My wife and I chose the Intercontinental primarily based on the reviews in trip advisor. We found this hotel to be exactly what we were looking for (beautiful-relaxing pool, nice beach, great service, modern rooms with a balcony, warm weather) and recommend this place without hesitation. Further details provided below:
Room: We debated between an ocean view room and a pool view in the club wing and chose the club wing for about $350/night AAA rate. The club wing is a 2 story building that is perpendicular to the ocean with all rooms facing the pool. The rooms are supposed to be slightly larger than the main building and each room has a balcony with chairs (see pictures). Each room in the main building had a balcony, but not big enough for chairs. None of the club rooms had a very good view of the ocean but the pool is stunning enough. With the club, you get free continental breakfast (bagels, fruit, hard boiled eggs, etc) until 10am and appetizers along with pour your own cocktails between 5pm and 7pm. The only thing that I did not like about the club was they did not let you take any food or drinks out of the common area, and I would have preferred to sit out on my balcony with a cocktail while watching the sunset. When we checked in, they upgraded us for free (without asking and without a priority club number) to a suite which was essentially two connecting regular rooms with a whirlpool and walk in closet (see pictures). From reading other comments, I think their policy is to upgrade if available, so off-peak times have a good chance of upgrades.
Hotel: This is a 4 star hotel with a beautiful pool well described by others. All of the employees were very nice and treated us like royalty. There was one lady who did not like to give out more than one towel at the pool but everyone else was magnificent. The fitness center overlooked the ocean with modern equipment (included in daily resort fee). They had a small spa that I would rate at 3/5 stars. Food and drinks at the pool were expensive, but nothing more than any other beach front resort that we have been to. However, a mini-mart, grocery store, and numerous chain restaurants (Subway, Church’s chicken, etc.) are across the street from the hotel. There are 3 dinner restaurants on site that were priced what you would expect for a resort ($20/plate at the Italian, $30/plate at the Japanese, $40/plate at Ruth’s Chris). We went to the Italian which was very good, great service, and it was nice to sit outside with the chirping frogs. We also went to the Japanese (hibachi - cook in front of you) which we loved. We did not go to Ruth’s Chris, but went to BLT Steak at the Ritz Carlton and it was very similar to a Ruth’s Chris in terms of quality and price. The Ritz was more of a 5 star property (i.e. Tiffany Co on site, etc.) but most of the rooms did not have a balcony and it was about twice the cost of the Intercontinental; after looking at both properties, we would stay at the Intercontinental again. The El San Juan Hotel next door was much more of a spring break atmosphere which was nice to visit, but we enjoyed retreating to our peaceful and relaxing hotel.
Restaurants: Within walking distance from the hotel, we went to BLT Steak (described above), Metropol (good quality local fare at very reasonable prices), and Mi Casita which we did not have a good experience at although you get a lot of food at a cheap cost. We also ate at Aquaviva in Old San Juan which had great seafood although expensive.
Activities: The rain forest was great. Some recommend renting a car but we did the guided tour ($57/person through the concierge) which was well worth it. We saw some people who rented a car and had no idea where to go or what to see and were essentially trying to follow our guide in their cars. Deep sea fishing out of old San Juan was a lot of fun (caught a 30lb Mahi Mahi through Grand Illusion Charter and they filleted for you if you want). We also enjoyed walking around Old San Juan.










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