Introducing Puerto Rico

Discover international travel for the over 50's and take a trip to visit the sites of Puerto Rico.

Hi there, I’m George Bauer in the Atlantic Ocean at Puerto Rico. Off to the east, the Virgin Islands. Off to the west, the Dominican Republic on the Island of Hispaniola. But we’re going to focus this week on Puerto Rico. It’s an island somewhat divided. Some people want it to become the 51st of the US States. Others would like complete independence and still others like things just the way they are now. Puerto Rico is 100 miles long or 160 km and 35 miles wide 56 km. It’s about three times bigger than the state of Rhode Island. It is a modern, progressive and industrialized island. Tourism is a key industry. There are three smaller islands off the coast. Mona to the west, is a wildlife preserve. Culebra and Vieques are east. They have become new tourist destinations. All three are accessible by ferry from the main island. Four million people live in Puerto Rico, two million others have left the island for the United States. It’s said that there are more Puerto Ricans in New York City than in San Juan. This is one crowded island. If you put four million people together on a small island, it leads to population density. In fact, Puerto Rico is the second most densely populated place on earth after Bangladesh. You can see how close together the houses are. The north of the island gets more rain and is more humid especially in summer. Parts of southern and southwestern Puerto Rico resembled desert. Winter is high season here when prices are steepest and from June to November the island is on hurricane.