In Spanish, por and para can be used to describe travel or motion. A simple rule to remember when to use the two prepositions is that por refers to travel/motion through a place or location while para refers to the destination of a journey. Salimos por la puerta. We left through the door.We left through the door.
Viajamos para el Caribe.
We travel to the Caribbean.
In the first example, la puerta is how we go to the destination—what we go through. In the second example, el Caribe is the destination—what we go to.
Or
A trick to understanding when to use por and when to use para is knowing which preposition is associated with a cause and which is associated with an effect. Por typically refers to an action’s cause while para refers to its effect.
