Yauco ~ the city of colors

Yauco is a small town located about a half hour west of Ponce, on the southern side of the island, easily accessible from Highway 2.

It is mostly known for its “Yaucromatic” project, a public art project started in 2017 where several houses on a hill and the steps of the hill are painted with vivid colors. It’s a pretty steep hill, but it’s short.

However, there’s more to do in Yauco, so keep reading!

If you want to SEE my walk in Yauco, click here!

There is more than the one hill with the colorful patterns though! A small plaza just north of the main Plaza (take Calle Betances north… or “up”) has several murals and a beautiful tree wrapped in crochet made by locals, “el arbol tejido”. There’s even a swing you can play on! This plaza is the one that shows up as “Yaucromatic” if you search for directions to Yauco online.

From there… go up the steps with the flag and take a right on Calle Maestro León to see the hill with all the colorful houses.

Mural and tree wrapped in crochet, and a wider view of the main hill with colorful houses on Calle Sanchez Lopez.

There are murals in several parts of town, including streets off the Calle Comercio, so check it out. You can park at the main Plaza, Plaza Pública, and explore by foot from there. From the Plaza Pública you can see a church, the theatre “teatro Ideal”, and there’s a small lot with food trucks… and more murals!

Two murals by the food truck park near the main Plaza.

Some of the damages from Hurricane María and the 2020 earthquake can be seen, and it is somewhat strange to see this art project next to some dilapidated houses, but overall Yauco is a wonderfully colorful breath of fresh air.

You don’t need to spend a ton of time there but do more than just the Yaucromatic plaza and the colorful hill. Keep your eyes open for other murals than the ones you’ll see online searching “Yauco”, as new ones keep popping up. Don’t hesitate to take a side street, and definitely spend a couple of hours walking around!

Have you been to Yauco? What did you think? Let me know below in the comments.