San juan sailing???

[MissBehaving]

We stayed a night before when we flew in from the UK. We stayed at the Raddisson which isnt as close to the terminal as the Hilton, but we fould it cheaper and just as nice.

We got to the hotel at about 10h00 and managed to check-in early. We then went for a lovely walk along a very empty beach... it was a wonderful start to our holiday.

The hotel kept our luggage the next day until we needed to board.

Oh - and the Raddison upgraded us to a Suite :p

[TiredOl6]

We did not fly in to San Juan a day early on our previous cruise. We made it fine - our big suitcase did not and never caught up with us.

 

The "good news" is that my wife is a seasoned traveler, we each had a carry-on that was stuffed, and we had planned for the worst but that is another story.

 

Fly in a day early or risk being without any checked luggage.

 

Just a thought!

[ken_nyc]

We always divide our clothes between both suitcases just in case we we get one suitcase without the other...we will always have some clothing, unless of course both do not show, in which we would be kind of screwed.

[cruiseawaits]

We always divide our clothes between both suitcases just in case we we get one suitcase without the other...we will always have some clothing, unless of course both do not show, in which we would be kind of screwed.

 

Thought of this wonderful idea a little too late. However, fortunately, luggage did finally arrive. In the future, we will definitely divi up the luggage.

[TiredOl6]

Thought of this wonderful idea a little too late. However, fortunately, luggage did finally arrive. In the future, we will definitely divi up the luggage.

We did a 7 day Southern Caribbean on Serenade of the Seas a couple of years ago with what we (my wife and I) had in our carry-on. Our big suitcase never caught up with the ship. Luckily we have traveled enough (24 years in the Army) to plan for that possibility and had packed the carry ons very carefully. Actually, short of our formal wear and with the free laundry services each day provided by RCCL onboard we had everything we really needed.

 

Turned out to be the source of a lot of fun and conversation (over drinks). We were "the ones ...."

[nanfromatlanta]

Following is an aerial map of Old San Juan with some of the hotels and piers, just to put things into perspective....

 

http://www.langland.org/cruises/sanjuan.asp

[bozza]

MissBehaving - who did you fly with? We are looking at this for next year, and know there are no direct flights. Also approx. cost would help.

[tuliplvr]

We sailed the AOS last week. Flew into Miami the day before with flight arriving too late to connect to San Juan, stayed overnight near Miami International and flew out the next morning(AOS departure day) scheduled to arrive in San Juan at 1:30. Well we arrived at 1:30, however our luggage did not. After getting very frustrated, angry and disgusted by the lack of assistance at the airport, ended up waiting 4 hours for two additional flights to arrive from Miami to see if luggage was on the flights. Finally, there it was...last pieces to be unloaded on the second flight. Off we went, dashing to the ship. Checked in...at least no lines to wait in at this late arrival time, however, had to wait to board as they were conducting muster drill(which we missed--at least some good came of this miserable day). I was so disgusted with the American Airlines personnel and airport employees. Every single person we spoke with was indifferent to our problem, extremely rude in their responses and were absolutely, positively no help whatsoever. However, once we were on the ship, all was forgotten until we were back at the San Juan Airport to come home. Oh my, another time with that horror story. My suggestion--get to San Juan with luggage in tow the day before, if not sooner.

 

I feel your pain.. It was American who lost our luggage as well and they were so rude. Unfortunately I don't have a choice but to fly them again for my upcoming cruise.

[Cuizer2]

Following is an aerial map of Old San Juan with some of the hotels and piers, just to put things into perspective....

 

http://www.langland.org/cruises/sanjuan.asp

 

Do you have one showing new San Juan? :)

[toonjie]

There are three of us (all adults) with the usual one large piece of luggage and a garment bag with our carry-ons, what do you suggest for getting to the airport? RCI transfers, taxi, etc.? Thanks in advance for your suggestions! :)

 

Ken, grab a cab. Cheaper and faster than transfers. They have regular cars, minivans and full vans to choose from and prices are set. (http://www.cabspr.com)

 

To the OP: Definitely go in the day before, boarding begins at 11:30am usually and join us over at the San Juan boards for advice on bidding on Priceline for a hotel and for tons to do in Old San Juan. (See the sticky) We got Ken from NYC the Marriott for $120 a night! See my AOS review link and picture site for tons of pics and advice.

[ken_nyc]

Hi Toonjie, thanks for the info! Your are a big help as usual! :)

[Tex_Jen]

As many times as I've sailed out of San Juan, I only flew in same day once. The first time I cruised. Learned my lesson well. I was so exhausted that it took until the end of the cruise to finally catch up.

 

My 2nd cruise could have been a disaster as there was a freak weather system over Florida in April. Kept all planes from flying near the state for several hours. We were very glad we flew in the day before and I have practiced that mantra ever since.

 

As for budgeting, I plan that extra day as part of the cost of my cruise....

 

Jen

[bubiesmom]

My husband and I are sailing out of San Juan on the Adventure of the Seas on May 17. The ship departs at 8:30 PM. Questions:

1. How early in the day can we board the ship? Our flight arrives at 2:30 PM. From airport landing to arrival at dock, how much time should we allow? Some airports are not very efficient.
   
2. Should we book a hotel and fly into San Juan a day earlier ? If we did that, what do we do with our luggage from noon on departure day til boarding?
   
3. Any recommendations for hotel?
   

 

We are sailing the AOS on 3/22/09. We have never done RCL before, but are really looking forward to it. We live outside of Chicago, never trust Midwest weather. We are arriving two days early and plan to stay at the Embassy suites. They offer a free breakfast and cocktail hour for a few hours in the early evening. I would suggest a shore excursion the last day that coincides with your return flight, this way the cruise line holds your luggage. Also, check out your roll call. I have chatted with alot of really nice people. I hope this helps.

