IT'S EASY TO GET THERE, AND DOLLARS ARE FINE

                         Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: SUNDAY, February 14, 1993                   TAG: 9302140275
SECTION: HORIZON                    PAGE: F-6   EDITION: METRO  
SOURCE: JEAN CRAMER
DATELINE:                                 LENGTH: Medium
IT'S EASY TO GET THERE, AND DOLLARS ARE FINE
Puerto Rico is the easternmost of the Greater Antilles Islands in the West Indies, with easy access to islands of different cultures. But for this one, take your U.S. dollars and leave your passports at home.
San Juan's Luis Munoz Marin Airport is served by seven U.S. airlines and is an American Airlines hub. There are direct flights from Atlanta, Baltimore, Boston, Chicago, Charlotte, Dallas, Hartford, Miami, Nashville, Newark, New York, Orlando, Philadelphia, Raleigh-Durham, Tampa, Washington D.C., and Los Angeles. American Airlines has initiated direct service from Miami to Ponce.
Cruising from San Juan allows calls at five to six ports in seven days. Twenty-one cruise lines are home-based here.
The one million U.S. citizens of the modern capital city of San Juan speak Spanish first and English second. Their economy has been strengthened by an influx of high-tech equipment and pharmaceutical companies. This is a real metropolis with attendant traffic problems, not just a tourist getaway.
The climate is tropical with little variation year round. The average temperature is 78 degrees. In San Juan rain falls for about an hour every day from August through October, but no one bothers with a raincoat or umbrella. The south coast is hotter and drier, and the mountains can be very wet.
Accommodations in San Juan cover the waterfront in price and style. Beachfront, luxury hotels such as the El San Juan Hotel and Casino in the Isla Verde district near the airport, Condada Plaza, and the Caribe Hilton in Old Town (which claims to have invented the pina colada) offer rates from about $240-$395 double as well as special packages.
The historic Gran Hotel El Convento (a former Carmelite convent) and luxurious Casa San Jose (a restored 17th century mansion) in Old Town charge $150-$200 and $180-$200 respectively with suites (and special packages) available. More modest hotels (some under $60) and guest houses are available, and the list of new hotels and mega-resorts keeps growing.
In Ponce, a new 156-room Hilton on La Guancha Beach will open this winter with year round rates from $140-$160 double.
Out on the island, government-sponsored paradores are located in historic or scenic areas. There are 15 of these basic country inns, which are modestly priced ($38 to $96 double) and serve only native cuisine. All the paradores and 30 other restaurants are classed as Mesones Gastronomicos, specializing in Puerto Rico's own blend of Spanish, African and Indian cookery.
For further information contact Paradores of Puerto Rico, (800) 443-0266 from the United States or (800) 462-7575 outside San Juan.
For general information contact Puerto Rico Tourism Co., in New York, 575 Fifth Ave., 23rd Floor, New York, NY 10017, (212) 599-6262 or (800) 223-6530; in Miami, 200 S.E. First St., Suite 700, Miami, FL 33131, (305) 381-8915. To order brochures, call 1-800-STAR, ext. 55.
Be sure to request a free copy of "Que Pasa," the official visitors' guide.
Memo: ***CORRECTION***

by Archana Subramaniam by CNB