Aguadilla Puerto Rico, Help with any Info?

I used to be stationed at Air Station Borinquen and have been at the lighthouse many times. They're reasonably nice (not by 5 star hotel standards, but by military guest housing standards), and there are not that many opportunities ANYWHERE to stay in old lighthouse keeper's quarters.

There are only two units, so at most, you'll be sharing the grounds (fairly extensive, a couple acres) with one other group. While the lighthouse grounds are not technically solely for the use of guests, only the Coast Guard base has access, and they only get used when they have events there, which is relatively rare (few times a year). The lighthouse itself is also in a fairly residential area, with nothing in walking distance. There is no direct access to the beach from the lighthouse either.

In terms of stuff to do, in the immediate vicinity there is a golf course (part of the old AFB, was a popular course with President Eisenhower) that is right on the beachfront cliffs, very scenic. There is a casino within a mile or so. At the bottom of the golf course you'll also find a very popular surfing beach, appropriately named "Surfer's". One of the best snorkeling beaches I've ever been to - and I've been to the marine reserves in Maui - can be found at a beach called "Shack's", within 5 minutes of the USCG base. Tropical fish galore, deserted, often see a couple octopus or things cooler than just fish. A few outfits (Tropical Trail Rides comes to mind) also do beach horseback rides.

Venturing out a little bit (maybe 15 miles or so) is Rincon, which is a pretty popular vacation spot. The locals go to the west side of the island (i. e. the Aguadilla side) when they want to vacation. You're in the right spot for that.

On the negative side, Aguadilla is about 2 hours from San Juan. Don't be fooled by the mileage. Much of the iconic "must do" items like El Morro (the old Spanish fort) are in old San Juan. The rain forest (El Junque) and the bioluminescent bay in Vieques (where you can swim with phosphorescent algae, very cool) are even farther than that.

My opinion:

Is Aguadilla (and the west side of the island) alone worth 4 plane tickets for a weeklong vacation from California? I would say "no". It's too far from San Juan, and there isn't a week's worth of vacation on the west side.

However, is it worth a few days? Is Puerto Rico in general worth a week?

Absolutely.

My advice: Book about 3 nights at the lighthouse in Aguadilla, 3 nights in San Juan, a night on Vieques. The lighthouse is really cool, it's a great value, and it'll save you money. You can take in the sights in Aguadilla, Rincon, Mayaguez, possibly Ponce based out of Aguadilla. The three nights in San Juan will be more expensive (I believe they may have an Army Lodge at Ft Buchanan if looking to save money), but will be a good base for Old San Juan and El Junque. Vieques is another "must do", but it's a small island, a night will be fine.

Good luck!