Old San Juan is a major port and tourist resort of the West Indies and is the oldest city under the U.S flag. It is known throughout the world for it's excellent selection of jewelry, rums, cigars, ceramics, lace, and hand-woven linens. More tourists visit San Juan each year than any other spot in the Caribbean.
This is a 465-year-old neighborhood originally conceived as a military stronghold. Its 7-square-block area has evolved into a charming residential and commercial district. The streets here are paved with cobbles of adoquine, a blue stone cast from furnace slag, that were brought over a ballast on Spanish ships and time and moisture have lent them their characteristic color. The city includes more than 400 carefully restored 16th- and 17th-century Spanish colonial buildings.
Old San Juan has several plazas, parks, forts and other areas of interest. El Morro is a six-level fortress begun in 1540 and completed in 1589. San Felipe del Morro was named in honor of King Phillip II. Most of the walls in the fort today were added later, in a period of tremendous construction from the 1760's-1780's. Rising 140 feet above the sea, its 18-foot-thick wall proved a formidable defense. It fell only once, in 1598, to a land assault by the Earl of Cumberland's forces. The fort is a maze of tunnels, dungeons, barracks, outposts and ramps. El Morro is studded with small, circular sentry boxes called "garitas" that have become a national symbol.
The views of San Juan Bay from El Morro are spectacular. The area was designated a National Historic Site in February, 1949 with 74 total acres and is administered by the National Park Service. It has the distinction of being the largest fortification in the Caribbean. In 1992, the fortress was restored to its historical form in honor of the 500th anniversary of the discovery of Puerto Rico by Christopher Columbus. The fort is open to the public daily from 9am to 5pm.
A leisurely foot tour is advisable for those who really want to experience this bit of the Old World, especially given the narrow, steep streets and frequently heavy traffic. To really do justice to these wonderful old sites, you'll need two mornings or a full day.
For accommodations in San Juan, go to http://www.vacationrentals-pr.com. We offer condo rentals at ESJ Towers, a beachfront Condo Hotel in Isla Verde. The bus to Old San Juan stops in front of the property!
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