San Juan Forts

Any updates on if the forts have re-opened? We will be there in December.

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We were there today and a sign is posted that they are closed until further notice. We walked around the grounds and enjoyed the visit anyway.

The best site to get updates is their Facebook.com/nationalparkservice and not the nps.gov site.

Aww bummer :(. I was hoping to visit them when we're there next week.

We will be in OSJ this coming Saturday. I was also hoping they would get power restored to the forts in time for our visit. Might not happen.

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San Cristobal opens Monday November 20.

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Bumping this; hope more people will respond. I can't find anything on their facebook page, but I don't have facebook, so it's hard for me to know where to look.

I just saw that El Morro is planning to reopen Monday November 27 yay!

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That's great! Does that mean there's power?

Yes, there is power in most areas in Old San Juan, we were there on Friday.

Bumping this; hope more people will respond. I can't find anything on their facebook page, but I don't have facebook, so it's hard for me to know where to look.

Even without having an account you can go to Facebook and search something like NPS (for National Park service) San Juan. Or do a google search, which would take you here, https://www.nps.gov/saju/index.htm (which doesn’t seem to be updated at all), and click on the FB link.

They don’t indicate there the Morro opening though.

Yes, there is power in most areas in Old San Juan, we were there on Friday.

Are the bars and stores along the waterfront open? We usually hit the CVS for some items and Senor Frog for a drink.

The FB site for San Juan National Historic Site is actively updated with the status of the forts. As of tomorrow, the forts should all be back in business. A reopening ceremony will be held on Dec 2.

Hello, was wondering if the trolley is running and if it takes you near the forts?

We were at the San Christobal fort on Nov 24th, free admission, trollies were parked at fort, not running while we were in OSJ.

Today we explored El Moro Fort. No visible damage from the hurricanes. You could spend an entire day just at the fort. We learned allot about PR history by just roaming around and reading the signs. There is also a video that tells you about the history and how PR came to be part of the USA. There were kids playing with kites, it was lovely seeing the locals enjoying the grounds. The fort and wall took 17 years to build. Amazing.

Not allot of tourist so get the word out that Old San Juan and the forts are ready and waiting.

Today we explored El Moro Fort. No visible damage from the hurricanes. You could spend an entire day just at the fort. We learned allot about PR history by just roaming around and reading the signs. There is also a video that tells you about the history and how PR came to be part of the USA. There were kids playing with kites, it was lovely seeing the locals enjoying the grounds. The fort and wall took 17 years to build. Amazing.

 

Not allot of tourist so get the word out that Old San Juan and the forts are ready and waiting.

Thanks for the update. So excited to share the beautiful historic forts of San Juan with our children later this month on our pre-cruise visit to San Juan.

Upon disembarkation on 12/2, we did a cruise ship sponsored tour of the forts. They are open and not damaged. They just don't build buildings like they used to - like those old thick fort walls built as long ago as the 16th century, pretty amazing!

Upon disembarkation on 12/2, we did a cruise ship sponsored tour of the forts. They are open and not damaged. They just don't build buildings like they used to - like those old thick fort walls built as long ago as the 16th century, pretty amazing!

How was the ship sponsored tour? I was under the impression that it was very easy to do the forts on one’s own — did the tour “add value” that you wouldn’t have had otherwise?

How was the ship sponsored tour? I was under the impression that it was very easy to do the forts on one’s own — did the tour “add value” that you wouldn’t have had otherwise?

Yes, you could easily see the forts on your own. Our flight was a late afternoon departure, so it was a tour of the forts, a drive through of Old San Juan pointing out significant buildings, combined with a transfer to the airport afterwards (via Windstar). One thing I like about Windstar tours is the small size of the tours; we had 12 people in our group tour. YMMV. We were in a smaller tour bus and told that large buses could not go on some of the small streets in Old San Juan. In fact, it was suggested that in all likelihood, there would be pedestrian traffic only on some of the streets in OSJ in a couple of years.

It was an easy way to see the forts and get to the airport. They kept our luggage in the tour bus, so I guess if you did it on your own, you'll need to figure out what to do with your luggage.

Yes, you could easily see the forts on your own. Our flight was a late afternoon departure, so it was a tour of the forts, a drive through of Old San Juan pointing out significant buildings, combined with a transfer to the airport afterwards (via Windstar). One thing I like about Windstar tours is the small size of the tours; we had 12 people in our group tour. YMMV. We were in a smaller tour bus and told that large buses could not go on some of the small streets in Old San Juan. In fact, it was suggested that in all likelihood, there would be pedestrian traffic only on some of the streets in OSJ in a couple of years.

 

 

 

It was an easy way to see the forts and get to the airport. They kept our luggage in the tour bus, so I guess if you did it on your own, you'll need to figure out what to do with your luggage.

We will be in San Juan as a port stop, not as a departure port, so luggage won’t be an issue for us. Glad to hear that we can visit the forts on our own without “needing” a tour, per se.

How do you get to the forts from the pier? Is it a taxi ride or is it walkable?

How do you get to the forts from the pier? Is it a taxi ride or is it walkable?

Either. We walked on our first time in San Juan. It was hot and hilly. And pretty. And hot. :)

How do you get to the forts from the pier? Is it a taxi ride or is it walkable?

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Either. We walked on our first time in San Juan. It was hot and hilly. And pretty. And hot. :)

About how long of a walk back to the ship?

You can see the ships from the Forts. I would say half an hour depending on if you stop at any shops on the way.