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Early / Short Day in San Juan


JLMoran

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So I have what I think is our final itinerary as far as arrival and departure times. Our day in San Juan will be the shortest by far – We arrive at 7 AM and depart at 2 PM.

We were already planning to just make that day a day for walking around Old San Juan, seeing the forts, and just finding what we find as we make our way back to the ship. But with such a short amount of time in port, does it make sense in this case to just scoot to the Windjammer for a very quick breakfast, get off the ship by 8:30, and then see maybe just El Morro and have a leisurely walk back to the port, with a stop for street food or maybe a restaurant lunch if time permits? I'm assuming all aboard will be 1:30 or even 1:00, which means if we got off the ship at 8:30 we'd have 4 1/2, maybe 5 hours for exploration.

Is El Morro really big? Would there be enough time to also see San Cristobal, or would that be pushing it given the amount of walking required and distance between the forts? (keeping in mind that I'm mobility limited and can't really manage more than a few miles in a day before pain gets pretty bad)

Any recommendations on what / where to eat that could work in this time frame?

Thanks in advance!

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So - I haven't been, but based on my (obsessive) research I can share what I've found. 

You can get between El Morro and San Cristobal within like, a 10 minute walk. I'd imagine both are doable, and entry is only $5. Get off the ship early and go explore! 

Also, there is lots of good eating in that area - if time permits, head towards lunch in that area. Barrachina restaruant & bar is the restaurant that supposedly created the original Pina Colada, and also boasts a menu of local Puerto Rican dishes. Also, there is a popsicle shop called Senior Paleta that I've heard is delightful!

I'm sure others more experienced could share better insight, but I hope this helps! The whole area of Old San Juan is pretty walk able within like, 10 minutes to any end from what I've seen. Get off early and make a day of it, and hop back on board for happy hour and relaxing at the pool before dinner! 

Once I'm there next week, I'll share better insight. 

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I’m on harmony with the same shortened time. Based on my research, San Juan is an hour ahead of EST, so that 8:30 breakfast is 9:30 local...assuming ship doesn’t change time. The forts open at 9:30. I’ve read the walk there is all uphill but there is a trolley. It’s a very heavy walking day. I think I’m going to plan on starting at farthest fort and see how it goes.  If we get tired, we’ll Uber back.  

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Thanks, all! I do recall the trolley to get up the hill to (I think) El Morro, and @Matt saying on a podcast that the plan in general was to do that, see the fort, then meander downhill back to the port, taking in the sights along the way. Hopefully that meander doesn’t have to become a trot! ?

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On 2/17/2018 at 10:42 PM, JLMoran said:

then meander downhill back to the port, taking in the sights along the way

There is a walking path that goes on the outside of the fort wall all the way down to the port, @twangster highlighted it in his recent visit to San Juan, fairly flat once you get out of the fort, very pretty walk. Couple of Pics on the walk back...

DSC01206.JPG

DSC01215.JPG

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I thought el morro was more interesting than the other fort (which is smaller).  The views from el Morro are amazing.   Definitely consider the trolley... there might be a wait but it will take you to both forts as well as stops in old sam Juan... which you should try and walk down a couple streets in. There are hills everywhere...be careful with your knee.   We embarked from San Juan so had more time to explore but I would do these 2 things.   Matt had recommended an amazing little restaurant before in old San Juan that I can't remember the name of... it was wonderful.   That was pre hurricane though.  Love San Juan...get off and spend any time you can and spend lots to bolster the economy.  Jane

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  • 2 weeks later...

We are going San Juan also. Such a short stay like 7am - 2pm.  I have booked RCCL shore excursion because of safe..(never been there).  “ Old & New San Juan City Tour” 2.5 hrs. $27pp

Have any one experience this tour ?? is this worth ?  or recommend just go our selves? Thank you

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1 hour ago, J. Woody said:

Have any one experience this tour ?? is this worth ?  or recommend just go our selves? Thank you

The value is what you perceive the value to be, but IMO, you do not have to worry about safety, it's like any other moderately big city you go to, be cautious, the pier in right in the heart of old San Juan, if you are in reasonable good shape, everything is walkable, as stated above El Morrow fort is amazing, so again IMO, I would not pay for the tour, but I like to walk around and be adventuresome, you could always find one of those downloadable tour guides that load to your smart phone that would tell you all the history that a tour guide might add.

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Not to hijack @JLMoran's great thread, but my December cruise on Adventure is scheduled for a late (1 pm) port arrival and departure (9 pm). I'm really excited to explore this great city on foot on my own, but I'm wondering how this will impact my early seating dinner in the MDR. What do people usually do? Do they skip MDR and eat dinner in San Juan?

Thanks ahead in advance! 

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2 minutes ago, accio7 said:

Not to hijack @JLMoran's great thread, but my December cruise on Adventure is scheduled for a late (1 pm) port arrival and departure (9 pm). I'm really excited to explore this great city on foot on my own, but I'm wondering how this will impact my early seating dinner in the MDR. What do people usually do? Do they skip MDR and eat dinner in San Juan?

Thanks ahead in advance! 

Sounds like you'd have the option of either one! 

Some good places we ate in San Juan as ideas:

- Greengo's - Mexican food, great happy hour from 4 - 7 PM ($2.50 Corona/Corona Light & Tequila Shots, $5 Margs)

- Barrachina - Puerto Rican food, creator of the Pina Colada - soo good! 

- Vaca Brava - Puerto Rican food, lots of seating for large groups 

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1 minute ago, KLAconQueso said:

Sounds like you'd have the option of either one! 

Some good places we ate in San Juan as ideas:

- Greengo's - Mexican food, great happy hour from 4 - 7 PM ($2.50 Corona/Corona Light & Tequila Shots, $5 Margs)

- Barrachina - Puerto Rican food, creator of the Pina Colada - soo good! 

- Vaca Brava - Puerto Rican food, lots of seating for large groups 

Thank you, Kayla! I'm probably going to play it by ear that day, and may or may not return to the ship for dinner. I'm cruising solo for both of my next cruises, so I'll have the advantage of my own itinerary :) I really want to maximize my time in San Juan, as this is my first ever port visit.

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On 3/8/2018 at 11:57 AM, KLAconQueso said:

Sounds like you'd have the option of either one! 

Some good places we ate in San Juan as ideas:

- Greengo's - Mexican food, great happy hour from 4 - 7 PM ($2.50 Corona/Corona Light & Tequila Shots, $5 Margs)

- Barrachina - Puerto Rican food, creator of the Pina Colada - soo good! 

- Vaca Brava - Puerto Rican food, lots of seating for large groups 

I'd also suggest Parrot Club, and the last time I was there we stopped at Cafe Puerto Rico and were blown away with the quality of the food and reasonable (IMHO) prices.  

Have a meal on the island.  It's not like you get the opportunity to do that every day.

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  • 2 weeks later...

We were on our window cave for most of the morning so we only had maybe an hour to run around old San Juan and look for our shot glass lol and grab a bottle of Don Q white and take a few photos. It really sucks that this port is so rushed, I hate being rushed. The good thing is in 2020 we can take our time and explore before the cruise. 

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