mark&lisa

Did Spencer tour in early March....The tours were great, but we had a boat problem and the crew didn't handle it very well at all. I'm not here to bash Spencer, like I said, we enjoyed the tour, but after the mishap he said he would be in contact with everyone involved and haven't heard a word from him.......I'll go with Cosol next time.

Just got back and did a private tour with Bernards that was booked before the Hurricane......I was concerned that it would be a total waste of money, but Daniel did a great job showing us the island. While it's true, there is not much left to see except for the aftermath, we were glad to help out a little with our few tourist dollars. We were shown the French/ Dutch borders, Orient Beach, we spent a few hours at the market doing some shopping, several scenic photo stops , and spent a few hours at Maho Beach. It ended up being an enjoyable tour thanks to Bernards!

Went to Sapphire Beach last week and enjoyed it....Not crowded at all and they had chairs available....a little shade under some trees....beautiful water and views and two bars open and I grill. Snorkling was just ok.. I'd go back !

Lisa & I always book an inside room with the exception of when we cruised Alaska. We booked a balcony there because we were always in sight of land and something to see!

For those who have had a private tour with Bernard.....where and what did you do??

I just booked with him for March and got a reply and confirmation same day !

We are on Carnival - I think we dock at Havensight

This will be our first time to St. Thomas and have narrowed it down to Sapphire or Magens. What is your opinion of the 2? From what I could tell, Sapphire may be a little less crowded. I saw that it took approx 25 minutes to get to Magens, how long will it take to get to Sapphire? I've seen conflicting taxi fares to Sapphire ranging from $10 per person each way to $20 per person each way....any confirmations on taxi fare from the pier? Thanks !!!

With so much up in the air after the Hurricanes' date=' I thought I would report back after our time in Puerto Rico before our cruise this year on RCCL Jewel of the Seas.

 

DH and I cruise once a year and our preference is to sail out of San Juan. More ports in 7 days and when you embark you already feel like you are on vacation. The weather is very consistent, unlike sailing out of Florida in December or January.

 

We are typically booked over a year out. Over the years we have extended our time precruise in Puerto Rico from one day to multiple days. This year we spent 4 days precruise in OSJ.

 

Like most people, after Maria hit, we had many discussions about what to do and tried to read as much as possible so we were informed. We were set to arrive in PR on 12/06 and had booked our reservation at Hotel Casablanca in OSJ sometime over the summer. We talked about shortening our time in PR but decided to move forward with our original plans. I confirmed with Hotel Casablanca 2 months before leaving via Facebook. They were quick to respond, had our reservation, were running on generator power and anticipating our arrival.

 

JetBlue canceled our flight out of JFK at 9:45 am on 12/06 and moved us to a 6:30 am flight. We confirmed again with Hotel Casablanca 2 weeks before and they had power restored. Our flight left JFK with out a hitch and arrived in PR on time. Our bag was one of the first ones off the plane and before we knew it we were in the taxi line and on our way to the hotel. Our taxi driver spoke a little English. She said things were starting to pick up again slowly. At the time we were there she was still with out power and water at her home. She was still keeping her head up.

 

We arrived at Hotel Casablanca around 11:30 am. Check in was not until 3:00 pm so they offered to hold our bags. We headed out to find some lunch. We stopped at Pirilo Pizza Rustica on Fortaleza Street. We have eaten here before and enjoyed the tripleta pizza and a couple of cold beers. Walked around a little and ended up in Plaza de colon. Enjoyed some coconut ice from one of the vendors before heading back to Casablanca.

 

Our room was on the 4th floor. While there the elevator was not working. Didn't bother us but if you have mobility issues you might want a room on a lower floor. They will bring your bags to your room for you if you need help. If you want a hairdryer you need to ask. They are not left in the rooms. We had a balcony room which allowed us to enjoy some time reading outside. There are safes in the rooms now. Rooms are on the smaller side but clean and comfortable. They are eclectically decorated. Bathrooms have shampoo, conditioner and body lotion.

 

For dinner tonight we chose Punto de Vista on the roof of the Hotel Milano. It's located across the street and a few doors down from Casablanca. If you are curious about the menu there is always a representative outside the hotel with a menu. The view is great, they have BOGO mojitos during Happy Hour and the mofongo is fantastic. David, Mimi and Melvin took great care of us the 3 times we ate there during our visit. We had the pork and churrasco mofongo, PDV sampler, sausage appetizer and the Mallorca ice cream sandwich.

