Charco Azul — Attraction in Vega Baja

Unforgettable Experience — A Must-Do in Puerto Rico!!!

Our trip to Puerto Rico was filled with incredible memories, but the Arenales Cave, Charco Azul, and Hidden Waterfalls Tour led by Edward and Fabiana was hands-down the highlight of our entire visit. After gathering everyone’s feedback from our group, it was unanimous, this was the standout experience!

From the very beginning, Edward and Fabiana were phenomenal hospitable people of character, guides and now friends. Their deep knowledge of the area, local flora and fauna, and cultural history added a layer of richness that made the adventure even more meaningful. From exploring the mystical caves and spotting the bats, to learning about the wild fruits growing on the land, to swimming in hidden pools and even cliff jumping, every moment was exciting, surreal, and beautifully immersive.

The natural beauty we were able to witness on this tour was breathtaking, and the entire experience was not only adventurous but also incredibly well-organized. The ice-cold refreshments provided were perfect for staying cool and hydrated throughout the hike.

If I had one suggestion, even thought the locally flavored ices were awesome, it would be great to consider adding a few light food options at the end of the tour, maybe some local finger foods, potentially sandwiches, or local sweet fried plantains to refuel after all the excitement! That would really round out an already amazing day.

This tour exceeded all expectations on every level, and we’re already planning to explore more Get Your Guide experiences in Puerto Rico the next time we visit, especially anything that includes caves, waterfalls, and more of Edward and Fabiana’s outstanding leadership. Highly...

This is a must see place!! It is absolutely beautiful and unique. We followed the google maps navigation and found it easily. Read people's description of finding it. You will leave the main road to follow a very narrow 1 lane road thru a mountain/residential area. Just go slow, because its windy and some ppl speed. Navigation said we "arrived" when we turned into a small road, that looked like a driveway, with just a grass area, that looked downhill. You can drive to down that hill, youll come to a few houses. The middle one (bright green colored) is where the private parking was. Definitely park your car there. It was $3. From there, you will head to the left, to a fork in the road, there is a sign that said "rio" (means river). Take the right fork. Youll walk about 10 mins down a very steep hill. There are about 6 parking spots at the bottom, but i would just park in the person's yard, so your car is somewhat safe. And that steep road only has enough room for 1 car, so if another car comes, one of you would be going in reverse on a very steep road. Just pay to park. At the bottom of the hill is a large, graffiti covered water/pump system. Youll follow the road to the left after that. Only a couple mins more and youll get to the river and a graffiti box/crane kinda thing. Thats not it. Go to the right up a little hill, youll cross a very shallow part of the creek twice, go a min or so more. Then you get to the base of the river. You can swim upstream, just barely up to the caves, or you can cross the river to the right side, and youll be across from the caves. Or on the left side is a little, muddy trail that takes you right to the caves. Its very beautiful, calm refreshing water, smooth rocks and...

This place is unreal, and totally doable with kids-we took our 7 and 9 year old boys who are great swimmers. Lots of cliff jumping at many different levels into deep water (at least when we went yesterday) The rock formations and river running through take your breath away-I enjoyed just sitting and taking in the scenery as much as I enjoyed swimming in the refreshing water and jumping in from the rocks. We went on a Sunday, arriving around 11-it was pretty empty! Come 2-3pm teenagers started rolling in and smoking lots of weed. Earlier is best with families for sure-weekdays probably even better.

Getting there: doable without a tour or a guide! Follow the directions on Google Maps. You’ll first come to a sign that says “Rio” and points down and to the left, and group of houses on the right that charge $5 for parking on their property, which is where we parked (see photo). If you were to drive down and to the left at the Rio sign, the road will turn from blacktop to white concrete, and there are maybe 5-6 spots along the concrete road along right side. Beware that after these spots, the concrete road/path dips down steep and this is where you should not drive without a 4x4. (See photos).

We have been to PR countless times and this may be the highlight of all we have seen....