The Caribbean was hit hard this last season as hurricane Irma & Maria blew through the islands…
Although many Caribbean islands were untouched by the deadly hurricanes this past season, a few islands were left in shambles of destruction. One that took a massive hit was San Juan Puerto Rico. With the injured victims and death count still remaining uncertain, now the island continues working at recovering its loses.
Now over 100 days since mother nature hit Puerto Rico, Puerto Rican government statistics show that 55% of Puerto Rico have had their power restored, although that still leaves a devastating number of over 660,000 that do not have power. Most hotels, businesses, and restaurants are with power, many residential areas still remain in the dark. It is estimated that power will be fully restored to all areas of Puerto Rico by May.
The Luis Munoz Marin Airport in San Juan is open, and providing service for 27 different carriers. It’s accommodating over 70 scheduled international and domestic flights. Some of the smaller airports remain with limited service.
At this time 122 hotels, 4,000 restaurants, 105 casinos and 107 attractions are open and operating across the island, according to the Puerto Rico Tourism Company. There are still many hotels yet to reopen. Here is a list of hotels with scheduled reopening dates, which are subject to change.
Hacienda El Jabarito, Feb. 1st
Howard Johnson Hotel Ponce, Feb. 1st
Cofresi Beach Resort, March 1st
Verdanza Hotel, April 1st
El Conquistador, April 1st
Embassy Suites Dorado del Mar Beach & Golf Resort, April 1st
Embassy Suites Hotel & Casino, San Juan, April 1st
Comfort Inn San Juan, May 1st
El San Juan Hotel, May 22nd
Las Casitas Village, May 22nd
El Canario By The Lagoon Hotel, May 31st
Holiday Inn Express San Juan Condado Hotel, June 1st
Condado Plaza Hilton, July 1st
Condado Lagoon Villas at Caribe Hilton, July 1st
Caribe Hilton, July 1st
Ritz-Carlton San Juan, Oct. 1st
Dorado Beach, a Ritz-Carlton Reserve, Oct. 1st
Melia Coco Beach Puerto Rico, Nov. 1st Hotel St. Regis at Bahia Beach Resort is closed for new reservations through Oct. 1st and is waiving cancellation fees for reservations through Sept. 30th.
Here are the hotels that are closed and have not announced reopening dates yet at this time… Blue Horizon Boutique Resort, Casa Flamboyant, Casa Grande Mountain Retreat, Coral by the Sea, Dos Angeles del Mar Guest House, Great Escape, Hacienda Gripinas, Hyatt Hacienda del Mar, Malecon House, Parador Costa del Mar, Parador Guanica 1929, Parador Mauna Caribe, Plaza de Armas Hotel, Villa Doral Guest House, Wyndham Garden at Palmas del Mar and the Wyndham Rio Mar.
Meanwhile, the new 96-room Serafina Beach Hotel will open its doors on March 20th in the Condado district of San Juan. Facilities include the hotel’s signature aMare restaurant; an infinity pool and poolside lounge, cabanas, and By the Pool, which is an outdoor bar.
Tourist attractions open to visitors include Old San Juan, El Morro Castle, Museum of Art in Ponce, Museum of Art, Cueva Ventana in Arecibo, Museo Parque de Bombas, Catamaran rides in Fajardo, Trail rides in Isabela, Rain Forest zip line in Rio Grande, Bacardi distillery tours in Toa Baja and uminescent tours in Vieques.
El Yunque National Forest remains closed, although there is some accessibility to the lowers paths and rivers.
Many of you are wondering about the cruise port accessibility….The cruise port is up and running with more than 60 shore excursions available. According to the Puerto Rico Tourism Commission, 80,000 homeport passengers embarked from San Juan through mid-December, and 85,000 more are expected to cruise from San Juan in January. In January, 27 cruise ships are expected to visit San Juan. The people of San Juan are encouraging the tourists, especially the cruise ships to continue to visit, as for this will help tremendously in the islands struggle to recover.
Sharon at Sea