Return air from San Juan

[lcmc]

Getting ready to book flights for Victory cruise out of San Juan. My TA is looking to book me on a return flight out of SJU at 3:50 PM. I think that is to late in the day. What time would you recommend? Keep in mind I don't want to be rushed getting off the ship.

[scraphappylady]

Getting ready to book flights for Victory cruise out of San Juan. My TA is looking to book me on a return flight out of SJU at 3:50 PM. I think that is to late in the day. What time would you recommend? Keep in mind I don't want to be rushed getting off the ship.

 

I definitely don't think that's too late, if you absolutely must leave on Sunday. Consider why: it's possible to have at least 3 or 4 ships back in port Sunday morning with you (you can check on cruisett dot com to see), for a conservative 8,000-10,000 people all back at once. Figure at least half to three-quarters of those will try to fly out the same day, same small (really small) airport.

 

Now consider how hard it will be to try and get a taxi to the airport with all those people. If you have an airline where you can do baggage check and pre-check in thru Carnival, you might be okay, but I have heard that if you have a connecting flight somewhere, you still have to stand in line at your airline's counter to be checked in for that leg. So that's one line when you get to the airport.

 

Also, don't forget the line for USDA. That's yet another line, and it can get veeeerrrrry long sometimes. And you MUST do it, no getting around it. And of course, there's the ever popular security screening, which can also get long.

 

My advice would be to try to leave the following day (Monday) if at all possible. It will leave you far less stressed and much, much more relaxed. Why end your trip on such a bad note, when you can still enjoy it?

 

I learned from my experiences - I first flew back home after a trip on Adventure of the Seas, on a Sunday. We left the ship around 9 am, had a 1:30 ish flight, and barely made it. It was only by pleading with an airport staff member to move us way up in the ticket counter line that we could even get through enough to rush to our boarding gate with 10 minutes to spare. No time to even think about a potty break or any food.

 

For my second time through SJ airport, my husband and I got off the Victory somewhere around 10:30 am, strolled over to the Sheraton Old San Juan, pre-checked in, had them store our luggage for us, and went on a Segway tour of OSJ. We came back around 4pm, went to our room, went out to eat, and had a wonderful, relaxing night. Our flight the next day was at 9:30 am, I think it was, so we were up by 6am, caught a taxi by 7:15, made it to the airport and through all these very small lines in under 30 minutes, and still had about an hour to drink our coffee and eat our donuts, before the plane even started boarding.

 

Hope this helps! :)

[Luv Da Sun]

Sailed out of S.J. last May. After a wonderful time we left the ship at 9:45. We got to the airport and had to send ALL bags except our laptop case through Ag.Customs to be sure that no plants or fruit were being taken back to the U.S. We got in a line and about 10 minutes later made it to a counter. The lady asked us what time our flight left. We answered "6PM" It was about 11:30 am and she said oh you have to go get in that line for flights after 2PM. The line was SO Long! We were in in from 11:40 untill 12:35. Walk a few steps lugging 2 Big bags to check, 2 carry on, my laptop case and my wife carrying a beach tote.

 

If you can get a flight for between 12 and 2 ok... if not, spend some time in Old S.J. and get to the airport at about noon.

[jordanaire]

Worst airport in the world after a cruise! Too many people off too many ships at one time!! We got off the ship at 8:45am, then took Carnival's bus to the airport for our 3:00pm departure. After a 20-min bus ride, we arrived at the airport a little after 9:45am. The porter took our luggage, then asked me what airlines we were using. I told him "Delta" and he told me to get in line, while my wife waited near the check-in counter with our luggage.

 

I got in Delta's check-in line, which was about 300-yards long! It was over 2 hours before I got to a point where I could see my wife! I had no way of contacting her without losing my place in line during this time, and she was worried sick! We finally made it to the counter after 3 hours in line!!!

 

After checking in, we spent over an hour-and-a half in the security line! We ran through the airport like OJ to get to our gate. When we arrived, they had already began boarding! We managed to get on board and make it home without any other problems.

 

Would I book another cruise through San Juan? Probably. But I would book a later flight (after 6pm) or spend the night and catch a flight the next morning! NO WAY would I book a flight out of there between noon and 6pm!!

