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Adventure OTS / San Juan logistics.....

zdad59

By zdad59,
in Royal Caribbean International

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zdad59

zdad59

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Our sailing is a ways off, but I am quite an OCD planner, so I am thinking of things already. Never did a sailing that wasn't CONUS, so I am wondering....

 

1. We'll be coming into San Juan the day before. Where is the best place to stay? I know everyone has there favs, so there is no bad answer. For our group of 6, we would likely prefer first, the best location for getting to the pier. Second would be convenience for a touring day.

 

2. The ship leaves port later than we are used to...830PM. When is the best time to board? Does it make sense to do any tourist things on the day of sailing, or better to get to the ship at the earliest possible time?

 

3. If you had one tourist thing to do in San Juan (and have never been there before) what would you do? We'll have most of the day before sailing available.

 

4. If you have ever done the AOTS Southern Caribbean itinerary before....What are your one or two must do excursions/activities? In St. Maarten, I kind of want to go to the beach at the end of the airport runway. That looks cool.

 

Our group last sailed n Adventures sister ship, Navigator, so we are very familiar with the ship. We all have balcony rooms next to each other n Deck 7. We are also hoping that the November drydock for Adventure is awesome.

 

In advance, I thank all of you for inputs. I love this site for planning and reviews.

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mollyeilis

mollyeilis

Posted
Posted
In St. Maarten, I kind of want to go to the beach at the end of the airport runway. That looks cool.

 

Maho Beach.

 

I was just there, but I'm a total stick in the mud, and I didn't find it to be fun. Just about everyone else there was having fun, though! Take a taxi there if it's your main goal for the day. :)

 

 

We're on Adventure 12/17, so we're starting to research as well. :)

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BORN A BOWLER

BORN A BOWLER

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We just did this cruise we were a group of Three,Two and Two and stayed at the Embassy Suites Great breakfast and a free cocktail hour in the evening. We got a two bedroom suite. One room had two queen beds the other room had a king and the living room had a pull out queen couch.Was a good price splitting it. A store around the corner and a very nice beach.

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golf43

golf43

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Posted
We just did this cruise we were a group of Three,Two and Two and stayed at the Embassy Suites Great breakfast and a free cocktail hour in the evening. We got a two bedroom suite. One room had two queen beds the other room had a king and the living room had a pull out queen couch.Was a good price splitting it. A store around the corner and a very nice beach.

 

We did this cruise last year and also stayed at the Embassy suites. The breakfast is delicious . The free drinks are nice too. There is an Outback Steakhouse inside this hotel. They also have a casino. Its smaller, but nice.

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Ashland

Ashland

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You might consider the Sheraton Old San Juan...right in town and no need for taxi's... RCI Adventure sails from the Pan American pier and you will need a taxi to get there...so don't confuse the two as the Sheraton is across the street from the old town pier.

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RCCruisers42

RCCruisers42

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We just got back from our very first cruise (AOS 2/13-20), and it was amazing. You’re going to love it! I think I can give you an opinion on just about every one of your questions.

 

1. We stayed in the Sheraton Old San Juan the night before our cruise (as Ashland said, there are two Sheratons around there). It’s just across the street from the water, and though it was a 15 minute cab ride to the Pan American Pier, it was definitely worth being able to walk everywhere to see the sights. We thought about staying in Candado, but would have had a bunch of cab rides back and forth the night before and day of sailing. Since we were only there one night, we didn’t want to spend too much time getting around.

 

2. We didn’t board the ship until around 2:00. We signed up for a great Segway tour the morning of the cruise (the tour starts just a couple blocks from the hotel and goes through town to Castillo San Felipe del Morro and back). It went from 10:00 -12:00, and afterward we went back to the hotel to change and pack, and grabbed a taxi to the pier. We got a late checkout from the hotel, so that helped. Boarding took only about 15 minutes, and our cabin was open when we got on.

 

3. The fort was our favorite part of San Juan. We spent about ½ hour there as part of the Segway tour. The other fort (San Cristobal) is very cool too. We were able to walk there from our hotel.

 

4. St. Maarten was the reason we chose this sailing, and it didn’t disappoint. We took taxis all around the island, starting at Orient Beach, then to Marigot for lunch (and a walk up to the fort overlooking town there), and then to Maho beach to see the planes. We got there just after the 747 landed (around 12:30), but we saw a few other big jets and many smaller planes land, and were able to stay long enough to stand behind the 747 as it took off (around 2:00). We had no trouble getting a cab from the beach to the ship, and made it back in plenty of time. If you only do one thing on the island, go to the airport. You won't be able to do that anywhere else.

