Luquillo () is a

town A town is a type of a human settlement, generally larger than a village but smaller than a city. The criteria for distinguishing a town vary globally, often depending on factors such as population size, economic character, administrative stat ...

and

municipality A municipality is usually a single administrative division having municipal corporation, corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate. The term ''municipality' ...

Puerto Rico ; abbreviated PR), officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, is a Government of Puerto Rico, self-governing Caribbean Geography of Puerto Rico, archipelago and island organized as an Territories of the United States, unincorporated territo ...

located in the northeast coast, northwest of

Fajardo Fajardo () is a Fajardo barrio-pueblo, town and a Municipalities of Puerto Rico, municipality part of the San Juan–Caguas–Guaynabo metropolitan area, San Juan-Caguas-Fajardo Combined Statistical Area in Puerto Rico. Fajardo is the hub of mu ...

; and east of

Rio Grande The Rio Grande ( or ) in the United States or the Río Bravo (del Norte) in Mexico (), also known as Tó Ba'áadi in Navajo language, Navajo, is one of the principal rivers (along with the Colorado River) in the Southwestern United States a ...

. Luquillo is spread over 5 barrios and Luquillo Pueblo (the downtown area and the administrative center of the city). It lends its name to the Sierra de Luquillo, where El Yunque National Forest is located. It is part of the Fajardo Metropolitan Statistical Area. The city of Luquillo is 26 square miles and it sits on 12 miles of

Atlantic The Atlantic Ocean is the second largest of the world's five oceanic divisions, with an area of about . It covers approximately 17% of Earth's surface and about 24% of its water surface area. During the Age of Discovery, it was known for se ...

coastline. It is nestled between the blue waters of the Atlantic and the El Yunque National Forest, a

rainforest Rainforests are forests characterized by a closed and continuous tree Canopy (biology), canopy, moisture-dependent vegetation, the presence of epiphytes and lianas and the absence of wildfire. Rainforests can be generally classified as tropi ...

, giving it a diverse and unique ecology. Luquillo marks the beginning of the Northeast Ecological Corridor Nature Reserve which runs down the coast from downtown Luquillo all the way down to the Seven Seas Beach in

. During certain times of the year, it is not unusual to encounter rare or

endangered species An endangered species is a species that is very likely to become extinct in the near future, either worldwide or in a particular political jurisdiction. Endangered species may be at risk due to factors such as habitat loss, poaching, inv ...

of fauna (like the leatherback turtle) while visiting in Luquillo.

History

Luquillo was founded in 1797 and is known as "''La Capital del Sol''" (Capital of the Sun), "''La Riviera de Puerto Rico''" (the Puerto Rican Riviera), and "''Los Come Cocos''" (the

coconut The coconut tree (''Cocos nucifera'') is a member of the palm tree family (biology), family (Arecaceae) and the only living species of the genus ''Cocos''. The term "coconut" (or the archaic "cocoanut") can refer to the whole coconut palm, ...

eaters). Legend says that the town was named after the Indian cacique ''Loquillo'', who died a few years after the last Indian rebellion in 1513. However, the word Luquillo most likely originates from ''Yukiyu'', the Taino name for El Yunque, most likely meaning "white mountain" (i.e. foggy mountain).In 1989, Hurricane Hugo damaged the town. On September 20, 2017

Hurricane Maria Hurricane Maria was an extremely powerful and devastating tropical cyclone that affected the northeastern Caribbean in September 2017, particularly in the U.S. territory of Puerto Rico, which accounted for 2,975 of the 3,059 deaths. It is the ...

struck the island of Puerto Rico. In Luquillo, rivers were breached, there were landslides, the electrical power collapsed, and 1100 homes were destroyed or damaged. Incidents of looting and assaults were reported in the aftermath of the storm.

Geography

Luquillo is located on the northeast coast.

Barrios

Like all municipalities of Puerto Rico, Luquillo is subdivided into barrios. The municipal buildings, central square and large Catholic church are located in a barrio referred to as . # Juan Martín #

Luquillo barrio-pueblo Luquillo barrio-pueblo is a Barrios of Puerto Rico, barrio and the administrative center (Seat of government, seat) of Luquillo, Puerto Rico, Luquillo, a municipality of Puerto Rico. Its population in 2010 was 1,028. As was customary in Spain, i ...

# Mameyes I has a Playa Fortuna Community # Mata de Plátano has a Playa Fortuna Community # Pitahaya # Sabana

Sectors

Barrios (which are, in contemporary times, roughly comparable to minor civil divisions) and subbarrios, are further subdivided into smaller areas called (''sectors'' in English). The types of ''sectores'' may vary, from normally ''sector'' to ''urbanización'' to ''reparto'' to ''barriada'' to ''residencial'', among others.