 

:cool:Bill

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Junebug1]

3 weeks ago our flight didn't leave San Juan until 4:45pm. We took an excursion to kill sometime and had a wonderful time. Luggage was waiting at the airport for us.

 

We still sat around for a couple of hours, but the earlier flights were alot more expensive.

[milokitty]

We had a flight that left SJ at 1:30pm last month. After reading all the horror stories about SJU, I was prepared. We got off the ship first thing--around 8am. We went through customs fairly quickly and grabbed a cab. The terminal was buzzing, but it was not all that busy yet. I knew we had to go through AG at the airport and got in that line as soon as we got out of the cab. We flew American and had to do self check-in at a kiosk. I had never done this before, but we had no problems. The line was still short. Then we stood in line to check our bags near the kiosk, not at a counter. Again, it was early and we had beaten most of the crowd, so the line was short, BUT, I could see where that could have been total chaos later in the morning. THEN we stood in line for security, which was the longest line we were in. We were through security by 9:15am. So, our experience was good, but only because we made a mad dash as early as possible, but next time I might spend the night and go out the next day.

[WishIwasOutThereNOW]

i caught a 10am flight in jan.

[caribbean dreams]

Hummm, i have never had a problem at SJU concerning lots of long lines, They let us skip the Ag scan, said we didnt need to go thru it becasue we had just got off a cruise ship & still had out tags attached (don't know what getting off a ship had to do with it)

Were the only ones at the small outside check in area, only our group & 2 other people going thru final security inside, they must have been bored because the pulled the couple out of line behind us to go thru their luggage. We did have a 1 hour flight delay do to Mechanical problems & our pilot refused to fly the plane, so they found another pilot who's plane had already boarded but he said he would fly the plane with the malfunction, so we all got back off the plane & switched....I wonder if those people knew they were reboarding a plane with a mechanical problem:(:confused:

Our flight out was 3pm, we ended up leaving at 4pm.

[jaybird from SC]

Getting ready to book flights for Victory cruise out of San Juan. My TA is looking to book me on a return flight out of SJU at 3:50 PM. I think that is to late in the day. What time would you recommend? Keep in mind I don't want to be rushed getting off the ship.

We recently had a 3:50 PM departure and it worked great for us. We did the ship's valet luggage program which left us "hands free" for the day. It was totally stress free departing at that time of day.

[gjsmth]

Would a 2:05pm departure be ok? We are considering 2:05pm or a 6:45pm flight out.

[PartyAllDaTyme]

I definitely don't think that's too late, if you absolutely must leave on Sunday. Consider why: it's possible to have at least 3 or 4 ships back in port Sunday morning with you (you can check on cruisett dot com to see), for a conservative 8,000-10,000 people all back at once. Figure at least half to three-quarters of those will try to fly out the same day, same small (really small) airport.

 

Worst airport in the world after a cruise! Too many people off too many ships at one time!!

 

Hummm, i have never had a problem at SJU concerning lots of long lines, They let us skip the Ag scan, said we didnt need to go thru it becasue we had just got off a cruise ship & still had out tags attached (don't know what getting off a ship had to do with it)

 

Our cruise returns on a Saturday. Is it less crazy than a Sunday?

 

I came across a website that had tips for San Juan travelers, and one was to leave your disembarkation luggage tags from the cruise line on your luggage so you can skip the Ag inspection. Don't know why.

[Laulipop]

We recently had a 3:50 PM departure and it worked great for us. We did the ship's valet luggage program which left us "hands free" for the day. It was totally stress free departing at that time of day.

We have a 3:50 flight on a Saturday - what time did you get to the airport for your flight? Thx.

[princessh]

I am really worried now. We have a 4:20PM flight out of San Juan. I checked and there will be two cruise ships in port that day. My husband and I were planning on walking around old San Juan before heading to the air port. Can someone please advise what time we should try and get to the airport. Staying another day and taking a morning flight the next day is not an option for us!

