My girlfriend and I felt very lucky to have found this place. This was our first trip to the island of Culebra and we took the ferry ride from Fajardo to get there. We ended up not arriving until about 9:30pm. Well as it turns out the island basically shuts down about that time, so we had no way to get to Flamenco Beach, where we intended to camp for the week. So at this point we were stranded.
Luckily, a guy named Eric who worked at a dive shop in Fajardo gave us Tommy's number in case we needed a place to stay in Culebra. Tommy owns and runs the hostel.
Tommy was very pleasant to deal with, and after I described the situation, he offered us a discount on a private room. The great news was that the hostel is just a 3-5 minute walk from the ferry, so we could make it without a cab.
The hostel portion of Culebra International is a large dorm style room with bunk beds. There is also a community kitchen where you can keep drinks cold or cook. I took some pictures of the areas. They looked well taken care of and clean. My girlfriend and I stayed in one of the private rooms, which had a queen size bed as well as a bunk bed, and a private bathroom. The room was very clean, and has a window air conditioning unit that works quite well. We had planned to camp out all week at Flamenco Beach, but ended up coming back to stay the night before we left Culebra because it was nice to have the comforts of A/C and a bed, and be close to the ferry.
Tommy was a great host. He was willing to give us a ride to Flamenco the next day, and to the airport (we decided to fly back to the big island instead of messing with the ferry) on our last day. We paid a small fee for the rides, so it was not unlike hiring a cab, but much more convenient as he was already there. I highly recommend renting a jeep (~$65/day) or golf car ($45/day) while you are in Culebra, as the island may be small but you definitely will want some transportation to go exploring. Tommy also offered complimentary coffee to me each morning, which was very nice.
Other things to consider:
- Culebra International is about 50 yards from the biggest grocery store on the island, and 15 yards from one of the two gas stations which also has a small convenience store.
- The private rooms go for about $65-$75 depending on time of year. The cheapest room elsewhere in the off-season is $90+.
- Tommy is from Louisiana originally, so no language barrier to deal with.
- Tommy is happy to tell you about the island or where to go. He also offers laundry service and is a very enjoyable person to work with.
If you have any other questions about Culebra, feel free to message me. I'm pretty sure I saw everything it has to offer during my week stay! read more