San Juan ~ 6 Must-Try Activities in Santurce
To the east of Old San Juan is a neighborhood called Santurce, more modern, with many restaurants, cafés, and several great activities, such as the ones presented below. Santurce encompasses smaller neighborhoods, distinct in their own ways.
Wondering if it’s worth visiting Santurce? Keep reading!
There are beaches to the north (thought you’re not supposed to swim there as the waves make it unsafe), and some large streets like Avenida Ashford bordered with hotels and restaurants in Condado and Ocean Park, Avenida Ponce de Leon with access to the street art and a couple of museums and cinemas in Miramar, Calle Cerra with its street art, etc.
Puente Dos Hermanos, separating Old San Juan from the Santurce neighborhood.
But without further ado, here are my 6 must-try activities for the Santurce neighborhood:
(Read until the end for restaurant recommendations!)
Museo de Arte de Puerto Rico
This museum is beautiful! The building itself, the gardens in the back, and the art inside.
There’s a little bit of everything in this museum of 4 floors: sculptures, paintings, installations, textile art… most of it is 20th century, but there sometimes are temporary exhibitions from other centuries.
The artists are from Puerto Rico, and you can see different topics important for the island through their art.
Make sure you take your time, and be aware they start closing about 20 minutes before the official closing time. The garden is cool too, if you have time make sure to check it out.
Kayak the Laguna del Condado
Right in San Juan is a lagoon with a few small beaches to get in. You can also rent a kayak or Stand Up Paddle board, and explore the waters.
Manatees live in the lagoon, and we did a guided trip with transparent kayaks from Night Kayak trying to see some but were not lucky. It was still a fun experience: the guide told us about the lagoon and its wildlife, we saw starfishes, and went under the Ponte Dos Hermanos… so technically we kayaked in three neighborhoods of town: Condado, Santurce and Old San Juan ;)
The tour felt a little short, and next time I might try to just rent a kayak by myself… though I’m not sure how it compares pricewise.
Visit the Museo de Arte Contemporaneo
This small museum is located in a beautiful building on Avenida Ponce de León, and has themed exhibit, including some pieces from their permanent collection and other pieces just for the exhibit in question. The exhibit we saw had paintings, sculptures, multi-media presentations
There is a beautiful interior court with plants and seats, and the art is in rooms all around it. Be aware that the AC inside is kept really low… maybe bring a light additional layer if you’re sensitive to that.
Most of the rooms are on the main floor, one room is on the upper floor and the bathrooms are located downstairs
The entrance only costs $8 and there is a small gift shop.
See an event at the Centro de Bellas Artes
If you have time, and if there’s an event that interests you, I’d highly recommend going to see a show at the Centro de Bellas Artes. Located not far from the Museo de Arte de San Juan, this beautiful concert venue has two main rooms, a fountain in front of it, and several statues outside.
Be aware they keep the AC on really low, so bring an extra layer. Most people will be dressed up, do the same if you can. They have musicals, dance programs, symphony orchestra concerts… we went to see a jazz concert and it was great!
Check their events page here.
Walk around
I know it’s tempting to take an Uber everywhere, but you should definitely walk around in Santurce.
You’ll be surprised by some cute little park, big statues by the ocean, and murals on many of the streets.
The northern side has nice beaches where you can go for a walk or observe the sunset from, and you can see locals coming to exercise too. Be aware though that it’s not advised to swim in this area as the waves are strong and rip currents dangerous.
Go see a movie!
The Santurce neighborhood has several cool old movie theaters, from a chain called Caribbean Cinemas, notably on Calle Ponce de León. There’s also METRO cinema, on the same street.
If you happen to visit town when there’s a movie FROM Puerto Rico showing, go see it! It’s a great way to learn more about the culture of the place.
Or, if you’re just there on a day when it’s raining like crazy and don’t want to spend the whole day in your room, some movies are shown in English, and many in Spanish with subtitles.
Have you visited the Santurce neighborhood of San Juan? Have you done any of these activities? If so, which one was your favorite? Are there others you’d recommend? Let me know in the comments below!
And if you’re looking for restaurant recommendations in the Santurce neighborhood, click here!