distant_traveler

I have determined that Spanish will be our offical 2nd Language in a few short years and unless one knows that language it will be impossible to function/work in America. As a result I am working hard to learn Spanish. I wonder if the cruise ships going out of San Juan are mostly designed for the Spanish Speaking public?

I would enjoy meeting new people on the ship that will speak to me in Spanish. What is the ethnic makeup of the passengers leaving from San Juan?

Mamaw

oooooooh you didn't!

triathlete

When the cruise lines have trouble filling ships out of San Juan, they tend to offer very low rates to the locals. Generally, the less expensive the cruise, the more Spanish speakers you'll find on board.

Julia_E

Hi,

Congratulations on learning Spanish! It is always worthwhile to learn another language.

Yes, you will find lots of Spanish language opportunities in San Juan. It is really neat, but most people speak some English because of the U.S. influence on Puerto Rico. The cruises from San Juan on American cruise lines will be tailored to English-speaking Americans. But, especially in San Juan, Spanish is the primary language, but English is widely spoken. Almost everyone who works within the tourism industry speaks English.

But, you will have lots of opportunities to speak Spanish. Ask them to give you help with your grammar and pronunciation!

Best Regards,
Julia

CruiseDiva

It is correct that when a ship based in San Juan isn't "sold out," then low fares are offered to local residents to fill up the sailing. In that case, you will encounter more than the average number of passengers who speak Spanish.

While announcements on ships sailing from San Juan might be in Spanish as well as English, the onboard experience is nearly identical to that on ships sailing from Florida, New Orleans, Galveston, etc. Other than possibly finding a Latin music or salsa band in a lounge, the activities and entertainment are mostly designed for Americans.

As far as language is concerned, I sailed on Royal Caribbean from Miami several years ago and announcements during that cruise were made in Spanish as well as English, although that isn't always the case. You might also see the daily onboard schedule of events printed in a number of languages. Cruises are very universal these days!

Incidentally, when ships aren't filling up--for whatever reason--the same situation is true in other embarkation port areas... cruise lines offer last-minute deals to local residents.

Good luck with your Spanish lessons. You might want to consider spending a few days before or after your cruise in San Juan to practice--local residents will appreciate your effort.

Linda Coffman
Author, Fodor's The Complete Guide to Caribbean Cruises

kfusto

I have done five southern sailings out of San Juan, most on RCI. The vibe is indeed different. Lots of residents, lots of Latin music and a high energy level throughout the ship.

I do not speak Spanish so cannot speak for the opportunity to do so from personal experience. However, there was plenty of Spanish being spoken.

swaymock

I've sailed on Princess twice out of San Juan. I would say the sailings are most definitely not "designed" for the Spanish speaking public. There may have been a few more native Spanish speakers onboard than when I've sailed out of NYC or FLL, but not that many.

Reisender

We have sailed on RCCL out of San Juan on the southern route. The mix was about 50 percent Puerto Ricans with the other 50 percent made up of people from all over the world. We did not notice any favoritism to any group at all - it was just a nice cruise. There was one really good band from San Juan that performed in one bar at night and that did cater to the Puerto Ricans, but all were welcome.

luv2fly

Last year, a Princess Panama Canal New Year's cruise I took sailed from San Juan. The majority of the passengers were Spanish speaking...whether from Puerto Rico, Mexico, or South America..and they made little attempt to converse/mingle with the English speaking travelers.

Princess even pushed up the dinner dining room times to cater to them and their habit of eating much later. Dining that late prevented us from going to any of the shows. We were not happy.

diann24

FYI---The Post Master told me the new official language of the world is Spanish. I didn't know that till the other day. It use to be English. I have sailed several ships out of San Juan and there is a PR presence but not 100%. I love sailing from there as it is the Southern Route. It is the warmest and my favorite.

patsy120

I sailed on a 7 night cruise out of San Juan and didn't notice much difference between that and sailing out of any other city. Almost all Americans and no announcements in Spanish. This was 3 years ago...maybe it's changed?

ira

>I have determined that Spanish will be our offical 2nd Language ...<

Since we don't have an official 1st language in the US, how did you determine that we will have an official 2nd language?

soclwrkr

Having sailed out of San Juan a number of times on various cruise lines I have never found them to be designed for the spanish speaking. The ethnic makeup is usually a mixture of canadians,Americans, Britians, Germans, etc. Of course spanish speaking people cruise also but I wouldn't say the cruise is "designed for them". By numbers alone I would have to say the majority of cruisers are english speaking, unless of course your going with Costa Cruises, being an Italian cruise line they do have a high number of italians and in fact europeans in general. The cruise staff are usually diverse and represent all countries, india, North america South America etc.