10 Sights & Landmarks in Ponce That You Shouldn't Miss

Fuente de los Leones is located in Plaza las Delicias. It's a one-of-a-kind water fountain surrounded by lion statues. The lions hold a lot of significance because it is the animal that symbolizes the city.

The Antiguo Casino de Ponce (English: Old Ponce Casino), or simply the Casino de Ponce, is a historic structure, built in 1922 and located in Ponce, Puerto Rico. Originally built as a social club for Ponce's elite, it is currently used as the premier reception center of "The Noble City of Puerto Rico". The building, designed by Agustin Camilo Gonzalez in the Second Empire and Neo-Rococo styles, has a French facade and tones. It was listed in the National Register of Historic Places on October 28, 1987. The building has been called "an icon of Ponce's architecture, history, and identity." It is owned and administered by the Ponce Municipal Government.

Right in the center of Ponce's Historic Zone is the Cathedral Our Lady of Guadalupe, better known as Ponce Cathedral. The building ads up around 300 years of history, going through many changes in its lifetime. This opened the path to become an official historic site in 1984. The prestige it has gained over the years has earned it much love from the residents, and on certain holidays, thousands of people set off to attend the ceremony at this neo-classical church.

This institution enrolls more than 7,000 students and has colleges of business, education, science and law.

Ponce's School of Fine Arts, housed in old Spanish army headquarters, may have something to do with the city's prodigious artistic output.

This elegant 17th-century cathedral rises majestically in the midst of Ponce.

Evoking the era of the sugar barons of Puerto Rico, this beautiful Spanish Revival mansion was built in 1930 for the Serrallés family, owners of the Don Q rum distillery.

Come up to the mountains and follow the trail to the waterfall that gave Hacienda Buena Vista its name. What used to be an important coffee plantation was also the scenario of a unique relationship between land, water and slavery. Today, at the heart of the former hacienda is a carefully restored historical site containing structures more than a century old and a hydraulic turbine that's the only one of its kind. Completely refurbished, the turbine is still powered by the water of Río Canas and serves as the main engine for other machines of the time. Spaces are limited, please reserve in advance online or by phone. More dates are available for groups by request.

The Casa Wiechers-Villaronga is a neo-classical style mansion in Ponce. It was designed and built in the early twentieth century. The house was acquired and restored by the Institute of Puerto Rican Culture and now operates as the Museo de la Arquitectura Poncena (Museum of Ponce Architecture).