Special Communities

(Special Communities of Puerto Rico) are marginalized communities whose citizens are experiencing a certain amount of

social exclusion Social exclusion or social marginalisation is the social disadvantage and relegation to the fringe of society. It is a term that has been used widely in Europe and was first used in France in the late 20th century. In the EU context, the Euro ...

. 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 Luquillo: Barrio Pitahaya, Sector Santo Domingo, Mata de Plátano, Río Chiquito, and Sector Fortuna Playa.

Tourism

There are 14 beaches in Luquillo including . , which translates to "The Wall", is considered a dangerous beach. The coastal highway going east from

San Juan San Juan, Spanish for Saint John (disambiguation), Saint John, most commonly refers to: * San Juan, Puerto Rico * San Juan, Argentina * San Juan, Metro Manila, a highly urbanized city in the Philippines San Juan may also refer to: Places Arge ...

, leads to Luquillo Beach, officially known as La Monserrate Beach (''Balneario de la Monserrate''). It spans a mile and contains a large plantation of coconut palms. It is equipped with various facilities, including a cafeteria and showers.

Landmarks and places of interest

*Chief Loquillo Monument *La Fortuna Hacienda *La Bandera Beach *La Monserrate Beach, also known as Luquillo Beach * La Pared Beach *Las Pailas Beach *Mameyes Beach *Ocean View Boulevard *Fortuna Beach *The Recreational Park *The Kiosks at Luquillo Beach *La Selva Reef Break

Culture

Festivals and events

Luquillo celebrates its

patron saint A patron saint, patroness saint, patron hallow or heavenly protector is a saint who in Catholicism, Anglicanism, Eastern Orthodoxy or Oriental Orthodoxy is regarded as the heavenly advocate of a nation, place, craft, activity, class, clan, fa ...

festival in March. The is a religious and cultural celebration that generally features parades, games, artisans, amusement rides, regional food, and live entertainment. Other festivals and events celebrated in Luquillo include: * Leatherback Turtle Festival - April * - June *

Coconut The coconut tree (''Cocos nucifera'') is a member of the palm tree family (biology), family (Arecaceae) and the only living species of the genus ''Cocos''. The term "coconut" (or the archaic "cocoanut") can refer to the whole coconut palm, ...

Festival - September * Traditional Cooking Festival - December

Demographics

Government

Like all municipalities in Puerto Rico, Luquillo is administered by a mayor. The current mayor is Jesús Márquez Rodríguez, who was first elected at the 2012 general election. The city belongs to the Puerto Rico Senatorial district VIII, which is represented by two Senators. In 2024, Marissa Jiménez and Héctor Joaquín Sánchez Álvarez were elected as District Senators.

Transportation

There is no public transportation in Luquillo, and residents and visitors rely on

Uber Uber Technologies, Inc. is an American multinational transportation company that provides Ridesharing company, ride-hailing services, courier services, food delivery, and freight transport. It is headquartered in San Francisco, California, a ...

or Luquillo Taxi & Tours Puerto Rico LLC Luquillo Taxi for service. There are 20 bridges in Luquillo. PR-3 is the main road through Luquillo. Other municipality roads include PR-983, PR-988, PR-991 and PR-940.

Symbols

The has an official flag and coat of arms.

Flag

It consists of three horizontal stripes, the blue top and green bottom are double of width of the yellow central stripe. Blue makes reference to the sky and the sea; yellow represents the sand of its beaches and green represents the vegetation of the

mountains A mountain is an elevated portion of the Earth's crust, generally with steep sides that show significant exposed bedrock. Although definitions vary, a mountain may differ from a plateau in having a limited summit area, and is usually higher ...

. In the center stripe resides the coat of arms of the municipality superimposed and surrounded by two palm tree leaves crossed at the bottom.

Coat of arms

In a gold background a centered mountain range with three green mountains is accompanied at the bottom by a bay with blue and silver waves; the top portion of the shield in blue, has three iris branches. Above the shield resides a three tower gold crown. Surrounding the shield by its flanks are two palms trees leaves crossed at the bottom.

Gallery

Luquillo Beach in Puerto Rico.jpg, Luquillo Beach Mountain in Luquillo, Puerto Rico.jpg, Mountain in Luquillo Gente Disfrutando 7mo Festival Tinglar 2012.jpg, Festival in Luquillo Luquillo Beach, Luquillo, Puerto Rico.jpg, Luquillo Beach, Luquillo Luquillo, Puerto Rico.JPG, Aerial view of Luquillo

References

External links

Puerto Rico Government Directory - Luquillo
{{Authority control Municipalities of Puerto Rico Populated coastal places in Puerto Rico Populated places established in 1797 Fajardo metropolitan area