San Juan after the cruise information please

[Encpirate]

Not having taken but one prior cruise and not being one that travels by air a lot I have some questions that will sound basic, but your help will be appreciated. My RC cruise returns to port in San Juan on Sat 4/4 at 6am. My flight home leaves the airport at 540 pm. Obviously my wife and I will have time to kill and do not want to spend it at the airport so my questions are:

1. Generally when will we disembark the ship and what procedure follows from that?

2. We would like to see San Juan in the meantime so what do we do with our luggage? Go to the airport and check the luggage or is there another alternative?

3. Does RC have excursions that we can book for after disembarkation? Or does anyone have suggestions for things to do for the time we will have in San Juan?

4. How much before the flight departs should we get to the San Juan airport?

5. Anything else I should know or be aware of?

Thanks. Any info will be greatly appreciated.

[Clarea]

Royal has some excursions that end up at the airport. They take care of your luggage for you. Check out your pre-cruise planner for San Juan excursions.

[LeeW]

Note that Barrachina is in downtown Old San Juan, which is across the inlet from where you dock (Pan American Terminal). So you would have to take a cab from the pier to there. Taxis to the airport run around $23 plus a bit per bag from either downtown or the pier. So your option is to take a tour as Bob suggests (Rain Forest $46, Old San Juan $36, Bacardi $49), book with an independent operator (see the San Juan board http://boards.cruisecritic.com/forumdisplay.php?f=131 for ideas), or take a cab across the harbor, check luggage, and then another cab to the airport. I wouldn't go all the way to the airport to check luggage - they may not take it that early. If you take a cab, just tell the dispatcher where you want to go and he will put you in a cab.

 

Old San Juan is a hilly and hot place, you don't want to haul your luggage around. The two forts are part of the US National Park System, so if you have an annual pass, bring it.

 

When you get to the airport you will have to run all your luggage through the agricultural scanners before checking in with your airline. These scanners are behind you when you walk into the terminal between entrances. Lines can be very long just to check in. On a bad day it can take 2 hours just to check in, plus security lines.

 

I would STRONGLY recommend flying in at least the day before the cruise and do some sightseeing then or staying until the next day (since many flights leave very early in the morning). Obviously this isn't an option for you at this point but consider it for you next trip to one of our favorite ports.

 

Check this website for information and local links:

http://www.langland.org/cruises/sanjuan.asp

[waterbugohio]

Not having taken but one prior cruise and not being one that travels by air a lot I have some questions that will sound basic, but your help will be appreciated. My RC cruise returns to port in San Juan on Sat 4/4 at 6am. My flight home leaves the airport at 540 pm. Obviously my wife and I will have time to kill and do not want to spend it at the airport so my questions are:

1. Generally when will we disembark the ship and what procedure follows from that?

2. We would like to see San Juan in the meantime so what do we do with our luggage? Go to the airport and check the luggage or is there another alternative?

3. Does RC have excursions that we can book for after disembarkation? Or does anyone have suggestions for things to do for the time we will have in San Juan?

4. How much before the flight departs should we get to the San Juan airport?

5. Anything else I should know or be aware of?

Thanks. Any info will be greatly appreciated.

 

Several of your questions have been answered, but I will add a little.

1. As most said, you should be off the ship between 8-10. so that still gives you lots of time.

2. Agree, airport is out of the way. Check luggage at Barrachina

3. Yes, RC does have excursions. But make sure to read the descriptions, as some are just a 2-3 tour and then at the airport by 12-1. Thats still a long time to sit at the airport.

4. We will allow 2 1/2 hours in a couple weeks. Just make sure and watch. When flying out of San Juan, you have to go thru an agriculture check as soon as you get to the airport. Make sure to not go get in the airline line, as you will need to do this check before anything else. Just watch for signs.

 

One thing we did the one year, is to take a Segway tour. Check out this website.http://www.segwaytourspr.com/ We did it 7 years ago and had an awesome time. At that time, they let us store our luggage in their office as we were the only ones on the tour. It was a great way to see they whole city and get around in less time (and effort) than walking.

 

Another possibility is to just hire a taxi when you leave the ship. Lots of taxi's lined up and you can hire one for a couple hours and have them take you for a tour for the day. The last time there, we got a guys name and number and we are planning on looking him back up in a couple weeks. "Whats up Puerto Rico, Javier Lomba 787-630-2437, 787-479-4292. He was a great guy, but we had other plans already made, this year we plan to use him for a short tour before heading to the airport.

 

Hope some of this helps.

[Minney123]

Does anyone recommend going to the airport early, checking in, and then going back to tour San Juan?

[cruisenfever]

Does anyone recommend going to the airport early, checking in, and then going back to tour San Juan?

Check with your airlines to see what time they start accepting luggage for your 5:40PM flight. There is usually a 4 hour prior to departure time restraint for accepting luggage for departing flights.

