Take a visit to Portalito Hub in Palmer

Update April 2020: Portalito Hub is no longer open.  After two years and the start of the coronavirus pandemic, it was closed down. El Yunque National Forest continues to work on repairing the main El Portal Visitor’s Center after Hurricane Maria and it is expected to reopen at the end of 2021.  You can still enjoy El Yunque!  You now need a reservation ticket purchased online to be able to enter the main recreation area along Road 191 North just above Palmer.

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El Portal is El Yunque National Forest’s official visitor’s center but as many of you know, with the passing of hurricanes Irma and Maria in September 2017 the facilities were severely damaged, as well as roads and trails. Six months later Portalito Hub opened to serve as the temporary visitor’s center for the forest and a community engagement center.

While El Portal facilities undergo repairs and renovations, all the educational and interpretive information on the forest and ecosystems that was offered at El Portal can now be experienced at Portalito Hub. There is a 20 minute movie about El Yunque which can be seen upon request in English or Spanish and on-site interpretive guides so you will basically experience it all like before. Portalito Hub also contains a site for seminars, workshops, special events and programming offered by partnering organizations which are focused on education and economic growth.

Portalito Hub is also our neighbor, located a minute from us at #54 Calle Principal in Palmer and the operation hours are 10am–4pm, 7 days a week. You should stop by before visiting the forest, it is totally worth it!