Tours and Excursions

The Holiday Inn San Juan, through Castillo Tours, offers a wide variety of exciting excursions and sports activities. For your convenience, you have the choice to make online reservations in advance for sightseeing tours, snorkeling and fishing trips. Alternately, please stop by the tour desk in the hotel lobby for schedules and reservations.

City Bacardi Tour

Half-day trip — Old San Juan & Bacardi Rum Distillery

The first stop will be at the Bacardi Rum Distillery, where you can enjoy a guided tour of its 127 acres of plant, museum, and tropical gardens. Learn the interesting rum making process as well as the history of the world’s most recognized rum brand - and then relax with a complimentary rum cocktail at their open-air pavilion.  Then, travel back in time and discover five hundred years of fascinating history, culture and heritage of the colonial city.  This tour takes you on a journey through cobblestone streets flanked by museums and art galleries, interesting shopping stores and famous-brand outlets, and cozy cafés and restaurants. You will also visit the defensive forts and historical buildings built by Spaniards during colonial times, such as San Cristóbal Fort, the Governor’s Mansion, San Juan Cathedral, and Christ Chapel, among others.

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El Yunque National Forest

Half-day trip — A Nature Lover’s Paradise

El Yunque National Forest is the sole tropical rain forest in the U.S. National Forest System. The rugged Luquillo Mountains that rise to 3,533 ft. above sea level comprise most of the forest land. Their steep slopes can sometimes receive rainfall of over 200 inches at higher elevations! Caressed by gentle easterly winds the forest has an average temperature of 73° F (21° C), and seasonal changes are almost imperceptible. It is the ideal climate for exuberant tropical vegetation. The rain forest is noted for its biodiversity; it is “home” to thousands of native plants including 150 fern species, 240 tree species (88 of these are endemic or rare and 23 are exclusively found in this forest). El Yunque National Forest has no large wildlife species, but hundreds of smaller animals abound in this gentle forest, many of which exist nowhere else on the planet!!

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El Yunque Rain Forest and Luquillo Beach

Full day excursion — Two Experiences!

 Combine the morning trip to El Yunque with an afternoon of swimming, sun tanning and relaxing on placid Luquillo Beach. The soft sands, shaded by imposing coconut palm trees and the azure waters of the Atlantic Ocean, make it a dreamer's retreat. Dressing rooms, lockers, showers, and lifeguards are available for your convenience. Just pack your beach towel and suntan or sunscreen lotion.  While in Luquillo, sample the tasty local specialties such as fresh coconut water, seafood and créole fritters from a myriad roadside kiosks.

Staying with us? Book this excursion now!

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Camuy Cave and Arecibo Observatory

Full day excursion — A Real Expedition!

 Embark on an underground adventure at the Rio Camuy Cave Park, featuring a spectacular array of caverns securely adapted for visitors. The caverns, which were formed by the flow of the Rio Camuy over one million years ago, are one of the largest systems of underwater cave caverns united in the Western Hemisphere. The excursion will take you through the 170 feet high Cueva Clara, where nature adorns its towering ceilings with crystalline stalactites, its walls with flowing stone tapestries, and its floors with mounds of stalagmites. The Rio Camuy, which runs through the cavern's interior, is also one of the most spectacular underground rivers in the world. Nearby, nestled in the northern mountains, is the world's largest single-dish radio telescope. The Arecibo Observatory is part of the National Astronomy and Ionosphere Center (NAIC), a national research center operated by Cornell University under a cooperative agreement with the National Science Foundation (NSF).  The Observatory operates on a continuous basis, 24 hours a day every day, providing observing time, electronics, computer, travel and logistic support to scientists from all over the world.  The Observatory is recognized as one of the most important national centers for research in radio astronomy, planetary radar and terrestrial aeronomy. Admissions included.

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Colonial Ponce

Full day excursion — Puerto Rico’s Regal "Pearl of the South"

 The city of Ponce unveils an enchanting portrait of colonial history, southern charm, art and culture. Puerto Rico's second oldest and largest city is characterized by the architectural splendor and detailed neoclassic and art deco style. The city's buildings, such as the 19th century Fire Station and Ponce Cathedral showcase more than 300 years of an elegant tradition that has made Ponce the center of Puerto Rico's southern economy. The visit includes the Ponce Museum of Art, whose collection comprises one of the world’s most respected samples of Western art, spanning from the High Middle Ages to the 19th century.  The galleries representing the various schools (Italian, Spanish, Flemish, and French) are renowned for their quality, while the works of the British school stand out, such as Lord Leighton’s “Flaming June” and those of the Pre-Raphaelites.   The trip to Ponce ends with a tour of the Serrallés Castle, former home of the Island's oldest rum-producing family.  

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