KatPem

My kids have loved it. We make them go the first night. That is where they will get to know everyone and everyone is new and nervous so I think it's easier to make friends. Then we make them pick one activity each day, they usually want to attend way more

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We were there in October. San Juan is perfectly safe. I would spend the day in old San Juan...tons to see and do. The vegetation was severely damaged, I wonder if the atv tours would be running or how nice it would be if they are. Hardly any noticeable damage in old San juan

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We have done this itinerary twice and have it booked for a third time in the spring. THe first time we let the kids decide. There were so many other things we wanted to do that we booked it again for my husband and I. I will say, on St Lucia with the kids we did ziplining and while it was great, when we went alone, we did the mud baths and snorkeled between the Pitons....it was AMAZING! SO much so that when we let our oldest pick our upcoming cruise for her final college spring break, she chose to do this itinerary again and wants to do what dad and I did. lol So, if you enjoy snorkeling at all....in my opinion, St Lucia is one of the best we have seen! We booked through Spencer AMbroise and already are booked for our spring trip!

I need advice. 20th anniversary, only the 2nd time on a cruise. If we were to do the Carnival Carribean, which one would you do? We love more historical locations and don't mind a nice sandy beach to relax on at some point. We don't really care about the big hikes and adventure type activities. I need suggestions as I'm in information overload right now LOL

Happy 20th :) We just celebrated by cruising out of Puerto Rico for our 20th. If you like historical, it doesn't get much better than San Juan. We have cruised several times out of Puerto Rico, you may find your points cover it or you could use points to get to FL and then pay to fly to PR fairly inexpensively. You can't beat the places you can get to out of PR. We are on the Fascination in March. It will be our first time on that ship but our third time on that itinerary. St Lucia is one of our favorites due to snorkeling between the Pitons (it's like swimming in an aquarium right from the beach) and the Mud Baths. I like that the itineraries out of PR, each island is so totally different. We went to Curacao for the first time on ours and fell in love with it as well. Roatan was very nice in the past (we went to Little French Key...hard to find anything more beautiful!) The only places we really didn't care for on our cruises was the Bahamas. Enjoy!

We got an insulated stainless steel leakproof Contigo bottle. They are perfect (I do use a cup to get my ice, water, whatever and then fill it). I love using it on the way in the airport. You must take it empty through security but then if you get a drink before boarding the plane you don't have to worry about spilling it if you take it aboard. It's also great to pour a complementary drink from them in so you don't have to worry about drinking it before it spills. We use it everywhere on the ship and fill it with ice water in the morning, the ice lasts all day in port. We can then refill and make sure we have plenty of ice to keep our drinks cold all day. We are taking our kids in March and these will be Christmas gifts for them, they are so handy. You can throw them in your bag or in the outside pocket of your bag/backpack and not having to worry about it spilling.

Thanks. The Anthem OTS is docking at about 10AM and from the little info that I've gathered, Carambola opens at 11AM.

We had an 8 or 9am docking our last trip to Carambola. They said that they didn't open til 11am officially but we were welcome about 9:30 I believe. Advance reservations are nice, they will get you chairs closest to the water. If there are a lot of ships, it can get busy but it is very nice.

If you haven't heard back, I would email them again, it may have gotten lost in their in-box

We really enjoyed the Carambola Beach Club. It was a $4 taxi ride each (for 4 people...for 2 it is $8), that is each way. They have very nice padded chairs you can rent for $20/day for 2, add $10 for an umbrella. They had buckets of 6 local beer or soft drinks for $20 when we were there last time.

Have Verizon, just got back on Wednesday. Service was extremely spotty. Some texts would send, some wouldn't. Sometimes I could get pics through but not texts. Couldn't access anything online really but somehow Facebook was ok most of the time. We did turn on data roaming on our phones. We went thinking we wouldn't have any service so we were pleased with the spotty service we got.

Hi,

 

I was wondering if anyone has any experience of the time it takes to leave the cruise ship and get to the airport?

 

Due to my original flight being cancelled I had to re-book to a flight that leaves an hour after 8 am (apparently the time that customs is open).

 

Do you think it is possible to catch my flight??

 

I'm flying with American Airlines and cruising with Royal Carib

 

Any help or pointers would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks

No Way. We just got off the Adventure last Saturday. Upon checking my emails from the airlines, we were told to get to the airport 3 HOURS prior to our flight to allow enough time to get through security, etc. Now, we didn't have long lines but we didn't fly out until Wed afternoon. I think even 11am flights will be pushing it if it is in the next few weeks.

Kathy, the Best Western Condado is not real far from the cruise port that the Fascination docks at but definately cannot walk there, it is a few miles. There are lots of hotels within a couple of miles and a handful in Old San Juan.

