sjmbruce

We knew we would be on the beach with just the two of us at least a few times during the trip and we didn't want to leave valuables on the sand. We bought a three pack waterproof package from amazon. It included a bag, a lanyard for a smartphone and a fanny pack. I expected to use the fanny pack the least, but it was the perfect size for a camera, our IDs, a credit card and some cash. I just slung it around the side against my hip and swam with it several times during the vacation without issues.

After a semi pricey breakfast at Caficultura ($30 for two), we headed back to our hotel to change into swimsuits. My parents, sister and niece were flying in today and would be staying at the Marriott Stellaris in Condado. I really wanted to get a resort for a day pass to here so we'd have loungers, access to the pool, and could already be at their hotel when they arrived. Even though I tried a few months in advance, the passes were unfortunately sold out. We decided to head to Condado Beach anyway.

We had initially planned to use Uber when needed, but there was a taxi stand right outside of our hotel and it was just so easy to catch a ride. We took a $15 cab ride to the Vanderbilt Hotel in Condado. The park right next door leads to the beach. Our cab driver didn't speak a single word of English, so it was helpful to know beach (playa), a few directional words and numbers so we could discuss the price.

I haven't figured out how to multi quote, so thanks for the compliments and I'm glad you're enjoying the review.

Thank you so much for this information! We were discussing this cruise and you have made the decision to go on it much, much easier.

I'm glad it helped, have a great cruise!

As others have already said - no tickets needed. And definitely get there early - we arrived 30 minutes before the doors even opened and there was already a long line. About 10 minutes before the show started there were only a few single seats left. This was the first ice show of the cruise though, and on a sea day.

It was Good Friday and although I'm not Catholic, my husband was raised in the religion and we figured going to a service would an appropriate thing to do in OSJ. We got up early, dressed up, and walked through OSJ until we found Parroquia San Francisco de Asis, a Catholic Church across from Mallorca Cafe. It's a pretty church with tombs in the basement. There was no active service, but they had live music. It was packed with people and we joined them in the pews to listen to the music for awhile.

Mallorca was super busy with lines out the door, so we headed to Caficultura. It wasn't chocolate waffles, but it was really good and I loved the atmosphere.

Random thought- Someone can correct me if we misunderstood our restaurant bills, but there didn't seem to be free refills on coffee anywhere we went. Just something to remember if you're on a budget.

I wanted to eat at Raices for dinner, but there was a line and my husband didn't want to wait. We went down the street to a place called Mojito's. We both ordered grilled fish with fried and sweet plantains. The food wasn't great but it was good enough. We walked the streets for a while and there was a small parade like procession for Holy Thursday. We followed that for awhile until it started to disperse. It was late, so we headed back to our room. Luckily this one was quiet so we were able to get some rest in preparation for Good Friday.

I kinda sort (okay really wanted) to go back to the Chocobar for dessert. They closed at 8:00 though, so we may or may not have had our chocolate before dinner.

We went to Greengos Caribbean Cantina for lunch. The food was decent, they had vegetarian options and most importantly, they had cold drinks. We ate and then returned to our hotel, spending the rest of the afternoon on the roof in the pool.

Before dinner, we walked along the waterfront.

My husband was the iguana "squirrels of the Caribbean" whisperer and found one everywhere we went.

I loved the street names and the tile signs to display them.

We didn't spend as much time here. For one, it's much smaller than El Morro. We were also hot and sweating, dreaming about cold drinks and our rooftop pool. This fort had some great views though and although less massive, it is worth visiting.

We made our way to Castillo de san Cristobal.

We passed the community of La Perla, which unfortunately had sustained major damage during the hurricane. We talked to a resident who was unsure if they would completely recover anytime soon.

The transportation trolleys were running, but we decided to walk to the next fort. I'm really glad we did as the walk is a nice one full of different things to see. First, we stopped at the Plaza de Quinto Centenario.

After leaving the El Morro, we walked along the cemetery wall and enjoyed all the locals who had gathered on the fort lawn to picnic, play and fly kites.

Inside: VIking Crown. Outside: deck 4 outside promenade.

Thanks for the recommendation! I don't think I had a quiet moment the entire cruise so I wouldn't have known where to send someone seeking solitude. Is the Viking Crown the indoor lounge with a view of the pool?

Will be on Adventure from NJ in August. Looking forward to our first time on her. Hope that Puerto Rico is finally getting back in shape. Hope the enitre island is healing from the hurricane.

 

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The areas that we were in during our stay (OSJ, Condado) were in good shape for tourists. You could still see signs of damage here and there. It was disheartening that residents were still struggling to get back to normal, but for tourists everything was fine.

I really liked the sentry stations and had to go in each one.

There were bathrooms and a gift shop right across from the entrance. We stopped in those after exploring the fort. It was hot and humid - definitely bring a hat, some water and sunscreen. We had climbed some steep staircases and walkways, but we were ready to see more.

We left the fort and made our way along the wall towards the cemetery.

So I won't post too many pictures of the fort although I took dozens. We spent a couple of hours or more exploring. There were a few places that were closed off due to restoration or safety issues, but the majority of the fort was open.

We loved visiting both forts. For others making plans, if you have an America the Beautiful Pass, take it with you. It lowers the $7 to 0.

 

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That's awesome, thanks for the tip!

Looking forward to your thoughts on the Adventure. Just booked for NYE 2018.

A NYE cruise would be so much fun! It's on my bucket list.

And just like that, we were at Castillo San Felipe del Morro. I was in awe looking across the giant green lawn to the looming fort.

We spent at least 20 minutes exploring outside the fort. If you really want to pinch pennies, you don't necessarily have to go in, but at $7.00 per person the price is more than worth it. Keep your receipt, the entrance cost also includes San Cristobal. Credit cards were accepted here.

As we worked our way towards the fort, we went by Plaza de la Rogativa, with a statue, lizard friends and great views.

We were in Puerto Rico leaving on a Southern Caribbean cruise. I forgot our passes at home in Michigan. I don't know if it was because we were in Puerto Rico, but we had to get in a separate line before security and fill out some paperwork that was pretty much all the information we had entered online. The employee had us take the paperwork, go through security like usual, and give all of the documents to the normal check in person.

It really wasn't a big deal, the extra line just added 20 minutes or so to our wait.