I booked this property for our honeymoon stay largely after reading the reviews here on Tripadvisor, and I don't regret doing that, as 90% of previous reviews were accurate enough for my tastes.

The airlines forced us to arrive roughly 12 hours late, but a quick phone call to Felix took care of things for us. He even told me not to let our seemingly clueless cabbie take advantage of me, telling me that standard cab fare from the airport should be $15-$20.

Upon arrival at 10:55pm, our hearts sunk just a little bit. The lobby was very dark, oddly decorated, with a few strange characters hanging around it. Some ominous music in the background gave the situation the feel of a bad 1970s scam job from some movie.

After getting checked in and settled (room 205), as expected, the room was small with no closet. There was no plasma TV, only a small tube TV. The room was exceptionally clean, and our favorite feature was the very nice oversized shower. Room 205 was well away from the hot tub area, so noise was never a problem. We saw very few other patrons throughout the rest of our stay.

As for the hot tub, it is easily the crown jewel of the inn. It's a little convoluted to get to from our section of rooms, but once we got there, it was worth the search. Most of the time there was only one other couple in the 30' tub. My wife and I even got to enjoy it by ourselves for a solid hour on a wonderful starry night. (NOTE: The jet controls are located right over the sign. We couldn't find them until another couple helped us.)

The hotel location is well away from the tourist part of town, which is both good and bad. When you walk away from the strip, you get to experience the real San Juan, which is a little dirtier than the strip. Plenty of bashed up cars line the streets, as does a fair amount of garbage. Several of the other establishments were graffiti'ed up, and had razor wire protecting their fences, which is never a good sign. Despite all of these things, we were never in the presence of any threatening people at all.

As for the beach itself, it is steps away from the main entrance, heavily lined with palm trees, as most photos will indicate. The beach was very peaceful with very few people on it. The surf was rough and the sand very peculiar. The grains were large, and with every step you sank 2-6" into the sand, even very close to the shore.

The staff was polite and courteous, and even recommended a nice seafood restaurant for our final day on the island. My only complaint about the front desk is that they close from 11pm-6am, so if you need to check out in the middle of the night, you have to walk a block down the street to do so at the At Wind Chimes sister hotel. (I only make this complaint because we had to do this in the rain at 4:30am to make our 7:00am flight.)

Despite the odd start, it was a good stay, and I would recommend this hotel to anyone who wants to deviate from the land of tourist traps and typical sterile chain resorts.

My bf and I went to Acacia after we took the southern caribbean cruise and we LOVED it!! Upon walking in, i was pleasently surprised as to how much nicer it was than what i had expected. The people we nice and very helpful. I booked a room with one king bed and ended up with a room that had 2 and was right in front of thier pool size jacuzzi!!! It was very affordable and clean-- very spacious. We also had a big flat screen in our room which was nice. I loved this more than a big hotel because it is more intimate and you get the real feel of san juan. You really are steps from the beach and can see the ocean from the jacuzzi. I was happy. The only complaint that I have was that there was construction going on outside of out bathroom window on the street ---------and with a very thin window, you could hear the jackhammer but, it wasnt that bad because they started around 9 am. Those things have to be done sometome...You shouldnt even be in your room that much cause it is such a cool place! I would def stay there again. FYI-- Acacia is newer and nicer than At wind chimes (thier sister hotel). THe bar at At Wind Chimes is nice and the barteders were great. ALSO--- the food at Niche is excellent.... considered one of the best in condado/san juan area. Be prepared to spend at least $12-15 for cabs to old san juan area---- you will be spending a good amount of time in that area becuase that is where all the cool shops/bars etc are. I def suggest going to old san juan. I will add pics and comments soon.

EES

My girlfriend and I stayed at the Acacia in mid May of 2008. It was our first trip to Puerto Rico although we have friends who highly advised that we go there. We are happy that we stayed at the Acacia because of the price and end result, but it wasn't perfect by any means.

Issue #1- When we arrived on Saturday night, Felix checked us in to our room, 105. The next day, my credit card company called me with a fraud alert saying that they've given approval to bill my account to this same place twice (I brought this to the attention of the front desk and we had that fixed). After our vacation I noticed on my credit card statement that I was indeed charged twice for my room, even after we addressed this with the front desk. I'm sure a mistake, but it seems that it could have been avoided.

Issue #2- The first room we were given was 105, on the first floor, behind the front desk. Do not stay in this room. It is spacious enough, but only has 1 window that is in the bathroom and looks up to the parking lot behind the building. There is no natural light in this room. Also, it is close to the restaurant kitchen so you hear the wait staff until the kitchen closes. (Though, the food in the restaurant was delicious.)

The biggest problem with room 105 was that, during the night the a/c was dripping inside the room (because it wasn't a window unit). In the morning we realized what happened and looked at the wall where the water was dripping and saw a LOT of mold. It was apparent that it wasn't the first time that happened and was most likely known before we were given the room (there was a bucket behind the couch by the wall meant to catch the water from the a/c).

Anyway, the next day, the staff gave us a new room with a balcony and nice view, so that made up for it.

Issue #3- There is no parking on the street for the Acacia. When making a reservation, try to get a spot in the Wind Chimes parking lot. If you can't, you'll be parking a couple blocks away. (My rental was perfectly safe, but I did see a couple cars along the same street with windows broken so that was in the back of my mind)

Positives:

The beach is a few steps out the door and has great surf.
Breakfast at the Wind Chimes was good and free I think (don't have the milk though)
On our first night, Freddie (restaurant manager) drove us to Bebo's because their kitchen had already closed. Thanks!

my husband and i loved our stay at the acacia. it was the perfect, relaxing, quiet get away. the hotel was adorable--very clean, wonderfully decorated and designed, and RIGHT on the beach!! the hot tub was amazing and overlooks the ocean--incredible. the staff was amazing, palmira is the sweetest and SO incredibly helpful. the hotel is close to everything that san juan and the neighboring areas have to offer, yet its located in a quiet residential area for a relaxing get away. we loved our stay here and would recommend it to anyone who wants to see the best that san juan has to offer without having to sacrifice a comforting and serene atmosphere. if you are considering staying here--think about it no more and just book it!!