Sign in with FacebookWalking around San Juan
Just walking around the downtown area is a wonder on itself. It ain't no different from any other big city, but you can smell culture in the air. There's always some good cumbia music playing out of a window somewhere.
Tu Casa Guest House
2071 Cacique Street, Ocean Park, San Juan, Puerto Rico, 00911, Caribbean
of people enjoy staying here
5 Opinions
- Excellent
- Very Good
- Average
- Poor
- Terrible
More about San Juan
Photos
Palacio Rojo - Old San Juan
Old San Juan Street
San Felipe del Morro in the Distance
Inside Cathedral of San Juan
Forum Posts
Caribe Hilton/Walking Distance
I'm confused by a discrepancy among reviews. In June we will be staying at the Caribe Hilton for 5 days. Some reviews say it is a "nice walk" to Old San Juan, restaurants, Condado, etc. Others say the big downside of the resort is that "nothing is within walking distance." Which is it? We are New Yorkers, for us "walking distance" is anything within 30 minutes/1 mile at a reasonable pace. Can we walk to restaurants in that time frame?
Re: Caribe Hilton/Walking Distance
Totally confused now. Several people said that Condado is a 20 minute walk...isn't that a retail/restaurant area?
Re: Caribe Hilton/Walking Distance
Hi! I stayed at the Condado Plaza in February, just across the bridge from the Caribe Hilton. It should indeed take you about 15-20 minutes to reach the restaurants located in the Condado area, and there's plenty of choice on Ashford Avenue (I'd recommend Yerba Buena and Waikiki, and someone at our hotel also recommended Ajili Mojili and Ropa Vieja). So even though there isn't much *right next* to the Hilton Caribe, there are plenty of restaurants within what I consider walking distance. As for Old San Juan, it should take you about 30-45 minutes (depending on how fast you walk) to get there. We walked from the Condado Plaza to Old San Juan every day and really enjoyed it. Hope this helps!
Re: Caribe Hilton/Walking Distance
We stayed at the Caribe in January and it took us 30-40 minutes to walk to Old San Juan so I'd estimate that it was closer to 1 1/2-2 miles. I like to walk (helps burn off all those calories!) so I didn't think it was a bad walk, for some people a couple of blocks and they are done.
Before we left some people even suggested to us not to do the walk after dark although we certainly didn't have any problems during the day or early evening. If you are going in June when I assume it will be hotter than in January, it may also be an uncomfortably warm walk if you are not leaving in the early morning.
I think there was also a bus, taxis are a bit pricey in San Juan, fixed rate and geared towards gouging cruise ship passengers.
Re: Caribe Hilton/Walking Distance
It is like a 40 minute walk, the only problem about walking there is the excrutiating heat during summer time and the uneven cobblestones in old san juan.
Travel Tips for San Juan
Avoid rush hour traffic if possible
With the major roadways into and out of San Juan or any other major cities in Puerto Rico, try to avoid rush hour traffic. It's basically a semi-standstill situation. To avoid traffic within the major cities, travel the major roads between 10:00a - 3:00p, evening, or early morning hours.
Travelling the 20 or so miles from Humacao to Cagua enroute to San Juan along Route 30 took 45 minutes.
In the picture, note that the shoulders of the road is used by the locals as a driving lane when in traffic. Also notice the pickup truck delivering plantains, yum.
visit the San Cristobal...
visit the San Cristobal Fort.......
Unlike El Morro fort,whose main job was prevent enemy ships from entering the harbor,San Cristobal protected the land approaches to san Juan from the East.
This massive fortification was first tested in 1797 battle when Sir Ralph abercromy's 7,000 British troops unsuccesfully attacked the city.
Packing for the heat
It was hot, hot, hot when we were in San Juan so pack for warm weather, shorts or capri pants are appropriate during the day, bring along a hat to keep the sun off your head. A good pair of walking shoes is also a must I'm fair skinned so I slather on 50 SPF sunblock, the sun is pretty intense Bring small bills with you for cab fare, it's best to just have the exact amount so you can hand it to the taxi driver
The Guavate Experience
Every Puerto Rican will object to a weekend day-trip from San Juan to Guavate being an "Off the beaten path" experience, being Guavate probably the most-popular weekend destinations for Puerto Ricans. True, but as a matter of fact for tourists and travelers it might be a very unexpected destination. Like for me, that ended up in Guavate on a Sunday afternoon almost by chance.
