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Old San Juan trip report - Feb 8-11
Old San Juan trip report - Feb 8-11
San Juan Feb 8-11
When planning our annual winter trip, some members of the family/friends started grumbling about maybe we should do something different. In general, we enjoy short city trips and I knew there were attractions in Old San Juan that our son would enjoy. Years back, someone on the forum (I think it was Pia) mentioned the El Convento Hotel in Old San Juan and it interested me enough that I put in my favorites folder.
After looking at airfares, I figured out we could get to San Juan, then STT and back home for a rather decent price.
Trip participants –
The Pas – dad, mom and 6yo son
B & J – our very dearest friends and frequent travel companions
M & L – twin sister to J and husband and semi-frequent travel companions
Turns out that most of our commuter flight to PHL was headed to SJU on the same flight. Our arrival gate and departure gate were at total opposite ends of the PHL Terminal. As we made our way down Terminal A, USAir agents were shouting “San Juan, San Juan, board NOW!” They were boarding crazy early. We had an hour to make that connection and I will never do that again! Seriously, 1/3 of the passengers were behind us (we were first off the plane and went directly to the gate) and USAir was yelling about closing the door.
One of my son’s Christmas gifts was a waterproof Kodak camera, which leaked about 1 minute after the first time he used it in the water.
At least he was able to take a few trip pictures –
A 10am rum and coke did wonders to calm my connection nerves.
For the price, it is decent little camera. Kodak is replacing it under warranty. The plane picture is fuzzy because of the lighting. All his outdoor pictures were quite good.
We had no idea what to expect in Old San Juan. An acquaintance in our hometown lives in PR half the year and gave me some tips but I was a little concerned when he told me his wife refuses to go to San Juan anymore.
For probably the first time in my adult life, I did no advance planning aside from checking the hours at the forts.
We were pleasantly surprised by Old San Juan. It is a mix of beautifully restored buildings and decay.
View from our hotel room –
It reminded me of many European cities with beautiful little parks tucked here and there, tons of people out on the streets, centuries old buildings, narrow streets, etc. There was some sort of festival going on during our visit and twice we stopped at parks on the way home from dinner to listen to bands.
We loved the El Convento. It is a converted circa 1600 convent and the rooms are quirky and unique.
We had a huge terrace off of our room that served as the nightly gathering spot for post-dinner night caps.
This must be a popular hotel, there was a mix of business travelers, vacationers (many pre-cruise) and weddings. It is a bit pricey but the location and amenities were worth the cost. There is a small pool and seating area on the roof (we spent every afternoon there to watch the ships entering and exiting the harbor) and a rather elaborate nightly manager’s reception. The hotel has great outdoor areas and we always saw groups of people just hanging out together, talking.
A link to the hotel, I didn’t get great pictures - http://www.elconvento.com/
We visited El Morro on our first full day and San Cristobel on our second day. We walked everywhere and covered most of the old city.
We also toured the gardens at the governor’s mansion
.
We liked Old San Juan enough that we would keep an eye on airfares and if it worked out, we would stop for a night or two on the way to STJ again. I would definitely recommend the El Convento for a pre-cruise stay. We met many people that return yearly prior to their cruise departure.
One thing VERY noticeable about Old San Juan is there are police EVERYWHERE. We were told by the hotel that it is because of all of the government buildings in the neighborhood. Even at 10pm at night, the streets were full of people, bars and restaurants spilling out in the streets and tons of activities. We aren’t night owls so we were back at the hotel early by their standards. We felt very safe. (I won’t roam the streets at home at 3am and won’t do it on vacation either)
We relied on local recommendations for breakfast and lunch. During our first early morning walkabout, we asked a police officer for a good breakfast spot. “Local or tourist?” he asked. Local! He gave us directions and somehow we found it. Clientele was 75% police officers, 24% elderly locals and us. I can’t remember the name of it but it was fantastic, café con leche, fresh squeezed OJ, some sort of grilled breakfast sandwiches that are a local specialty. There was somewhat of a language barrier but we managed.
Lunch recommendations came from employees at the forts and I really wish I would have written down the names. Everyplace was good.
We went sort of touristy for dinner (mainly because we wanted to walk) and ate at the Parrot Club and Aquaviva. We really enjoyed Aquaviva.
A taxi van to and from the airport was $27 for all of us. Our flight on American Eagle to STT was $29!
SJU porters are like STT porters. When we “portered up” to the check-in counter, the porter talked the ticket agent into opening up a line just for us and away we went.
Security was a breeze and we had plenty of time for beers before our flight. The flight was smooth, better than most props that I have taken in recent years.
STJ soon come…..
When planning our annual winter trip, some members of the family/friends started grumbling about maybe we should do something different. In general, we enjoy short city trips and I knew there were attractions in Old San Juan that our son would enjoy. Years back, someone on the forum (I think it was Pia) mentioned the El Convento Hotel in Old San Juan and it interested me enough that I put in my favorites folder.
After looking at airfares, I figured out we could get to San Juan, then STT and back home for a rather decent price.
Trip participants –
The Pas – dad, mom and 6yo son
B & J – our very dearest friends and frequent travel companions
M & L – twin sister to J and husband and semi-frequent travel companions
Turns out that most of our commuter flight to PHL was headed to SJU on the same flight. Our arrival gate and departure gate were at total opposite ends of the PHL Terminal. As we made our way down Terminal A, USAir agents were shouting “San Juan, San Juan, board NOW!” They were boarding crazy early. We had an hour to make that connection and I will never do that again! Seriously, 1/3 of the passengers were behind us (we were first off the plane and went directly to the gate) and USAir was yelling about closing the door.
