Departing from San Juan...

[SoCalCruiser20]

On the 7 day Southern Caribbean from San Juan on the Valor, the departure time is 10:00 PM, what time can you board the ship? If we fly in early that morning can we board the ship early? or do we have to sit around waiting for the terminal to open?

Thanks,

 

Brandon

[nycfa]

I went in August and was on board by 12:30 ish.

[Dirkgun]

Flying in early should work fine.... we always come in a day or two early to enjoy the local scene. For the port The standard answer is around 11:00 am. That is a pretty safe time. I have heard earlier but not much... I know the last time we did the Victory out of San Juan we were on by 12:45 but we did not get there until 12:30. This December we plan to go around 10:30 or 11:00 drop off our luggage and then go and explore the city. We plan to come back around 3:00 or so hopefully miss the crowds. The 10:00 pm sail away is awesome. If you have never done it before you will enjoy it. Enjoy your Cruise. :D

[kicia]

We were on board around Noon. Most people board early, have lunch, and then debark to tour San Juan. You have to be back on board about 8:30 and you have muster drill before sailing. The main dining room is open dining for supper the first night.

[KirkNC]

Usually around 11:30-12:00 is when boarding will start.

[SoCalCruiser20]

Okay cool, thank you everybody, I will be in a group of 4 (all 21 yrs old), 2 of us have cruised but with parents and 2 of us have nevr cruised, just want to get on the ship ASAP so we can get all set up being our 1st time alone.

Thanks,

 

Brandon

[yvrcruiser62]

On the Victory we were on board before 11.00, had lunch and went back out into town, you have to be back on board at about 8.00 pm

[tef43]

Flying in early from SoCal? How early? Puerto Rico is 4 time zones ahead of you. An early morning flight from LAX might get you there late afternoon.

[SoCalCruiser20]

Flying in early from SoCal? How early? Puerto Rico is 4 time zones ahead of you. An early morning flight from LAX might get you there late afternoon.

 

Saturday-Saturday cruise

would leave LAX Friday late night land in Miami early morning and leave Miami early morning And get to San Juan at about 10AM day of the cruise and then depart San Juan just after noon and arrive back at LAX late night

[rjrice1]

Cruising out of San Juan is so nice. Once you check in.. there is a "spirit store" in the terminal.. if you put your "spirits" in a carry on bag.. and just walk to your cabin.

I do have a map of Old San Juan if you want me to email it to you.

Cathy

[tef43]

Saturday-Saturday cruise

would leave LAX Friday late night land in Miami early morning and leave Miami early morning And get to San Juan at about 10AM day of the cruise and then depart San Juan just after noon and arrive back at LAX late night

The redeye makes sense. Load up on Red Bull, it's going to be a long day. :eek:

[SoCalCruiser20]

Cruising out of San Juan is so nice. Once you check in.. there is a "spirit store" in the terminal.. if you put your "spirits" in a carry on bag.. and just walk to your cabin.

I do have a map of Old San Juan if you want me to email it to you.

Cathy

 

 

Cathy,

Thanks but no thanks on the map, it's still over a year and a half away and we arent sure which cruise or even cruise line we are choosing, just gathering info to help make our decision! :)

 

Brandon

[treasure4two]

On the 7 day Southern Caribbean from San Juan on the Valor, the departure time is 10:00 PM, what time can you board the ship? If we fly in early that morning can we board the ship early? or do we have to sit around waiting for the terminal to open?

Thanks, Brandon

 

**Brandon-I think others will tell you, but you really need to fly in the day before and stay at a hotel the night before the cruise. It will cost extra, but if this is your first cruise on your own, let the experience of hundreds of other people on CC that will tell you that they come in the night before from Florida(or in our case, North Carolina), but coming in from California same day is REALLY taking a chance of missing the cruise and I am sure your parents will be real worried if they hear you missed the ship. I am a former Flight Attendant and have seen many people miss their cruises because of unexpected delays or cancellations. Book to come in the day before if at all possible. Either way, have a good time!!

