Caribe Hilton San Juan

[Podie]

The Subway is one block away. I am mystified by the people who say the hotel is isolated. If you walk out to the road and turn left, as you can see on the map, you walk over a bridge (it has a safe sidewalk separated from cars) and have plenty of options on the other side. Maybe a 10-15 minute walk. My sister lives on the other side of that bridge so I walked it plenty of times.

[Podie]

By the way, the Subway that appears to be in the water on the map is actually to the left, one block from the hotel!

[TxStacey]

I had to come back and say that we LOVED the Caribe! I will post a few pictures below. You will see the subway when your cab takes you to the Caribe. It is a 5 minute walk. We ate luch there the first day and it was SLOW but fine..they are definitely on "island time", but we were on vacation so who cares..the only thing we didnt like was having to take a cab to Old San Juan which was about 20.00 or so each way. We did take the bus there once which was fine. It was .75 per person..exact change each way. We took it around 3:00 in the afternoon as the concierge told us we shouldn't take it after dark.

 

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[TxStacey]

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[TxStacey]

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View from our 10th floor balcony in the tower..I actually sent an e-mail about a month prior to arrival requesting a room in the Tower with an ocean view and balcony and 2 beds...I was AMAZED that every request was honored, even though I got the room for $90.00 on Priceline..I was thrilled!

[Rysyonok]

By the way, the Subway that appears to be in the water on the map is actually to the left, one block from the hotel!

 

Thank you very much =)

[SFCAcruiser]

Thank you very much =)

We are giving the Subway way too much attention :p

The aerial photo someone posted does not depict the Subway at the Caribe Hilton. The Subways in the photo seem to be near the Conrad hotel in Condado area. The Caribe Hilton Subway shop is just a couple of minutes walk from the Hilton. If it were any closer ir would be on the hotel grounds.

But it is interesting to note that late at night the shop locks the front door and "buzzes" in customers. :confused: Probably not a good sign.

[Host Faith]

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View from our 10th floor balcony in the tower..I actually sent an e-mail about a month prior to arrival requesting a room in the Tower with an ocean view and balcony and 2 beds...I was AMAZED that every request was honored, even though I got the room for $90.00 on Priceline..I was thrilled!

 

Stacey, I'm so happy the letter worked and you got the type of room you wanted!! That is a fabulous view! How did you enjoy San Juan? :)

[McSweets]

I had to come back and say that we LOVED the Caribe! I will post a few pictures below. You will see the subway when your cab takes you to the Caribe. It is a 5 minute walk. We ate luch there the first day and it was SLOW but fine..they are definitely on "island time", but we were on vacation so who cares..the only thing we didnt like was having to take a cab to Old San Juan which was about 20.00 or so each way. We did take the bus there once which was fine. It was .75 per person..exact change each way. We took it around 3:00 in the afternoon as the concierge told us we shouldn't take it after dark.

 

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TxStacey -

 

When you did your Priceline did you select resorts or 4star?

[TxStacey]

TxStacey -

 

When you did your Priceline did you select resorts or 4star?

I chose resort and it worked like charm. I researched how much others had bid for it,hoping to get the Caribe. We were thriilled with it!

[TxStacey]

Stacey, I'm so happy the letter worked and you got the type of room you wanted!! That is a fabulous view! How did you enjoy San Juan? :)

 

 

Thanks Faith..it was all because of your suggestion!! They honored all of my requests and I was thrilled! These boards are so awesome! We loved San Juan and it was a great way to start our vacation 2 days early! I highly recommend sailing out of San Juan and I hope to do it again sometime!

[Host Faith]

Thanks Faith..it was all because of your suggestion!! They honored all of my requests and I was thrilled! These boards are so awesome! We loved San Juan and it was a great way to start our vacation 2 days early! I highly recommend sailing out of San Juan and I hope to do it again sometime!

 

Yes heading to SJU 2 days early is a great way to start a cruise vacation. We're planning to go down the day before on our next cruise this fall. But then again it looks like we're going to plan a quick girls' vacay in San Juan over the winter, so no biggie :D

[powelweb]

Hi Stacey,

 

Love your pictures- gorgeous!

 

I see that the cab was $20 plis $1/bag from the airport to the hotel, but how much to go from the hotel to the pier?

 

thanks

Wendy

[Podie]

You should not have paid $20 for a taxi one way to OSJ. That should be about $5. I've made the trip several times and ask the price before I get in. Even if you're at the far end of OSJ, it shouldn't be more than $8 or $9.

