Have you cruised out of San Juan?

[Gdes1]

Hi all, I tried bumping up an old thread but those people have probably vanished. We are considering the Magic San Juan to Galveston Repo for November of this year. We want to be on the Magic before she heads west in 2026, and the itinerary is our perfect one. Unfortunately I came across an old thread where some people said they wouldn't do a San Juan repo again due to exceptionally poor guest behavior. From what I can tell, it was kind of a cultural thing, with other passengers not being on time for anything, from the muster drill to shows to dinner, but expecting everyone to bend to them. Huge groups stopping dead center of walkway to make plans and blocking it up. Lots of line-jumping and shoving ahead of others. No "excuse me" type behavior. Just rude entitlement, no parenting and kids can do whatever, and then showing up late to shows with phone flashlights on to look for seats. He said he enjoyed the cruise, but wouldn't book that itineray again due to this. It was a 3-night, so I'm not sure if that was a factor.

Anyway, others on the thread said they did witness that, but saw it as a cultural difference and it didn't bother them. And others who did that Repo a year later said they had no issues (thanks for messaging me back!)

I know the port is a mess compared to FL ports because DCL doesn't have 100 employees there doing crowd management, so I expect that. I've seen it posted here that no one regards the PATs and it's a free-for-all. So...are those Americans who would regard the PATs in FL where they are enforced, but then somehow don't regard them in San Juan? Or are those the same passengers who are then going to board and do all of this other bad behavior?

So....if you have sailed from San Juan, Repo or not, would you do it again? Did this one person just have a bad experience or should I be prepared for what he experienced? And, yes, I know with DCL you get kids talking during shows, and on any cruise there will be some people who just don't show respect or know how to behave. What he described seemed off the charts, though, so that has me concerned. Thanks!

 

[MartyParty]

Hi all, I tried bumping up an old thread but those people have probably vanished. We are considering the Magic San Juan to Galveston Repo for November of this year. We want to be on the Magic before she heads west in 2026, and the itinerary is our perfect one. Unfortunately I came across an old thread where some people said they wouldn't do a San Juan repo again due to exceptionally poor guest behavior. From what I can tell, it was kind of a cultural thing, with other passengers not being on time for anything, from the muster drill to shows to dinner, but expecting everyone to bend to them. Huge groups stopping dead center of walkway to make plans and blocking it up. Lots of line-jumping and shoving ahead of others. No "excuse me" type behavior. Just rude entitlement, no parenting and kids can do whatever, and then showing up late to shows with phone flashlights on to look for seats. He said he enjoyed the cruise, but wouldn't book that itineray again due to this. It was a 3-night, so I'm not sure if that was a factor.

Anyway, others on the thread said they did witness that, but saw it as a cultural difference and it didn't bother them. And others who did that Repo a year later said they had no issues (thanks for messaging me back!)

I know the port is a mess compared to FL ports because DCL doesn't have 100 employees there doing crowd management, so I expect that. I've seen it posted here that no one regards the PATs and it's a free-for-all. So...are those Americans who would regard the PATs in FL where they are enforced, but then somehow don't regard them in San Juan? Or are those the same passengers who are then going to board and do all of this other bad behavior?

So....if you have sailed from San Juan, Repo or not, would you do it again? Did this one person just have a bad experience or should I be prepared for what he experienced? And, yes, I know with DCL you get kids talking during shows, and on any cruise there will be some people who just don't show respect or know how to behave. What he described seemed off the charts, though, so that has me concerned. Thanks!

I can't answer 100% your question re: repositioning cruise but we have some experience sailing out of San Juan.

A few years back we went on a Carnival cruise out of San Juan (not a repo). It was fine. Orderly, no issues, boarding on time, port logistics ok. etc. After the cruise the flight out was later in the afternoon. We took Carnival up on an island tour to 1) store our luggage on the bus 2) kill the morning time seeing some sights 3) transportation back to the airport for our departure.

For this year, we've booked an October Disney cruise on the Magic out of San Juan. Again, not a repo cruise but have not seen anything that gives us pause to not sail again out of San Juan.

As this is Disney Cruise Line you're asking about, I'd be surprised if you had to much disorder and overly party behavior for the repo. Just my input. Hope it helps. Maybe some who has DCL repo experience will jump in.

 

[MartyParty]

Oh, and don't' forget to buy the t ravel insurance. Always good to have in case of an expensive medical emergency but more important to have if a hurricane cancels out your trip. November might be past the hurricane season but with the Gulf waters staying warmer for longer you never know.

 

[Travel60]

A few years ago we did a double-dip Southern Caribbean then repo out of San Juan. I didn't notice any worse behavior than usual.

To be clear, in general, I think DCL travelers can be rude and entitled ("I paid a lot for this trip, I don't have to listen/do....."), but PR was not any worse.

