If you drive east from San Juan for about an hour, you'll hit Ceiba. It's a quiet town. But if you keep going toward the coast, you run into a massive, sprawling ghost of the Cold War. Most people call it Roosevelt Roads, or just "Rosy Roads" if they grew up nearby. This isn't just some abandoned pier or a small airstrip. It’s a 8,600-acre footprint that once dictated the geopolitical rhythm of the entire Caribbean.
Honestly, it’s weird there now.
You’ve got these perfectly paved roads that lead to nowhere. There are hangars large enough to swallow several football fields, now echoing with nothing but the sound of tropical birds and the salty Atlantic wind. When the U.S. Navy officially pulled out in 2004, it didn't just leave behind buildings; it left a massive vacuum in the Puerto Rican economy. For decades, Roosevelt Roads Puerto Rico was the "Pearl Harbor of the Atlantic." It was a powerhouse. Now, it’s a complicated puzzle of redevelopment projects, environmental cleanup hurdles, and local dreams that haven't quite manifested yet.
People often ask if they can just "visit" it like a museum. Not exactly. It's more of a patchwork. Some parts are restricted, some are repurposed for the local ferry to Culebra and Vieques, and other parts are being slowly reclaimed by the mangroves. If you're looking for a sanitized tourist experience, this isn't it. But if you want to understand the raw, unfiltered history of the U.S. military presence in the Caribbean, you have to look at what happened here.
The Massive Scale of Roosevelt Roads Puerto Rico
To understand why this place matters, you have to look at the math. In its prime, the base supported over 2,500 active-duty military personnel and their families. Add in the civilian contractors and local employees, and you’re talking about a small city. It had its own schools, its own hospital, a golf course, and even a movie theater. It wasn't just a workplace. It was a lifestyle.
The base was established in the early 1940s. President Franklin D. Roosevelt (hence the name) saw the strategic necessity of a major Atlantic outpost during World War II. It served as a critical jumping-off point for maneuvers in the Caribbean and a shield for the Panama Canal. Throughout the Cold War, the Navy used the nearby waters and the island of Vieques for live-fire training exercises. This is where the tension starts. While the base brought jobs and infrastructure, the environmental and social cost was heavy.
The relationship between the Navy and the local population was... complicated. Sorta like a love-hate marriage. The base provided thousands of high-paying jobs in a region where economic opportunities were scarce. But the noise of the bombings on Vieques and the restricted access to prime coastal land created a simmering resentment that eventually boiled over. After the 1999 death of David Sanes, a civilian security guard killed by a stray Navy bomb, the protests became unstoppable. By 2003, the Navy stopped training. By 2004, they packed up and left Rosy Roads for good.
👉 See also: US States I Have Been To: Why Your Travel Map Is Probably Lying To You
What’s Left Behind: The Current State of the Infrastructure
Walking through parts of the base today feels like a post-apocalyptic movie. You see the massive dry dock—one of the largest in the hemisphere—which was designed to repair the biggest warships in the fleet. It’s a staggering piece of engineering. But it sits mostly idle, a giant concrete basin waiting for a maritime industry that has been slow to return.
The airport is another story. It has one of the longest runways in the Caribbean. At over 11,000 feet, it can handle basically any aircraft in existence. Today, it operates as the José Aponte de la Torre Airport. It’s not exactly O'Hare, but it’s a lifeline for regional hops. You’ll see small Cessnas and the occasional private jet, but the vast majority of that tarmac remains empty, shimmering in the heat.
Environmental issues are the elephant in the room. Decades of military operations don't leave a site "clean." The Navy and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) have spent years dealing with contaminants, including jet fuel leaks and heavy metals. This cleanup is a massive part of why redevelopment has been so slow. You can’t just build a luxury resort on top of a fuel plume. You have to remediate. And remediation takes time. And lots of money.
Why the Redevelopment "Grand Plans" Often Fail
Since 2004, we’ve seen a dozen "master plans." There was talk of a "Riviera del Caribe." Developers promised mega-yacht marinas, thousands of hotel rooms, and high-tech research hubs. Most of these plans stalled. Why? Because the scale is too big for any single investor to swallow.
Building in Roosevelt Roads Puerto Rico isn't like building on a vacant lot in San Juan. You have to replace entire power grids. You have to fix water systems that have been decaying since the Bush administration. The local government has tried various approaches—at one point seeking a single master developer, then later breaking the land into smaller parcels to entice local businesses.
- The Ferry Terminal: This is the most successful "win" recently. Moving the ferry to Culebra and Vieques from the old Fajardo terminal to the Ceiba base has changed everything. It brought foot traffic. It brought a reason for people to actually enter the gates.
- The Marine Industry: There are small boat repair shops and storage facilities popping up. It makes sense. The geography is perfect for it.
