San Juan.
A major air and sea connecting point to the Caribbean, the world's
most popular cruise region, San Juan is one of the world's busiest
cruise ports. |
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Cruise Port. | ||||
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The Old San Juan Piers, pictured above, as well as the Navy Frontier Pier in the background (rarely used) and the Pan American Pier across the bay (used for the largest ships) are the major cruise ship docking areas in the San Juan port. (photo: Old San Juan). | ||||
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Night View of Cruise Ship & Pier Arches |
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Departure/embarkation port, as well as destination-visiting, cruise ships almost always use the Old San Juan Piers, allowing their passengers to walk to major attractions in Old San Juan (photo: Old San Juan at Night). | ||||
Old San Juan. |
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Cruises. San Juan offers hundreds of cruises from many cruise lines to mostly Eastern and Southern Caribbean destinations (see Cruise Destinations). Yet modern cruise ships are like resort destinations in themselves, with elegant restaurants, cafes, boutiques, decktop pools, spas and fitness centers, theaters and lounges, often with live entertainment as well as accommodations ranging from fine oceanside suites to decorative interior rooms. |
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Adventure of the Seas Cruise from San Juan. Impressive multi-deck atriums-promenades on this Voyager-class Royal Caribbean ship are a setting for boutiques, bars, coffee shops, people-watching and pageantry such as parades. | ||||||||||||||||||
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Cruise Destinations.
Available cruise destinations from San Juan,
known as Eastern Caribbean routes, include St. Thomas (US
Virgin Islands), Tortola (British Virgin Islands), St. Martin/St.
Maarten, St. Barths, Antigua, St. Kitts and Guadeloupe in the Leeward Islands and
Dominica, St Lucia, Barbados, St Vincent, Grenada and Tobago in the
Windward Islands.
Included also are the ABC Islands, Aruba, Curacao and Bonaire in the Netherland
Antilles off the coast of South America, now often called
Southern Caribbean routes, along with any islands south of Grenada,
the classic hurricane-free zone (see
rates and
dates of cruises). The most popular of these destinations include St. Thomas (duty free to US passengers) and St. Maarten/St. Martin (dual Dutch/French island) as well as Old San Juan itself. These destinations are more easily reached (a one and a half day head start) by a cruise from San Juan after a short flight there, rather than after a long cruise from the US mainland. |
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Cruise Lines.
Cruise lines operating from San Juan include Carnival, Royal Caribbean,
Princess Cruises, Azamara Club Cruises, SeaDream Yacht Club, Silversea and Celebrity
Cruises (see
rates and
dates of cruises).![]() |
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Embarkation Process. Embarking on a San Juan cruise ship requires proper travel documentation, usually a passport and cruise documents, including a Final Departure Manifest prior to departure (which is best processed ahead). Port Authority Security replaces airport security with x-ray screening of carryon luggage (not exceeding 24"W x 16"H x 30"L). Other luggage is checked in. Helping its passengers embark/disembark en masse, the cruise line functions as a surrogate immigration and customs authority, not only for the US, but for the destination countries as well, and these authorities are often behind the scenes. |
San Juan Airport. The busiest airport in the Caribbean, the Luis Munoz Marin International Airport (SJU) (current weather conditions) is located about 12 miles from Old San Juan Piers. See San Juan Airport for more information. |
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Airport Ground Transport. Taxi service, usually in a white van, from the San Juan Airport to the Old San Juan Cruise Ship Piers takes 45 minutes and costs $19 one-way (check with the driver before boarding). Limos may be arranged for pickup at the airport. Rail is not available. Rental cars are available at the airport. Buses to Old San Juan, sometimes arranged by the cruise line, are also available at a cost of 75� (coins only). The airport bus stop is located on the upper departure level at the far right, with signs marked 'Parada' and timetables displayed. For Old San Juan, take B-40 or C-45 one stop to Isla Verde (at Denny's restaurant), then A-5 to the Old San Juan bus station near Cruise Ship Pier 4 (stop 2 on free trolley map). | |||
Airport Cruise Connections. Upon properly entering San Juan, Caribbean cruise passengers can go from the gates serving the large intercontinental jets to Airport Ground Transport above that takes them to the San Juan Port's cruise ship piers. US Territory. Since Puerto Rico is a US territory, passengers on US flights to/from San Juan are making US city to city flights, and may freely enter/exit San Juan, after only passing security (except USDA clearing bags on exit). Passengers on international flights must clear US immigration and customs when entering San Juan. |
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La Fonda
del Jibarito (280 Calle Sol) has authentic local food
like the Criollo
(indigenous Spanish) classic Chillo Entero (whole fried
snapper) and Grilled Garlic Shrimp with Mofongo (refried
plantains) smothered in the classic Aji-li Mojili (garlic
and chili sauce).