[Zada]

"I came across a website that had tips for San Juan travelers, and one was to leave your disembarkation luggage tags from the cruise line on your luggage so you can skip the Ag inspection. Don't know why. "

 

The why is that US Customs and USDA conduct inspections of your bags as they come off the ship so there is no need to reinspect them at the airport. On our first cruise out of SJ the cruise director told us that if we were flying out on Sunday to leave the ship's tags on until you hand over your bags to the airline. Strangely enough I don't recall getting that message on our last cruise (this past January) so I'm not sure if its a change in USDA policy or if I simply never got the message.

 

The lines at the airport can be paralytic even when it isn't a peak day for cruise ships. We flew out on a Monday after our cruise and the checkin and inspection lines were both slow and tedious. The reason had less to do with the size of the crowds than the fact that there simply weren't enough airline check-in personnel nor TSA officers to handle the volume they did have.

 

Any flight after 1pm should be perfectly doable if you give yourself extra time to wait in lines. There is a reason that the airlines want you there two to three hours in advance. Build three hours into the timetable and you should have no problem getting to the airport and onto the plane.

[welldone60]

"I came across a website that had tips for San Juan travelers, and one was to leave your disembarkation luggage tags from the cruise line on your luggage so you can skip the Ag inspection. Don't know why. "

The why is that US Customs and USDA conduct inspections of your bags as they come off the ship so there is no need to reinspect them at the airport. On our first cruise out of SJ the cruise director told us that if we were flying out on Sunday to leave the ship's tags on until you hand over your bags to the airline. Strangely enough I don't recall getting that message on our last cruise (this past January) so I'm not sure if its a change in USDA policy or if I simply never got the message.

 

The lines at the airport can be paralytic even when it isn't a peak day for cruise ships. We flew out on a Monday after our cruise and the checkin and inspection lines were both slow and tedious. The reason had less to do with the size of the crowds than the fact that there simply weren't enough airline check-in personnel nor TSA officers to handle the volume they did have.

 

Any flight after 1pm should be perfectly doable if you give yourself extra time to wait in lines. There is a reason that the airlines want you there two to three hours in advance. Build three hours into the timetable and you should have no problem getting to the airport and onto the plane.

 

When we went thru the ag inspection the couple behind us was upset as they had went to the airline check in first, cruise tags still on and were sent back to go thru ag inspection.

[travelnut4]

I have the same question about whether a Saturday airport departure is any better than a Sunday. I am looking at options to fly home on a Saturday after the cruise at either 1:45 or 5:30. Would much prefer the 1:45 because we will have spent 2 days precruise in Old San Juan.

[Jaxsonbrownie]

I have been researching this as well. We want to book a 1:40pm flight out on a Sunday. I think we are going to take advantage of the Royal Caribbean Luggage Valet program. They transport your bags to the airport. What I would like to know is, do they check the luggage in ? Anyone have any experience with this?

[Choozin Croozin]

I

For my second time through SJ airport, my husband and I got off the Victory somewhere around 10:30 am, strolled over to the Sheraton Old San Juan, pre-checked in, had them store our luggage for us, and went on a Segway tour of OSJ. We came back around 4pm, went to our room, went out to eat, and had a wonderful, relaxing night.

Hope this helps! :)

 

Can you please tell me how you liked the Sheraton Old San Juan? We would like to book this because of its location (with points-Starwood members) but I have read so many bad reviews I am very leery. We are leaving out of the Pan Am pier so that is not an issue. Thanks for your help. p.s.(I'm scrap happy too!:D)

[Zada]

We stayed at the Sheraton OSJ for one night post-cruise. The casino I found to be less than endearing but the hotel itself was alright. We booked through Hotwire and paid about $90 + tax for the night. Quite frankly I wouldn't want to pay much more than that. The rooms were large and tastefully appointed.

 

The hotel does not use fitted sheets, however, and this led to some uncomfortable shifting as the bottom sheet untucked at regular intervals. Worse still the sheet didn't quite fit to begin with leaving a gap at either the head or foot of the bed if the opposite end was properly tucked in.

 

The elevators are small and paralytically slow and the arrangement of the rooms was inconvenient to say the least. be damned if i could find a staircase that took me down to the lobby instead of dumping me outside on the street. Check-in was equally slow, probably due to the volume of guests coming and going on cruise days. I would think they could have assigned more than two receptionists to handle the volume.

