San Juan Bacardi tour?

[rcandkc]

Has anyone done this tour?  Did you have to wait in line? 

[ronrick1943]

We took it on are own once, no line---just like a tour of a Winery in California.  

[Floridiana]

We took it. It's across from the port. Similar to a winery tour like ronrick said. You are not going through the actual manufacturing areas. They have a museum and tasting pavilion on the premises.

[vegasdriven]

We did it, and would have been good with 1/2 an hr there. I am so sorry we didn't do one of the tours in town, or even walked around on our own. Did enjoy the old fort(name escapes me at the moment😕- San Cristobal?) which was included in the excursion, but we could have easily done that on our own, as well.

By the time we got back to the ship there really wasn't time to do any exploring on our own- we were only in port for 5 hrs. Besides, drinks on the ship were way better😋

[Travelcat2]

One of the worst tours that we have ever done.  The included "drink" was so bad that we tossed it in the trash!

 

The last that I heard (within the past week), cruise ships are not going to Puerto Rico.

Edited July 25, 2019 by Travelcat2

[GOARMY]

Two points:  

 

1.  Skip the Bacardi Tour.   It is no-way comparable to that of even a minimally-decent California Winery tour,  of which we have done several.  Waste of time and taste buds.  

 

2.  The situation in Puerto Rico (PR) is now reaching a crescendo.  Hopefully,  the political uncertainly which has led to unrest--and cancellation of stops by several cruise lines--will attenuate over the next few weeks.   PR is in dire need of tourist dollars.  Suggest spending yours when visiting downtown venues--including the Fort.  It is a pleasant walk from the main downtown area.    These can be done on your own.   Lots of great restaurants to stop at for a coffee, or lunch.  Having made the mistake of the Bacardi Tour on our initial visit a few years back to San Juan; had the opportunity for a recent reboot.   Pleasant.  This was shortly before the Hurricane. 

 

GOARMY!

 

    

[rcandkc]

Thank you all for your comments.  We have been to PR twice so was looking at new things to do. We are going to skip the rum tour.  This will be another port after many others in a row.  I think we will be getting tired.   We will explore on our own. 

[DavidTheWonderer]

I thought it was far from being "one of the worst tours we have ever done" and if one has already been to Puerto Rico a few times it is a pleasant diversion.  The re-creation of a 1940's Havana bar was pretty neat: I imagined sitting there next to Hemingway and enjoying a refreshing beverage or three.

[UUNetBill]

16 hours ago, vegasdriven said:

We did it, and would have been good with 1/2 an hr there. I am so sorry we didn't do one of the tours in town, or even walked around on our own. Did enjoy the old fort(name escapes me at the moment😕- San Cristobal?) which was included in the excursion, but we could have easily done that on our own, as well.

By the time we got back to the ship there really wasn't time to do any exploring on our own- we were only in port for 5 hrs. Besides, drinks on the ship were way better😋

I was going to say that someone on our last cruise there took it and wasn't all that impressed - and coincidentally that someone was you!  LOL!!

 

11 hours ago, rcandkc said:

Thank you all for your comments.  We have been to PR twice so was looking at new things to do. We are going to skip the rum tour.  This will be another port after many others in a row.  I think we will be getting tired.   We will explore on our own. 

We did a Culinary Tour that was pretty cool but it was a lot of walking.  Might not be a good option if you're already tired from other ports.  But just hanging out downtown is pretty cool, too.

[crusin7]

We also took this tour and did not care for it.  I’d skip it.  

[Wendy The Wanderer]

It was okay, not great, but effortless and mildly fun.  But the old San Juan is great if it's in fact intact since the hurricane.

[rcandkc]

Puerto Rico is going to be our 7th port in a row without a break. The next day is Dominican  Republic where we tender.  We aren’t going ashore.  I wish they would skip it and replace it with Key West. 

[merlot101]

In January, we did a "free walking tour" by locals in the morning.  Had a quick lunch back on the ship and then in the afternoon took a Regent excursion.  The people that did the Bacardi Tour were disappointed.  Don't forget to do your own rum tasting on the cruise ship.