- Film Production: Hollywood loves the abandoned look. Huge productions like The Plane and various TV shows have used the hangars and runways as sets. It's a temporary boost, but it keeps the lights on.
The Secret Spots: Nature’s Takeover
If you're a nature lover, the "failed" redevelopment is actually a win. Because large swaths of the base were left untouched for years, the wildlife has moved back in. The Ensenada Honda area is a stunning mangrove ecosystem. It's quiet.
✨ Don't miss: UNESCO World Heritage Places: What Most People Get Wrong About These Landmarks
There are beaches on the base that most tourists never see. Los Machos and Medio Mundo are beautiful, but they aren't your typical groomed resort beaches. They are wild. You'll find locals there on the weekends, but during the week, you might be the only person for a mile. The water is clear, the snorkeling is decent around the old piers, and the sense of solitude is something you just don't get in the San Juan Metro area.
The manatees love it here. Because boat traffic was restricted for decades under the Navy, the seagrass beds are healthy. It’s one of the best places in Puerto Rico to spot them if you’re patient and keep your eyes on the shallow water.
Logistics: How to Actually Get There
Don't expect a GPS to lead you to a "Welcome Center." To get into the main areas of the former Roosevelt Roads Puerto Rico, you’ll head to the Ceiba Ferry Terminal.
- Take Highway 53 East (be ready for tolls).
- Exit toward Ceiba/Roosevelt Roads.
- Follow the signs for the "Terminal de Lanchas."
- Once you pass through the main gate—which is still manned by security—you’re on the base.
The roads are wide but keep an eye out for potholes and the occasional stray horse. Yes, horses. They roam the base freely, descendants of animals from nearby farms that found the 8,000 acres of grass too tempting to resist.
The Future: What’s Actually Happening in 2026?
Right now, the focus has shifted from "mega-resorts" to "resiliency." There’s a massive solar project in the works. The idea is to turn the base into a green energy hub that can provide power to the eastern part of the island during hurricane season. Given Puerto Rico's history with power outages, this is probably the most practical use of the space anyone has come up with yet.
There is also a growing push for "Blue Economy" initiatives. This means sustainable ocean-based businesses—think coral restoration labs, sustainable aquaculture, and maritime tech. It’s less flashy than a casino, but it’s more sustainable.
🔗 Read more: Tipos de cangrejos de mar: Lo que nadie te cuenta sobre estos bichos
The local community in Ceiba is also getting more of a say. For years, they felt like spectators in their own backyard. Now, you see local food trucks near the ferry terminal and small-scale tour operators taking people into the mangroves. It’s a bottom-up approach that seems to be sticking where the top-down "Grand Plans" failed.
Actionable Steps for Visiting or Investing
If you’re planning to check out Roosevelt Roads Puerto Rico, don't just wing it. It’s too big and too confusing.
- Go for the Ferry, Stay for the History: Book a ferry ticket to Vieques, but get there two hours early. Use that time to drive the perimeter roads of the base. Look at the old officers' quarters (now largely overgrown) and the massive hangars.
- Bring Water and Food: There are very few services once you get away from the ferry terminal. It’s a hot, concrete-heavy environment.
- Check the Film Schedule: If you see big trailers and security guards blocking certain hangars, a movie is likely filming. Don't try to sneak in; the security is surprisingly tight for an "abandoned" place.
- Look into the LUR (Land Use Restrictions): If you're a business owner thinking about the area, do your homework on the environmental restrictions. Certain areas are "ready to build," while others are decades away from being cleared.
- Support the Locals: Skip the San Juan chains and eat at the "chinchorros" in Ceiba on your way out. That’s where the real flavor of the region is.
Roosevelt Roads is a lesson in scale. It’s a reminder of what happens when a global superpower moves out and leaves the keys under the mat. It’s not a park, it’s not a base, and it’s not a city—it’s something else entirely. It’s a landscape in transition, caught between a heavy military past and a future that is still trying to find its footing.
Whether it becomes a green energy paradise or remains a sprawling monument to the Cold War is still up in the air. But for now, it's one of the most fascinating, eerie, and beautiful places on the island of Puerto Rico. If you want to see the "real" Caribbean, the one that isn't featured in travel brochures, you need to drive through those gates in Ceiba.
The scale of the silence there tells a story that words usually can't.
Next Steps for Your Visit:
Before heading out, check the official Puerto Rico Integrated Transit Authority (PRITA) website for the latest ferry schedules from Ceiba. If you are interested in the historical aspect, the Ceiba Historical Society occasionally hosts events or can provide context that isn't found on the limited signage within the base grounds. For those interested in the ecological side, contact local kayak outfitters who specialize in the Ensenada Honda mangroves; they are the only ones who can legally and safely show you the hidden manatee habitats and the "secret" coastline of the former base.