[Host Faith]

You should not have paid $20 for a taxi one way to OSJ. That should be about $5. I've made the trip several times and ask the price before I get in. Even if you're at the far end of OSJ, it shouldn't be more than $8 or $9.

 

It's $19 + $1 for each bag from the airport to the Caribe Hilton. At least it was for us last year. Here's a pic of the paper you get when catching a taxi at the airport (the Caribe is zone 4):

 

[TxStacey]

You should not have paid $20 for a taxi one way to OSJ. That should be about $5. I've made the trip several times and ask the price before I get in. Even if you're at the far end of OSJ, it shouldn't be more than $8 or $9.

I went back and asked my husband how much we payed and he said it was $12.00, not $20.00 each way. We had 3 people so maybe that is why it was more. I do think you really have to watch the cab drivers there or they will take advantage of tourists. We did ask them how much it was going to be before we got in.

[kme]

Anyone know if the Hilton offers day passes for cruisers visiting for one day?

[SailingDeanna]

Does anyone have pics of the room in the towers at Caribe Hilton?

[Host Faith]

Does anyone have pics of the room in the towers at Caribe Hilton?

 

Hi Deanna,

 

I have pics in my review of the Serenade of the Seas (in my signature below). The rooms in the Hhonors Tower were really nice. Great views (if you request an ocean view), comfy beds, and a nice bathroom. We were happy with ours. :)

[SailingDeanna]

Hi Deanna,

 

I have pics in my review of the Serenade of the Seas (in my signature below). The rooms in the Hhonors Tower were really nice. Great views (if you request an ocean view), comfy beds, and a nice bathroom. We were happy with ours. :)

Thanks for the pics. It looks lovely. When I read reviews on travel review websites, it scares me. Many people talk about the awful rooms. They look beautiful to me!

[Podie]

It scares me too. I'll be there for a conference next week. I have walked through the hotel and it looked very nice, but the staff was not helpful or friendly. They actually refused to let me look at a room! I then spoke with a manager who was also unfriendly, who said the desk clerk was correct, they don't show visitors rooms. I'll report back when I return.

[SailingDeanna]

It scares me too. I'll be there for a conference next week. I have walked through the hotel and it looked very nice, but the staff was not helpful or friendly. They actually refused to let me look at a room! I then spoke with a manager who was also unfriendly, who said the desk clerk was correct, they don't show visitors rooms. I'll report back when I return.

Thanks! Please report! :D

[63galaxie]

We've stayed at Caribe Hilton several times and we're booked for next March pre-cruise again. It's our all-time favorite place! Subway truly is a minute or two, not five. What's nice is they have a full ice-cream bar, coffee-bar, and they serve many things besides the usual Subway sandwiches (local soups, and various other sandwiches). And...they serve breakfast! Pancakes, bacon, eggs, etc. And it's cheap and clean. Another place we ate was in the Starbucks at the hotel. They have fantastic local pastries, especially Quijitos (not sure of spelling). Flaky layers of pastry and sugar with flavorful fruit fillings. We always buy extra and take it on the ship and/or home for the kids. And they are only a few dollars. Another tip is to eat at the poolside grill. We split a burger which came with a side dish (the burgers were grilled, big, and delicious) and ordered drinks. It wasn't as costly and we got to enjoy eating outside with an oceanview and a beautiful trade wind! Favorite parts of the hotel would be the lagoon, the hammocks under the palm trees, the swans and the gazebo over the water, feeding the sharks at the end of their pier at night, walking on the trail beside the ocean, the open-air massive lobby, sitting on our balcony watching the sun go down, and the staff, who have always gone above and beyond what we asked for. If you're lucky enough to be a Hilton Honors member, ask to be put in a room where you can enjoy the free food, drinks, and lounge with amazing ocean views and free computer access. It's a real plus!

[Podie]

I am at the hotel right now. Our room in the Hilton Honors tower is good but nowhere near as nice as La Concha. Plus, it is supposed to be oceanview but because it is only on the fourth floor, we can NOT view the ocean. Some of the staff is nice, some seem to have an attitude. I am here for a convention and some of the people have crappy rooms. We tip the housekeeper daily but that's not the greatest service either. The prices at the restaurants are outrageous as expected - a local beer is $7 to $9 depending on the bar, while that same beer was only $4 at El Convento. So it's better than expected but far from great. Maybe being from Florida, I'm a little hard to please when it comes to tropical properties!

[SailingDeanna]

Thanks, Podie, for the live report! If you have anymore thoughts during your stay, keep them coming!