The 10 Best Points of Interest & Landmarks in San Juan, Puerto Rico

April 28, 2022 Phylicia Berquist

The festive city of San Juan is the perfect place to experience true Puerto Rican culture. Get to know its roots by exploring the vibrant neighborhood of El Viejo San Juan (Old San Juan), which consists mostly of Spanish colonial buildings. Flesh out your self-guided history lesson with a visit to El Castillo San Felipe del Morro, a 16th century citadel that’s a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Then reward yourself with a cooling dip at Luquillo or Carolina Beach, then a tasty tour of the Bacardi rum plant.
Restaurants in San Juan

1. Biaggi & Faure Fine Art

1035 Jesus T. Pinero Ave., San Juan 00920 Puerto Rico +1 787-277-2783 [email protected] http://www.biaggifaure.com
Excellent
94%
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6%
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5.0 based on 16 reviews

Biaggi & Faure Fine Art

2. Garita del Diablo

Calle Norzagaray, San Juan 00902 Puerto Rico
Excellent
100%
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5.0 based on 2 reviews

La garita del Diablo is a lonely sentrybox that hangs from one of the most remote walls of Castillo San Cristobal. For centuries, this small post has been enveloped in a myriad rumors, highlighted by a ghost story that, to this day, is still shared among sanjuaneros. Some moonless nights--when darkness engulfs the old city of San Juan--the wind whistles eerily and evokes the distant hum of a guitar that has just been strummed. By the sea, a sentry box stands still, clinging to the vast, old wall that separates the San Cristobal Fort from the Atlantic Ocean. Legend has it that this lonely garita was where handsome Spanish soldier Sanchez disappeared forever. The Garita del Diablo (which is Spanish for the "Devil's Sentry Box") is at the center of one of San Juan's better-known legends. Long time ago, when the San Cristobal Fort still required soldiers posted on every sentry box, the men used to check up on their fellow soldiers by yelling "Sentry, be alert!". To that call, the next soldier would answer "I am alert!" Nevertheless, there came a night in which soldier Sanchez did not respond. Frightened and unable to leave their posts, his comrades waited until dawn to reach Garita del Diablo, where they found Sanchez's rifle and uniform...but there was not a single trace of the soldier's whereabouts. Immediately, the men attributed Sanchez's bizarre disappearance to the devil. There were rumors, however, that the soldier's vanishing act had more to do with a beautiful mestiza named Diana than with the devil. According to the legend, Sanchez composed songs whose messages only his beloved Diana could decipher. Songs of devotion, songs of elopement, songs of the hidden love nest they would build in the far away in the mountains of Luquillo. Songs that, according to the legend, still reverberate in the wind on some moonless nights in the Garita del Diablo.

3. La Puerta de la Bandera

57 Calle de San Jose, San Juan 00901-1357 Puerto Rico
Excellent
75%
Good
25%
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5.0 based on 4 reviews

La Puerta de la Bandera

It's a door, yes, but not any door. The Puerta de la Bandera is a place of national pride for all Puerto Ricans and a place of cultural appreciation for those who visit us. The door is painted with the Puerto Rican flag. The flag on the door was originally painted with the traditional colors of the Puerto Rico flag but in 2016, the year in which Puerto Rico lived tense economic and social situations, the flag was painted white and black as a symbol of protest and resistance. That caused the white and black flag to become a popular image that went viral on social networks.

Reviewed By DrSoulpr - San Juan, Caribbean

I’m from Puerto Rico and recently opened my Airbnb room in Santurce near La Placita and came with one of my guests to Old San Juan and she wanted a picture here... she took pictures of me that I’m sharing here!! There is another one with all the colors near la Perla. Have fun in Old San Juan and get a coffee at Finca Cialito for the Best Coffee in Old San Juan!!

4. Puente Dos Hermanos

Ashford Avenue, San Juan 00907 Puerto Rico
Excellent
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5.0 based on 1 reviews

Puente Dos Hermanos

This is not your typical bridge. The brothers Hernan and Sosthenes Behn where part of the process of urbanization in Santurce, they built this bridge. The people from Santurce started calling the bridge Puente Dos Hermanos (Bridge Two Brothers, in English) and has been called like this ever since. From Condado to Ashford Avenue, it directs you to Old San Juan. Enjoy the view of the amazing Laguna del Condado (Condado Lagoon, in English).

5. Antiguo Acueducto Rio Piedras

San Juan 00926 Puerto Rico http://www.prhbds.org/san-juan/2014/9/23/antiguo-acueducto-del-ro-piedras
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5.0 based on 1 reviews

Antiguo Acueducto Rio Piedras

6. Paseo de la Princesa

San Juan Puerto Rico https://www.discoverpuertorico.com/profile/paseo-de-la-princesa/8035
Excellent
66%
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29%
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4.5 based on 1,216 reviews

Paseo de la Princesa

This restored 19th-century esplanade is the place to begin your stroll through Old San Juan, because of its central location and its inexhaustible charm.

Reviewed By JoeNathan9249 - Saint Paul, United States

Beautiful walk along the harbor. Lovely little playground (please see below) along with lovely walk through plants) and a very nice fountain

7. La Puerta de San Juan

Cll Caleta De San Juan, San Juan 00901 Puerto Rico
Excellent
51%
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4.5 based on 1,029 reviews

La Puerta de San Juan

Four centuries ago this gate was the main entrance into the city.

Reviewed By JeanneCristello11 - Philadelphia, United States

The La Princesa path leads to La Puerta de San Juan or San Juan Gate. This was the colonial entrance to the walled city of San Juan, created to closely monitor its visitors and protect the city. The Gate is located near San Juan Cathedral, convenient for the many travelers wishing to pray after their safe journey. Written at the top of the Gate is "Benedictus qui venit in nomine Domini," a portion of a Catholic hymn that translates to "Blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord." This was designed to remind each person entering San Juan that God was important. There you can see a drawing depicting the San Juan Gate and beach area during colonial times next to the area today.

8. Plaza Felisa Rincon de Gautier

Caleta De San Juan, San Juan Puerto Rico
Excellent
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4.5 based on 2 reviews

Plaza Felisa Rincon de Gautier

9. Calle de la Fortaleza

Calle de la Fortaleza, San Juan 00901 Puerto Rico
Excellent
50%
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35%
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11%
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4.5 based on 741 reviews

Calle de la Fortaleza

A bustling street full of shops and boutiques.

Reviewed By G8104EAjanetd

The umbrellas weren’t up when we went, but the street was covered with a large Puerto Rican flag. The street was also closed off and you couldn’t go down near the Governor’s Mansion. There are however, a lot of great shops, restaurants and bars along the street and it’s very lively all day and night.

10. Calle del Cristo

Calle Del Cristo, San Juan Puerto Rico
Excellent
60%
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4.5 based on 255 reviews

Calle del Cristo

"That shopping street," as known to cab drivers; a tourist must.

Reviewed By rduinc - Saint Louis, United States

Cool street with several restaurants, bars, boutique hotels, and shops. Catedral de San Juan Batista and Plaza de la Catedral also located here. Well worth a visit. We did not have a car, but from what it appeared, parking could be challenging.

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