Was in Puerto Rico last week, Hotel Milano is boarded up but looked to be without damage. I am sure they will reopen very soon after power is restored, whenever that may be. There are no working phone lines that I know of in Old San Juan either. Best to email them but I would just watch to see that OSJ has power and once it does, call.

Carnival did not change our ports.... but I thought those islands were in bad condition.

 

In January we're going to Grand Turks, Puerto Rico, St. Marteen and St. Kitts.

 

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I can't speak for the other two but I was just at St Kitts and San Juan in the last two weeks. St Kitts is business as usual, we saw barely any damage. San Juan isn't fully restored but Old San Juan does have some businesses open as does the nearby Condado. By January, I think that Old San Juan will be even better, there isn't a lot of damage in OSJ, just the lack of power but several places have generators and I would think they will have power restored by January.

I want to agree with Tapi. We just returned on Wednesday from San Juan. We were there two days before our cruise and 4 days after. We drove to Luquillo one day and past Dorado another. We spent most of our time in Old San Juan and Condado. There was lots of destruction outside of the San Juan area. That being said, even in the areas we say the most destruction, there were businesses open. If you are a 5 star resort type of person, do not go for a while, you will be disappointed. If you are a go with the flo type, you will be fine. Like Tapi said, places offering food, some even without power during daytime hours, but may have a limited menu of food and drinks or be out of things. You will not go hungry or even come close. While places were damaged and some are without power and without a generator, there are plenty of places open for business as usual. We loved our time there and can't wait to go back. Everyone we spoke with was in good spirits and glad to have us there.

The Casa Blanca Hotel ... it looks interesting. Why are there tubs on the roof? Are they working tubs?

It is an amazing hotel full of character, I can't wait to go back once things are back to normal! They are soaking tubs that you fill just like a bathtub. You can choose the temp, althought the warm takes longer to fill. We loved them! So cool, especially at night!

The Casa Blanca Hotel ... it looks interesting. Why are there tubs on the roof? Are they working tubs?

It is an amazing hotel full of character, I can't wait to go back once things are back to normal! They are soaking tubs that you fill just like a bathtub. You can choose the temp, althought the warm takes longer to fill. We loved them! So cool, especially at night!

Who didn't have air at the Comfort Inn? I didn't read that. Someone said not air in room at Casa Blanca. I was told by Comfort Inn when I called for Nov. 2 that they had power, water and were up and running. They said nothing about not having air. The person from Adventure who stayed there reported they had a smooth trip with no problems.

When did you call the comfort Inn? When we got there on the 12th they had stated that they had power for a day and then lost it again, not sure of their status now, they were running on generators on the 14th. Either way, with the generator, they had power, water, air, breakfast, etc. but they did shut it off from 11am to 5pm. Just wanted to make sure you had talked to them recently and not on the one day prior to the 12th that they did have power.

Who didn't have air at the Comfort Inn? I didn't read that. Someone said not air in room at Casa Blanca. I was told by Comfort Inn when I called for Nov. 2 that they had power, water and were up and running. They said nothing about not having air. The person from Adventure who stayed there reported they had a smooth trip with no problems.

When did you call the comfort Inn? When we got there on the 12th they had stated that they had power for a day and then lost it again, not sure of their status now, they were running on generators on the 14th. Either way, with the generator, they had power, water, air, breakfast, etc. but they did shut it off from 11am to 5pm. Just wanted to make sure you had talked to them recently and not on the one day prior to the 12th that they did have power.

Ok so we have one person who stayed at the Comfort Inn with no air conditioning. Anyone else? Seems pretty scary that nobody else is giving us an update.

We stayed at the Comfort Inn 10/12-14 and had air and everything was as normal, except they turn the generators off from 11am to 5pm each day.

Ok so we have one person who stayed at the Comfort Inn with no air conditioning. Anyone else? Seems pretty scary that nobody else is giving us an update.

We stayed at the Comfort Inn 10/12-14 and had air and everything was as normal, except they turn the generators off from 11am to 5pm each day.

Just flew home yesterday from SJU after our cruise on the Adventure of the Seas.

There are lots of threads about PR hotels and SPECULATION of who is open...who will be open...who is cancelling reservations due to FEMA, etc....so let's PLEASE keep this thread at "actual, factual" "reports" from folks who have actually visited the hotels in San Juan since October 1.

 

If you have actually stayed in a San Juan area hotel since Oct 1....

 

Please tell us:

1. Date you stayed

2. Name of hotel

3. Powered by electricity or generator?

4. Restaurants, drug/grocery stores nearby...open/closed?

5. Areas of hotel that were open/closed, etc.

6. Any other helpful information regarding your actual stay at the hotel

 

Thanks to all for your "factual reports". Future cruisers are appreciative!

