Is San Juan safe for tourists? Any advice? (crimes, hotel)

[EastCoastMark]

Thanks! Very helpful. I believe you make a great point.

[hershey48]

Originally Posted by mym

be careful on the condado beach / ocean park at night. this is truth. it is a gay man cruising spot and for whatever reason that attracts violent types out to bash a homosexual.

condado area is also home to scammers who will claim they were mugged and need money to get back to the hotel or whatever. they will be american. i bet you 5$ you will meet one in the walgreens pharmacy on condado avenue if you are there at night often enough.

la perla - there is nothing there for you but i agree that it is safer than you'd think. it is a drug market, no point in shooting up the customers - ironically (or is it paradoxically?) you are safest where the drugs are dealt. dont go wandering off exploring.

on the other hand it is home to the only garita that doesnt smell of **** - la garita del diablo. dont go there please. that would be wandering out of the 'safe zone' of the drug market.

plenty of people go every year and enjoy themselves tremendously. you will too.

I was planning on staying in the ocean park area when I visit in the next month. I have never been to PR but have traveled out of the country and I am always cautious about going out at night no matter where I am, even in my own city.

Originally Posted by AkCrimson

I never feel safe in Puerto Rico. My friends and husband won't let me walk to dogs alone after dark, or really early in the morning. Not to mention a lot of the city smells really bad. I would go to the other sides of the island if I were you. Or, even better, the Virgin Islands...

Earlier last month, there was a huge festival and there were thousands of people on the street. Didn't matter, some guys pulled out a gun and shot another guy in the face, right in the middle of the crowd. And no one ever found him.

The police are not very helpful, many of them are corrupt.

I would try to avoid going out early morning or late at night especially if I'm not familiar with a place. I've already heard numerous times to stay out of la perla. If a place is deserted or doesn't have a lot of people around I'm already going to be cautious.

I did plan on going to old san juan and visit the nuyorican cafe which seems to get live at night. If I happen to be there late I will take a taxi. Bottom line if there aran't a lot of people around I know I need to leave.

[Sunscape]

Originally Posted by Annie of Oldsmar

I agree with you, Clip.
The articles are kind of off. Who comes to PR and goes to see La Perla?? Of all the years I lived there I never went there, nor would I go today. It is just not the place to go.

Again I have to repeat this. Stay in safe places , don't go to way out places that you don't know. Just like you would do in any other country.

And there's nothing for you to look for in La Perla.

[jhadorn]

Originally Posted by Annie of Oldsmar

Again I have to repeat this. Stay in safe places , don't go to way out places that you don't know. Just like you would do in any other country.

And there's nothing for you to look for in La Perla.

I would agree, stay out of La Perla. While I have never been inside La Perla, I did alot of research on San Juan before I visited. Chances are that you will be just fine in La Perla if you follow a few basic rules, but why take the chance? Too much goes on there. We got a view of La Perla and the cemetery nearby from a safe distance.

We stayed in Isla Verde and felt safe walking the area during the day, and safe walking a short distance on the main drag at night. There is a Puerto Rican restaurant on PR 37 that I can't remember the name of that was really good... from El San Juan Resort and Casino head west and it will be on the left. Old Harbor Brewery in Old San Juan was good too.

Both forts were awesome, however, I enjoyed Castillo San Cristobal more than El Morro.

I wouldn't go to the beach at night, just to echo what others have said. We went to Old San Juan several times, and once at night to walk around without incident. It may not be a good idea to do so, especially for a female alone. We didn't have any trouble, but it may be because there were 3 of us, and I am not a small guy, however, I'm no match for a gun.

Be careful driving in San Juan. Drivers there seem to take more chances and be a little more reckless. We witnessed some close calls and had a little trouble switching lanes during a traffic jam because people would not let us over. I am more of a defensive driver than an offensive driver, however, I can be offensive when needed. I had to be a little more offensive in San Juan.

Overall, we felt safe and had a good time.

