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This summer, Puerto Rico is about to experience a superboom of visitors rarely, if ever, before seen by its residents—and it’s all thanks to Bad Bunny. On July 11, the island’s homegrown superstar kicked off a series of consecutive weekend shows at the José Miguel Agrelot Coliseum in San Juan, which he has dubbed his “No Me Quiero Ir de Aquí” (meaning I Don’t Wanna Leave Here) residency. Bad Bunny will grace the stage at El Choli, as the venue is known, weekly every Friday through Sunday over the course of three months, wrapping up his home run on September 14 before setting out on a world tour across Latin America, Europe, Asia, and Australia.
While tickets for the first nine shows were sold to locals only—proof of Puerto Rican residency was required for all 125,000 tickets purchased—beginning on August 1 visitors will be welcome to the 21 remaining dates. Variety magazine reports that the forthcoming influx of visitors is estimated to generate nearly $200 million in revenue for the island.
And yet the focal point of Bad Bunny’s latest album, DeBí TiRAR MáS FOToS, (meaning I Should Have Taken More Photos) is Puerto Rico’s fight to maintain its cultural identity and history amid its rapid gentrification by affluent outsiders and corporate interests. In the song “Turista,” for example, Benito compares a frosty ex-lover to that of a tourist in a foreign land. “En mi vida fuiste turista / Tú solo viste lo mejor de mí,” he sings, lamenting that she was never curious enough to fully capture his emotional complexity.
If you’re a true Bad Bunny fan who is new to Puerto Rico, you probably don’t want to be one of those turistas. Coming to Puerto Rico is your chance to dig into the island that Benito sings about so affectionately—and direct your money to the spots that give it soul. Below, consider this a winding roadmap to the themes that he sings about, in or near San Juan, paired with essential songs from the new album to soundtrack your visit. To quote one of the superstar’s favorite sayings: welcome to the calentón!
For more recommendations, read our full travel guide to Puerto Rico here, which includes:
- How to Spend 72 Hours in San Juan
- The Best Hotels in Puerto Rico
- The Best Restaurants in Puerto Rico
- The Best Bars in Puerto Rico
Bacoa Finca y Fogón restaurant
This farm-to-table restaurant is tucked away in the town of Juncos, which lies outside El Yunque: the island’s famed tropical rainforest, and the only one of its kind in the US National Forest System. “Eighty-five percent of what we consume here in Puerto Rico is from the US, so we want to do the opposite of that here,” says Raúl Correa, one of the restaurant’s three chef-owners, who adds that they source ingredients from Bacoa’s neighboring 3.4-acre farm. The Arroz Jaquita, inspired by the rice-and-beans blend of mamposteao, makes for a hearty post-hike meal: this one is composed of rice, beans, bacon, pork rinds, blood sausage sofrito, and an egg cooked sunny-side-up.
Recommended listening: “Lo Que Pasó a Hawaii.” Bad Bunny wrote this as a somber yet urgent plea to protect Puerto Rico’s land and resources from exploitation—and the song features the sound of the coquí, a tiny diva of a frog whose chirps are beloved to islanders—but begrudged by clueless tourists. If you reserve a table after sunset, expect to be greeted with a resounding chorus of coquís.
The beaches
There is much debate about Puerto Rico's best beaches—but which ones suit your needs? If you’re looking for surf lessons, Luquillo Beach is a hot spot; those seeking a low-effort bake in the sun may prefer Ocean Park. Terraplen La Posita de Piñonesin Loíza is a family-friendly playa protected by a natural rock wall, so less-advanced swimmers are free to splash in the crystal clear waters sans dangerous rip currents. More adventurous Bad Bunny fans may enjoy the scenic 2.5 hour drive to the western shore of Playa Añasco, where Bad Bunny filmed visuals for his 2022 album, Un Verano Sin Ti.
Recommended listening: “Weltita.” Featuring the coastal Latin jazz band Chuwi, this song pairs well with a lazy beach day.
Café Con Ron
On Calle San Sebastián resides a once-upscale cocktail bar that rebranded itself as Café con Ron: a no-frills bar and restaurant with unique coffee drinks, cocktails, and hearty sandwiches. The cappuccino made with (non-alcoholic) coquito, or the “cococcino,” comes highly recommended; drinkers with a sweet tooth may relish the establishment’s namesake cocktail, which is an espresso with a shot of golden rum topped with dark chocolate and orange peel. No item runs over $15. “They wanted to make cocktails more accessible to local people,” says Danny Rivera, a tour guide from Flavors Food Tours in San Juan. "Their focus is to showcase Puerto Rican cuisine and promote the island's authentic cocktail culture."
Recommended listening: “Café Con Ron,” naturally. The bar shares the same name as Bad Bunny’s track made with Los Pleneros De La Cresta, who specialize in plena: a brisk, percussive sound that is native to the island.