 

[Erica1016]

We sailed on the Magic in May 2024 from San Juan to Fort Lauderdale. From what I remember, the boarding process was smooth and felt like all our other cruises. We had no problem with the PAT situation or going through security. The only issue for us is that we ended up there quite early (due to being a bit anxious about getting there and leaving too much time) and it was hot waiting in the lines. Where we were was covered and shady, but it was just hot and humid (because it was May). Even that wasn't that bad.

Throughout the sailing, I don't recall any behavior that stuck out as poor or unruly. Especially nothing that was enough to make it a negative trip for us. I would definitely sail out of PR on this type of cruise again. I think if this is the time and itinerary that works for you, you should go for it!

 

[daedelus]

I've sailed in and out of San Juan several times. DCL doesn't use the newer terminal that Carnival and pals use, there's another terminal that's basically a warehouse with queues and chairs for boarding the Disney ships. That said, we've never had an issue with embarking or disembarking there.

PATs were observed when we boarded last time, I don't recall there being any delays getting on the ship. Getting there is fun, Puerto Rico taxis are an experience! If you're disembarking there, the Uber pick area is small and can be crowded.

 

[Erica1016]

Getting there is fun, Puerto Rico taxis are an experience!

I can agree with this! We ended up taking a taxi from the airport to our Airbnb and it was an adventure. We got there, but it was an adventure. We took an Uber in the morning to the port, which a less exciting (and much nicer) experience.

 

[Gdes1]

I really appreciate everyone replying!

 

[sadiecatie]

I will agree with most previous posters - we did the May 2024 repositioning from San Juan to Ft Lauderdale - boarding was smooth, and while I did see some behavior that I thought was obnoxious (mostly at the shows - coming in late, talking through the performance) and the muster drill was painful (it took almost 45 minutes because of many parties being very late - I had to reassure my daughter that this would be the worst part of the vacation and if she could be patient and get through it everything else would be more fun), everything else was what I would expect from a Disney cruise. If the itinerary was appealing I would sail out of San Juan again.

 

[SnowWhite2]

I've sailed out of PR several times and my next cruise is the Galveston to PR cruise. Here is a run down of my last cruise which was a B2B2B and 17 days long. Started in NY for a NY to Bermuda to NY cruise which started on Halloween. Good cruise.

Then the NY - Bermuda - PR was Jersey week. Lots of kids running around unsupervised. We stayed in the adult areas. In the WDT shows, the kids and adults would run up to the stage and touch (grab) any props that were near the edge. Also they grabbed at the performers as they ran up the aisles and in front of the stage. CMs had their hands full that week trying to make sure no one got hurt during shows. Never saw that before in 25 sailings.

Next cruise was a Southern PR-PR. This was interesting. Different mix of people, different vibe. Crush tried to talk to the kids at the tables around us and no one was responding. It was weird. Happened on both screens near us. Also lots of people coming in for 5:45 dinner at 6:30 to 7 pm. Towards the end of the week the head server refused to serve them as they were too late. Found out later that all of the tables in my servers section had only spanish speaking guests and our server didn't speak spanish. Our assistant did and that was why we didn't see him much the last cruise. Being late for things was a constant issue with this crowd. Once I realized that many people didn't speak english I understood some of the behavior. It was a communication issue.

Now I've done some PR - FL cruises and those are pretty wild. Those are definitely party people. I was told that a lot of people use the cruise in lieu of flying to the states. Not sure how true that is but those cruises were definitely some fun people. Lots more people in the adult areas and more interaction with the cruise staff. The DJ was actually playing tunes with people in the room after 11pm! I'm a night owl and usually leave the nightclub after the last show as everyone leaves and I feel weird in there with the DJ and no one else.

 

[CaseyCruiser]

I love sailing DCL out of San Juan. We've done it twice and never had a problem.

 

[vakamalua]

Did a southern itinerary RT San Juan on the Magic a few years ago—loved it. No issues. And love San Juan, hope you can spend some time there. Also, we’ve seen some horrendous behavior on DCL throughout 15 cruises on 5 ships.

 

[anricat]

We've sailed out of PR twice. It's such a great place with lots on offer and the itineraries are usually more interesting than the usual ones. I wouldn't hesitate to do it again. Trip report for both our cruises from PR in my signature.

 

[Gdes1]

Thanks for all of the feedback, everyone!

 

[mcd2745]

Sailed out of San Juan this past November for a Southern itinerary. Check in at port was a little less organized than Port Canaveral, but I think that applies to most non-PC ports. It wasn't enough to deter me from sailing out of San Juan again. Was some of the "entitled"/obnoxious type behavior you referenced. For example, there was a local family whose kids (probably in the 14-15-16 yr old range) had to be kicked out of the adult pool every day...sometimes multiple times a day. Again though, never got to the point of where we said "never again".