One of my son’s Christmas gifts was a waterproof Kodak camera, which leaked about 1 minute after the first time he used it in the water.
At least he was able to take a few trip pictures –
A 10am rum and coke did wonders to calm my connection nerves.
For the price, it is decent little camera. Kodak is replacing it under warranty. The plane picture is fuzzy because of the lighting. All his outdoor pictures were quite good.
We had no idea what to expect in Old San Juan. An acquaintance in our hometown lives in PR half the year and gave me some tips but I was a little concerned when he told me his wife refuses to go to San Juan anymore.
For probably the first time in my adult life, I did no advance planning aside from checking the hours at the forts.
We were pleasantly surprised by Old San Juan. It is a mix of beautifully restored buildings and decay.
View from our hotel room –
It reminded me of many European cities with beautiful little parks tucked here and there, tons of people out on the streets, centuries old buildings, narrow streets, etc. There was some sort of festival going on during our visit and twice we stopped at parks on the way home from dinner to listen to bands.
We loved the El Convento. It is a converted circa 1600 convent and the rooms are quirky and unique.
We had a huge terrace off of our room that served as the nightly gathering spot for post-dinner night caps.
This must be a popular hotel, there was a mix of business travelers, vacationers (many pre-cruise) and weddings. It is a bit pricey but the location and amenities were worth the cost. There is a small pool and seating area on the roof (we spent every afternoon there to watch the ships entering and exiting the harbor) and a rather elaborate nightly manager’s reception. The hotel has great outdoor areas and we always saw groups of people just hanging out together, talking.
A link to the hotel, I didn’t get great pictures - http://www.elconvento.com/
We visited El Morro on our first full day and San Cristobel on our second day. We walked everywhere and covered most of the old city.
We also toured the gardens at the governor’s mansion
.
We liked Old San Juan enough that we would keep an eye on airfares and if it worked out, we would stop for a night or two on the way to STJ again. I would definitely recommend the El Convento for a pre-cruise stay. We met many people that return yearly prior to their cruise departure.
One thing VERY noticeable about Old San Juan is there are police EVERYWHERE. We were told by the hotel that it is because of all of the government buildings in the neighborhood. Even at 10pm at night, the streets were full of people, bars and restaurants spilling out in the streets and tons of activities. We aren’t night owls so we were back at the hotel early by their standards. We felt very safe. (I won’t roam the streets at home at 3am and won’t do it on vacation either)
We relied on local recommendations for breakfast and lunch. During our first early morning walkabout, we asked a police officer for a good breakfast spot. “Local or tourist?” he asked. Local! He gave us directions and somehow we found it. Clientele was 75% police officers, 24% elderly locals and us. I can’t remember the name of it but it was fantastic, café con leche, fresh squeezed OJ, some sort of grilled breakfast sandwiches that are a local specialty. There was somewhat of a language barrier but we managed.
Lunch recommendations came from employees at the forts and I really wish I would have written down the names. Everyplace was good.
We went sort of touristy for dinner (mainly because we wanted to walk) and ate at the Parrot Club and Aquaviva. We really enjoyed Aquaviva.
A taxi van to and from the airport was $27 for all of us. Our flight on American Eagle to STT was $29!
SJU porters are like STT porters. When we “portered up” to the check-in counter, the porter talked the ticket agent into opening up a line just for us and away we went.
Security was a breeze and we had plenty of time for beers before our flight. The flight was smooth, better than most props that I have taken in recent years.
STJ soon come…..
That was between SJU and STT but it was still a bargin.loria wrote:love old SJ! thanks for the reprot-- WHERE on EARTH did you find 29 dollar fares to STT???
I don't normally use a travel agent but when trying to book our flight on line, I ran into some trouble so I called Amex Plat travel (we have a card) and she pulled our trip together and got us cheaper airline than I could find on line. She was the one that found the $29 San Juan to STT flights.
Spurred by your shots (or your son's?), I went back to look my pics... in 2004 I caught the same corner as your 7th pic.
Thanks again for taking the time to show and tell... brightened my day!
Thanks again for taking the time to show and tell... brightened my day!
Last edited by lprof on Mon Oct 01, 2012 6:11 pm, edited 1 time in total.
... no longer a stranger to paradise
Yep, exact same corner, sans cat.
Our son loved Old San Juan, especially the forts and the narrow streets.
He is a huge Pirates (of the Caribbean) fan and nearly lost it when he saw a young girl in a full ballgown hurrying down the street "just like Elizabeth!" She was on her way to her 15th celebration (I don't know the Spanish word for it)
Our son loved Old San Juan, especially the forts and the narrow streets.
He is a huge Pirates (of the Caribbean) fan and nearly lost it when he saw a young girl in a full ballgown hurrying down the street "just like Elizabeth!" She was on her way to her 15th celebration (I don't know the Spanish word for it)
Thanks for posting. We enjoy San Juan very much. We've stayed in two different places in old San Juan and once on the water at the Caribe Hilton pre/post cruises.
The food is great, architecture is beautiful, forts very interesting, and just overall a fun place to explore.
Your pictures brought back fun memories!
The food is great, architecture is beautiful, forts very interesting, and just overall a fun place to explore.
Your pictures brought back fun memories!