 

We had such a great time we’ve already booked our second cruise, Enchantment of the Seas to the Bahamas and Key West in September.

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cruisinderek

cruisinderek

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I was just there about 6 months ago and had all of the same questions, We stayed at the Condado Plaza Hilton, Great location, Great price. We hired a private guide from Tours by Locals to tour us all around Old San Juan the day before. We slept in and went right to the ship about 11:00. got a nap in about 1PM when the rooms were ready and up late enjoying the sail away. In St Maarten we did Bernards tour it circled the island and had a stop at Maho Beach. One thing I think is a must if you are going to Barbados is to check out Calabaza Sailing. Gina and her crew made this my favorite stop. Enjoy your cruise

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davekathy

davekathy

Posted
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We just got back from our very first cruise (AOS 2/13-20), and it was amazing. You’re going to love it! I think I can give you an opinion on just about every one of your questions.

 

1. We stayed in the Sheraton Old San Juan the night before our cruise (as Ashland said, there are two Sheratons around there). It’s just across the street from the water, and though it was a 15 minute cab ride to the Pan American Pier, it was definitely worth being able to walk everywhere to see the sights. We thought about staying in Candado, but would have had a bunch of cab rides back and forth the night before and day of sailing. Since we were only there one night, we didn’t want to spend too much time getting around.

 

2. We didn’t board the ship until around 2:00. We signed up for a great Segway tour the morning of the cruise (the tour starts just a couple blocks from the hotel and goes through town to Castillo San Felipe del Morro and back). It went from 10:00 -12:00, and afterward we went back to the hotel to change and pack, and grabbed a taxi to the pier. We got a late checkout from the hotel, so that helped. Boarding took only about 15 minutes, and our cabin was open when we got on.

 

3. The fort was our favorite part of San Juan. We spent about ½ hour there as part of the Segway tour. The other fort (San Cristobal) is very cool too. We were able to walk there from our hotel.

 

4. St. Maarten was the reason we chose this sailing, and it didn’t disappoint. We took taxis all around the island, starting at Orient Beach, then to Marigot for lunch (and a walk up to the fort overlooking town there), and then to Maho beach to see the planes. We got there just after the 747 landed (around 12:30), but we saw a few other big jets and many smaller planes land, and were able to stay long enough to stand behind the 747 as it took off (around 2:00). We had no trouble getting a cab from the beach to the ship, and made it back in plenty of time. If you only do one thing on the island, go to the airport. You won't be able to do that anywhere else.

 

We had such a great time we’ve already booked our second cruise, Enchantment of the Seas to the Bahamas and Key West in September.

 

Welcome to Cruise Critic and thank you for sharing.

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bigque

bigque

Posted
Posted (edited)

When we were there we stayed at The Condado Plaza Hilton, which is a great hotel and the closest of the Condado hotels to the pier. A review of the Hotel and what we did in San Juan in my Adventure Of The Seas picture review in my signature below. :cool:

Edited by bigque
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2bFREEonTHEseas

2bFREEonTHEseas

Posted
Posted
Our sailing is a ways off, but I am quite an OCD planner, so I am thinking of things already. Never did a sailing that wasn't CONUS, so I am wondering....

 

1. We'll be coming into San Juan the day before. Where is the best place to stay? I know everyone has there favs, so there is no bad answer. For our group of 6, we would likely prefer first, the best location for getting to the pier. Second would be convenience for a touring day.

 

2. The ship leaves port later than we are used to...830PM. When is the best time to board? Does it make sense to do any tourist things on the day of sailing, or better to get to the ship at the earliest possible time?

 

3. If you had one tourist thing to do in San Juan (and have never been there before) what would you do? We'll have most of the day before sailing available.

 

4. If you have ever done the AOTS Southern Caribbean itinerary before....What are your one or two must do excursions/activities? In St. Maarten, I kind of want to go to the beach at the end of the airport runway. That looks cool.

 

Our group last sailed n Adventures sister ship, Navigator, so we are very familiar with the ship. We all have balcony rooms next to each other n Deck 7. We are also hoping that the November drydock for Adventure is awesome.

