Guest Reviews
El San Juan Resort and Casino
787-791-1000
Posted on July 14, 2006
Just Three Bad Things
by Michelle K. from Salt Lake City, UT
I was very impressed with the hotel itself. Very clean and comfortable. Nice pools and shops. Excellent traditional Japanese restaurant located on the ground floor. The staff were pleasant. Walking distance to the beach is a real plus. Drinks at the bar were delicious. My three complaints are: the elevators had problems and would not stop on the 6th floor so we either had to get off on 5 and walk up or get off on 7 and walk down, kind of annoying. My second complaint is that I had jewelry stolen OUT OF MY SUITCASE which was IN THE CLOSET. They took all the gold jewelry and left the silver. It had to be the cleaning people. And they had to have gone searching through my suitcase. That annoys me. I can see if I left it out, open, whatever, but it was zipped up and IN THE CLOSET. And the final complaint is that on Friday and Saturday nights you cannot find a place to park even though you are a guest there because so many non-guests come to go to the casino and dances. I think they need to make sure their paying guests have a place to park. We got back very late, exhausted from a day of sun and fun and could not even park at our own hotel. We finally had to use the valet parking (as a guest you already pay $10/day for parking yourself). The good outweighs the bad so I would recommend this hotel. Date of visit: June 22, 2006
Posted on January 24, 2006
Good Stuff
by Chicago Andy from Chicago, IL
Rooms were OK, nothing special, but we got them for $225/night, so can't complain. Lobby bar was good. Always busy 'til closing. Nice layout and good crowd. Casino was a good time, although waitresses were slow. Dealers were great, very helpful and nice, even when they were taking my money. Pool was awesome. Pictures on web site don't do it justice. Spent 2 days drinking stiff fruity drinks (pina coladas were topped with 151). Highly recommend! Also has beach access with chairs if you want to hang out there. Lots of seaweed on the beach and in the water, so spent most of the time at the pool. I'd recommend the ESJ. Drinks and food are pretty expensive there, but you can always venture out of the hotel. Have fun! Date of visit: January, 2006
Posted on November 28, 2004
The Most Beautiful Lobby I've Ever Seen
by Shelley from New York USA
The lobby and the casino were really the most beautiful I've ever seen. You have to be dressed, no shorts or tank tops in the lobby or casino but thats OK. The pools are gorgeous but you can't bank on the weather it rained four days out of the 7 days I was there but we really had a great time. The only thing I wasn't thrilled with was our room. The rooms need a little touch up. I would go there again. Date of visit: November, 2004
Posted on August 21, 2005
Beautiful Hotel
by Anath from Florida
As already reported, the lobby of the San Juan is exquisite. Very old world, old money, San Juan. Words can not do it justice, it has to be seen. At one time the San Juan was THE place to see and be seen and it is still frequented by some of the Old Money families of San Juan. But not to worry, you don't have to be "old money" to be welcomed with open arms here. We received friendly and professional service our entire stay. The rooms were lovely and clean. Room service was great, especially breakfast. They have American coffee and Puerto Rican coffee, I recommend the Puerto Rican coffee if you like your coffee really strong as I do. The pool is beautiful and the secluded Jacuzzis scattered around the pool and garden area are very romantic in the evenings. There is ample beach front just beyond the pool. If you are planning on visiting any of the bars in the lobby area or the casino in the evening, keep in mind that there is a dress code. Dressy evening attire is appropriate (ladies, dresses are not required, nice, dressy slacks are fine). Date of visit: October, 2004
Posted on August 3, 2004
Top $ for a Beautiful lobby?!
by Camille from Pittsburgh, PA USA
The lobby and entrance area to the hotel are quite impressive and that would lead ones to believe that the rooms were equally so. Unfortunately, not SO true. The hotel hallways and rooms are way overdue for renovation for the price that is charged. Even the grounds around the pool area are overgrown and could use a good grooming. The life of the hotel is its lobby area and clubs. The restaurants were excellent and the service was good, as it should be. The prices for most meals were ala carte and therefore, $50 would be the range for one drink, a salad, entree, and no dessert. Service at the pool bar was unfriendly, to say the least. All in all, for the seasoned traveler, this was well below expectations. Date of visit: July, 2004
Posted on June 30, 2004
Not as nice as the Ritz Carlton
by Robin from Los Angeles, CA USA
My boyfriend and I stayed at both this hotel and the Ritz in San Juan. The hotel had the most beautiful lobby area I had ever seen. Absolutely gorgeous. However, I must say that the service wasn't as great. I had trouble getting a towel by the pool, and I got chastised for accidentally going into the pool designated for ocean view suite guests only (made me feel like some sort of under class citizen). The swim-up bar was dirty (we had to ask the bar-tender to wipe it for us, even though he was right there and not busy at all.) They played loud 70's and 80's rock at the main pool (which created a kind of trashy ambiance). The room was nice but nothing to freak out over. The pool and beach were nice too, but without the great service I was expecting, it lost its charm. Don't miss out on a quick peek at the hotel's lobby area. It is pretty amazing. Date of visit: June, 2004
Posted on January 19, 2004
Wow
by Nina from Brookfield, IL USA
I stayed at this hotel last week. I'm here to give you a honest review on this hotel. First I would like to say that it is beautiful. The casino is amazing, the restaurants are to die for, and the pools... wow. The hotel is right off of the ocean, you can swim and tan by the pool for a while and then walk past the pools and the restaurant/bar over looking the ocean and walk down the beach. Negative about the pool is that the water is really cold. I suggest going to the restaurants on the 10th floor. They give you a really nice view of the island, and the margaritas are great. Another negative about the hotel is that the prices are really high, for example a burrito is $22. But if your staying at El San Juan, you should have the money. If you decide to order pizza, don't order it from the hotel. They tried to charge us $22 for a medium pizza from Domino's. We called Domino's and got a Large pizza, and bread sticks for $13! There is a really nice club in the hotel called Babylon, its a nice club and some of the locals told us that they go to the club at the hotel cause it is high class. Word to the wise, if you go, get there early because it gets packed. Another bad thing about the hotel is that they have a dress code at night. You can not walk around in tank tops, t-shirts or shorts. Make sure you take nice dress skirts and a sweater is nice because it does get cool in the night. If you stay at the hotel you have to pay $8 a day to park which kind a stinks since you are paying so much to stay there. If you leave and go walking down the strip, be careful what you buy, if you drive a little bit farther prices go down on everything, also you wont have to pay to park at a fast food place. Even though there are some negatives I do suggest that you stay there. The pools, casino, and the rooms are amazing, amazing. If you don't stay at this hotel I suggest staying at El Conquistador. Date of visit: January, 2004
