San Juan, 5pm to midnight....what to do ?

[Ykgorbie]

Wondering what to do in San Juan when our time there is only from 5pm to midnight......anything special to see/do at night ??

[G'ma]

Visit one of the nearby casinos, take in a show, walk through Old San Juan, have a nice dinner at one of the many fine restaurants,...some are supper clubs where there is dancing and live music.

 

The nightlife is great........

[Traveler353]

Go to Hooters (it's close by) and eat hot wings till you pop.;)

[golfadj]

Personally do not see the point of getting to a port so late.

 

Typically we will go off and take a walk and than return for the excellent meal we know we will get on the ship and also the entertainment that we have already paid for.

 

I wish Carnival would adjust the schedule and get there during the morning.

 

Have been to San Juan several time and great place to visit during the day.

[steffaroonie]

Go to the restaurant that is the birthplace of the pina colada (sorry don't remember the name) and have a pina colada and dinner. You won't be sorry.

[jeanarch]

Be careful. we were robbed and nobody (police) would even help. be very careful. we won't go back there...and we were in a wyndham hotel and they would not even pull their security tapes. we were waiting to cruise the next afternoon.

[aubreysmom]

I have heard the Bioluminescence (sp?) Bay kayaking excursion is wonderful. My DH & I did not do this on our last cruise though because we were on a very port intensive cruise and didn't want to be worn out at the beginning.

 

We walked around San Juan then went to Senor Frogs to buy our (grown) kids t-shirts and have a few drinks.

[alreadypacked]

Be careful. we were robbed and nobody (police) would even help. be very careful. we won't go back there...and we were in a wyndham hotel and they would not even pull their security tapes. we were waiting to cruise the next afternoon.

 

 

I'm sorry this happened to you. Out of curiosity, when you say you were robbed, what exactly happened? Did someone steal your wallet, camera etc off your person? Was your room burglarized when you were in it? When you weren't in it? Just looking for a little clarification on what you mean by "robbed."

[oncruisecontrol]

Personally do not see the point of getting to a port so late.

 

Typically we will go off and take a walk and than return for the excellent meal we know we will get on the ship and also the entertainment that we have already paid for.

 

I wish Carnival would adjust the schedule and get there during the morning.

 

Have been to San Juan several time and great place to visit during the day.

 

 

I think the arrival time in San Juan is so late because San Juan is a home port for several cruise ships. There probably aren't any piers available until the ships that call San Juan 'home' pull out.

[wonderfullife]

We have done the Biolumenescence Bay Kayak Excursion. It is great but it is a long bus ride to get to the location. That is what I would recommend.

 

Aleece

[jayscore]

All we did was walk around, pick up a few things we forgot, and took in the culture. Remember, this is U.S. territory.

Watch out for the old ladies laying out on the sidewalks, begging.

As sad as this is, I wonder what model Mercedes they drive home in!:rolleyes:

[PaulMedik]

Wondering what to do in San Juan when our time there is only from 5pm to midnight......anything special to see/do at night ??

 

 

Ykgorbie,

 

Even though you aren't scheduled to arrive until five, it's most likely you'll be there a few hours earlier. When we were scheduled to arrive at five, we walked to both forts and toured them both on our own before they closed at five. We were also on Freedom for our five o'clock scheduled arrival so it's likely you'll arrive early too.

 

The bioluminescence (sp?) tour is what we would have chosen if age limits allowed for our youngest who was six at the time.

[UpstateCruizer]

The first time we went to San Juan it was during the day so we walked around and visited the shops. Our next visit was a night stop like yours. We got off the ship and it was dark with the shops all closed and crowds of people all along the streets. The side streets were pitch black with no lighting. We walked for a few minutes then turned around and got right back on the ship. In the future if San Juan is a night stop we will simply stay on board and enjoy the ship. When we got off the ship the line moved quickly but getting back on after our very short time off the lines were very long. It took much longer to get back on the ship than it did getting off since so many others were doing the same thing we did.

[mag]

We have done the Biolumenescence Bay Kayak Excursion. It is great but it is a long bus ride to get to the location. That is what I would recommend.

