food. He currently brings his extraordinary flair for exquisite and creative cuisine to Old San Juan. Thank you for one of my favorite meals to date. Many thanks to Rob for his impeccable service and wonderful recommendations.

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On Sunday, we rented a car from Charlie Car Rental (across from our hotel) and drove to El Yunque (www.ElYunque.com), a nearby rainforest located southeast of San Juan. It was nice to see other parts of the country besides the city. Compared to other countries, Puerto Rico is fairly Americanized. We saw many familiar businesses, almost everyone speaks English and the dollar is used here.

Once we arrived at El Yunque, we ate lunch at Yuquiyu Delights, an outdoor cafe that served hamburgers, hot dogs and pizza, as well as authentic Puerto Rican food (I tried the alcapurrias, which are plantains filled with ground beef or crab meat). After lunch, we hiked the Trail Bano de Oro, which was about a 30 minute hike through the rainforest. The tropical foliage was beautiful and the hike was just long enough to allow us to stretch our legs before getting back into the car. After our visit to the rainforest, we plan to drive further south to Humacao to visit my friends Nina and Nicole.

We met up with the girls after our rainforest visit. We had wine, appetizers, dinner and great conversations at their condo in Palmas Del Mar. After dinner we decided to attend a “foam party” at the local hangout, the Sugar Cube.  Manolo (the bar owner, not the shoe) insisted we start with his infamous strawberry rum shots. It was downhill from there, but we enjoyed the crazy foam (more like bubbles) that filled the establishment and covered the walls.   

On Monday, we spent time in Old San Juan and saw some sights.  I enjoyed our time in Columbus Square and learned about Christopher Columbus’ significance to Puerto Rico. My only complaint about our Girls Getaway to Puerto Rico is that we didn’t have more time to explore everything this great island has to offer.  Oh darn…we will have to go back again! 

Casey Wohl, The Getaway Girl™, is the author of the Girls Getaway Guide travel book series. Her third book, the Girls Getaway Guide to Nashville: Leave Your Baggage at Home™ will be published in Summer 2009.  For more information, visit www.GirlsGetawayGuide.net.