We booked this house because it slept so many (even though there are only 9 of us, we wanted bedroom options for teens and families) and because of the pool. As we got closer, a lot of people asked, "Why are you staying in Humacao?" and indeed, it was only because of the house. It turned out to be a great choice though: We got to see much island beauty with none of the tourist trappings of a resort. The house is in a little development. The house directly next door and maybe one or two others are also rentals, but otherwise it is all residents. The people who live there are not as tickled by the beach, so we ended up having that to ourselves the times we walked over. It's startling, looking as far as you can see down a beach in both directions and not seeing any other people! It was wild and natural and beautiful. The development is also in the Humacao Nature Reserve, and taking walks through that each day was a highlight of the trip. It's a beautiful palm forrest with well-marked paths. So all told, I would say the near-rural location is the best part of the rental.
The house itself is good though too. Sam the caretaker is always available with answers and advice, especially on the first day when renters have a million questions. The home is nothing fancy but has everything you need, including strong wifi, and is very comfy. We enjoyed hanging out around the table, in the living room, and especially in the pool. The pool was another highlight of our trip, the 4-year-old ended up getting a lot of water confidence out of her hours spent in there! The pool is kept clean and the outdoor shower was great, not just to wash off but also for the 1-year-old to play in.
We got all of our groceries at the nearby Walmart or Ralph's. There are mall-type shops nearby but we didn't find any cute, local gift shops, and that was fine. We didn't spend extra money! We ate only 4 meals out: One lunch on a day visit to Old San Juan, one lunch at El Yunque, and twice we ate down the street at Restaurante Paseo Playero, which was delicious and featured live local music on the Saturday and the Friday that we visited.
It's about an hour's drive to Old San Juan and also to El Yunque so those were our big excursions, each one taking up a day. I think we may have enjoyed the days we spent just hanging out in the rental even more! We also took an afternoon boat ride with La Paseadora Cruise to Monkey Island and that was a hoot! Highly recommended. Great family vacay!