 

Aleece

 

 

We have also done this tour. It was awesome and I recommend it highly!

 

We had arrived in SJ the day before so got to do some sightseeing and also bought mixers for the cruise. It really is a beautiful place, next time to the rainforest since I have heard it is also beautiful.

[salty dingo]

Let me tell you, it is VERY cool to be on shore at night, and to look at the ship, all lit up. It is spectacular.

 

You think to yourself: "yes, I am on that floating palace, uh huh, oh yeah!"

 

San Juan has a lot to see. At night, you can walk around and maybe take in a local bar or casino. Probably will be some shops open, which cater to cruisers.

 

Not much in the way of touring at night but you can save all that for the next cruise.

 

I'm sure the people who live in San Juan know PLENTY of fun things to do at night. Check out the ports of call boards here for ideas.

[Mrs.C05]

We will be on the Freedom in February when we stop in San Juan at 5pm (or a little before). We plan to just go to Senor Frogs which is not far from the ship. We may see if there is a group going, so we can all walk together.

[boaterette]

We just walked around and then went to the casino for a while and then back to the ship. It was dark when we were able to get off. I am looking forward to a cruise where we can be there during the day time.

[98Charlie]

For a drink and some good piano music check out Carli's Cafe. It's not far from the dock area and the walk is well lit.

 

It's owned by Carli Muñoz. He is a jazz pianist and played with The Beach Boys, Wilson Pickett, The Association, Jan and Dean, Pete Cetera and more. When we were there he played a few songs and had a great singer.

 

There is a small bar area if you just want to stop for drinks.

 

Charlie

[ItsAllAboutTheSass]

Oncruisecontrol - I thought SJ home ported ships left in the evening....

 

I may be wrong, it has been know to happen.

[sam1148]

Can anyone tell me if the duty free shop in the port will be open when we depart at 12am? Or an hour or so before? I've heard that in SJ they are more lax about booze in your carry on when you're dock at port.

[98Charlie]

Can anyone tell me if the duty free shop in the port will be open when we depart at 12am? Or an hour or so before? I've heard that in SJ they are more lax about booze in your carry on when you're dock at port.

 

They were open when we went back to the ship in April. It was around 11PM as I recall.

 

As far as lax it's really up to the cruise line/ship. I wouldn't count on being able to take anything back to my cabin at any port of call.

 

Charlie

[golfadj]

I think the arrival time in San Juan is so late because San Juan is a home port for several cruise ships. There probably aren't any piers available until the ships that call San Juan 'home' pull out.

 

I think you are wrong actually.

 

From Florida it typically will take a couple of sea days to arrive in San Juan.

 

Therefore if we leave Miami on Saturday we will not arrive in San Juan until Monday night or Tuesday morning at which point any 7 day cruises are long gone.

[kcparrothead]

We're going to be in San Juan at 5pm on the Freedom in about 2 weeks. We're planning on taking a cab to the resort area of Isla Verde. I may post a review after we return because I've been reading a few questions about San Juan after dark, and not seeing a lot of answers! :D

[sharona211]

The area around where the ships dock is a little sketchy after all the shops close and it gets dark. We only lasted about 10 minutes in the town before we returned to the ship. We had dinner onboard then took a cab to the El San Juan hotel/casino (suggested by our waiter). It was a gorgeous place. We gambled and had a few drinks then took a cab directly back to the ship.

[jeanarch]

to...alreadypacked....we were staying the night before at the wyndham in old san juan close to the dock...we were in the lounge having a drink and a man accosted us about the navy bombings on an island off puerto rico....we asked for security...did not get it...he grabbed my hand and actually took a ring off my finger...by the time security got there he was gone and they just would not pull security tapes or anything else. they called the police but it was like they knew we were leaving on a cruise the next day so they were not going to bother with us. needless to say I have no love for San Juan..we are not young so I guess they thought we were Rich Americans..yeah ss & fixed income.. we save for our cruises....It was an inherited ring from my mother. I always wear costume rings now anytime we go out of the country or any trip for that matter..