We are returning to Tortola to cruise with good friends of ours in January on their new cat. We've decided to stay three nights in San Juan Puerto Rico at the end of the cruise. Do any TTOL members have suggestions as to possible places to stay? We're still debating if it should be Old San Juan or Condado. Prices seem to be similar.

Depends on what you are looking for. The El Convento in Old San Juan is a great hotel and in a great location. It doesn't have a beach or a big pool, but I believe El Convento guests have privileges at a beach hotel in Condado.

If you are looking for more of a resort experience you could look at Isla Verde. The Ritz, El San Juan and Intercontinental are all nice hotels with great pools and on the best beach in San Juan. I've hear good things about the Courtyard in Isla Verde as well. Old San Juan is a $20 taxi ride away as well. However, my opinion is that most of the action in Isla Verde happens in the hotels and there isn't as much to do away from the hotels there.

Condado is a good choice if you are looking for a compromise between the two. The beach there isn't as good as Isla Verde, but the location is much closer to Old San Juan. As a matter of fact, you can walk to Old San Juan from Condado, though it is a fairly long walk. Also, don't make that walk during the night. Condado also has a lot of bars and restaurants located within proximity to all of the hotels there. La Concha and Marriott are both popular choices in Condado and The Vanderbilt is being restored. Not sure when it will be fully open, but I am sure it will be a very nice option.

Trip Advisor has a section in their forums about San Juan where you could also get a lot of good advice on hotels.

Have fun!

Two years ago, we stayed at the El Convento for three nights on our way to STJ. We really enjoyed it. Yes, the hotel does have some sort of arrangement with another one on the beach. We had every intention of taking advantage of that but we were so busy in town, we never made it.

The El Convento is a nice hotel but be warned, the rooms are small-ish with queens or doubles. We loved the historic charm. The nightly wine and cheese party was very good (great selections of both). We will definitely return to the El Convento, it was a great stopover.

We are looking at the Acacia Hotel for two nights in May.....

I also vote for El Convento. Why would you want to stay on a beach when you have just been sailing in the Virgins? <img src="http://www.traveltalkonline.com/forums/images/graemlins/Grin.gif" alt="" /> A stay in Old San Juan is a wonderful counterpoint to a sail vacation. Wonderful restaurants, historic sights, Medalla beer! The wine and cheese reception and the roof top pool at El Convento are icing on the cake...

We spent three nights at El Convento in March of this year.

Would highly recommend - great base for walking around the old city. Great staff - not much of a view from rooms but the interior courtyard is very nice and the tables outside of each room are a great place to read over a glass of wine.