[chacho_keva]

Just returned from PR last night, March 19th, after an 8 day vacation. One and a half days were spent in Old San Juan (OSJ) wherein my GF and I walked around freely and unconcerned for our safety at different hours of the day and night. This was her first ever visit to PR. We stayed the night at Hotel El Convento. A bit pricey, but worth every cent, given its location, amenities, history, decor, and ambiance.

Given its touristy ambiance, OSJ is normally not on my destination list when visiting PR. But given that it was my GF's first time in PR, a stay in OSJ was justified. I can definitely state that OSJ is not what is use to be. In [recent] times past, it was common to come across beggars asking for money, stray cats and dogs, and see the occasional trashcan overflowing with litter. Not so anymore! I was astounded and impressed by its cleanliness and the absolute absence of beggars and stray animals. There were helpful Foot Patrol Policemen on almost every street we walked through.

OSJ is one of those few places which, IMO, has definitely changed . . . for the better!

[Norwood Boy]

Originally Posted by tropical87

The most recent murder: A 21-year-old visitor fatally stabbed on April 18 by several men on the beach of a well-known hotel. The report did not identify the hotel

Puerto Rico's crime wave reaches Condado hotels - USATODAY.com

La Concha was the hotel. I have been to PR 20x. Never a problem. I stayed in Isla Verde, Old San Juan, Condado and Once in Palmas Del Mar in Humacao. In the Condado area which is really nice you'll be fine. Ashford Ave is very safe. Stay out of La Perla and the PJ's. If your looking for drugs then roll the dice then head into La Perla. I actually went there 2 years ago. There was 2 cops sitting at the bottom of entry level at a desk. Do NOT take pictures down there. BTW to the other poster El Convento is a great place to stay. Cool tappas bar across the street. Fortelleza street has a lot of spots. Also San Sebastian has a few cool old time bars.

[boricuarosa]

I hate San Juan....Old San Juan, all of it. I prefer el monte. Visit the mountains, Cabo Rojo ...get away from the hustle and bustle of the city. It's more peaceful away from San Juan.

[fmnj]

I was born and raised in Puerto Rico I just moved to Dallas two months ago, so I really know what I'm saying. Every person could go visit Puerto Rico and will feel like been on another state of the us. You're going to be just one more person like everyone else. The killings That you mostly see on the news is drugs-related. If you have further questions or concers feel free to send me a private message.

[clip314]

Crime is happening all over but people tend to choose and pick where they percieve crime, while ignoring other places with more crime. I've noticed that Gringo boards don't get as hysterical as this one, and to top it off, its basically coming from assimilated Nuyoricans ( which are hysterical to begin with ) and a sprinkling of gringos that will complain even though they were in heaven.

This week I read about a tourist from New York that was gunned down in Kingston, Jamaica, but that doesn't stop thousands of tourists from visiting this crime ridden place. Last week I read that a young guy was killed when he refused a car jacking in one of New Jerseys higher end malls, and later on there was a hysterical run for your life incident in Roosevelt Fields, one of New Yorks toniest malls. Many tourists from Europe visit these malls which have become tourist meccas. Strangely no one complains.

In Puerto Rico crime news lingers for months, maybe because people don't have anything to do except shop for Chinese made junk and then get glued to watching La Novela, LOL.

Newark, New Jersey topped the car hijacking chart with 300 + this year making San Juan look microscopic. Some here will say, "But that's Newark , who goes to Newark on vacation?" That's right, but its suspicious why San Juan gets such a bad rap and other places, like Miami, which is a tourist destination, gets ignored. Remember, Liberty city ghetto is not too far away and shootings there are nightly.

New Orleans is the mugging and shoot out capitol of the U.S. but I don't see tourists avoiding the place. In fact if you tell them not to go there they'll shrug and say , who's asking you! Chicago was recently shoot out city but it was basically in the ghettos, like it is in San Juan.

This is not to white wash crime in Puerto Rico but I often wonder if we get a bad rap and a constant hysterical shtick because of "Other Things".

[bmwminitek]

If is you time you can be murder in Kansas. Last couple years PR is been under rated regarding crime. As in most cases you will be OK as tourist and enjoy your visit.