[nwcruiselover]

Okay cool, thank you everybody, I will be in a group of 4 (all 21 yrs old), 2 of us have cruised but with parents and 2 of us have nevr cruised, just want to get on the ship ASAP so we can get all set up being our 1st time alone.

Thanks,

 

Brandon

 

You'll be able to get on the ship between 11:00 and 11:30, but your cabins won't be ready till 1:00 - 1:30 and your luggage won't arrive till later. So yes, you can get on the ship but you won't be able to get all set up right away. You can have a nice lunch on the lido deck and explore the ship till your cabin is ready, or leave the ship to explore San Juan.

[bruisin4cruisin]

I am heading to San Juan two days in advance, which will be nice since we have to be out of our house at 4 a.m. to get to the airport to catch the 6 a.m. flight. That will be a long day, I am sure.

We plan on dropping off our bags around noon, getting our S&S cards, then going back into San Juan for a little while longer. Will probably board around 4 or so.

[mainescout]

Do you have dinner at your assigned dinner time the day you leave?

[SailingDisney]

Well I didn’t consider getting out luggage checked in, doing lunch, and then getting back off to do some more exploring. We will have a rental car as we are coming in a few days ahead of time, so we could do more things in San Juan. Great idea!!:D

 

Any idea what time we will get into our room since we don't set sail until 10pm?

[Dirkgun]

Do you have dinner at your assigned dinner time the day you leave?

 

 

No 1st night is open seating... start 2nd night with assigned dinner times. It is a great atmosphere. More relaxed than other cruise because of the distance everyone travels to get there. Have a great cruise.

[Dirkgun]

Well I didn’t consider getting out luggage checked in, doing lunch, and then getting back off to do some more exploring. We will have a rental car as we are coming in a few days ahead of time, so we could do more things in San Juan. Great idea!!:D

 

Any idea what time we will get into our room since we don't set sail until 10pm?

 

 

Usually you can get into your room around 1:00 or 1:30. Definitely check out San Juan a lot. The forts are great as well as the street vendors and just overall charm and history of the city (think buildings still there since the time of columbus) also the natural beauty of the only rain forest managed by the US Forest service (El Yunque) is worth seeing. Enjoy your time.

[SoCalCruiser20]

Thank you Ron and Donna!

 

I will talk it over with my group, hotel is probably the best and safest way to go.

[SailingDisney]

Ok here is another question. How close is the pier from the airport? I am thinking we will have to take a taxi to the pier once we drop off our rental car. Anyone have any idea how much a taxi cost? Is there another way to get to the pier without taking a taxi?

[SoCalCruiser20]

Ok here is another question. How close is the pier from the airport? I am thinking we will have to take a taxi to the pier once we drop off our rental car. Anyone have any idea how much a taxi cost? Is there another way to get to the pier without taking a taxi?

 

I'm not 100% sure but i looked on google maps and it seems pretty far, like a few miles maybe! wouldn't recommend walking with your luggage. But what do i know lol

[mainescout]

No 1st night is open seating... start 2nd night with assigned dinner times. It is a great atmosphere. More relaxed than other cruise because of the distance everyone travels to get there. Have a great cruise.

 

Thank you. We are so looking forward to this trip.

[fridaythe13th]

Well I didn’t consider getting out luggage checked in, doing lunch, and then getting back off to do some more exploring. We will have a rental car as we are coming in a few days ahead of time, so we could do more things in San Juan. Great idea!!:D

 

Any idea what time we will get into our room since we don't set sail until 10pm?

 

We rented a car for a week and they drive "crazy". Fast on the right, slow on the left. Don't use your signal as it lets them know you are a tourist and they cut you off (well, not all of them). It is worth having a GPS (on your phone or bring one) if you plan on wandering away from SJ as the exits are hard to figure out and if you miss one..... How far from SJ are you staying? Just curious.... I love sailing from SJ. Be sure you're out on the deck so you can see the fort lit up as you pass it heading out.

[Dirkgun]

Thank you Ron and Donna!

 

I will talk it over with my group, hotel is probably the best and safest way to go.

 

If you use price line to bid you can really get some inexpensive hotel nights at some pretty great places....depending on your time of year etc. you can get really nice hotels for less than $100 a nightl.