La Cantina Bar and Karaoke
San Juan has no shortage of LGBTQ+ bars. But as popular spots like La Sombrilla Rosa and El Purgatorio get packed to the gills on weekends, look no further than La Cantina: a zany hub for live music, drag shows, and karaoke in English and Spanish. You can even bring your Bad Bunny ticket for a 10% percent discount on your bar tab.
Recommended listening: “EoO.” This is not the place to be shy. Get your freak on with this one, thanks to the throwback sounds of reggaeton as it used to be.
Casa Bacardi
Given that Puerto Rico is the rum capital of the world, visitors 21 and over should hit up the Casa Bacardí distillery in Cataño, which is across the bay from Old San Juan. Anyone is welcome to stop by the patio bar for a casual daytime piña colada, or the gift shop for special rum-flavored coffee, chocolate, and other treats; but seasoned rum connoisseurs can learn about the nuts and bolts of the spirit with a distillery tour. The tour includes a trolley ride to the aging cellars, which are filled wall-to-wall with fragrant oakwood barrels, as well as a rum tasting and mixology course. “Puerto Rico is a remix culture,” says Christian Frontanes, brand home ambassador at Casa Bacardi. “You hear it in our songs, but you also taste it in our food—and our cocktails.”
Recommended listening: “Pitorro de Coco.” Pitorro, a distant Caribbean cousin to moonshine, is an often homemade raw rum made from sugarcane. It is infused with coconut, mango, tamarind or raisins, then aged all year until right before Christmas, when it’s typically used for coquito.
La Disquera listening bar
Owned by former Interscope executive Simon Baeyertz, and enjoyed by local vinyl aficionados, this hip Tokyo-themed listening bar provides headphones and an array of sake-based cocktails. “The idea was to be visiting a fun, chill house party,” says Baeyertz. (If sake is not to your liking, wine, beer, and liquor are also available.) There are multiple candlelit rooms fit for date nights, as well as noodles and Japanese pizza for hungry guests.
Recommended listening: “Nuevayol.” La Disquera once served as the San Juan office for Fania Records, the pioneering salsa label founded in New York City—the city Bad Bunny sings about in the namesake song (with a fabulous sample of salsa hit “Un Verano en Nueva York”). At El Choli, keep an eye open for a pop-up of Toñitas, the iconic Boricua bar in Brooklyn that he name checks in the song.
La Factoría cocktail bar
A day tour of Old San Juan is practically mandatory for any first-time visitor; but stay a little while after dark to see it come alive. La Factoría is famed for its crafty cocktails, as well as the labyrinthine setup of the space. There are multiple rooms to peruse, each with its own style of music and dance; in the largest, you’ll find locals and visitors mingling on the dance floor to salsa, merengue, and bachata, while other rooms offer electronic music and reggaetón on the weekends. There’s even a special enclave for the lovers and the introverts, who may appreciate the intimacy of a low-lit and low-volume space.
Recommending listening: “Baile Inolvidable.” There are no salsa dance classes to be found here—just feel the rhythm and find your own way.
Lala restaurant
Trip to the mall, anyone? Beyond the Nordstrom and Tiffany’s, inside the ritzy Mall of San Juan is an upscale Puerto Rican dining experience worth the hype. Partially owned by Bad Bunny and his manager, Noah Assad, the picturesque restaurant boasts a globetrotting experience encapsulated in its menu. It’s ideal for those traveling in groups with conflicting palettes; at Lala, one friend’s craving for pan-fried gyoza and hamachi can peacefully co-exist with another’s hankering for sweet corn agnolotti.
Recommended listening: “Perfumito Nuevo.” Be like Bad Bunny’s co-star RaiNao—get dressy, try out that new perfume you just bought.
Manzana de Java restaurant
“We believe that Puerto Rico, and the Caribbean, have more in common with Southeast Asia than people think,” says Juan Camilo Becerra, manager of Manzana de Java: an Antillean-meets-Asian fusion kitchen, located two blocks south of the Playa del Pueblo. Repurposed from an old ramen shop, this one-of-a-kind restaurant fashions tapas from the intersections of two tropical regions. Highlights from the menu include ceviche served in a cacao pod, lionfish chicharrones served with a green curry aioli, and a goat meat fricasse with tamarind and cashews.
Recommended listening: “Voy a Llevarte a PR.” Much like the song, which Bad Bunny dedicates to a faraway love interest, Manzana de Java is both sweet and spicy.
La Placita de Santurce
What appears to be a farmer’s market during the week transforms into a full-on bacchanal on the weekends. Nestled in the neighborhood of Santurce, this plaza is lined with bars blasting reggaetón—and the people spilling out of them to dance in the cobblestone streets. Start your night with Caribbean snacks at Jungle Bird and roam as you wish. On one block, you’ll find whole families singing karaoke outdoors; around the corner, you’ll see old men drinking beer, playing dominoes, and watching salsa videos on a big-screen TV. There’s also an abundance of murals to take drunken photos with, including a special Bad Bunny portrait celebrating his role in Puerto Rican music and culture.
Recommended listening: “Debí Tirar Más Fotos.” This is Puerto Rico at its best; in music, food and community.
