hacienda monte alto

We went in October 2014, and boy was this place hard to find. It is VERY high up in the mountains and it requires a lot of traveling on small, windy roads. We eventually, however, did find the plantation, but they weren't doing any tours (contrary to what I had read online). But the staff were super nice and we were able to buy coffee, ground or whole bean, at $5 per half pound. I believe this is substantially less if we were to buy it elsewhere. Overall, if you're in the area, it might be cool to check out because it's good coffee for cheap, but I wouldn't search this out specifically since it's really quite a dangerous drive to get to.

Monte Alto wasn't easy to find (locals had to lead us there), but it was sure worth the effort! Monte Alto is a small coffee plantation nestled in the mountains near Adjuntas. They process and roast the beans on site and allow you to go in the roasting factory. You can buy freshly roasted beans for $5/bag. After checking out the roasting operation, we were allowed to take a self-guided tour through the plantation along a nicely paved road that was lined with orange, papaya, banana trees and pineapple plants. We even ate some oranges that had fallen on the ground. It was a really memorable experience!!