San Juan PR transportation to airport

[gradydude]

I am wondering about ground transportation from San Juan to the airport. We are arriving off Viking Sea Dec 20.   Are taxis readily available?  Or is it better to hire private transportation? Is there a distance from the cruise ship to the ground transportation? meaning can a driver pick you up easily.  Our flight is departing at 815 and in my notes from Viking they advise no flights before 800a, am i cutting it too close? How long is the drive from the cruise ship to the airport?  Thanks in advance  for any insight. 

[CruiserBruce]

Best to look on the San Juan board, under Carports. I am sure there will be cabs.

[LHT28]

You are overnighting in San Juan   you should be able to disembark early 

 If your flight is 8:15  you probably need to be there by 6:30am ?? 

the airport is 8 miles away

 

If Viking is saying  no flights before 8 then they must have some transfers  for pax

Once onboard  go ask   if they provide transfers to the airport  & what time they will start?

[CruiserBruce]

57 minutes ago, CruiserBruce said:

Best to look on the San Juan board, under Carports. I am sure there will be cabs.

"Under Caribbean ports".

[gradydude]

Thank you

[TayanaLorna]

At 5:30 or 6:00 am there won't be a line of taxis to the airport.  Suggest pre arranging one or paying for Viking transfer.  Taxi takes about 20-25 minutes and costs $30-35.  Viking transfer is $49 usually. 

[gradydude]

4 hours ago, TayanaLorna said:

At 5:30 or 6:00 am there won't be a line of taxis to the airport.  Suggest pre arranging one or paying for Viking transfer.  Taxi takes about 20-25 minutes and costs $30-35.  Viking transfer is $49 usually. 

I am worried about the time frame. I was on one cruise where there was almost a fistfight to disembark early.  Hoping Viking guests will be more civilized. At what time would you suggest leaving the ship? And will Viking move the luggage? No customs correct?

[CruiserBruce]

23 minutes ago, gradydude said:

I am worried about the time frame. I was on one cruise where there was almost a fistfight to disembark early.  Hoping Viking guests will be more civilized. At what time would you suggest leaving the ship? And will Viking move the luggage? No customs correct?

Why do you think there won't be Immigration ( the bigger deal) or Customs. You will be leaving the US.

[LHT28]

1 hour ago, gradydude said:

I am worried about the time frame. I was on one cruise where there was almost a fistfight to disembark early.  Hoping Viking guests will be more civilized. At what time would you suggest leaving the ship? And will Viking move the luggage? No customs correct?

The ship will be cleared  the day before when you arrive in SJ

 I would confirm with Viking once on the ship if  you want off at 6am or whatever  will they be taking your luggage off or do you need to

[TayanaLorna]

9 minutes ago, gradydude said:

I am worried about the time frame. I was on one cruise where there was almost a fistfight to disembark early.  Hoping Viking guests will be more civilized. At what time would you suggest leaving the ship? And will Viking move the luggage? No customs correct?

No no no...Viking is very civilized.   I would say most guests use the Viking transfer and with that you get a specific time.

 

Yes there will be Customs on the dock.  Of course, Viking clears in the ship and passengers but when you disembark in the terminal Customs & Border Patrol will be there after you claim your luggage.   All they asked us is if we had anything agricultural or fresh fruit/vegetables.  Plants, seeds are not allowed nor are some fruits depending on what disease is prevalent.  One time we came in mangoes were not allowed due to disease elsewhere in the Caribbean.  No one asked how much alcohol we were bringing in or jewelry or gifts etc.   Go figure.

 

[CruiserBruce]

37 minutes ago, LHT28 said:

The ship will be cleared  the day before when you arrive in SJ

 I would confirm with Viking once on the ship if  you want off at 6am or whatever  will they be taking your luggage off or do you need to

True...the OP had not provided that info that I noticed.

[LHT28]

3 hours ago, CruiserBruce said:

True...the OP had not provided that info that I noticed.

yes  just  minor details  when asking for advice 

😄

 I wonder why someone would book an 8:15 flight   so checked the cruise  itinerary

[gradydude]

Am I missing some information? 

[CruiserBruce]

10 minutes ago, gradydude said:

Am I missing some information? 

Are you docking in San Juan the day before? If so, you and the ship would be cleared then. For an 8:15 flight, you need to be in the airport around 6:30, so grabbing a taxi by 6am is required. Or get off the ship the day before and stay at an airport hotel. 

 

[gradydude]

Yes the ship docks the day before.  Even though it is not shown in cruise mapper.  We had a messy situation in Vancouver with Viking.  There was no room for them to dock at Canada place as all the big boats were in port.  They had to tender to offload the passengers and their baggage.  One if the tenders got damaged in the mess.  They finally boarded the outbound pax in the late afternoon.  Customs was a nightmare, and Viking got delayed a day to fix the tender.  
On Dec 19 Viking is supposed to be docked in San Juan but there are around 6 boats showing docked.  And viking is not showing up in the schedule.  Viking has a bigger presence in San Juan than Vancouver so they should play nice with them.  I digress.  
So basically the ship and pax will be cleared the day before so disembarking should just be walking off to a ride to the airport.   Is the ship terminal far from the ride pick ups? And does Viking always dock at the same dock?   Thanks for your input.  

[6rugrats]

I missed a port stop this summer as a Viking ship was incorrectly docked where my cruise ship was supposed to be.  Maybe there is karma.

[gradydude]

Uggg…I was in dispatch and operations for a busy airline and it was sometimes a scramble to find a gate.  But it is concerning to me that this Viking Sea shows in San Juan PR Dec 19 but it is not reflected on cruise mapper.  Why would that be?  Any ideas out there.  

[LHT28]

You could always contact the Port  Authority   to see when Viking is there

 

 On another site it  has Dec 19 arriving  departing  Dec 21 st