We flew in 10/12, stayed at the Comfort Inn Condado. I had booked online AFTER Maria hit and was not able to confirm reservation prior to flight. Got there, no problems with reservation. On that date, the airport did not have power and the Comfort Inn was running on a generator, which they turned off from 11am to 5pm every day. This was my backup hotel, we had originally booked at Da' House but they were not open yet and will not until power is restored to OSJ.

After our cruise, we stayed at the Casablanca Hotel in Old San Juan. This was booked in person on 10/13 when we got confirmation that our stay on Vieques would not happen. Casablanca was running on generator power. It did go off one night for a short bit but was back by the time we got back for dinner.

We booked our rental car through Charlie Car for both before and after our cruise. Before we parked in the hotel parking lot, after we parked in the Dona Fela parking garage in OSJ for $4 a day. It is open 24 hours. The Condado office of Charlie Car is closed. We had booked through them cause they offer free shuttles to and from the cruise dock. They honored this from the Isla Verde Office, both dropping us off and picking us up. They had plenty of cars available and we had NO trouble getting gas in the San Juan area. There was a station open both times right before their offices. There was a short line both times but that was due to the fact that you had to get to the pump, go in and take your cash or credit card, pump your gas and then go retrieve your credit card or change if it wasn't exact. That was a pain and the main thing we saw slowing things down.

Many places are cash only, especially restaurants. I will try to remember where all we went:

Mi Casita-no power but serving food on 10/12-cash only.

Orozcos-ate there twice after the cruise. Took CC

Walgreens in Condado on Ashford was open 24 hours and took CC

CVS in Condado on Ashford was open til 7pm and took CC

CVS in OSJ was open, not sure of hours, took CC. Rear doors closed in evening but still open.

The Place in Condado was open and took CC

Moreno's Spot in OSJ was open, cash only

Barrachina's was open during the day, not sure on rest, didn't go there.

Bun's Burgers in OSJ was open 10am-4pm, took CC

Bun's Burgers in Condado was open and took CC, not sure hours

Cold Stone in OSJ was open after 5:30pm, not sure on rest, didn't go

Chili's in Condado was open, took CC

Pizza Rustica in OSJ was open, cash only

Several places had items they were out of but plenty of options as well.

Some places had altered hours, even if they were open. Best to call them. Most had info posted on their doors.

Places we noticed were open:

Condado:

Buenos Ayres

Pannes

Serafina

Cocina Abierto

Denny's

Muchie Burger

Stop n Go

Madarin House

Condal

Punk Burger

Latin Star

Ropa Vieja

Di Zucchero

Starbucks on Ashford

Toll House Cafe (in Condado Palms)-open til 7pm i think.

Ali Baba

Yerba Buena

Tijuanas

Burger King

Cayo Caribe

OSJ-

El Patio and next door to them

Barrachinas

Moreno's Spot

Triana

G Spot

Melao

Taster's Place

Aroma's

Vaca Brava

Dominos

La Burgett

Pepe's by the bay

La Revolucion

Latin Roots

El Hamburger

Ladi's

Just flew home yesterday from SJU after our cruise on the Adventure of the Seas.

There are lots of threads about PR hotels and SPECULATION of who is open...who will be open...who is cancelling reservations due to FEMA, etc....so let's PLEASE keep this thread at "actual, factual" "reports" from folks who have actually visited the hotels in San Juan since October 1.

 

If you have actually stayed in a San Juan area hotel since Oct 1....

 

Please tell us:

1. Date you stayed

2. Name of hotel

3. Powered by electricity or generator?

4. Restaurants, drug/grocery stores nearby...open/closed?

5. Areas of hotel that were open/closed, etc.

6. Any other helpful information regarding your actual stay at the hotel

 

Thanks to all for your "factual reports". Future cruisers are appreciative!

We flew in 10/12, stayed at the Comfort Inn Condado. I had booked online AFTER Maria hit and was not able to confirm reservation prior to flight. Got there, no problems with reservation. On that date, the airport did not have power and the Comfort Inn was running on a generator, which they turned off from 11am to 5pm every day. This was my backup hotel, we had originally booked at Da' House but they were not open yet and will not until power is restored to OSJ.

After our cruise, we stayed at the Casablanca Hotel in Old San Juan. This was booked in person on 10/13 when we got confirmation that our stay on Vieques would not happen. Casablanca was running on generator power. It did go off one night for a short bit but was back by the time we got back for dinner.

We booked our rental car through Charlie Car for both before and after our cruise. Before we parked in the hotel parking lot, after we parked in the Dona Fela parking garage in OSJ for $4 a day. It is open 24 hours. The Condado office of Charlie Car is closed. We had booked through them cause they offer free shuttles to and from the cruise dock. They honored this from the Isla Verde Office, both dropping us off and picking us up. They had plenty of cars available and we had NO trouble getting gas in the San Juan area. There was a station open both times right before their offices. There was a short line both times but that was due to the fact that you had to get to the pump, go in and take your cash or credit card, pump your gas and then go retrieve your credit card or change if it wasn't exact. That was a pain and the main thing we saw slowing things down.

