Ride a Bike on the Boardwalk in Piñones
Posted on Feb 12th, 2009 by Gwenn • Updated on Sep 5th, 2009
It’s not surprising that biking in Piñones is a favorite activity of locals and tourists alike. This beautiful area, located just minutes east of Isla Verde, has beaches, mangroves, restaurants, and an 11-kilometer nature trail. It feels like a totally different world than the busy tourist areas of Isla Verde and Condado.
I love this area, it is so pretty and you can get a million beautiful pictures. The trail runs along the ocean and beach, then into the mangrove forests. I really enjoy biking on it – it is mostly flat and the breeze is great. It takes about 2 hours to go directly from one end and back. But you’ll probably want to spend more time, so you can stop and take pictures, grab a bite to eat and explore some beach areas.
COPI, which a Cooperative that helps promote the Piñones area and local businesses (the acronym comes from it’s name in Spanish), hosts a company, CicloNatura, that rents bicycles. These mountain bikes (the ones with the fat tires) are in really good condition (almost new) and it is the only place in Piñones I know of that gives you helmets, too. They have bikes in all sizes, from small ones for kids, regular bikes, bikes with baby seats, and even bikes built for two.
The COPI building has clean bathrooms and they sell water & soda. They are very close to many places to grab a bite to eat. They also have kayak rentals.
The only "problem" with the Piñones area and boardwalk is the garbage. There has been a lot of dumping of trash. You need to look past the garbage and see the beauty beyond.
Bike rentals are $5.00 per hour. Fee includes required helmet.
They are open everyday from 9:00am to 4:00pm (or so) . The last bike rental starts at 4:00pm. The gate to the parking lot closes at 7:00pm.
COPI is located at the end of the Boca de Cangrejos bridge. There’s a green fence around the parking area. They have a sign that says Cultural and Ecotourism Center. Instead of driving, you can take the C45 or B40 bus from Isla Verde. The bus stop is at the end of their driveway.
From San Juan: Take Route 26 east or Route 37 east to Route 187 east and cross the bridge over Boca de Cangrejos. You are now in Pinones! COPI is located on the right, just at the east end of the bridge.
From Rio Grande: Take Route 3 west until you get to the Outlet 66 Mall (formerly Belz Factory Outlet Mall). Turn right onto Route 188 north toward Loiza. Once you’re in Loiza, turn left onto Route 187 west toward Piñones. Go to the end, you will see a green fence on the left.
Was a fantastic day cicling in Piñones, my bycicle cost $4 per hour at 4:30p.m. in other place that I can’t remember the name, so don’t lost the hope if you want to take a ride after 4pm, We run around the beach (where the view was beautiful!) and run all the trail into the Piñones forest, I don’t believe that I was in PR, the tour is very very good. Thanks again Gwenn for your article, I’m puertorican and I never came to Pinones before, my family and I enjoy a lot. Thanks!!!
Comment by Linda Irizarry on July 18th, 2009 at 9:27 amI rented a bike at COPI on 10/17/09. The bike trail in Pinones is spectacular with great views; however, I would strongly recommend you have your own bike or rent it from another place. Your description that the bikes are in really good condition (almost new) is grossly inaccurate. I was at COPI when it opened at 9 am and had my chose of all the bikes. All of the bikes had significant wear and the gear shift mechanism was broken on every bike. I can understand the natural wear on the bikes being so close to the sea salt; however, how does the hardware that shows you what gear you are in get broken on every bike? I had to get the bike in a middle gear and hope for the best during my ride. Another great resource in Puerto Rico (the Pinones bike trail) that is not going to be fully utilized because they don’t have the desire or funds to provide an acceptable service to the public.
Comment by Robert on October 18th, 2009 at 6:50 amRobert- I am sad to hear that they let their equipment get into disrepair in just a short time from when we visited them. If someone knows a place that rents bicycles in good working order (with the safe parking lot and clean usable bathrooms) in the Pinones area, let me know and I will add it to the article as an alternative.
Comment by Gwenn on October 30th, 2009 at 6:46 pmPeople can always just walk the board walk.
Thank you Ray and Gwenn for information about biking in Piñones. I took my family for a bike ride and it was fantastic except for the bikes that we rented in COPI was in pretty bad condition.
Comment by Sayuj on May 31st, 2010 at 9:55 pmWe drove from Fajardo to Piñones, and the drive was wonderful along the beach. We parked in COPI parking lot and there was a security lady to watch the cars. We rented one kids bike and two adult bikes one with the baby sit on it. There were all in bad condition. We did not have time to search for another bike rental place. I recommend to bring your own bikes or rent it from different places beside COPI.
Becareful if it is raining because leaves on the boardwalk can get slippery when it’s wet. On the way back we stopped at the kioskos for coco frio and some alcapuria.
Overall the tour was great. Thank you!