PUERTO RICO

Numero Uno Guest House, San Juan

Numero Uno, one of a handful of beachfront guesthouses in San Juan, feels like a stylish friend's beach house. The three-story 1940s structure has only 14 guest rooms, and the management throws weekly cocktail parties on the second-floor lounge's balcony. The decor eschews tropical kitsch in favor of sophisticated shades of ocher and taupe. The plunge pool, with luminous black tiles, sits inside a walled garden with bougainvillea and other tropical flowers. Tables at the Caribbean-style Pamela's restaurant spill out through the hotel's archway and onto the sand. Best of all is the location: The mostly residential Ocean Park sits between Condado and Isla Verde. That means you get to be right near the action without the attendant traffic, noise, or high price tags.

Standard rooms, $139 (plus 24% taxes and service charge)

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