driving in Puerto Rico

[ozarkmama]

Is it really horrible? I have read a couple of articles that state it is pretty bad. Wondering if we should go ahead with a rental car or make another choice?

[swheels]

We are arriving 3 days per cruise and decided to rent a car. I will let you know when we return on Oct 5. We are driving to the rainforest and the bio bay excursions

[donr]

Hi,

I've rented a car and driven in San Juan a couple of times, and it is a challenge. Think Boston on Steroids! People thing nothing of turning right from the left lane and vice-versa. There are a lot of one way streets, lots of red lights, the street signs are sometime there, sometime not, and because of a language problem if you get lost, it can get sort of difficult. Consider it a life adventure and go for it! It's really no worse than driving in a congested city in the US that you're not familiar with, except for the language situation.

Also figure on paying for parking, the streets are pretty congested, especially Old San Juan.

[alfaeric]

the farther away from San Juan you get, the better it is to drive. We've done it quite a bit, and while you do have to really pay attention, it's not like other islands- more like a very impatient big city.

 

in heavy traffic on the autopista (freeway), people will pass you on the shoulder. Just let it happen.

 

It's very much worth the effort to see stuff outside of San Juan.

[Nole0202]

We have drove around the island twice and can attest that the roads are pretty much in excellent condition and the drivers curtious. Just do not drive in OSJ because parking is very limited.

[ozarkmama]

thanks for the replies. I appreciate all the information.

[monicajay]

We have done 3 one week land vacations to Puerto Rico. All included a 7 day car rental. I think the comparison to Boston traffic is a good one. As I drive in Montreal (also a crazy city) it was doable and well worth the parts of the island we were able to see. They do not understand the left lane for passing thing on the Interstates so lots of weaving around. Also, not much use of signals so you always need to be ready for the unexpected.

 

So I guess your decision to rent or not should depend on your experience and comfort level in some of the busier North American cities.

 

Parking in Old San Juan is a bit of a pain but we always found something.

[alfaeric]

one other odd note- the police have their lights on ALL THE TIME. Not bad when you are used to it, but the new high intensity LED's are horrible in the fog. One of the passes on the autopista is commonly foggy, and a cop passed us on the way up. Just blinding in that situation.

 

Anyway, don't pull over.

[Alexlee]

HI!!! I live in Puerto Rico and yes it can be a little crazy in the "autopista" lol especially in the "area metro" As someone said the further you are from San Juan, Carolina, Bayamon, Guaynabo... and all the close towns, you'll be ok lol

A lot of the streets are always under construction and its a little hectic at times and yes a lot of sighs are not there so even using a GPS can be bad.... But I say go for it and enjoy seeing all of the beauty's that this island has to share!!!

[Lily14]

It's funny that a couple of people used Boston for comparison, because my first thought when I read the title of this thread was "it wasn't as bad as Boston". I echo the comments about outside of San Juan not being bad at all. In San Juan, just be aware and anticipate the crazy behavior. I much prefer doing the driving to riding in a taxi WITH one of the crazy drivers that makes left turns from the right lane. And yes, that did happen to us, and right after he made the turn he said "Puerto Ricans are terrible drivers".