[hippychic_66]

onesphinx2004 - I just wanted to invite you to come over to the Roll Call board and join us! There area bunch of people (me included) who are on the same sailing as you and would be happy to help answer your questions.

 

I do agree that flying in the day before, if possible, is the way to go. Two years ago when we went on the AOS we flew in the day of (our wedding was the day before, so no choice) and I was SO stressed the entire time until we walked on the ship that something would go wrong. This year we are flying in 3 days in advance and planning to enjoy PR before we set sail. We are staying at the Caribe Hilton, which I've heard great things about.

 

I hope to see you on the Roll Call board!

 

We decided to explore beautiful PR for 3 days also, but a word of advice...the road signs are very few and not always correct, so maps are not always helpful either. We traveled all over the island but it was an extremely hair-pulling experience, and we have a very good sense of direction! It was however, very beautiful and we still would not have changed our plans in going there again. Enjoy your days in PR!:)

[sjmccmjs]

My husband and I are sailing out of San Juan on the Adventure of the Seas on May 17. The ship departs at 8:30 PM. Questions:

1. How early in the day can we board the ship? Our flight arrives at 2:30 PM. From airport landing to arrival at dock, how much time should we allow? Some airports are not very efficient.
   
2. Should we book a hotel and fly into San Juan a day earlier ? If we did that, what do we do with our luggage from noon on departure day til boarding?
   
3. Any recommendations for hotel?
   

We sailed on AOS in August. Since we had a red eye from LA, we also arrived a day early and it worked out great. We stayed at the Courtyard by Marriot and it was beautiful. We thought we would enjoy the beach, but our party of 6 slept all day. But we really enjoyed the casino that night (and won some $ as well). We were able to enjoy a leisurely morning before taking a cab to the pier around 11.

 

Just one suggestion. If you tip the porter, you will be moved to a special line that will allow you to check in without waiting in a long line. We gave the porter $20 for our 8 bags, and were put in a special, very short line. We were one of the first on the ship.

[hippychic_66]

:) You should definitely arrive in San Juan the day before your cruise departs! Too many things can happen that can stress you out and get your vacation off to a bad start. We stay at the Courtyard Marriott Isla Verde. Most of the hotels in PR are fairly expensive and this hotel cost us about $140 but very much worth it! It was absolutely beautiful inside and out, with a view of the beach and wonderful ambience. They have wonderful restaurants and everything you need to make your night in PR a memorable experience, before your cruise even starts! ;)

[Cuizer2]

[quote name='sjmccmjs']Just one suggestion. If you tip the porter, you will be moved to a special line that will allow you to check in without waiting in a long line. We gave the porter $20 for our 8 bags, and were put in a special, very short line. We were one of the first on the ship.[/quote]

I don't know about your experience. But I didn't tip the porter and I was the first one on the ship. From my review ...

$20 plus tip and 30 minutes later the taxi dropped me off at the dock. It's 10:30am and I'm hoping that they will begin the check in process around 11:00. While I am able to check my luggage, it appears check in will not start until about noon.

So, here I am, sitting in a luggage cart and playing FreeCell on my computer when a lady steps out of the door, looks right at me and says, you've been sitting here a long time. Do you want to come in? Of course I do. In a few minutes I am checked in, I have my SeaPass and I am the first one to board the ship.

[danp]

Has anyone notice when you are approching the PanAm pier,you pass the new convention center they are doing more construction.We asked our cab driver what they were building now and he told us that the Raddisson was building two new hotels.Then you can ALMOST walk to the pier.

[ecmcm]

[quote name='danp']Has anyone notice when you are approching the PanAm pier,you pass the new convention center they are doing more construction.We asked our cab driver what they were building now and he told us that the Raddisson was building two new hotels.Then you can ALMOST walk to the pier.[/QUOTE]

We drove by the convention centre four times and each cab driver was very excited about it. I'm sure they'll need the hotels for that but having them right there on the pier will be wonderful. I'd love to wake up early to watch my ship coming into view on the first morning! And yes, if you travel light you could walk to the pier.

em

[welove2cruisedou]

[FONT=Comic Sans MS][COLOR=blue]HI, My husband and I will also be on the May 17th 2009 sailing on the AOS. We suggest you also check out the Meet & Mingle board for this sailing. Lots of good suggestions on that part of the Cruise Critic. We will be staying at the Caribe Hilton one night pre-cruise. We have been on the AOS before and stayed at this hotel, it is very close to the port and a very lovely hotel. We had a few minor problems when we stayed there last time, so we emailed the hotel and they are giving us a 1 King 1 BDRM SUITE GARDENVIEW for $150.00 plus tax. I got an email from a very kind lady at the resort and she set us up with this room. It is suppose to be in the new building. We also plan at eating at Morton's Steakhouse at the resort as I emailed them about their specials. Since we booked the hotel on our own we have to find our own way to the hotel and the AOS. Not a big deal to take a taxi, as I remember it was not that long of a drive from the airport. Someone told me the airport is kinda hectic nowadays, so we are packing lightly so we dont have to go hunt down our luggage. So looking forward to this cruise, only 65 more days to go. (I think the countdown clock is off on here by a day). :)[/COLOR][/FONT]

[mex25]

Me and my DW along with both daughters are on the June 21st saling as we are flying in the day before and staying at the Sheridian OSJ for both pre and post cruise as were leaving the next morning after we disembark.
Less stress the better:)