Some call Isla de la Mona the Galápagos of Puerto Rico. Like the Galápagos, a few species of the animal kingdom, rare turtles and birds live only on this island. Unlike the Galapagos, you can only reach Mona by boat and you’ll find no hotels or towns here. It is listed as uninhabited, and a maximum of only 100 visitors are allowed on the island at one time.

This offshore island was once a favorite place of pirates. In 1698, Captain Kidd hid here, and some believe he may have buried loot from the captured ship Quedagh Merchant on the island.

Camping on Mona Island is allowed, but visitors must get permits weeks in advance and bring in and out all camping gear and personal essentials, especially empty food packages, water bottles and toilet tissues. A few tour operators offer one-day or overnight excursions to the island, which lies 41 miles off Puerto Rico’s west coast, and the three-hour crossing through the Mona Passage can be rough. The island itself measures seven miles long and four miles wide and is dry and hot with temperatures around 90 degrees Fahrenheit year-round.