Possibly the best hotel experience we have ever had anywhere we have traveled in the world. The service was impeccable, the rooms extremely comfortable. The staff went above and beyond the call of duty every day.Our only regret is that we didn't book a longer stay. We wll most certainly be back...soon.

So I was very excited about staying at the Ritz-Carlton San Juan. While it certainly was not a bad place, It was really no different than a Hilton or Marriott that I might say at in the states. (Made me wonder what the Hilton and Marriott are like here in San Juan) For $400 per night I had a room with a view of a condo parking lot and security fence...but couldn't really even see that since the dual-pane glass was stained with salt or some substance. The service was subpar for a hotel in this category, my first night I requested a wake-up call and after setting this up the woman asked, "is there anything else that I can help you with?" At which point I mentioned, "why yes, in fact I have a sports jacket that needs cleaning...what should I do?" and the woman said, "oh, I don't know anything about that...call in the morning and they can help you." I know I probably sound like a snob but this is the RITZ CARLTON, I expect top-notch service, not the same that I'd get at the Hilton or Marriott. The room was also very much like staying at a Hilton...to be honest, I couldn't tell the difference. Now, let me say some good things...the pool was wonderful as were the grounds. Also, the beach was very nice...I never thought of Puerto Rico as having such a nice beach. Overall, not a bad experience but nothing that would make me want to spend this kind of money again. What I don't know is if things in Puerto Rico are not just very nice and if this really is the best place to stay? I haven't tried any of the other places.

My husband and I (55/53) stayed at the RC from 5/4-5/10. We stayed in an oceanview room on the 6th floor overlooking the pool and ocean with a perfect view of both. We arrived at the hotel shortly after noon and were in our room by 1pm. Check in was a bit slow due to guests at the counter who seemed to have issues, but we just waited patiently. We were offered water and a manager helped by taking some of our preliminary info while we were in line. Every staff member that we encountered during our stay could not have been nicer to us. We had never stayed at an RC hotel and have never been elsewhere in the Carribean so we can not comment on how other resorts compare. When booking the Ritz we were a bit nervous that it would only attract the more societal elite and that we plain folk would have a hard time fitting in. We could not have been more wrong. Every guest we saw were average, working class folks. No old, nose-in-the-air, wealthy types anywhere. As a matter of fact, the majority of the guests were on the young side: 20 and 30 somethings. So if you are looking for the "I'm better than everyone else" type of place that you don't have to share with the less wealthy, this is not the hotel for you.

We found the room to be spacious enough. Don't understand how people see these rooms as small. Perhaps they are trying to cram a family of 5 into one room??? There is plenty of drawer and closet space for storing your belongings. Housekeeping did a fine job everyday except for Thursday. For some reason, Thurs. seemed to be an off day for service all the way around. We had to ask for a bath mat and coffee. This was not a big deal. Just trying to present an accurate picture. The beds are extremely comfortable, you sleep cradled in down.

If you want to nit-pick: The room is not completely spotless, some of the furniture is a bit chipped, and the carpeting is a bit worn. The windows are not crystal clear to look through, but the hotel is on the ocean. Would you really want someone hanging outside your window washing them around the clock? The pool is beautiful, but, yes there are diapered babies and toddlers that share it with you. There are also loud, obnoxious cell phone users all around. I just don't get it. Do these people need everyone to hear their conversations? Are they showing off that they have the latest gadget phone? The pool area can become untidy at times, but again, this is due to lazy, inconsiderate guests who let their newspapers fly all around in addition to not putting their lunch dishes and cocktail cups into the trash cans that are all around the pool area. I Guess they need to be waited on hand and foot by the pool attendants. Each morning, in the wee hours, a maintenance crew washes the pool decking, the chairs, chair pads, and the tables, so each day it starts off being spotless. I truly believe the staff does the best it can here. On Friday there were a wild bunch of children at the pool, drinking and spitting soda into the water, splashing people, throwing half-eaten pizza and plates into the landscaped areas, antagonizing birds, etc. while their parents sat in the front row oblivious for the most part and yelling an occasional idle threat their way. We just moved to another section of the pool, where the water spouting from the lions drowned out the kid noise. During the rest of our week, the other children were well behaved and a pleasure to watch. This is not a reflection on the hotel, it's a reflection on poor parenting. Bottom line: the hotel is kid friendly, so prepare for it.

Yes, the food is expensive here. We ate at Il Mulino for Sunday brunch. It was delicious. We breakfasted at Mares several days. There was so much to eat, we didn't need lunch. For that reason alone, it was a good deal for the money. We went off-site for some of our meals and never had anything bad. We even partook of grilled sandwiches in the casino and they were quite tasty.

As to the casino, we never saw any dressed up people. It's true that no one wears beach wear, but we were way overdressed in nice slacks and tops. The slot seats were all stained and a bit gross and the patrons were basicly careworn local folks. I had read on TA about how dress was very formal at casinos in San Juan. We went to four different places and saw the same type of folks at every one. No need to be intimidated here by what you're wearing. Side bar: the slots literally eat your money, we never had or saw any big wins here. We don't play table games so we don't know if the odds were any better there. Drinks in the lobby lounge are $15 each. You can get the same drinks, while playing the slots for the price of a tip. Service is quick and efficient.

We walked on the beach every morning. The white waves are very pretty. The water is clean albeit a bit univiting since the water looks a bit mucky where the waves break due to the brown silty sand that gets riled up. Walking on the beach is nice once you get past what I liked to call the high turn of a car racetrack in front of the Marriott. It's very steep there and you get quite a workout, but once past that area the beach is flat and nice. There are small shells and beach glass to collect. There is also broken, sharp glass around so watch your step. Yes, you will hear planes throughout the day, but it sounds a bit like a strong gust of wind. We didn't find it to be a bothersome noise.

Another thing to be cautious about: We left most of our cash in the room safe and could not account for $100 on our second day. After that we carried our valuables with us any time we didn't have the Do Not Disturb sign on the door. Use the Hotel safe. Also, we were charged for an item from the minibar that we did not take. We just let both of these incidents go. We knew we had no recourse and decided not to let it spoil our vacation.

To sum, I'd like to say that for the most part we had a wonderful time at the Ritz. Everytime we returned from our ventures off site, it was like a sanctuary. Is San Juan a beautiful city? No. But it has beautiful people who treated us with kindness and repect, and for that we thank them.

Although I prefer a smaller, more boutique type of hotel, this property is very nice. All the people we encountered who work there were so friendly and helpful. Jessica at the concierge was wonderful! We stayed on the club level which was very convenient and saved us money on lunch by the pool which is not great. Breakfast at Mares has a big, quite good buffet.
Going into Old San Juan was so easy by taxi. Our favorite restauarants there were Dragonfly and Baru. Chayote in Condado was great too.
We mostly relaxed at the beach. The sand is not that beautiful white sand found at other Caribbean islands, but it is fine and the water is crystal clear and must have been in the low 80's. You don't have to worry about stepping on anything either. It's just all sandy at the bottom.
It was great to be so close to the airport. The sound of the planes taking off & landing is not an issue at all. They don't fly overhead as it is about a mile down the beach and off to the side. Between the waves crashing and the breeze blowing, you can hardly hear the planes and just see them in the distance.
One day we rented a car and drove about 45 minutes to the rain forest. We hiked to a beautiful waterfall and went swimming there. That was a great experience. Enjoy!