[GOARMY]

Well, the PR Governor--focus of civil unrest--has resigned.  Let us hope this will facilitate a return to some degree of "normal" in San Juan.  While it is true the city of San Juan escaped most of the structural damage experienced in other parts of the Island; the problem was that power was disrupted.   The Port was shut down; cruise ships could not visit with the power off.   That was what really-hit the economy in the gut.   Forget now how long this situation prevailed, but it was for several months. 

 

Such a shame.  Our last visit--before the Hurricane--included a pleasant walk through the air-conditioned portion of the Terminal; then into the City--on our own.  This venue was also favorable, as we were able to go through the routine Passport clearance procedures upon reentering the USA at San Juan. 

 

GOARMY!

 

 

 

[Zqueeze1]

While in OSJ do yourself a favor and order a rum and coke like a local. No self-respecting local would be caught dead drinking Bacardi rum. Try Don Q Crystal for a smoother taste when mixing. Bacardi tastes more as if you bit into a piece of alcohol laced wood. 

I am hopeful that things will begin to calm down although the successor to the governor is also disliked according to my family. Such a beautiful place with so much history and character. 

Z and TB

Edited July 27, 2019 by Zqueeze1

[rcandkc]

1 hour ago, Zqueeze1 said:

While in OSJ do yourself a favor and order a rum and coke like a local. No self-respecting local would be caught dead drinking Bacardi rum. Try Don Q Crystal for a smoother taste when mixing. Bacardi tastes more as if you bit into a piece of alcohol laced wood. 

I am hopeful that things will begin to calm down although the successor to the governor is also disliked according to my family. Such a beautiful place with so much history and character. 

Z and TB

Thanks for the tip.  You and TB should come on this cruise and show us how it is done properly 😀.

[Zqueeze1]

We would definitely love to. We had to totally rearrange our two cruises scheduled for 2020 since our oldest daughter got engaged and will be getting married next year. This means that we need to fly out west a couple of times for the wedding prep and actual wedding, which kills our vacation time.  Regardless, their is much to be seen in OSJ to include people watching. One must do item is to walk into the front entrance of the El Convento hotel and go into their beautiful  courtyard. Order a Medalla Light beer or a real piña colada along with some apps. It is the coldest beer in OSJ. I used to keep a list of things to do in OSJ and will try to find it and post it. 

Z and TB

[Travelcat2]

7 minutes ago, Zqueeze1 said:

We would definitely love to. We had to totally rearrange our two cruises scheduled for 2020 since our oldest daughter got engaged and will be getting married next year. This means that we need to fly out west a couple of times for the wedding prep and actual wedding, which kills our vacation time.  Regardless, their is much to be seen in OSJ to include people watching. One must do item is to walk into the front entrance of the El Convento hotel and go into their beautiful  courtyard. Order a Medalla Light beer or a real piña colada along with some apps. It is the coldest beer in OSJ. I used to keep a list of things to do in OSJ and will try to find it and post it. 

Z and TB

 

Where "out west" does your daughter live?  Anywhere near (or driving distance) from WA?  The beer in the Pacific Northwest is hard to beat!

 

Congratulations on the upcoming marriage of your daughter!

[Zqueeze1]

Hi, Jackie. She is in Las Vegas and will get married in Malibu. 

Z and TB

[Travelcat2]

41 minutes ago, Zqueeze1 said:

Hi, Jackie. She is in Las Vegas and will get married in Malibu. 

Z and TB

 

Kinda too far for us to visit you

[rcandkc]

1 hour ago, Zqueeze1 said:

We would definitely love to. We had to totally rearrange our two cruises scheduled for 2020 since our oldest daughter got engaged and will be getting married next year. This means that we need to fly out west a couple of times for the wedding prep and actual wedding, which kills our vacation time.  Regardless, their is much to be seen in OSJ to include people watching. One must do item is to walk into the front entrance of the El Convento hotel and go into their beautiful  courtyard. Order a Medalla Light beer or a real piña colada along with some apps. It is the coldest beer in OSJ. I used to keep a list of things to do in OSJ and will try to find it and post it. 

Z and TB

Congratulations on the future wedding.  Our youngest son got married in California. Both set of parents live in Texas.  It did take a couple of planning trips and then of course for wedding. It was worth the effort because it was wonderful but time and $$ consuming.  Thanks for tip of where to go in OSJ.