El Combate Overview

If you’re one for long walks on the beach, then you’ve come to the right place. El Combate’s beach is one of the longest on the island; its white sand extends for miles in either direction. During weekdays this tiny barrio feels like a ghost town, but during holidays and summer vacations it fills up with Puerto Ricans. There’s not much to do here except lie on the beach and drink beer, but that’s exactly what most people come for.

Almost every house in town becomes some sort of vacation rental, and countless signs advertise rooms for rent. However, snagging this sort of rental can be difficult because few owners live near their properties or answer their phones. For more traditional accommodations, try Combate Beach Hotel , Rte. 3301 Km 2.7, a real hotel with clean, spacious rooms with TV, fridge, and A/C. The hotel’s biggest assets are the pool and direct beach access. Locals place the hotel’s seafood restaurant among the best in town. If the rooms are all booked, ask about the owner’s guest house in town. (}/fax 254-2358. June-Aug. doubles $100; quads $120. Sept.-May $85/100. Discounts for long stays. MC/V.) On the northern edge of town, directly across C. 1 from the beach, friendly Apartamentos Kenny is El Combate’s best value for groups. The small, one-bedroom apartments manage to accommodate a double bed, a set of bunk beds, a satellite TV, a kitchen area with stove and fridge, a small kitchen table, bedroom A/C, and up to six people—although two must sleep on a small fold-out couch. Some rooms are smaller and come without bunks. (☎254-0002 or 509-8833. Check-in 4pm. Check-out 3pm. Rooms Easter-Labor Day $105; Labor Day-Easter $90. Cash only.) Although Annie’s Place , offers six guest rooms right on the beach with A/C, cable TV, and kitchenettes ($85-110), it shines as El Combate’s best seafood  restaurant 3. Auspiciously located at the turn in the road at the end of Rte. 3301, this is the place to sit over the ocean enjoying mofongo filled with fresh seafood ($14), and watch the sunset. In the evening, the front half of the restaurant comes to life as a bar and empanadilla stand. (☎254-2553. Beer $1.50-2. Empanadas $1.75. Entrees $7-23. Open M-Th 10:30am-9pm, F-Sa 10:30am-1am, Su 10:30am-9pm. MC/V.)

El Combate sits at the end of Rte. 3301. Turn left at the Combate Hotel sign to reach the beach parking lot and the better, southern half of the beach. Or continue straight on Rte. 3301 to enter town, which extends north on four parallel streets: C. 1 is closest to the water, C. 2 is the next inland, and so on. Públicos occasionally journey out from Cabo Rojo, but service is sporadic.