San Juan - excursions

[Irish clare]

Good evening , i am going on my first cruise at Christmas , Celebration Reflection out of Forrt lauderdale, our first port is San Juan 

According to the Itinerary we arrive there at 4pm and leave at 11pm - 

would you be able to tell me if the shops will stay open into the evening ?

I had considered doing the Bacardi tour but the last one is at 4.15 so that is out 

Is there any other activity you would be able to recommond for an evening as i do not think the walking tour would work either

thank you in advance 

[Airrace]

3 hours ago, Irish clare said:

Good evening , i am going on my first cruise at Christmas , Celebration Reflection out of Forrt lauderdale, our first port is San Juan 

According to the Itinerary we arrive there at 4pm and leave at 11pm - 

would you be able to tell me if the shops will stay open into the evening ?

I had considered doing the Bacardi tour but the last one is at 4.15 so that is out 

Is there any other activity you would be able to recommond for an evening as i do not think the walking tour would work either

thank you in advance 

Most of the shops will be open with a few closing at 6:00 pm.

You won’t have a lot of time so I might recommend you use a ship excursion to make sure you are back in time.

 

I am sure the forts will be closed but that doesn’t stop you from taking the walk around the forts. You start at the gate and walk around the fort with the ocean on your left and the fort on your right.

 

Good Luck

 

[seagull11]

Hi,

You will dock at Old San Juan which will be decorated with Lights , everyone is so nice and in holiday spirit ( I  used to live in PR ) - if Xmas eve yes shops usually close early . If inclined visit one of the old churches or 

  Just walking around Old San Juan is a joy itself . You will be near  EL Morro Fort  as posted above is a nice walk overlooking the sea. I am sure there will be live bands in the local bars or  in the hotels so go have a drink and watch some great dancing.  

 

So excited for you , holiday cruises are my favorite all you have to do is relax ahhh, ENJOY !

[keesar]

4 hours ago, Irish clare said:

Good evening , i am going on my first cruise at Christmas , Celebration Reflection out of Forrt lauderdale, our first port is San Juan 

According to the Itinerary we arrive there at 4pm and leave at 11pm - 

would you be able to tell me if the shops will stay open into the evening ?

I had considered doing the Bacardi tour but the last one is at 4.15 so that is out 

Is there any other activity you would be able to recommond for an evening as i do not think the walking tour would work either

thank you in advance 

 

When you arrive, head up the hill to one of the forts.  They close at 6 pm.  Our ship arrived late as our Captain pulled up to the wrong pier and we got off around 4:40 pm. instead of 3:30.  We still enjoyed seeing one of the forts and enjoyed the. walk around town.  

 

If you forgot something at home , there are two  well-known  U.S. drug stores right there where you dock.  We have made use of them.  

[daydreamer16]

The good thing is that you should have almost 2 hours of daylight when you arrive. At the end of December the sun sets here in New York about 4:30pm and in San Juan it's close to 6pm.

[daydreamer16]

Also, I highly recommend a craft shop that is a short walk from the dock. It's called Puerto Rican Art & Crafts. Everything they sell is made on the island. Lots of jewelry, artwork & even coffee that is grown in Puerto Rico. We have a number of decorative items in our home and my favorite hoop earrings.

They have a website!

Have a great trip! We doing the Reflection on 1/3/19.

[drakes2]

2 hours ago, daydreamer16 said:

Also, I highly recommend a craft shop that is a short walk from the dock. It's called Puerto Rican Art & Crafts. Everything they sell is made on the island. Lots of jewelry, artwork & even coffee that is grown in Puerto Rico. We have a number of decorative items in our home and my favorite hoop earrings.

They have a website!

Have a great trip! We doing the Reflection on 1/3/19.

I'm taking my grandaugter for March break and PR is one of the ports of call. I'll make note of this store

[Stinger-pr]

On 11/15/2019 at 1:34 PM, Irish clare said:

Good evening , i am going on my first cruise at Christmas , Celebration Reflection out of Forrt lauderdale, our first port is San Juan 

According to the Itinerary we arrive there at 4pm and leave at 11pm - 

would you be able to tell me if the shops will stay open into the evening ?

I had considered doing the Bacardi tour but the last one is at 4.15 so that is out 

Is there any other activity you would be able to recommond for an evening as i do not think the walking tour would work either

thank you in advance 

I'm guessing you're on the 12/20 sailing. If so, the forts WILL be open that day until 6pm so if you hurry off the ship, you will get to see at least one. In order to not waste time either taxi or Uber to San Cristobal (closest, smaller in building size) or to El Morro (a mile farther, more impressive, the one you see coming in to SJ). Then you can walk back down from the forts to the ship, along the shops and even the restaurants.