The islands of Puerto Rico have plenty of dreamy beach resorts, even in the main city of San Juan, but what gives this destination an extra twist is that San Juan is one of the oldest cities in the hemisphere established by the Spanish, a place that served as an important trading post for centuries. To stay in the heart of the old city but have 21st century comforts, check out one of the newest kids on the block: Palacio Provincial.
This old San Juan boutique hotel is in a great location in the historic part of the city, a short stroll of a few blocks to El Morro and other fort structures built by the Spanish in the 1500s. There are few dozen restaurants nearby, night clubs, bars, and shops to keep you busy and you don’t have to go very far to get to a beach.
This hotel is next door to the second oldest cathedral in the Americas, next to Plaza de Armas town square park, and right around the corner from sister property El Convento. The seasoned hotel owners enlisted an A-list architect and designer duo to give this new entrant on the lodging scene plenty of artistic flair. The grand staircase by the lobby leads to hallways that wouldn’t be out of place all over Latin America, but most hotels don’t have caged rooster sculptures in their guest rooms.
This Curio Collection hotel does a good job of balancing the old and the new. There’s clear respect for the historic elements of this 200-year-old Chamber of Delegates building, but they’ve added contemporary elements to the rooms and a gorgeous lounge area with designer furniture and coffee table books.
Drinking and Dining in Old San Juan
While the entrance, the staircase and courtyard area on the ground floor are interesting, guests who are hanging around the hotel end up spending most of their time on the roof terrace. There’s a nice inviting swimming pool flanked by lounge chairs and in the evening it’s a great spot to watch the sunset colors spread across the sky.
In the evenings you can order food here at Atelier Rooftop Bar and sit at one of the tables. The menu of bites is not extensive, but all the options are interesting, like shrimp ceviche and arugula pomegranate salad,
The bar is the real attraction though, serving up interesting craft cocktails, especially rum ones, cocktails that go beyond the simple (but delicious) piña colada that was invented in Puerto Rico. If you want to really relax, you can order a passionfruit mai tai with aged Don Q rum and sip it while sitting in the whirlpool tub.
The main restaurant is on the ground floor in a covered courtyard and during our stay it was perpetually understaffed, so hopefully that was just bad timing on our part and the service kinks will be worked out by the time you check in. Room service and table service were both laughably slow, even by island time standards, but once the food arrived it was quite good.
Breakfast has a nice array of items ranging from a fruit plate to fried chicken and waffles, accompanied by good local coffee and fresh juices.
Lunch and dinner are set up to please everyone as well, with burgers, wraps, salads, and pizzas from a large conical oven, as well as some healthy choices like hummus and roasted broccolini.
If you don’t want to take your chances, there are plenty of other options nearby, with a wide variety of cuisines, from humble holes in the wall to elegant restaurants worthy of a celebration. I was especially impressed with our brunch at Chocobar tk, a great spot that mixes chocolate into nearly every dish and even offers rum and chocolate pairing tastings if you didn’t get enough with your hot chocolate and waffles. They also sell their own brand of artisan chocolates and they have an art gallery upstairs worth a visit after.
Rooms at the Palace
Palacio Provincial hotel rooms all have 14-foot-high ceilings that make them feel spacious, no matter the layout. Very comfortable beds have artistic wall hangings above them based on historic drawings and good targeted reading lights. Some face the street, so there’s a little inevitable noise in those, but you can request an inner room if you’re a sensitive sleeper. Excellent blackout curtains keep it dark at night.
There are six room classes, ranging from the smallest standards with a queen to suites that have a full sitting area and, in some cases, a balcony. All have mini-fridges, safes, smart TVs, espresso capsule machines, ample closets, and desks with easy-to-reach outlets. Robes and slippers provide some pampering, and the retro-cool tile baths have nice toiletries in full refillable bottles and two different showerheads.
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Booking a Stay at Palacio Provincial Hotel
As the newest (for now) and one of the most upscale hotels in Old San Juan, Palacio Provincial fills up its 43 rooms rather easily during peak periods. So plan ahead if you’re taking a winter vacation to trade snow and gray skies for the beaches and sunshine of Puerto Rica. Rates are generally in the range of $250 to $924 per night, the latter being for the top suite in January, when many weekends are sold out as I write this in August.
That price does not include taxes but it does include a hefty $55 “resort fee” at a small city hotel that’s definitely not a resort. At least they give you a few extras though: a glass of sparkling wine, some chocolate bonbons, and supposedly free bike rentals though I never saw any bikes on site. There’s access to a local beach club called Isla Verde if you have time to take advantage of that.
To book a room, head to the official website or go through the Hilton.com site to check Hilton Honors points availability for this Curio Collection property. Check the current prices at Booking.com.
Review and photos by Tim Leffel. He was hosted at Palacio Provincial while researching a rum and chocolate story on Puerto Rico for another publication, set up by Discover Puerto Rico.
