The Aibonito Festival of Flowers (Spanish: Festival de las Flores de Aibonito) is a yearly festival that takes place in Aibonito, Puerto Rico. This is a 10-day festival that is celebrated every June at specially-designated grounds just outside Aibonito Pueblo. Attendees to the festival are able to see and purchase flowers of all kinds brought by growers and retailers from all over Puerto Rico. In addition to the floral exhibits there are exhibitions dedicated to fruit and vegetable plants, live music performances, food kiosks, activities for children, and traditional arts and crafts. [1]
Aibonito is an important center in the floral industry of Puerto Rico since before the first edition of the festival. The festival has been celebrated for almost fifty years, and the first edition was celebrated in 1969. [2] Its original purpose was and still is to showcase Puerto Rico's flora and island's floral industry. The festival was officially established for its second edition when the "Festival de las Flores de Aibonito, Inc" ("Aibonito Festival of Flowers, Inc.") was incorporated with the objective of promoting and celebrating the town's floriculture and agriculture. In 2017 Hurricane María brought significant amount of rain, wind and destruction which decimated the flower industry of Aibonito. [3] In 2020 and 2021 [4] the festival was cancelled due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic in Puerto Rico.
San Lorenzo is a town and municipality of Puerto Rico located in the eastern central region, north of Patillas and Yabucoa; south of Gurabo; east of Caguas and Cayey; and west of Juncos and Las Piedras. San Lorenzo is spread over twelve barrios and San Lorenzo Pueblo. It is part of the San Juan-Caguas-Guaynabo Metropolitan Statistical Area.
Aibonito is a small mountain town and municipality in Puerto Rico located in the Sierra de Cayey mountain range, north of Salinas; south of Barranquitas and Comerio; east of Coamo; and west of Cidra, and Cayey. Aibonito is spread over 8 barrios and Aibonito Pueblo. It is part of the San Juan-Caguas-Guaynabo Metropolitan Statistical Area.
Coamo is a town and municipality founded in 1579 in the south-central region of Puerto Rico, located north of Santa Isabel; south of Orocovis and Barranquitas; east of Villalba and Juana Díaz; and west of Aibonito and Salinas. Coamo is spread over 10 barrios and Coamo Pueblo – the downtown area and the administrative center of the city. It is both a principal city of the Coamo Micropolitan Statistical Area and the Ponce-Yauco-Coamo Combined Statistical Area.
Ceiba is both a small town and a municipality in northeast Puerto Rico. It is named after the famous Ceiba tree. Ceiba is located in the north-east coast of the island, bordering the Atlantic Ocean, south of Fajardo, north of Naguabo and southeast of Río Grande. Located about one hour's driving distance from San Juan, Ceiba is spread over 7 barrios and Ceiba Pueblo. It is part of the Fajardo Metropolitan Statistical Area.
Cabo Rojo is a city and municipality situated on the southwest coast of Puerto Rico and forms part of the San Germán–Cabo Rojo metropolitan area as well as the larger Mayagüez–San Germán–Cabo Rojo Combined Statistical Area.
Barranquitas is a small mountain town and municipality located in the Cordillera Central region of Puerto Rico, south of Corozal and Naranjito; north of Coamo and Aibonito; west of Comerío and Cidra; and east of Orocovis. Barranquitas is spread over 6 barrios and Barranquitas Pueblo. It is part of the San Juan-Caguas-Guaynabo Metropolitan Statistical Area.
Camuy is a town and municipality of Puerto Rico, bordering the Atlantic Ocean, north of Lares and San Sebastián; east of Quebradillas; and west of Hatillo. Camuy is spread over 12 barrios and Camuy Pueblo. The town celebrated its 200th anniversary in 2007.
Añasco, named after one of its settlers, Don Luis de Añasco, is a town and municipality of Puerto Rico located on the west coast of the island bordering the Mona Passage to the west, north of Mayagüez, and Las Marias; south of Rincón, Aguada, and Moca and west of San Sebastián and Las Marias. It is part of the Aguadilla-Isabela-San Sebastián Metropolitan Statistical Area.