[Hotel CA]

Does anyone recommend going to the airport early, checking in, and then going back to tour San Juan?

 

We cruised in/out of SJU last November and had a 3:30 pm flight home. We arrived at the airport intending to check bags and leave (tour old San Juan or do baccardis)but the airlines (in this case Southwest) told us they would not accept bags for check in more than 3 hours before the flight. Since it was Southwest, we were able to change our flights with no change fee to the 11:10 am flight and then were able to check the bags and fly home early.

 

My recommendation is that you see if you can use the Royal luggage valet option (checks the bags from your cabin to your final destination for $20.00/bag) or you plan one of the other options above. Before you plan an early checkin for your bags, please check with your airlines and see if they accept the bags early or you will be stuck at the airport WITH your bags for several long hours of waiting.

[Clarea]

Does anyone recommend going to the airport early, checking in, and then going back to tour San Juan?

I would not attempt that unless you are sure your airline takes bags very early. Some airlines have a 3 or 4 hour limit on how long before the flight they will take bags.

[cruisenfever]

We cruised in/out of SJU last November and had a 3:30 pm flight home. We arrived at the airport intending to check bags and leave (tour old San Juan or do baccardis)but the airlines (in this case Southwest) told us they would not accept bags for check in more than 3 hours before the flight. Since it was Southwest, we were able to change our flights with no change fee to the 11:10 am flight and then were able to check the bags and fly home early.

 

My recommendation is that you see if you can use the Royal luggage valet option (checks the bags from your cabin to your final destination for $20.00/bag) or you plan one of the other options above. Before you plan an early checkin for your bags, please check with your airlines and see if they accept the bags early or you will be stuck at the airport WITH your bags for several long hours of waiting.

RCI does not offer Luggage Valet in San Juan.

[Hotel CA]

RCI does not offer Luggage Valet in San Juan.

 

Good point!

[Hotel CA]

Southwest has a policy on changing flights with no charge. You cannot use their wanna get away fares. If you ticket is purchased, they will charge you a fee. If you purcharse one of their more expensive tickets, you can do one flight before or after your original flight.

 

Or they will waive the fee difference which they did in the case of my wife and I--they are really good about that as we always buy their wanna get away fares for cruises

[Sunny AZ Girl]

I know it is too late for the OP, but make sure to check the prices of your flight home for the next two days after the cruise before booking. I did that and our SWA flight home on Tuesday instead of Sunday was much lower, allowing us to stay in San Juan (which we have visited several times in the past and just love). Even the price of our hotel didn't eat up the savings. In our case we are traveling in shoulder season, so the hotel prices are less and the reduced fare allowed us to fly home on points, which we could not have done the day of dismbarkment. Sometimes it works, sometimes it does not. This was the second out of three times that it was more economical to stay over than to fly right home. SWA did not even list a Wanna Get Away fare the day we disembark. The airlines know the days the ships come in and price accordingly. They know we are on an island and are stuck there without them!

 

Also, I am a believer in post-cruise excursions through the ship when flying right home. They are so easy and provide a nice way to kill a few hours before your flight without having to worry about your bags. I like having something to look forward to after leaving the ship. It takes out some of the "sting". Yes, we usually still get to the airport a bit early, but that allows us to get something to eat before a long flight home.

Edited March 3, 2015 by Sunny AZ Girl

[crookedhalo]

We used Puerto Rico Shuttle to pick us up from the terminal and take us to the rain forest. Very reasonable and luggage was kept locked in the van. We were not flying out until the next morning, but couldn't check into our hotel room until after 1pm, so is basically the same premise.

 

Have fun - and try Cafe Puerto Rico on the square at Fortaleza - mofongu is incredible!

[Sunny AZ Girl]

I can second the recommendation for Puerto Rico Shuttle Van Services. We used them for our group on our last visit several times. Always prompt, friendly and the vehicles were clean and in good condition.

[waterbugohio]

I can second the recommendation for Puerto Rico Shuttle Van Services. We used them for our group on our last visit several times. Always prompt, friendly and the vehicles were clean and in good condition.

 

Who/what is Puerto Rico shuttle van?? Do you have a number? Website?? Like to have some options when we get off ship

[crookedhalo]

Who/what is Puerto Rico shuttle van?? Do you have a number? Website?? Like to have some options when we get off ship

 

 

Here you go:

 

http://www.puertoricoshuttle.com/

 

We did the El Yunque National forest tour and enjoyed it greatly. We were a group of six so had a private van and tour guide for the whole day :D

[SamFritz]

We had an early flight out, but friends had a flight more like yours. The did the ship's excursion of Old San Juan. There was accommodation for everyone's luggage and the tour ended at the airport. They had a great time. I wish I had been able to take a later flight.

 

 

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