Porta del Sol


Porta del Sol, or simply West Region, is a tourism region in western Puerto Rico. Porta del Sol was the first tourism region to be established by the Puerto Rico Tourism Company. It consists of 17 municipalities in the western area: Quebradillas, Isabela, San Sebastián, Moca, Aguadilla, Aguada, Rincón, Añasco, Mayagüez, Las Marías, Maricao, Hormigueros, San Germán, Sabana Grande, Guánica, Lajas and Cabo Rojo.

History

The Porta del Sol tourism region was designated in 2003 and officially launched on December 20, 2005, by the Puerto Rico Tourism Company by decree of Law No. 158. The name of the region, Porta del Sol, references both the historic church of Porta Coeli and the famous scenic sunsets that can be seen along the western coast of Puerto Rico. The name Porta was later adapted into the names of other tourism regions of the island such as Porta Caribe and Porta Cordillera.
Before the official establishment of the tourism region, towns such as Rincón and Aguadilla attracted many Puerto Rican visitors. Paradores, small historic inns or bed and breakfasts, were established by the government of Luis A. Ferré in 1973 in order to boost the tourism industry of Puerto Rico outside of San Juan. Many paradores opened in the region since then, such as Parador Villa Parguera which was founded by comedian Henry LaFont. The fishing village of La Parguera has become a popular tourist attraction due to its seafood and opportunities for boating, and for its proximity to natural attractions such as Bahía Fosforescente, a bay with bioluminescence caused by the dinoflagellate Pyrodinium bahamense, one of the seven year-round bioluminescent bays in the Caribbean.
Porta del Sol has also developed into a world-class destination for surfing. Since 2000, Rafael Hernández Airport has expanded its passenger service into and from destinations such as New York, Newark, Orlando and Tampa, making Porta del Sol more accessible to visitors from outside of Puerto Rico, and it was designated a "free trade zone" on February 20, 2012 by the United States Department of Commerce.
Porta del Sol was affected by Hurricane Maria in 2017. The tourism of the region was also greatly affected by the 2019–2020 Puerto Rico earthquakes, particularly the January 7 earthquake measuring 6.4 with an epicenter in the municipality of Guánica. These earthquakes destroyed important tourist attractions such as the Punta Ventana natural arch in the municipality of Guayanilla, in addition to causing up to $3.1 billion in damages across southwestern Puerto Rico, greatly affecting the infrastructure in the tourism regions of Porta del Sol and Porta Caribe.
Dr. Juan A. Rivero Zoo of Puerto Rico, commonly known as Mayagüez Zoo and operated by the Puerto Rico Department of Natural and Environmental Resources, used to be the largest and only zoo of its type in Puerto Rico until its closure in the aftermath of Hurricane Maria in 2017. The zoo had previously been cited for its inhumane treatment of animals, which was one of the reasons its federal permits were revoked by the U.S. Department of Agriculture and was consequently permanently closed in 2023 by the U.S. Department of Justice. All species were relocated to animal sanctuaries across the United States, and the site of the zoo remains unused but still owned by the DRNA.

Attractions

Beaches and swimming

Agritourism

The Luis Muñoz Marín Panoramic Route, or simply known as Ruta Panorámica, is a scenic route and heritage trail that crosses the mountainous area of Porta del Sol from west to east. Although more often associated with the Porta Cordillera region, the route traverses the Porta del Sol municipalities of Mayagüez, Las Marías, Maricao, San Germán and Sabana Grande. The route, consisting of a network of at least 40 secondary roads, traverses the entirety of Puerto Rico from east to west and provides access to a number of tourist attractions located throughout Porta del Sol such as the Maricao State Forest.
The Porta del Sol Sagrado tourist route is a theme route and heritage trail created by the Puerto Rico Tourism Company in collaboration with the Pontifical Catholic University of Puerto Rico in 2016 to advertise the cultural and historic religious heritage of the region. The heritage trail follows a driving route centered on the landmarks of Porta Coeli in the San Germán Historic District, the Central Presbyterian Church of Mayagüez and the Ermita de Espinar in Aguada. This was the third religious heritage trail created by the government of Puerto Rico after the Carlos Manuel Rodríguez Route in Caguas and the San Juan Bautista Route in Old San Juan.
The Puerto Rico Alien Route is a municipal tourist route located on a section of PR-303 in the municipality of Lajas due to the high number of UFO sightings in the area. The route was officially proclaimed by Marcos “Turín” Irizarry Pagán, mayor of Lajas, on April 9, 2005. and an unofficial sign marking the start of the route was installed by farmer Francisco Negrón and it remains a popular cultural landmark of the area.

Transportation

Two airports with commercial service connect the area to other cities in Puerto Rico and the world, these being Rafael Hernandez Airport in Aguadilla with services on five passenger airlines from Florida and the New York metropolitan area as well as some cargo airlines, and Eugenio Maria de Hostos Airport in Mayagüez, with local flights to San Juan.