PRICE:
Frommer's Highly Recommended

Despite formidable competition by the Ritz-Carlton and the Water Club for elite and sophisticated travelers, this posh resort still has the power to dazzle. The beachfront hotel is surrounded by 350 palms, century-old banyans, and gardens. It lies on a 2-mile-long (3.2km) golden sandy beach with aquamarine water that is the finest in San Juan. Lined with luxury hotels and condominiums, the beach is always full of activity and has great watersports activities. The lobby is the most opulent and memorable in the Caribbean. Entirely sheathed in red marble and hand-carved mahogany paneling, the public rooms stretch on almost endlessly. No other hotel in the Caribbean offers such a rich diversity of dining options and such high-quality food. Oriental, Italian, Caribbean, and the world famous the Palm Restaurant steakhouse are just a few of the options. And with live music and DJs playing at nightclubs nearly every night, and a beautiful casino, El San Juan is still the place to be seen in the city. The large, well-decorated rooms are outfitted with the latest in high tech, with Wi-Fi Internet access, flatscreen TVs with movie service, and iPod docking stations. The Vista guest rooms are bright and tropical, while the Lanai rooms are imbued with honey-hued woods and rattans, with darker wooden doors, windows and other furnishing. Bathrooms have all the amenities and tub/shower combos; a few feature Jacuzzis. The oceanfront Lanai rooms overlook the fern-lined paths of the resort's tropical garden. There are also suites and one- and two-bedroom accommodations. While the larger units make sense for families, the hotel has cut down recently on organized activities for children, although there are still board games, pool toys, and a summer camp for children. It's still a great place for families, however. Facilities: 7 restaurants; 4 bars; 2 outdoor pools; tennis courts; health club; spa; sauna and steam room; watersports equipment/rentals; children's programs; business center; 24-hr. room service; massage; babysitting; laundry service; dry cleaning; casino; rooms for those w/limited mobility

Copyright: Excerpted from Frommer's Puerto Rico, 9th Edition, (c) 2008, Wiley Publishing, Inc.

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