wendydear

We will be in San Juan 9/16-20th then on to whatever islands anyone suggests. Would love insight into San Juan and the islands closest or not so close for a whopping 13 day trip? We are early 50's like night life and don't mind topless beaches.


Wendy

RoamsAround

The two closest islands to San Juan are Culebra and Vieques. They are reachable by ferry from Fajardo which is about an hours drive from San Juan. Lots of travellers combine one or both of these islands with trips to San Juan. These will be the easiest destinations to reach.

You have to fly to reach other islands and almost all in the Caribbean are accessible by either non-stop, direct or connecting flights from San Juan Airport. Depending on the island airpares can run anywhere from around $125 PP each way to upwards of $300 PP each way.

Which island you should visit depends on what you are seeking. I'd suggest you use the Destinations link at the top left of this page and click through to the Caribbean. There you can browse through some brief descriptions of the various islands and/or island chains in the Caribbean making it easier to narrow down your choice to a few that realy interest you.

Assuming your 13 day trip includes the 5 days (actually 4 days plus your arrival day) you are spending in San Juan that means you have 8 days to visit other islands. I'd suggest you confine that to only one or two islands since you don't want to waste too much time travelling between destinations. In actuality you will spend i day getting to San Juan and one day getting back home. That leaves 11 full days of vacation. With transfers to/from the airport, actual airport waiting time, customs/immigration clearance, etc figure on loosing the better part of another day if you fly to another island. So to maximize your "relaxation time" limit yourself to one or two other islands.

The US Virgin Islands and/or British Virgin Islands are only about a 30 minute flight from San Juan. There are many daily flights to those islands making travel fairly easy and the is;lands themselves are in close proximity to one another so you can, if you wish, be based on one of the islands (say ST. Thomas or Tortola) and take relatively short ferry rides for day trips to other islands in the chain.

St. Martin or Anguilla are two other islands that are fairly easy to reach from San Juan. Flights there will take about an hour and you can stay on one and easily visit the other by ferry. Also, nearby the two is St. Bart's although you can only get there by ferry or 10 minute flight from St. Martin.

You could also fly from San Juan to St. Kitts (1 hour flight) and have access not only to that island but also Nevis which is a short 45 minute ferry ride from St. Kitts.

I wouldn't put too much effort into visiting the islands of the Southern Caribbean as they will be too far for practical travel from San Juan. Save those for future trips.

As for nightlife in San Juan, while I'm not an expert in that area there are plenty of nightclubs, casinos, and other places where you can party well into the wee hours of the morning. When you get there simply ask the concierge at your hotel for suggestions on the best places.

wendydear

thanks roamsaround. The idea was to see another island or two beyond PR and the 2 islands that seem to go hand in hand. Like the idea of St. Barts. Anyone have suggestions where to stay and play?

RoamsAround

Remember, St. Barts' is a little difficult to get to from San Juan. To get there by commercial air you first have to fly into St. Martin than take a different commuter flight or ferry to St. Bart's.

Tradewind Aviation (www.tradewindaviation.com) does daily charter flights to St. Bart's from San Juan but you may find the cost prohibitive unless you can share the cost with several other passengers. I'm not sure if Tradewind will take reservations for "individual" seats or just reservations for the entire charter - contact them directly for the answer.

On St. Barts check out the following hotels/resorts - Eden Roc, Isle De France or Le Toiny.

wendydear

any idea what the weather is like in mid Sept? St. Martin fun?

RoamsAround

You can research general weather data for almost any major Caribbean island at: www.weatherbase.com

If you want more detailed statistics including what actual weather was for every day in a given period over the last 10 years go to: www.wunderground.com Using the Travel & Activities dropdown menu select "Trip Planner", enter your destination and your planned dates of travel. You'll be directed to so many charts and data about the weather for that location that you'll be an expert.