'Jewel of the South': Ponce's pleasures delight all year through

A stately mansion in Ponce, Puerto Rico, is said to have ghosts.   Castillo Serrallés (Spanish for Serrallés Castle) was built by a rum baron and is now a museum and events venue. Each October, part of it is transformed as a ghostly gathering entertains visitors. It's apropos, because many haunted places around the world are castles. 

Ponce revelers take to the streets on Halloween.

SECOND LARGEST CITY WELCOMES VISITORS WITH ITS GENTLE CHARM, ART AND HISTORY

PLUS A HAUNTED HOUSE IN ITS FAMOUS CASTLE TO CELEBRATE HALLOWEEN

STORY By CHRISTENE MEYERS

PHOTOS By BRUCE KELLER

PUERTO RICANS enjoy life. And they make the most of holidays -- including Halloween. As an unincorporated U.S. territory, Puerto Rico celebrates most of the same holidays as we in the mainland do -- All Hallows Eve included. Puerto Rico also celebrates the Day of the Dead "Dio de los Muertos" -- a holiday traditionally celebrated Nov. 1 and 2. In Puerto Rico, it is not as "big" an event as in other Latin countries. But both are celebrated -- often combined -- as family and friends gather to remember loved ones who have died. Like most Puerto Rican gatherings, food is served and the graves are usually visited with food and flowers.

Ghosts welcome visitors

to Ponce's Serralles Castle. 

Ponce's architecture

frames this reveler

on Halloween, 2023.

No place in Puerto Rico can compete with Ponce's famous haunted castle for the "fright prize."  Ponce offers top ghostly enthusiasm in a haunted manor at Serralles Castle. 

KNOWN AS "the house that rum built," the imposing castle is a well preserved reminder of the countries glorious "rum days."

Ponce is an attractive, clean city in southern

Puerto Rico, quieter and cheaper than San Juan.

Every year to celebrate Halloween, the Castle becomes a scary, haunted mansion. The holiday "redo" fits its design perfectly.

Built in Spanish Colonial Revival-style building, it was technically advanced for the 1930s. It is a lovely, antique filled place, including a Japanese garden and butterfly nursery. What a treat to visit the castle and town. We took a couple days side trip to Ponce, renting a car in San Juan for the 90-minute drive south through the center of the country. We booked two tours: one of the castle and one of the city, enjoying two perspectives on explorers, the rum industry, and the city's architecture, art and history.  

Ponce encourages murals and street art, to entertain tourists.

WE ENJOYED the two tours -- first the Castle, then a lively guided walking tour of city center. Ponce's recorded history dates to 1692 when the famous Juan Ponce de León sailed into the island. As Puerto Rico's second-largest city, Ponce is often overlooked by tourists.  But it's an easy trip from San Juan for a pleasant day or two, with a more apparent "village" feel than  its larger, bustling  resort oriented sister. 

CASTILLO  Serrallés  -- Serralles Castle -- is imposing both by its grandeur and because it overlooks Ponce's downtown.  It was built during the 1930s for Juan Eugenio Serrallés, son of businessman  Juan Serralles, who founded Destileria Serralles. It structure sits on a 2.5-acre beautifully manicured property. We saw a wedding rehearsal the day we visited. That's a huge part of the building's appeal, our guide said, as she focused on the building's past, the rum industry and the impact it had on Puerto Rico's economy.

Ponce is a favorite destination for

weddings, and encourages romance

on its Paseo Amor, street of love.

Ponce's parks and squares are

well manicured and inviting.

DESTINATION weddings are a big draw to the mansion, our guide explained, and many sun seekers take a break from busier San Juan to enjoy the more relaxed ambiance of Ponce.

PONCE's OLD town is a colorful place, with plazas, churches, and colonial homes.

Public art is encouraged and subsidized and Ponce has several large public art installations. Ponce's city market  

THE CITY's Plaza del Mercado at Ponce -- 

Bespoke Lifestyle Management

Management offers lively

tours, here with Melina Aguilar.

our talented Ponce guide.

known by older residents as Plaza del Mercado Isabel II -- is a huge indoor street market in the heart of town. Many of its shops and vendors have been there for decades. Locals know it has the freshest vegetables and fruits for a fair price. Traditional foods, candy, art and lottery tickets are offered in more than a dozen stands. The goods come from local farms, confectioners, and artists.

Nearby Mercado de las Carnes was the first building in  

Ponce's Plaza del Mercado offers bargain prices

on locally grown fruits and vegetables in more

than two dozen shops inside a renovated building. 

Puerto Rico to mix social and architectural

elements in its pedestrian mall.  The historic art deco  structure dates to 1926.

Bruce Keller enjoys a

Ponce Ice cream. 

Another enticement: charming hotels are half the price of similar inns in San Juan. Expedia, airbnb and many other options offer everything from lavish estates to simple apartments.

More information: discoverpuertorico.com

bespokeconcierge.com

Enjoying a reunion and a tuk-tuk ride with friend Tomas

Neves are Christene "Cookie" Meyers and Bruce Keller.

UP NEXT: We explore Lisbon's marvels on a tuk-tuk.  Four of us adventuresome sojourners climbed into a tuk-tuk to traverse this historic Portuguese city and enjoy its famous landmarks -- from cathedrals to street markets. A tuk-tuk ride in Lisbon is a must, for getting close-up views and learning a lot in a few hours. Our guide has become a friend through several trips. Meanwhile, remember to explore, learn and live and catch us weekly for a fresh spin on travel, nature, family, performance and more:  and please share the link with traveling friends: www.whereiscookie.com