Many places are cash only, especially restaurants. I will try to remember where all we went:

Mi Casita-no power but serving food on 10/12-cash only.

Orozcos-ate there twice after the cruise. Took CC

Walgreens in Condado on Ashford was open 24 hours and took CC

CVS in Condado on Ashford was open til 7pm and took CC

CVS in OSJ was open, not sure of hours, took CC. Rear doors closed in evening but still open.

The Place in Condado was open and took CC

Moreno's Spot in OSJ was open, cash only

Barrachina's was open during the day, not sure on rest, didn't go there.

Bun's Burgers in OSJ was open 10am-4pm, took CC

Bun's Burgers in Condado was open and took CC, not sure hours

Cold Stone in OSJ was open after 5:30pm, not sure on rest, didn't go

Chili's in Condado was open, took CC

Pizza Rustica in OSJ was open, cash only

Several places had items they were out of but plenty of options as well.

Some places had altered hours, even if they were open. Best to call them. Most had info posted on their doors.

Places we noticed were open:

Condado:

Buenos Ayres

Pannes

Serafina

Cocina Abierto

Denny's

Muchie Burger

Stop n Go

Madarin House

Condal

Punk Burger

Latin Star

Ropa Vieja

Di Zucchero

Starbucks on Ashford

Toll House Cafe (in Condado Palms)-open til 7pm i think.

Ali Baba

Yerba Buena

Tijuanas

Burger King

Cayo Caribe

OSJ-

El Patio and next door to them

Barrachinas

Moreno's Spot

Triana

G Spot

Melao

Taster's Place

Aroma's

Vaca Brava

Dominos

La Burgett

Pepe's by the bay

La Revolucion

Latin Roots

El Hamburger

Ladi's

We have a pre-paid reservation for there on December 2nd. Would love to hear how your stay goes.

 

-Michele

It was great, this was our second time staying there. They had a generator that they turned off from 11am to 5pm. They Had had power restore and then lost it again so I imagine by the time you stay, it will be restored again, may even be now. Great location, great hotel.

Hi, I'm going on a cruise on Nov 11 and also staying in San Juan the night before the cruise. I am curious as to the conditions in SJ and we are also staying at the San Juan Marriott Miramar. Is that the hotel you are staying at? There are 2 Marriotts in SJ. I spoke to someone at the hotel yesterday and they are still on generators and lock their doors at 6pm for safety. This is the first time I am using this site so I hope I am doing this correctly. Thanks for any info you can give me.

The conditions in San Juan aren't great, but not horrible either. I don't see the power situation getting much better quickly, tons of downed power lines and snapped poles. We have been in old san Juan during the day and Condado both during the day and evening and have came across friendly locals, as usual, safety hasn't been any concern I these areas, even if it's a little darker than usual.

Thanks for the info. While you are at the airport can you look at the taxi availability?

 

Thanks

We are on the same cruise as the OP. We got in nervously on Thursday, not being able to confirm our hotel at the comfort inn due to power outages. We had no issues, we picked up a rental car at the airport. There were taxis, I didn't see many at the airport but the stand was manned and they may have to wait a bit further down. We have seen taxis in Condado regularly. There is still no power most places, including the airport when we arrived, but there are still places open via generator and some even just open daylight hours.

We’ll be staying in Old San Juan October 13 to 15. I seem to have a room secured there, fingers crossed. Now I’m wondering what is open to do during our stay? Are the forts, museums, and tourist attractions open? Is the free trolley running? Are there plenty of restaurants and bars open in Old Town? Are musicians playing and has any fun returned? Forgive me for asking about fun; I'm very aware of much suffering still going on, but the Puerto Rico people need the money us tourist will bring and that's one way we can help.

 

I hope not, but based on some brief conversations with a few Airbnb hosts, it appears to me much if not all of Old San Juan is still without power and what businesses are open may only be running on generators. Sounds noisy. Can anyone tell us what to expect in Old San Juan?

We fly in on the 12th and hoping our room is secured at the Comfort Inn in Condado. We were originally booked at Da'House and while they had hoped to be open by Oct 4, they let me know this morning that they are still not open and won't be for our reservation (Oct 12-14). I have been trying to contact the Comfort Inn to confirm, but cannot get through. I was able to get through and confirm our rental car. Hopefully before we leave, I can confirm with them. I love Old San Juan and was really hopeful to be able to stay there but at this point, I am jsut hoping our reservations stick, I know the hotel is open, just not if our reservation will be honored (I called and they said to call back in an hour due to power loss, can't get a hold of them again). Air BbB will be on my radar...I may be paying for in flight wifi lol