Fajardo is the hub of much of the recreational boating in Puerto Rico and a popular launching port to Culebra, Vieques, and the U.S. and British Virgin Islands. It is also home to the largest marina in the Caribbean, called Puerto del Rey. The town contains various hotels and inns.
Offshore, near Fajardo, a few islets can be found. These are Icacos, Isla Palomino, Palominito, and Diablo, among other uninhabited coral islands and barrier reefs.
Fajardo was founded in 1760, 1773 or 1774 (depending on the authority) as Santiago de Fajardo. It was one of the locations used by the American troops to invade Puerto Rico. On August 1, 1898 the USS Puritan under the command of Captain Frederic W. Rodgers, sailed the coastline near the city of Fajardo when he spotted the Faro de Las Cabezas de San Juan (Cape San Juan lighthouse), which was supposed to be the landing site for the US Army in Puerto Rico. Rodgers ordered some of his men ashore, including Puerto Rican volunteers, with the mission to post the American flag atop the lighthouse.
On November 14, 1824, in what was dubbed the "Foxhardo" Affair, US Naval Officer David Porter landed at Fajardo with 200 seamen and marines, threatening to destroy Fajardo because one of his men had been arrested in Puerto Rico. For taking this action without US approval, Porter was later court-martialed.[2]
On September 20, 2017 Hurricane Maria struck the island of Puerto Rico. In Fajardo, the hurricane triggered numerous landslides with its strong winds and significant amount of rainfall.[4][5][6]
Like all municipalities of Puerto Rico, Fajardo is subdivided into barrios. The municipal buildings, central square and large Catholic church are located in a barrio referred to as "el pueblo".[8][9][10][11]
Barrios (which are, in contemporary times, roughly comparable to minor civil divisions)[12] and subbarrios,[13][14][15] are further subdivided into smaller areas called sectores (sectors in English). The types of sectores may vary, from normally sector to urbanización to reparto to barriada to residencial, among others.[16][17][18]
Comunidades Especiales de Puerto Rico (Special Communities of Puerto Rico) are marginalized communities whose citizens are experiencing a certain amount of social exclusion. A map shows these communities occur in nearly every municipality of the commonwealth. Of the 742 places that were on the list in 2014, the following barrios, communities, sectors, or neighborhoods were in Fajardo: Obrera neighborhood, Roosevelt neighborhood, Mansión del Sapo, Maternillo, Media Luna, Sector Camacho, Vevé Calzada, and Vieques en el Aire.[19]
Fajardo has 46 beaches.[20] Fajardo's beaches are bounded by calm, clear water ideal for snorkeling. Seven Seas Beach offers plentiful water sports facilities, offshore points for sailing, snorkeling and plenty of scuba diving.
Fajardo is also home to one of the few Bioluminescent Lagoons in the world. Nightly trips are offered by kayak by local companies who give educational tours.
To stimulate local tourism, the Puerto Rico Tourism Company launched the Voy Turistiendo ("I'm Touring") campaign, with a passport book and website. The Fajardo page lists Reserva Natural de Las Cabezas de San Juan, Cayo Icacos, and Hacienda Chocolat, as places of interest.[21]
Street scene near Fajardo plaza and squareReserva Natural Cabezas de San Juan
Las Cabezas de San Juan Light House - One of the oldest lighthouses in Puerto Rico. Only one used for nautical reasons in the entire island.
El Conquistador Resort - An historic 700 room resort and convention center with its own private island (Palomino Island), water park (El Coqui Water Park), and 3 ft 10 in (1,168 mm) narrow gauge[23]funicular railway connecting its main hotel building with its marina. It was closed in 2017 after Hurricane Maria, and has been reopening in phases since Fall 2020.[24]
Fajardo celebrates its patron saint festival in July. The Fiestas Patronales de Santiago Apostol is a religious and cultural celebration that generally features parades, games, artisans, amusement rides, regional food, and live entertainment.[26][7] The festival has featured live performances by well-known artists such as Tito Nieves, Johnny Ventura and Sonora Ponceña.[27]
Other festivals and events celebrated in Fajardo include:
In 2007, the team returned once again to the BSN. The team known as the "Titanes de Morovis" was moved to Fajardo, and was renamed "Cariduros de Fajardo". Unlike the NBA and other sports leagues in the United States, Puerto Rican franchises rarely leave the original name of the franchise when they move to a different city.
Once, there was a basketball team for the Puerto Rican Basketball League known as the "Conquistadores de Fajardo".
Fajardo also has a AA Amateur Baseball Team Los Cariduros de Fajardo and have won over 10 sectional championships, 3 time national runners-up in 1974, 2003 and 2005, and 3 times national champions in 1954, 2004 and 2010.
Bridge on PR-971 between Fajardo and Ceiba near Las Tinajas, Charco Frio and Hacienda Tinajas, two tourist attractions located just inside the eastern side of the El Yunque National Forest
Fajardo's flag is a tricolor triband. The upper band is gules (red), symbolizing the color of the shield's border. Silver (white), the center band, stands for the color of the main pieces that appear in the shield and the crown. Azure (blue), the lower band, represents the color of the sky and the sea of Fajardo. Centered is the coat of arms of the village (villa) in natural colors.[40]
The coat of arms is formed as a square with a rounded base and stamped at the top with a crown mural of three towers. It is supported by two dolphins, and underneath the base a banner with the inscription “Santiago de Fajardo”.[40]
Calle Hermanos Avila - Parcelas BeltránHermanos Ávila Esperanza - Military (Andrés; Pedro; Norberto; Justino; Guillermo y Tomás) - A street in Fajardo (Parcelas Beltrán) and Culebra (PR-251) is named after the Ávila Brothers. These six soldiers were honored for their exceptional work in the Korean and Vietnam wars and for returning home to Puerto Rico alive.
^ ab"Fajardo Municipality". enciclopediapr.org. Fundación Puertorriqueña de las Humanidades (FPH). Archived from the original on August 23, 2020. Retrieved March 20, 2019.
^Rivera Quintero, Marcia (2014), El vuelo de la esperanza: Proyecto de las Comunidades Especiales Puerto Rico, 1997-2004 (first ed.), San Juan, Puerto Rico Fundación Sila M. Calderón, ISBN978-0-9820806-1-0
^"Leyes del 2001". Lex Juris Puerto Rico (in Spanish). Archived from the original on September 14, 2018. Retrieved June 24, 2020.
^Rivera Quintero, Marcia (2014), El vuelo de la esperanza:Proyecto de las Comunidades Especiales Puerto Rico, 1997-2004 (Primera edición ed.), San Juan, Puerto Rico Fundación Sila M. Calderón, p. 273, ISBN978-0-9820806-1-0
^Pasaporte: Voy Turisteando (in Spanish). Compañia de Turismo de Puerto Rico. 2021.
^ abSoler-López, Luis R. "Laguna Grande Limnology". USGS Caribbean Water Projects. Archived from the original on February 23, 2019. Retrieved February 23, 2019.
^"Trams of the World 2017"(PDF). Blickpunkt Straßenbahn. January 24, 2017. Archived from the original(PDF) on February 16, 2017. Retrieved February 16, 2017.
^"Fajardo Bridges". National Bridge Inventory Data. US Dept. of Transportation. Archived from the original on February 20, 2019. Retrieved February 19, 2019.
^ ab"FAJARDO". LexJuris (Leyes y Jurisprudencia) de Puerto Rico (in Spanish). February 19, 2020. Archived from the original on February 19, 2020. Retrieved September 17, 2020.