This was our second Carnival cruise and our 7th cruise. We chose this cruise because of the itinerary.
Embarkation: We flew to San Juan a day early and stayed at the Marriott Hotel and Stelaris Casino. It was a very nice hotel and had a nice beach. The food was expensive at the poolside grill, but we enjoyed the evening sitting outside, eating, and watching the ocean. By the time we arrived, it was nearly 5:00 p.m. We did visit the casino and played a few slots, but went to bed early. On Sunday morning, we got up early, enjoyed breakfast at the beach and spent a few hours relaxing on the beach. We left the hotel for the port around noon.
When arriving at the port of San Juan, there were tons of people crowded around on a sidewalk, trying to form a single-file line, which was leading out into the street. We were told by some officials not to be in the street, which meant we had to merge in with those in line. We got a few rude comments about "crowding" but we were told to do that. There were porters wanting to take our luggage, and if you allowed them to do that, they would lead you in front of the line anyway. We kept our luggage, not being sure that they were actually Carnival employees, but we saw later, it would have been fine. Don't stand in a single file line because once you get in the door, it disperses so quickly, you drop your luggage off and head up the escalators to the check in area. You do not need to be in a single file line outside.