Hacienda Juanita

Hacienda Juanita (built 1833-34) is a coffee plantation hacienda in the town of Maricao, Puerto Rico. The design is based on typical Puerto Rican culture, and was commissioned by the wife of a Spanish official.[1] Coffee production at the hacienda declined from the 1960s.[2]

Hacienda Juanita
Address Hwy 105 km 23.5
Maricao, Puerto Rico 00606
Opening date1976
ThemeAgricultural Complex
No. of rooms21
Signature attractionsSala del Parador
The Forest
Notable restaurantsLa Casona de Juanita
Casino typeLand
OwnerHacienda Juanita
WebsiteHacienda Juanita Website

Hotel

From 1976 it was converted, with government assistance,[3] into one of Puerto Rico's earliest paradores, and ran, administered by the Puerto Rico Tourism Company, as a 21-room agro-hotel. At 1,600 ft (490 m) above sea level, visitors could enjoy the view and the peacefulness of the Puerto Rican mountains.[4] The parador passed to new private owners in 2005 but closed in 2011.[5] The hotel had hosted a Sala del Parador, a permanent exhibit of antique artifacts related to Puerto Rican coffee production.

Flora and fauna

The 24 acres (97,000 m2) of lands are home to a number of floral and animal species including:[6]

Nearby attractions

See also

References
  1. Enric Balasch i Blanch, Yolanda Ruiz Puerto Rico 1997 - Page 99 "Hacienda Juanita Antigua e importante plantación cafetalera, la hacienda data de 1833 cuando Angelita Comas, esposa de un oficial español, ordenó su construcción."
  2. El Nuevo Día: El Nuevo Día article (Spanish) 2009 "El esplendor de la Hacienda Juanita se eclipsó en las últimas décadas del siglo XX con la disminución de la producción de café y el comienzo de la economía industrial, cuando hubo que segregar gran parte de los terrenos cultivables. Sólo el interés del gobierno en promover el turismo le dio un segundo aire a la Hacienda Juanita, esta vez como parador. Así, en el 1976, el lugar se convirtió en el Parador Hacienda Juanita, que cuenta con hospedería y restaurante. Con esos fines, por iniciativa y con fondos de la Compañía de Turismo, se hicieron mejoras a la hacienda, contó Cánovas. Turismo lo administró los primeros años."
  3. Acts and resolutions of Puerto Rico - Puerto Rico - 1980 Page 361 " "... Rico Tourist Development Company, to honor the commitments contracted in relation to the construction of the Banos de Coamo Parador, and to extend the tourist facilities of the Gripinas Parador in Jayuya and Hacienda Juanita in Maricao."
  4. Brendan Sainsbury, Nate Cavalieri Lonely Planet Puerto Rico 2008 - Page 272 "If you really want a taste of authentic jíbaro lifestyle, come to the Hacienda Juanita, about 2 miles west of Maricao. Dating from 1834, this working coffee plantation with 21 units was also one of Puerto Rico's earliest paradores (established in 1976)"
  5. John Marino Frommer's Puerto Rico 2012 "since the closure of Parador Hacienda Juanita, a parador-restaurant that operated for many years out of a converted, 160-year-old former coffee plantation, the best option for a hotel is to barrel on west down .."
  6. Bird Observer Volumes 17/18 1989 - Page 121 "Hacienda Juanita. The grounds of the parador and the adjacent hillsides (visible from the road) have some interesting bird species such as Puerto Rican Screech-Owl, Puerto Rican Lizard-Cuckoo, Puerto Rican Woodpecker, Puerto Rican Eemerald, Green Mango, Puerto Rican Tody, Loggerhead Kingbird, Puerto Rican Flycatcher, Red-legged Thrush, Black-cowled Oriole, Blue-hooded Euphonia, Stripe-headed Tanager, Puerto Rican Tanager, and Puerto Rican Bullfinch.."

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