Full Day Tour of Ponce and Bio Bay: Explore Caribbean Sea Charms and Puerto Rico History

Embark on a full day tour of Ponce and Bio Bay in Puerto Rico. Explore the Caribbean Sea, private boat, sunset, and swimming in one of the five BioBays in the world. Book now!

Duration: 9 hours
Cancellation: 1 day learn more
Highlights
  • Ponce - Discover the vibrant colors and stunning architecture of Ponce, Puerto Rico’s second largest city. Visit the iconic Parque de Bombas and delve into its history. Savor a delightful cup of coffee at a local café or shop for souvenirs around the Plaza de Las Delicias.
  • Yaucromatic - Explore Yauco, the most colorful city in the South. Learn about its rich coffee history and enjoy a cup of coffee from Yauco’s renowned coffee shop.
  • Cayo Caracoles - Embark on a private boat tour through La Parguera Natural Reserve. Swim at Cayo Caracoles, a serene mangrove island off the coast of Lajas with crystal-clear waters. Relax, swim, and watch the sunset in this tranquil setting.
  • La Parguera Bioluminescent Bay - Experience the magic of swimming in one of Puerto Rico’s three bioluminescent bays, and one of only five in the world. Enjoy a 1.5-hour ride in the bay, where you can also stargaze.
  • La Parguera Bioluminescent Bay - Have you ever swum in a bioluminescent bay? Now’s your chance. Our skilled captain will guide us to one of the world’s five bio bays. Delight in an hour of swimming under the stars, surrounded by bioluminescent wonders.
What's Included
  • Private transportation
  • Bottled water
  • Use of snorkeling equipment
  • Life vests
What's Not Included
  • Lunch
  • Dinner
Additional Information

Caribbean Sea. Private boat. Sunset. Swimming in one of the five BioBay in the world. Yes, sounds like the perfect day. Well, this could actually be YOUR perfect day in Puerto Rico! Our tour starts with a stop at Ponce Historical District. Here you will have time to take great photos, learn about the history of the second biggest city in Puerto Rico, and souvenir shop. Make your way to colorful Yauco. You’ll definitely be captivated by the beauty of this town and its hidden gems.

Enjoy an afternoon of relaxation at Cayo (Cay) Caracoles. Swim through the mangrove canals and clear waters. You’ll definitely be amazed. Enjoy an amazing view from the water of the most beautiful sunsets in Puerto Rico. Once dark, take a dip at the bioluminescent bay. Learn about this natural phenomenon. Bioluminescence is a natural phenomenon that might be affected by moonlight and weather.

The total duration includes driving time. We include as well transportation. Minimum participants: 4

  • The remaining time is driving time and lunch.
Location
Ponce
Cancellation Policy

For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.

