Balneario de Boquerón

The Puerto Rican government runs this public beach on Boquerón Bay, and Puerto Ricans will tell you — firmly, with no ambiguity — that it belongs in the same conversation as Luquillo for best on the island. The Foundation for Environmental Education has awarded it Blue Flag status, which means the water quality earns it. Next door, El Poblado closes its streets on weekends and the karaoke spills out into the open air. Local tradition holds that the pirate Roberto Cofresí hid treasure somewhere just north of the bay. No one has found it.