 

The location of the hotel is probably its most redeeming feature. Across the street from the Carnival docks and right in OSJ there was plenty to see and do within walking distance. being able to check your bags even before the rooms were ready was also a plus. Perhaps the best part was that within a few blocks west of the hotel there was a nice oceanfront park with plenty of food vending carts located around. Good and inexpensive treats were available making it one of the better locations to stay.

 

Would I stay there again if sailing from OSJ? Probably if the price was right. I certainly would prefer to pay less money and stay in Condado than pay full-rate and stay at the Sheraton pre-cruise.

[Choozin Croozin]

We stayed at the Sheraton OSJ for one night post-cruise. The casino I found to be less than endearing but the hotel itself was alright. We booked through Hotwire and paid about $90 + tax for the night. Quite frankly I wouldn't want to pay much more than that. The rooms were large and tastefully appointed.

 

The hotel does not use fitted sheets, however, and this led to some uncomfortable shifting as the bottom sheet untucked at regular intervals. Worse still the sheet didn't quite fit to begin with leaving a gap at either the head or foot of the bed if the opposite end was properly tucked in.

 

The elevators are small and paralytically slow and the arrangement of the rooms was inconvenient to say the least. be damned if i could find a staircase that took me down to the lobby instead of dumping me outside on the street. Check-in was equally slow, probably due to the volume of guests coming and going on cruise days. I would think they could have assigned more than two receptionists to handle the volume.

 

The location of the hotel is probably its most redeeming feature. Across the street from the Carnival docks and right in OSJ there was plenty to see and do within walking distance. being able to check your bags even before the rooms were ready was also a plus. Perhaps the best part was that within a few blocks west of the hotel there was a nice oceanfront park with plenty of food vending carts located around. Good and inexpensive treats were available making it one of the better locations to stay.

 

Would I stay there again if sailing from OSJ? Probably if the price was right. I certainly would prefer to pay less money and stay in Condado than pay full-rate and stay at the Sheraton pre-cruise.

 

Thank you so much for the great details of your stay. It wouldn't cost us actual $$$ but if consider it would take 10,000 points which equates to spending $10,000 seems like it would be too much too. I am thinking we may stay at the new Sheraton that is closer to the Pan Am docks (which we are sailing out of), and the airport and just take the bus into town if we want to. You helped me make my decision.:D

[amready]

I have been researching this as well. We want to book a 1:40pm flight out on a Sunday. I think we are going to take advantage of the Royal Caribbean Luggage Valet program. They transport your bags to the airport. What I would like to know is, do they check the luggage in ? Anyone have any experience with this?

 

 

We did the Royal Caribbean Luggage Valet program last year. We had to pick up our luggage and take it through customs, we then turned it over to the airlines at the cruise port and did not see it again until we got home.

[Jaxsonbrownie]

Awesome, thank you!

[jaybird from SC]

We have a 3:50 flight on a Saturday - what time did you get to the airport for your flight? Thx.

We left the mall a little past one o'clock and went straight to the airport. Had no problem getting a taxi and it was the day after Thanksgiving! There were no long lines and we were through airport security in no time. Our flight left on time (3:50)

[jaybird from SC]

I am really worried now. We have a 4:20PM flight out of San Juan. I checked and there will be two cruise ships in port that day. My husband and I were planning on walking around old San Juan before heading to the air port. Can someone please advise what time we should try and get to the airport. Staying another day and taking a morning flight the next day is not an option for us!

Oh don't be worried! Just allow yourself plenty of airport time (like a couple of hours). At that time of day you should be fine. Have a great cruise!

[jaybird from SC]

I have been researching this as well. We want to book a 1:40pm flight out on a Sunday. I think we are going to take advantage of the Royal Caribbean Luggage Valet program. They transport your bags to the airport. What I would like to know is, do they check the luggage in ? Anyone have any experience with this?

We used luggage valet back in November. Once debarking the ship, we had to locate our luggage (as usual) and take it through customs. After that they picked it up and we never saw it again until we got to our final destination. We spent the rest of the morning shopping at the mall (day after Thanksgiving) with no luggage...