Arroyo is a town and municipality located along the southern coast of Puerto Rico and bordered by the Caribbean Sea, east of the municipality of Guayama and northwest of the municipality of Patillas. Arroyo is spread over 5 barrios and Arroyo barrio-pueblo. It is part of the Guayama Metropolitan Statistical Area.
Barceloneta is a town and municipality in Puerto Rico located in the north region, bordering the Atlantic Ocean, approximately 1,000 miles south of Florida, east of Arecibo and west of Manati. Barceloneta is spread over 3 barrios and Barceloneta Pueblo. It is part of the San Juan-Caguas-Guaynabo Metropolitan Statistical Area.
Comerío is a town and municipality of Puerto Rico located in the center-eastern region of island, north of Aibonito; south of Naranjito and Bayamón; east of Barranquitas; and west of Cidra and Aguas Buenas. Comerío is spread over 7 barrios and Comerío Pueblo. It is part of the San Juan-Caguas-Guaynabo Metropolitan Statistical Area.
Hatillo is a town and municipality located in Puerto Rico's north coast, bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the north, Lares and Utuado to the south, Camuy to the west, and Arecibo to the east. According to the 2000 US Census Hatillo is spread over nine barrios and Hatillo Pueblo. It is part of the San Juan-Caguas-Guaynabo Metropolitan Statistical Area.
Maricao is a town and the second-least populous municipality of Puerto Rico; it is located at the western edge of the Cordillera Central. It is a small town set around a small square in hilly terrain, north of San Germán, Sabana Grande and Yauco; south of Las Marías and Lares, southeast of Mayagüez, and west of Adjuntas. Maricao is spread over 6 barrios and Maricao Pueblo.
Naguabo is a town and municipality in Puerto Rico located in the east coast of the island bordered by the Vieques Passage, north of Humacao; south of Río Grande and Ceiba; and east of Las Piedras. Naguabo is spread over 8 barrios and Naguabo Pueblo. It is part of the San Juan-Caguas-Guaynabo Metropolitan Statistical Area.
San Sebastián is a town and municipality of Puerto Rico located in the northwestern region of the island, south of Isabela, Quebradillas and Camuy; north of Las Marías; east of Moca and Añasco; and west of Lares. San Sebastián is spread over twenty-four barrios and San Sebastián Pueblo. It is a principal city of the Aguadilla-Isabela-San Sebastián Metropolitan Statistical Area.
Cordillera Central, is the main mountain range in Puerto Rico. The range crosses the island from west to east and divides it into its northern and southern coastal plains. The Cordillera Central runs eastward from the municipality of Maricao in the west to Aibonito in the central eastern region, and on to the Caribbean in the southeast through the Sierra de Cayey. The Central Mountain Range consists of the Cordillera Central proper and numerous subranges, foothills and ridges that extend throughout the island. Cerro de Punta is both the highest peak of the Cordillera Central and the highest point in Puerto Rico. The Sierra de Luquillo, where El Yunque is located, is sometimes included as a subrange or eastward extension of the Cordillera Central.
The Carretera Central is a historic north–south central highway in Puerto Rico, linking the cities of San Juan and Ponce by way of Rio Piedras, Caguas, Cayey, Aibonito, Coamo, and Juana Diaz. It crosses the Cordillera Central. Plans for the road started in the first half of the 19th century, and the road was fully completed in 1898. At the time the United States took possession of Puerto Rico in 1898, the Americans called it "the finest road in the Western Hemisphere."
Aibonito barrio-pueblo is a barrio and the administrative center (seat) of Aibonito, a municipality of Puerto Rico. Its population in 2010 was 3,539.
Puerto Rico Highway 722 (PR-722) is a rural road located in Aibonito, Puerto Rico. It begins at its intersection with PR-14 east of downtown Aibonito and ends at the Ruta Panorámica between Robles and Pasto barrios. The traditional Festival de las Flores is celebrated near this road.
The San Sebastian Heifer Festival or Festival de la Novilla is a popular festival in Puerto Rico, held annually in the municipality of San Sebastián on the third weekend of January, during the town's fiestas patronales dedicated to Saint Sebastian. The weekend-long event is one of Puerto Rico's best known festivals, drawing visitors from all over the island. San Sebastián is located in the western mountainous region of Puerto Rico, close to Aguadilla and Mayagüez.