Since we hardly saw the rest of the city outside Old San Juan, this is the only part I will share an opinion on.
The city is adorable. Really reminds me of some historic towns in Europe with the cobblestone streets and multi-colored buildings, flower pots hanging below window sills, and intricate doors and gates.
The forts are worth your time and minimal fee ($3 per adult per fort or $5 per adult for a pass to see both; pass can be used for 7 days). These can easily be explored with young children (and there were tonsss of kids around, especially in the fields outside the fort). Castillo de San Cristobal was my favorite; there are great photo op’s there.
My recommendation for attire is something light but not a skirt/dress because it is hot and humid but windy!! Walking through the cobblestone streets kept us busy for a while; there is so much to look at. Surprisingly there are not all that many restaurants outside restaurant row. It’s mostly shops (really random ones, too).
Some weird trends we found in SJ: there are always tons of servers everywhere we went and often times they are standing around as if they don’t have enough to do… 2) kites are apparently incredibly popular, especially around that huge field by the fort where tons of families enjoy the day out in the ocean breeze 3) the Old SJ streets are pretty crowded at all times of day and I can’t imagine going through the city with a stroller because of the narrow and bumpy sidewalks 4) everyone we met spoke some English so even though I was trying to brush up on my Spanish skills, there wasn’t much need and 5) cab fares are a fixed price which is great so that you don’t have to worry about being cheated or something (see below).
Make sure when you leave the airport or cruise port you wait in the line for the taxi; DON’T let one of the gentlemen coax you out of waiting in the line by convincing you “if you come with me now we can go faster”. This is a lie and they are breaking the rules. If you go with them instead of waiting in the line at the airport (which looked long but went fast and only lasted about 20 mins), they just take you and your luggage to a car near the end of the line and ask for a tip for helping you there. Scam. At the cruise pier when you exit it is faster to get through customs if you go through the porter line but I don’t think the 10 minutes you save is worth having to pay someone to carry bags for you; once again, everyone’s priorities with things like this are different! Then when you get outside there will be people accosting you offering a taxi but it appears they are also not following the rules because they should be waiting their turn in line. They are often parked farther back in the line but try and get you to come with them so they can leave faster (and get more rides in per hour). When I would respond with “where are you parked?” they would run away from me! I feel much more comfortable honoring the guys who are following the rules and in line waiting to pick you up; and we didn’t have to wait in line at all. They give you a receipt with how much it will cost before you get in the car so that everyone is on the same page.
For breaks, there are many coffee shops and quite a few fro yo joints. We fell in love with one coffee shop in particular, Cafe Cuatro Sombras. It is adorable, clean, and trendy. The coffee is incredible, as is the foam art. The pastries and sandwiches are yummy and the staff are friendly. We could go here every day! And we spent several hours there each time, reading and chatting. I hope they open another location in Florida 😉
We ate dinner at Vaca Brava based on a recommendation by a coworker who used to live in PR. It is touristy but we are tourists! I picked this place knowing my husband would love the large portions of meat. We ordered a meal for one and shared it; he had the huge skirt steak and I had the veggies and equally huge “side” salad. We also had tostones for an appetizer; they were the best I’ve had (but I haven’t had tostones often). My husband said that was the best skirt steak he’s ever had. Prices are high but portions are large. The one meal was $18.99 but, like I said, it fed two.
Pirilo was an amazing find. We actually stumbled upon it after trying to go to St. Germains. St. Germains is highly rated and looks like it is for good reason but we went during lunch time on the weekend and apparently they have a set brunch menu for $19 per person and we weren’t interested in that.
Instead we found Pirilo on our way back to restaurant row on the corner of Calle de San Justo and Calle de fortaleza. It was absolutely delicious and the service was great. Prices are right and the atmosphere is nice. The food is argentinian/Italian fusion. We tried the empandallitas de quesa y espinacas (cheese and spinach empanadas with a yummy sauce, the octopus and potatoes dish (not going to even try and spell that) and my husband ordered a personal pepperoni pizza pie. The waitress thoughtfully recommended that we try the ** so next time we will do that; we later saw the people next to us order that and it looked amazing. The octopus dish was heavy so even though it was small it was plenty; the grilled pieces were chewy but flavorful (I added some lime juice like I do with calamari) and the potatoes were cooked just right.
This is a random observation but I was really impressed that when one of the male servers came to spray and wipe down the table next to us, he very carefully covered the spray so that the chemical smell didn’t overwhelm the other guests and so that it didn’t splash us either. I can’t tell you how many restaurant employees I see spray that disgusting chemical junk onto tables from a few feet away when guests are right next to it. I appreciate that especially as a pregnant woman since I’m so conscious about what chemicals I’m around so I don’t inhale anything dangerous.
Ben & Jerry’s was amazing but oh-so-crowded. Good wifi and A/C stop and the freshest, warmest waffle cones I’ve ever seen. Zombie coffee/froyo was a nice little froyo stop. Great employees and great location.
We tried Punto de Vista** for lunch and had a hell of a time finding it without wifi (and with hardly and street signs around SJ – what the heck!) As other reviews stated, the place looks like a crappy bar but the food is authentic PR and good quality/portions/price. Also great service as well.
Lastly, the trolley was free and convenient. Go to a less popular stop so you have a better chance of getting on and not having to wait another 15-20 mins for the next one. Both trolleys give you a nice taste of what there is to see but only one of them goes all the way up to the Castillo San Felipe del Morro entrance. I recommend taking a ride on the trolley at the beginning of the day so you know what all there is to see and then getting off and exploring by foot. I think it’d be a pain to get on and off that trolley multiple times; it’s too unreliable and packed. Have fun in SJ!
Thrifty& 