 

We also ate dinner one night at Cafe Puerto Rico. We enjoyed the diced pork with onions, chicharones, tostones and arroz con gandueles.

 

We enjoyed breakfast a few times at Cafe Mallorca. This is definitely a locals place. We may have been the only tourists there but they made us feel welcome. Fantastic cafe con leche and Mallorcas con jamon, huevo and queso. I would also recommend Cafe Manolin. We went here based on a recommendation from the manager at Greengo's. Caficultura was delicious but $40 for breakfast was a little pricey for our blood.

 

Greengo's Mexican cafe was amazing! We were hesitant to eat Mexican food while in PR but could not have been happier with our choice. Gilbert, the manager, is awesome! He gave us great advice on the menu as well as some other places to eat in OSJ. He was nice enough to talk with us for about an hour. For dinner we enjoyed the pork nachos, pork chimichanga "wet" (with enchilada sauce and cheese). They have BOGO house margaritas until 7:00.

 

During our stay we always plan to take one day and go snorkeling on a catamaran excursion out of Fajardo. Before we left we had booked our trip on the Spread Eagle. The day before they called and canceled siting mechanical issues with the boat. We called around and ended up rebooking with Traveler. They picked us up in front of the Sheraton Old San Juan. The trip to the marina takes about 30 minutes. We enjoyed a great day on the water. Snorkeling equipment was provided. Water, soda and juice were available all day. Lunch was sandwiches and salads. The bar opened after everyone ate. The other companies we used in the past had open bars all day.

 

We had a fantastic time in Puerto Rico again this year. As good a time, if not better than we had on the cruise. Most shops and restaurants in OSJ were open. Most areas had power, some still on generator. There were crews out every day working to restore the power. There was some visible damage on our trip from the airport and our trip to and from the marina. Almost all of the traffic lights were out so driving was interesting. We walked around a lot and never felt unsafe. The flow of tourists was not what we have experienced in years past. The restaurants that were open were pretty empty. When you would be hoping to get in at 8:00 pm on a Friday or Saturday night, there were only 3-4 groups in most restaurants. Everyone we talked to was super friendly and upbeat. We will value the connections we made for years to come!

 

I would be happy to answer any questions. It is our hope that people will continue to start returning to PR. They need our money to get back on their feet. We are counting the days until we return next December.

 

-Kristi

 

 

 

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Was Hotel Milano open for room reservations or just the rooftop restaurant?

I emailed them and got a fast response back....We are booked for March 10th

I have a reservation in Feb. at Hotel Milano. They recently e-mailed me saying they THINK everything will be ok by then. We're doing a transition cruise ending in PR. Picked it so we could have a whole day in PR without worrying about luggage or time. I'm hoping everything will be ok by then.

I got an email from Hotel Milano today (11/27) saying that they were open and have electricity.

Just received an email from Hotel Milano saying that they were open and have electricity

Has anyone seen or heard if the Hotel Milano in Old San Juan is open? Thanks and Happy Cruising to all.

Received an email today (11/27/17) from Juan at Hotel Milano saying that they were open and have electricity !

Stingray city in GC is a must......Mr Sanchos in Cozumel is awesome if you just want to hang on the beach and relax

We were on the Splendor in late Feb when we had engine trouble and had to cancel 2 ports. Things like that happen and we still had a good time. I have cruised with Carnival several times and did notice some changes such as longer wait times for dinner in the MDR, every morning on Lido there was at least one coffee pot out of service and twice had to hunt for cups more than once...a few other noticable items that really needed to be cleaned..........with that being said, it was still a pleasant vacation, ...

Do either Sunset House or Paradise Grill rent snorkeling equipment?

I would second the recommendation for Rony's Tours in Roatan - we've used him in the past and they are wonderful. We've done the South Shore ziplining and then onto a tour of the island and to the beach (Bananarama) - their company is very professional and friendly!

We suggest Ronys Tours also- Just got back off of Carnival Magic Feb 2014. We toured the island, ziplined and saw the monkeys at Mayan Jungle, then spent the rest of the day at Half Moon Bay- very good snorkling there!