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Head away from the port and turn left on Calle Fortaleza
for souvenir shops, crafts
(Puerta Rican Arts & Crafts), art galleries (Galer�a
S�nchez) and jewelers (Effy
Jewelers and Blue Diamond, 202 Fortaleza, with the Hearts
on Fire diamond and MarahLago Larimar).
Early risers can have a Latino breakfast sandwich at La Bombonera up a block on Calle San Francisco. Turn right on Calle del Cristo to find the shopper's paradise known simply as Cristo. |
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Cristo has high end jeweler
boutiques (Boveda and
Chopard),
artisan studios (Galeria
Fosil Arte
and Manolo Diaz) and art galleries (Galer�a
Botello). Along the Cristo at 99, artisan Manolo Diaz makes interesting sculptures from cast-off objects such as old mirrors, wooden shutters and antique windows. Don't miss El Museo del Ni�o (Children's Museum), at 150 Cristo, with playhouse villages and dress-up costumes, a science center and a miniature television studio.
Countless bars, quirky cafes and coffee shop/ bakeries line the calles. Step right back into the old
world
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Art galleries in Old San Juan vary from hole-in-the-wall
treasures to opulent elegant places.
Galeria Fosil Arte,
200 Cristo, exhibits real fossils in paintings,
sculptures, etchings silk-screens and lithographs by artist Radames Rivera.
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Plaza de San Jose |
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Continue on Cristo to
Plaza de San Jose, with the statue of Ponce de Leon in
front of La
Iglesia San Jos�, the second oldest church in the Americas
with
re-discovered 16th century murals.
Go right at Plaza de San Jose one block on Calle San Sebasti�n and, at 102, have great Mofongo Relleno at El Patio de Sam. And a couple of blocks up on Calle Sol is La Fonda del Jibarito, an excellent choice for local food. Turn right again and come back on Calle San Jose, for more serious shopping, including art galleries (Obra Galleria) and antiques.
Continue to the Plaza de Armas. |
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Turn left there on beautiful Calle San Francisco, lined with antique shops and cafes. Stop at La Bombonera for a mallorca.
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This area around Plaza Colon is known for its vibrant music and nightlife.
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Caficultura![]() The best coffee in town is found at this Caficultura cafe, in front of Plaza Colon at 401 Calle San Francisco. Try the Chicken Breast Tower with Tostones (photos: Coastal Living). |
From Nuyorican Cafe, |
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This is
SoFo (South of Fortaleza), a popular area for fine dining
and nightlife. Stop in at
Aguaviva to see its ice-blue
neon jellyfish decor. What began as the 'Nuevo Latino' cuisine, with a blend of Spanish, classic Latino, Puerto Rican and later International influences, resulted in the semi-annual SoFo Old San Juan Culinary Festival, with food displays outside restaurants, tables set up in the streets, artisan booths and live music stages.
Tantra, at 356 Calle Fortaleza, offers Indo-Latino cuisine, like tandoori chicken with manchego (Spanish) cheese and guava-flavored dip.
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Old San Juan has a great
variety of accommodations in all price ranges.
Hotel Milano
(see rates-low price guarantee) (307 Calle
Fortaleza) is well regarded with affordable rooms in a restored
classical building in the heart of Old San Juan. Sheraton Old San Juan Hotel and Casino (see rates-low price guarantee), a favorite of cruise visitors, has a splashy casino, great room views, reasonable rates, Palio's Tuscan-style grill and Chicago's 'build-your-own' burgers onsite as well as nearby pocket-sized Plaza Arturo Somohano with real artisan crafts.
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