[Stash]

Thinking about spending a week in PR, only been there for a weekend and liked it but not sure I want to spend a week there.

Couple questions:

Are there beaches with white sand and water turquoise like other parts of the Caribbean?

Any timeshare or condos with nice resort style pools (with the white sand beaches near buy)? Thinking of some of the pools we have seen in the Riviera Maya area.

Would we be better served by using PR as a jump off point to another island? We are trying to keep the costs low so another ~$250 pp flight would kill the budget, but a cheap ferry would be ok.

Thanks...

[Vieques and Culebra]

The nicest white-sand beaches in Puerto Rico are on Vieques and Culebra (the better on Culebra). Otherwise, you may be disappointed with most of Puerto Rico's beaches.

A ferry to Vieques or Culebra is neglible in terms of cost, but you will have to rent a car (preferably a jeep) to explore either island since the good beaches are not developed. And there are no large resorts on either island right now (a new W hotel will open sometime in Vieques, but it seems as if it's been under construction for about 2 years now, and the opening date has been pushed back yet again; it's also not on the greatest beach).

The best beaches near timeshares that I am aware of are those at the Hyatt Hacienda del Mar in Dorado (west of San Juan). They also have an extensive lazy river pool. There's nothing else comparable on the island that I'm aware of, at least not a timeshare.

[San Juan]

In San Juan (Isla Verde / Condado) beaches are more like Miami. Best beach closest to San Juan would be Luquillo, but as others have said best beaches are on the two islands of Culebra and Vieques