PHOTO: Puerto Rico's Toro Verde Adventure Park offers up high-altitude thrills. (Photo by Brian Major)

It’s sometimes difficult to imagine a close-by tropical island that’s actually part of the U.S. and also located less than four hours from the warm-weather seeking East Coast cities. If Puerto Rico sometimes flies beneath travel’s popularity meter in comparison with other Caribbean destinations, it isn’t from lack of genuine attractions for visitors.

Families, adventure-seekers and travelers simply in search of sunny beaches by day and exciting restaurants and clubs by night will find a multitude of options in Puerto Rico. Here are five reasons to visit Puerto Rico now.

It’s Happening: Puerto Rico is hot, literally and figuratively. The island is a tropical Caribbean territory with consistently sunny weather and an average temperature of 82 degrees. In addition, travelers will find a city where god times and adventure are not hard to find.

Photo courtesy of Puerto Rico Tourism Company.

Begin with the city of San Juan, which likely offers more activity and attractions than any other Caribbean capital. The trendy Condado district features upscale and classic hotels nearby gourmet restaurants and non-stop nightlife. Condado is within walking distance of historic Old San Juan, the center of colonial Puerto Rico whose narrow cobblestone streets, colorful 16th and 17th century buildings, and massive city walls recall a bygone era.

Visitors can stroll Old San Juan’s defensive structures and forts, including the 16th-century Fort San Felipe del Morro and the 17th-century Fort San Cristóbal, both part of San Juan National Historic Site. The 16th-century El Palacio de Santa Catalina, also known as La Fortaleza, serves as the governor's mansion and is another of the district’s colonial landmarks.

The Hotels are Hip: Puerto Rico features a diverse, upscale inventory of hotels that collectively rival that of any destination, in the Caribbean and beyond. Several classic properties built in the 1940s and 1950 have been renovated as upscale, contemporary hotels and resorts, including the Caribe Hilton and La Concha. Puerto Rico also offers five-star properties including the St. Regis Bahia Beach Resort and the Ritz Carlton, San Juan.

PHOTO: The Condado Vanderbilt. (Courtesy of Wikipedia)

In addition New York-based Paulson & Co. is spending $260 million to renovate the Condado Vanderbilt and La Concha Renaissance Hotel and the adjoining Condado Vanderbilt condominiums, both located in the Condado district. The Condado Vanderbilt is a historic luxury property that dates to 1919 and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Designed by the architectural firm Warren and Wetmore, who also designed New York's Grand Central Station, the hotel was built by the Vanderbilt Family and launched an era of luxury tourism in Puerto Rico.

Adventure is Accessible: Puerto Rico not only offers a wide variety of adventure-themed options for active travelers, many of the attractions are located within close proximity of San Juan and are accessible via the country’s excellent transportation links.

The Toro Verde Nature Adventure park is located one hour outside of San Juan in Orocovis. The mountaintop “ecological adventure park” offers outstanding views and a menu of adrenaline-pumping activities including zip-line “canopy” tours along extensive airborne cable networks linked by tree-top platforms, rappelling wires and cable bridges. The park’s most famous feature is “The Beast,” a 4,600-foot long zip line course strung hundreds of feet above the jungle floor.

Toro Vede also features outstanding mountain bike trails, including noivce, imtermediate and professional-level courses designed by world champion rider Marla Streb.

Rio Camuy Cave Park is a vast network of natural limestone caves and underground waterways carved out by the Rio Camuy, one of earth’s largest underground rivers. The caverns were documented in Russell and Jeanne Gurnee’s 1973 book “Discovery at the Rio Camuy” and include archaeological evidence of the caves’ exploration hundreds of years ago by Puerto Rico's Taíno Indians. 

PHOTO: Rock climbing is especially popular in Puerto Rico. (Courtesy of Puerto Rico Tourism Company)

Only a small part of the vast complex of 880 caves is open to the public. The 268-acre park built around the caves offers trams that take visitors up the 170-foot high Cueva Clara to a platform overlooking the 400-foot deep Tres Pueblos Sinkhole. Visitors can also climb the 205 steps to the Spiral Sinkhole and Spiral Cave, whose walls feature Taino petroglyphs. Tours and rappelling trips through undeveloped cave sections - led by advanced cave explorers - are also available.

It’s in the United States: Puerto Rico is a tropical Caribbean island that is also a U.S. territory, meaning there is no passport required for U.S. citizens. In a country where a large percentage of residents still do not possess passport’s, that’s a key distinction for Puerto Rico in comparison with almost every other Caribbean destination. The currency, mail system and communications systems are the same also, meaning cell phones work normally in Puerto Rico (and some say better than in the Sates), without roaming charges. Wi-Fi is widely available in resort areas.

It’s in the Caribbean: Puerto Rico has everything that makes the Caribbean among the world’s favorite warm-weather destinations, including white-sand beaches that are among most beautiful anywhere. Puerto Rico is surrounded by more than 270 miles of coastline and, in addition to world-class beaches, offers miles of reefs and marine life. El Escambron Beach Park is located minutes outside of Old San Juan on Avenida Munoz Rivera in the neighborhood of Puerta de Tierra. The beach is popular with locals and tourists and features views of the El Morro fort. Boquerón Beach Park is a favorite among Puerto Rican families and features calm waters and services and facilities including lifeguards, picnic tables, gazebos, restrooms and a kids’ playground.

Here's more tips on getting the most out of a Puerto Rico vacation, check out these tips from Gabriel Emanuelli, Director of Global Sales with Puerto Rico Tourism Company: