When I found out that I was going to be sent to Puerto Rico to work a conference for my day job, I was giddy. It was the first time that travel had intersected with my job in a major way and just the thought of packing made me excited.

And then I actually thought about it some more…this was for work, meaning that the attached price tag would not be my responsibility and that the accommodation selected would probably be much different than what I would normally select for myself.

So color me tickled when I found out that I would be staying at the gargantuan and gorgeous Waldorf Astoria property, El Conquistador Resort, in the coastal town of Fajardo.

A resort? Me? The girl who has slept in countless airports, parks and waterfronts to avoid forking over the cash for another night of accommodation? Yeah, that girl.

As expected, the grounds of the Resort were immaculate.

The entire property backed to a 300-foot cliff that can only be navigated by a funicular cable car. (Which was great in theory – until it broke down and stranded about 50 of us at the base of cliff.)

El Con had everything imaginable for a Resort; water parks, a casino, pools, golf courses, night clubs, restaurants, a mammoth conference and events center.

And then there was the private island, Palamino. A private island? Seriously?

A place created to cater to the every whim of a tourist on a beach vacation – snorkeling, scuba, wind surfing, horseback riding, hiking, jet-skiing.

A place where cash is not currency and only your room card allows you access.

I had to hike around to the back-side of Palamino just to find a place that wasn’t inundated with people. Beautiful? Yes. But not exactly a place for relaxing in solitude.

My room was comfortable, well manicured and a far nicer place than I usually lay my head while traveling. That being said, it felt a bit sterile and lacked any sort of personality.

But let’s be honest, I didn’t spend much time in the room anyways. How could I when there was an infinity pool calling my name?

And with the Golden Door Spa just down the path from my room?

And with hundreds of acres of lush property to explore?

Staying at El Conquistador was a complete novelty for me; a new experience in travel.

And while I can see why it would appeal to many people, I ultimately grew tiresome of the meticulously crafted, “perfect vacation” environment that was being served up with a Mai Thai chaser.

For me, what lay beyond the Resort (“off campus” as the real town of Fajardo was referred to), was far more interesting.