Touching down at Mayaguez Eugenio Maria de Hostos Airport in Mayaguez keeps you central, with surrounding cities and sights an easy drive away. Mayaguez is the main city of Puerto Rico's west coast, a college town and port with a grand plaza and a strong local pride. It moves at a friendlier pace than San Juan, and it makes a great base for exploring the island's western corner.

Standout experiences around Mayaguez: - Stroll Plaza Colon, with its bronze lamps, statues, and the cathedral at one end - Catch a show at the restored Teatro Yaguez, an ornate early 1900s theater - Visit the Dr. Juan A. Rivero Zoo, the island's main zoo - Grab a slice of brazo gitano, the jelly roll cake Mayaguez is famous for - Eat fresh seafood at the restaurants along the Joyuda strip to the south - Surf or watch the big winter swells in Rincon - Walk the red-rock cliffs at the Cabo Rojo lighthouse and the pink salt flats nearby - Tour a coffee farm in the cool mountains around Maricao

Mayaguez sits within easy reach of the west's best spots. Rincon, the surf town known for its sunsets, is about half an hour north, and San German, one of the island's oldest towns with its tiny Porta Coeli church, is about the same distance south. Boqueron and its weekend seafood kiosks lie just beyond Cabo Rojo, and the Guanica dry forest is an hour away. Locals cheer loudly for their baseball team, the Indios de Mayaguez, and the city's annual fiestas fill the plaza with music. Come for the food and the sunsets, and stay for the easy west coast rhythm.