The ship is impressive, both in terms of spectacle and size, but you know something so big is going to have a number of little problems (and even one big one - see about the boutique on board). I hope you find this review helpful.
San Jaun is an industrial city and doesn't need tourism to surive. Because of this, don't expect the warm welcome you see in other Carribean ports. We went to Condado beach. Yay: free beach chairs, Nay: rough surf, no changing rooms. Our friends took the Old/New San Juan excusion. They said OSJ is nice, but NSJ is the ghetto (you don't even get off the bus).
This port was made for the cruise industry. It can't be over 4 years old, so everything is clean and designed with the tourist in mind. The beach is calm with tropical waters (some people might not like the rocks and vegatation in the water, but as more tourists come, the naturalness of this beach will fade). Jimmy Buffet's Margaritaville is a trip with its pool bar and all, but the drinks are not worth the price ($17 for a watered-down "frozen" margarita in a plastic yard container).
We took the Champage Catamaran to Saint John's. The drive getting to the eastern part of the island was a bit long, but very scenic. The Catamaran's captain and crew were excellent and Saint John's is beautiful, although I thought the reef we snorkeled would be more impressive. Our friends went to Mageen's Bay on the north part of the island. They took a taxi to get there (note: the taxi's are $9 PER PERSON, ONE WAY, which is kind of a rip off). The water was nice, but the beach could get crowed at certain times.
We went to Horseshoe Bay Beach. Save your $$ and take the bus at the end of the pier ($8 round trip), rather than paying $34 for the excusion. If you get a good driver like we had coming back, they'll tell you all about the island and point out things of interest along the way.
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