Priceline Hotel: 3.5* San Juan Sheraton Old San Juan

[irelandvegas]

Hello,

DW and I will be traveling to San Juan PR for a cruise in April 2011. We are staying overnight one night before and two after our cruise on Royal Carribean. I have been reading as much as I can on here and several other sites. I am looking for advice regarding the two night stay primarily. My guess is the one night before wont matter too much as we arrive late Saturday night. This vacation is our 10th Anniversary, we are shooting for four star/resort maybe a 3.5. One concer is just how many cab rides would a few days add up if we are in the "wrong" area/zone. I think we will tour Old San Juan the day of the cruise sunday but we also might just head for the ship.

I can exchange detailed information on Chicago, Galveston, Ft Lauderdale and Las Vegas. I can also provide extreemly detailed information on Aspen and the roaring fork valley if anyone has needs in those areas.

Thanks in advance,

IrelandVegas

[AaronJB]

Good evening and Happy (early) Anniversary! :)

Please provide exact date/s of travel and we would be happy to help further.

Any information you can offer regarding other areas would be much appreciated.

Thank you for using the site's HOTWIRE or PRICELINE links to start your purchases and searches.

[irelandvegas]

We will be staying one night April 2nd Saturday 2011 and two nights Sunday April 10th to Tuesday April 12th. ( second post, forgot dates both times!)

IrelandVegas

[Romelle]

San Juan has a fairly well-developed bus system, including a free trolley. Lots of rules and a bit tricky, but it can be done if you are reasonably adventurous and agile. You can think of it as part of the whole experience - very authentic as you won't find many tourists on the buses.

While the language is of course Spanish, there is plenty of English most places. And the currency is the US dollar so that helps since on the buses one needs "exact change" - something like 50 or 75 cents.

If you search something like "san juan bus" you will see all sorts of further information.

There is also a ferry system that is sort of fun and equally inexpensive.

Don't miss the Bacardi Rum tour.

Romelle

[thereuare]

What is your budget for the 4/10-4/12 part of your stay? What activities do you intend to do for this leg of your trip?

Do you know which pier your ship embarks/disembarks?

Please use the PRICELINE and HOTWIRE links on the board to begin your travel purchases.

PS- please read your messages

[irelandvegas]

Thereuare,

Thanks for taking time to help me with my travel plans. Our Ship will be docked in the Pan Am pier from what I have read. Since our travel is April 10-12 2011, many things are just in the idea stage. Basically three things come to mind for the two day part of our trip: Beaches, Old San Juan (if we didnt before our departure) and the National Rainforest ( tour or rental car i guess)

After reading this board and Cruise Critic's San Juan board ( includes MANY kudos for BetterBidding) I think about $125 a night would be fine. I suspect a Resort would be good, but dont know the differance between that and a 4*. We dont use the Spa or massages when they have one, but maybe we would. I have read that the Hilton Caribe is a fine resort, but its location means every trip (OSJ, Beaches, Dining) is in a taxi. Is that enough reason NOT to bid resorts? I dont know.

We have stayed at the Hilton Fort Lauderdale Beach Resort and Hotel Galvez in Galveston as Priceline/ betterbidding wins and have enjoyed each very much!

Thanks as always,

IrelandVegas

[thereuare]

Personally i wouldn't do the Rainforest on day of embarkation... it's somewhat far from San Juan and should something happen on your trip (van breaks down, fender bender, somebody in group gets sick, etc, etc) and it could cause trouble getting to the ship. Not a likely scenario, but a plausible one, and i prefer to make certain i get on the ship when it leaves! :)

There's really three general areas to San Juan... Isla Verde (beach), Old San Juan (historic area and shopping), and Condado Plaza (an area between the two... hotels here are in an inlet/marina area often have man made beaches, not the 'real' beaches you may think about when thinking of the Caribeean).

I've often commented before that San Juan is not a great hotel market... typically expensive hotels and service levels often fall short of expectations. It's not that service is necessarily bad per se, but for cultural reasons things move a bit slower there (just like 'island time' at the other island destinations you may visit on a cruise ship) and 'right away' has a different meaning to islanders (ie- employees) and hotel guests.

If using PRICELINE the zone covers all three areas, so not much point in pondering over which would be the most ideal... with HOTWIRE you may be able to have a little more control by taking a guess as to what is being offered based upon the amenities associated with the hotel being purchased.

Please use the PRICELINE and HOTWIRE links on the board to begin your travel purchases.

Let us know once any questions you have regarding the above and once you're ready to move forward we'll try to see what might be the best options for your trip.

[irelandvegas]

Thanks for the good advice. Wasnt planning on those activities for the day of cruise, sorry i wasnt clear. Only thing we may do is OSJ day of cruise but probably not. Our cruise only has one "sea day" so we might just get on asap and spend the day onboard. I have to explore any "points" my wifes work travel has accumulated before we begin the bidding process, so thanks for the offer for future help.

Great site, thanks!

Irelandvegas

[irelandvegas]

Another win for Better bidding!

This is a post cruise Sunday-Tuesday stay. $110 per nite plus some standard fees. Bid 95 the night before on four star, failed. Bid $110/ night four star failed, re bid by adding 3.5 star and won the Sheraton Old San Juan. Used the PRICELINE link on the page each time. Wanted Candado area but didnt want to play the game much longer as this may be a busy time there. Availibility is dropping as monitored with a travel tool from my wifes corporate travel manager.

IrelandVegas

[AaronJB]

Congrats on your success. :)

Very nice deal, and hope it will work out well for your travel plans.

Thank you for sharing your win and using the site's PRICELINE link.

Enjoy your stay.