The "Guavate Recreational Area" - usually referred to as simply "Guavate" - is the place in the Central Mountains where Puerto Ricans gather on weekend days to enjoy traditional food, Caribbean music and the mountain. It is properly a few-mile-long area packed with family-style eateries serving roasted whole pig along with other delicacies from Puerto Rican traditional cuisine. While the roasted pig gets slowly roasted, salsa and reggaetón flow and time concentrates on having fun.
The road up and through Guavate is lined with those lechoneras (eateries so called because they serve lechón asado) and there is plenty of choices of places to eat and have some good time. I don't have a specific place to recommend, I just stopped by one which was crowded enough to make me comfortable it was a place of choice of the locals. Other than lechón asado you will find on the menus other local specialties such as arroz con grandules (rice with peageon peas), pasteles (tamal-like savory cakes in banana leaves), morcilla (pork blood sausage stuffed with rice), mofongo (mashed fried plantain) and other things. All the eateries are very down-to-earth places with the food served at the counter in cardboard plates and where you will have to find yourself, clean and at the end of the meal clear your table.
Note the traffic can be jammed and the line at the eateries long, so set yourself at a slow pace and allow plenty of time. Guavate is alive in the weekend and holiday days from the morning through the late afternoon/early evening, when the crowd gets on their way back home.
Explore the World
Hotels
- Ocean Hotel
- O2 Hotel
- Parc Soleil by Hilton Grand Vacations Club
- Hotel Top Royal Sun
- El Andalous Hotel Marrakech
- Staybridge Suites Anaheim
- Westward Look Resort
- Shah's Village Hotel
- Club Intrawest Zihuatanejo
- Lodges at Timber Ridge Branson
- Garden Court Sandton
- Hauza Beach Resort
- Park Hotel Ilford
- Pryce Plaza Hotel
Travel Destinations
Travelers also viewed
Hotel Helper
San Juan
Similar to Tu Casa Guest House
Near Tu Casa Guest House
Cheapest in San Juan
Great Hotels for Less
Questions and Answers
Q: Restaurant recommendations for cruise stop in San Juan "We are going to be in San Juan on the night of our anniversary, stopping via a Caribbean cruise. Can someone recommend a fun,..."
A: "I like La Casita Blanca which is a short cab ride from where the ships dock. Very good food and they even have a tree growing inside and through the roof....."
Read 2 Replies »
Latest San Juan hotel reviews
- Sheraton Puerto Rico Convention Center Hotel & Casino
- 296 Reviews & Opinions
Latest: May 26, 2012 - San Juan Beach Hotel
- 215 Reviews & Opinions
Latest: May 25, 2012 - Doubletree by Hilton San Juan
- 596 Reviews & Opinions
Latest: May 25, 2012 - Hotel Casablanca
- 147 Reviews & Opinions
Latest: May 27, 2012 - At Wind Chimes Inn
- 287 Reviews & Opinions
Latest: May 23, 2012 - La Concha Resort: A Renaissance Hotel
- 1508 Reviews & Opinions
Latest: May 26, 2012 - Coqui Inn
- 214 Reviews & Opinions
Latest: May 11, 2012 - Hotel El Convento
- 868 Reviews & Opinions
Latest: May 26, 2012 - Parador Villas de Mar Hau
- 118 Reviews & Opinions
Latest: May 26, 2012 - Acacia Seaside Inn Boutique
- 234 Reviews & Opinions
Latest: May 22, 2012 - Borinquen Beach Inn
- 67 Reviews & Opinions
Latest: May 23, 2012 - Howard Johnson Hotel - San Juan
- 127 Reviews & Opinions
Latest: May 15, 2012 - Parador Palmas De Lucia
- 32 Reviews & Opinions
Latest: Apr 21, 2012 - El Canario by the Sea
- 107 Reviews & Opinions
Latest: May 21, 2012 - Aleli By the Sea
- 52 Reviews & Opinions
Latest: May 8, 2012
Best Deals for San Juan
- San Juan: Find Air + Hotel Packages!
- Hotwire.com Customized vacations without the hassle
- San Juan: Vacation Package Specialists
- Expedia Vacations Save on flight + hotel packages. Click or call now: 1 - 800-713-8214
Sponsored Links
San Juan Hotel Deals
- Save money, Book now !
- Booking.com Excellent choice, Low rates
- Luxury for Less
- CheapCaribbean.com Caribbean Vacations at up to 70% off published prices. Book Now!
- Book now for big savings!
- hotels.com Outstanding choice of hotels all over the world at fantastic prices.
- Save up to 50% off Hotels Everyday
- Expedia.com Photos, Reviews and the Guaranteed Lowest Prices
Sponsored Links