 

In advance, I thank all of you for inputs. I love this site for planning and reviews.[/QUOTminuWe stayed at embassy suites, nice pool the day before, free breakfast, short 10 minutes to ship, got there at 1030, on board by 11

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barnes061805

barnes061805

Posted
Posted
Our sailing is a ways off, but I am quite an OCD planner, so I am thinking of things already. Never did a sailing that wasn't CONUS, so I am wondering....

 

1. We'll be coming into San Juan the day before. Where is the best place to stay? I know everyone has there favs, so there is no bad answer. For our group of 6, we would likely prefer first, the best location for getting to the pier. Second would be convenience for a touring day.

 

2. The ship leaves port later than we are used to...830PM. When is the best time to board? Does it make sense to do any tourist things on the day of sailing, or better to get to the ship at the earliest possible time?

 

3. If you had one tourist thing to do in San Juan (and have never been there before) what would you do? We'll have most of the day before sailing available.

 

4. If you have ever done the AOTS Southern Caribbean itinerary before....What are your one or two must do excursions/activities? In St. Maarten, I kind of want to go to the beach at the end of the airport runway. That looks cool.

 

Our group last sailed n Adventures sister ship, Navigator, so we are very familiar with the ship. We all have balcony rooms next to each other n Deck 7. We are also hoping that the November drydock for Adventure is awesome.

 

In advance, I thank all of you for inputs. I love this site for planning and reviews.

 

1. We stayed at Plaza de Armas. It's pretty close to the pier, but it isn't fancy. It's in old San Juan, so lots to see and do around the hotel.

 

2. We got to the pier at about 10:45 and were 5th in line for when the doors opened. We were on the ship by 11:30 (I think) and it was great to have the whole day on the boat.

 

4. We absolutely loved our SNUBA excursion in St. Kitts. We had never done it before and it was so much fun! I now want to SNUBA every cruise we ever go on. I don't know if you're going to Barbados, but we absolutely loved it and really enjoyed snorkeling with the Sea Turtles. They were amazing.

 

Have fun!

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tuliplvr

tuliplvr

Posted
Posted

 

4. We absolutely loved our SNUBA excursion in St. Kitts. We had never done it before and it was so much fun! I now want to SNUBA every cruise we ever go on. I don't know if you're going to Barbados, but we absolutely loved it and really enjoyed snorkeling with the Sea Turtles. They were amazing.

 

Can you tell me what SNUBA is? Thank you! Visiting St. Kitts next year!

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mjeff87

mjeff87

Posted
Posted

We've been out of PR three times so far, and planning our 4th trip on AOTS in fall 2017. We've stayed in Old San Juan at El Convento, which is an old convent converted into a hotel.....it is phenomenal in a word. The other two times we stayed in Condado at La Concha, which is a world apart from Convento. The entire lobby is a nightclub.

 

We love Embassy Suites stateside (stayed in one last year in Orlando when we sailed FOTS:)). We may try there next fall.

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keishashadow

keishashadow

Posted
Posted (edited)
We're close to our 3rd cruise porting out of San Juan...and we're staying at the Caribe Hilton again.

 

A fantastic hotel, great service, great amenities, great location.

 

Anyone with Hilton points will also find it a very reasonable rate.

 

when sailing CCL found the Sheraton OSJ very convenient to tour and walk across the street in the am to check in. Enjoyed lunch on the ship, then back out to tour a bit more before returning to ship get ready for dinner.

 

twice we've been able to book combo of points & cash (helps to stretch the points:D). It has such a nice vibe there, will be staying again in a month. Those times we did our touring the day before and just stayed on the ship after checking in.

 

I appreciated that since we have had later departure time out of SJU, I was able to contact the Carib's manager for permission to 'kill time' at the property, checking our bags at bell services for a small fee. You do have to pay a 'day-room' rate if available to use the pool. Beats doing the departure ship tours again.;)

 

Since we have a late arrival into SJU the night before embarkation this trip, was wondering if anybody knows if RCCL permits guests to check in (was thinking 11:30 am ish), eat lunch, then grab a tax to/from SJU before returning to the ship.:confused: I've only read comments here that people drop their luggage, tour & then check in later. We could store luggage @ the Hilton and cab over to SJU but don't want to miss lunch lol.

Edited by keishashadow
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