San Cristobal Fortress and Old Town (Conquest, April 7)

[ericrz]

My main review of our Conquest cruise is here (http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?p=49750684) but just a few notes on our experience at San Cristobal during our time in San Juan.

 

We realized that with a short port call in San Juan (7AM - 2PM) there wasn’t really time to get too far away from the cruise terminal. We also realized that there wasn’t much sense in paying Carnival for an excursion to the fort; we could easily walk there ourselves. So our group of 7 left the Conquest about 8:30 and headed through Old Town.

 

We made it through the gauntlet of tour guides trying to entice us, and headed up the hill to the fortress, passing the shops and restaurants that were just opening for the day. When we got to the intersection near the fort, we chose to go towards the “visitors center” instead of the “main entrance.”

 

This was a minor mistake. Our daughter (a 4th grader) had the “every 4th grader in a park” voucher from the National Park Service, and we needed to exchange it for her true NPS pass. Unfortunately, you can’t do that at the visitor’s center -- you can only do that at the main guardhouse. Seems a little counter-intuitive.

 

Anyway, we got that done while the rest of our family paid the admission fee (the kids also saw some cool iguanas climbing the walls) and then we explored the fort. Compared to the Brimstone Hill fortress we’d seen in St. Kitts the day before, San Cristobal had more explanatory signage and historical information. Well done, National Park Service!

 

We spent about 90 minutes at the fort, exploring each level and marveling at the ocean views from the upper floors. My mom bought the two kids each a “spyglass” and treasure map from the gift shop.

 

Afterwards, we walked back through Old Town, stopping at a small bar and grill (“El Asador”) for some mojitos and other drinks. A short storm passed through, so we waited out most of the rain before heading back to the ship.

 

Pictures are here!

Cruise 2016: San Juan

[bcakes]

Your pictures are great. Thanks for sharing.

[qanderson]

My main review of our Conquest cruise is here (http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?p=49750684) but just a few notes on our experience at San Cristobal during our time in San Juan.

 

 

 

We realized that with a short port call in San Juan (7AM - 2PM) there wasn’t really time to get too far away from the cruise terminal. We also realized that there wasn’t much sense in paying Carnival for an excursion to the fort; we could easily walk there ourselves. So our group of 7 left the Conquest about 8:30 and headed through Old Town.

 

 

 

We made it through the gauntlet of tour guides trying to entice us, and headed up the hill to the fortress, passing the shops and restaurants that were just opening for the day. When we got to the intersection near the fort, we chose to go towards the “visitors center” instead of the “main entrance.”

 

 

 

This was a minor mistake. Our daughter (a 4th grader) had the “every 4th grader in a park” voucher from the National Park Service, and we needed to exchange it for her true NPS pass. Unfortunately, you can’t do that at the visitor’s center -- you can only do that at the main guardhouse. Seems a little counter-intuitive.

 

 

 

Anyway, we got that done while the rest of our family paid the admission fee (the kids also saw some cool iguanas climbing the walls) and then we explored the fort. Compared to the Brimstone Hill fortress we’d seen in St. Kitts the day before, San Cristobal had more explanatory signage and historical information. Well done, National Park Service!

 

 

 

We spent about 90 minutes at the fort, exploring each level and marveling at the ocean views from the upper floors. My mom bought the two kids each a “spyglass” and treasure map from the gift shop.

 

 

 

Afterwards, we walked back through Old Town, stopping at a small bar and grill (“El Asador”) for some mojitos and other drinks. A short storm passed through, so we waited out most of the rain before heading back to the ship.

 

 

 

Pictures are here!

 

Cruise 2016: San Juan

 

 

 

How far(long) of a walk from the port to old San Juan and the Fort ?

 

 

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