Customer Ratings
4.0
(21 Ratings)
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Kerri_a
Jun 24, 2024
One of the best days EVER! - When you book a tour that is all day long and very expensive, it is a risk. It can go great, badly, or anything in between. Well we had one of the best days EVER on this tour. Tour guide and owner Laura is AMAZING! She communicated so well with me before our tour and she is an excellent driver. We loved getting to know her over the course of the day and the places she took us to in Ponce and Yauco were beautiful. The coffee shop we stopped at and the lunch place were both excellent -- Isla Cueva was one of the best burgers I've ever had! the boat was super clean and Captain Jonathan was great. We got to have a once-in-a-lifetime experience swimming with the bioluminescent fish. The entire day was absolutely perfect. We could not have asked for more and we cannot wait to book something with Laura and Sofrito tours again in the future. Thank you, Laura, for showing us the beauty of Puerto Rico and for an amazing adventure - you are wonderful!
Review provided by Viator
Derek_k
Jun 15, 2024
Awesome! - Favorite activity during our trip so far! Really enjoyed the opportunity to take some great pictures. Loved being out in the clear waters of the Caribbean.
Review provided by Viator
Matthew_k
Mar 23, 2024
Extraordinary - Team was great. Tour guide helped pass the time for the 2 hour drive. very knowledgeable on the history of the are and the cities. Very personable. Stopped in some cities along the way. Saw the city square in ponce for some coffee and a bite. The stopped in another small town along the way. Ordered lunch and changed in. suites before the boat. Nice ride then snorkeled for 1-2 hours. Watched a beautiful sunset and then a short boat ride to biobay. The pontoon boat was the magic. There was a bright 3/4 moon which typically causes many boats to cancel their tours. We were able to swim under the pontoon boat which made for a great experience. in the biobay despite a lot of ambient light. Would not have missed this experience for the world
Review provided by Viator
Alicia_a
Feb 24, 2024
Biobay was incredible - stops were fun too - Really good tour. The biobay was incredible but this is quite a short part of the tour once it gets dark. It was an amazing experience for both the adults and kids in our party and 100% worth experiencing. Youco was really cool for photos. Would definitely recommend - thanks!
Review provided by Viator
Kelly_d
Feb 24, 2024
Great experience, loved our tour guide - We had a great time. Our tour guide was friendly and knowledgeable, and gave great recommendations. The van picked us up at our hotel right on time. It was really nice to have someone else do the driving for us. Swimming in the bio bay was an amazing experience. We would definitely book with this tour operator again.
Review provided by Viator
Cpanthers84
Feb 23, 2024
Organic, authentic, and fun tour. See the people, food, and uniqueness of Puerto Rico with this trip - My wife and I did the full day Ponce, Yauco, Caracoles, and La Parguera tour and it was awesome. Jan Carlos was passionate, knowledgeable, and attentive during the tour. I could not have picked a better tour for my first trip to Puerto Rico. The stops in towns gave my wife and I a glimpse in to the diversity and deep cultures of Puerto Rico. The food was great and it was nice to have an authentic experience with the people. Caracoles was fun and it felt like hanging out on a lake back home when we got to pull up, anchor, and chill where the locals chill. There was music, dancing, jet skis, folks were having a good time. To cap it all off the bio bay was just as amazing as we had hoped as it got darker the brighter the lighting effect was. All in all, great trip, great people, and I hope to do another tour next time I go to Puerto Rico.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Amishi_c
Mar 30, 2024
Easygoing tour of S/SW PR; Viator info wrong - Viator’s description of tour is unclear and incorrect. This tour is NOT private (not huge, but is with at least 8p people total), and actually offers pick up in San Juan through Ponce and presumably along way; you can meet them at Ponce if you need to and proceed in your vehicle. The tour then proceeds as follows: 1) Ponce historic square- 5 min run down of one bldg, and then 20–30 min to explore 2) drive to Yauco- two stops for 10 min each - mainly scenic spots to take pics, and a couple min where Laura explained history of spots. 3) drive to La Parguera, to firstly pick up a take out dinner and then get on a boat for 60-90 min at a cay, where we were provided masks (no snorkels) and opportunity to swim around. Then we boated to Boo Bay to view amazing bioluminescent creatures. Overall, the guide/driver were very nice and responsive to all questions. The stops were a nice way to see a teeny bit of the towns/culture of this side of PR, and the water part was wonderful. Guides mainly facilitated a visit to this part of island- suggesting the three stops, but providing minimal info about the stops (with exception of boat captain who was well informed about the key and bay). I wasn’t in van so not sure if more info was provided there. If you’re expecting a more informative or educational trip, this is not that, but if you’re good with an easygoing drive in the area with some good stops, it serves that need- which worked for us to fill one day of our two-day visit to SW corner of PR. Some folks may think it’s costly for what it is, esp if you don’t utilize the transport from San Juan. Viator’s description was hard to follow and inaccurate; furthermore I’d actually called for help to find a tour that fulfilled what I wanted - the agent tried to be super helpful and was great, but u fortunately he didn’t have the right info about the tour (I thought it was to be private and I thought it picked up in La Parguera- both of which the agent assured me the tour did and both of which were completely wrong).
Review provided by Viator
Alicia_p
Feb 16, 2024
Once in a lifetime experience - I booked this trip because travel was included. Our tour guide Jancarlo was absolutely amazing. He was very nice, shared a large number of historical facts, and navigated crazy traffic and detours. We were a bit bummed that the stops in Ponce and Yauco were only 10-15 minutes as we had expected there to be time to shop and possibly grab a bite. Due to the length of drive this detail would have been helpful for planning snacks. The swim at Caracoles was fun, especially with the fish around, and the sunset was breathtaking. The captain was super nice and it was very relaxing. Being able to swim in the bio bay made the entire trip completely worth it. Couple tips for readers that would have helped us: 1. There is a public bathroom for changing before and after the boat 2. Bring 2 towels because you will go into water twice in a fairly short period 3. While lunch isn't provided, our tour guide called in a dinner order, at our cost, that we ate on the boat 4. If you need a bathroom break, take advantage of Ponce
Review provided by Viator
Diane_k
Jun 15, 2024
Would suggest upgrading your vans - was by the road standing at guard rail in the dark and rain for an hour and a half - your vans should be upgraded for the price of this tour. It was an older van air conditioning was terrible - Van broke down 15 minutes on the way back we had 11 people including young children standing along the guardrail in the rain/dark until a new van could come. tour guide was great and our water time was great.
Review provided by Viator
591alannas
Apr 4, 2024
Find a different tour - We really wanted to tour the biobay. We booked a tour and received a note cancelling at 3:30 the day prior- no explanation, no opportunity to reschedule, and no one answering the phone to speak with the next day during business hours or who responded to the voice mail we left seeking an explanation. We ended up renting a car and driving to La Parguera. We booked a tour through a different company, saved a lot of money, and had a great experience.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
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up to 12 guests
1 Adult
September 2024
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