Conjuring up a distinctly European feel, broad Paseo de la Princesa is a 19th-century esplanade just outside the city walls. Lined with antique streetlamps, trees, statues, benches, food-vendor carts and street entertainers, this romantic walkway ends at the magnificent Raíces Fountain, a stunning sculpture and water feature that depicts the island’s eclectic Taíno, African and Spanish heritage. Festivals and fairs are often held here, including the weekend artisans fair.
Paseo de la Princesa
San Juan
Lonely Planet's must-see attractions
24.5 MILES
El Yunque National Forest is one of Puerto Rico’s crown jewels with nearly 29,000 acres of lush, mountainous terrain scattered with waterfalls, rushing…
0.76 MILES
A star of Old San Juan, brooding El Morro sits atop a headland, deterring would-be attackers. The 140ft walls (some up to 15ft thick) date to 1539 and it…
0.42 MILES
The city's second major fort is one of the largest Spanish-built military installations in the Americas. In its prime, it covered 27 acres with a maze of…
0.42 MILES
This museum presents an impressive overview of cultural development in the Americas, including indigenous, African and European influences. Four permanent…
1.68 MILES
This sheltered arc's raked sand, decent surf breaks, local action and a 17th-century Spanish fort shimmering in the distance are the hallmarks of what's…
23.35 MILES
The St Christopher canyon is so unexpected – both in location and appearance – that it takes many a breath away. The deep green chasm seemingly drops out…
3.39 MILES
San Juan boasts one of the largest and most celebrated art museums in the Caribbean. Housed in a splendid neoclassical building that was once the city’s…
6.11 MILES
With countless tanned bodies lounging or flexing their biceps around the volleyball net, this urban beach basks in its reputation as the Copacabana of…
Nearby San Juan attractions
0.08 MILES
Once the residence of a political reformer and Puerto Rico’s first representative to the Spanish court, this 18th-century house is now the headquarters of…
0.14 MILES
On the point called La Puntilla, this low fortress is a former Spanish naval station, and the last place to house Spanish forces after the US victory in…
0.14 MILES
This is the city’s de-facto central square, laid out in the 16th century with the classic look of plazas from Madrid to Mexico. A highlight is the…
0.15 MILES
Bibliophiles will enjoy this tiny but worthwhile collection of more than 5000 manuscripts and texts that date back 2000 years. The collection includes one…
5. Palacio de la Real Intendencia
0.15 MILES
The imposing Palacio de la Real Intendencia sits on the western edge of the Plaza de Armas. Built in the 19th century, this neoclassical beauty houses the…
0.16 MILES
Towering over the Plaza de Armas, the Alcaldía, which dates from 1789, has twin turrets resembling those of its counterpart in Madrid. This building…
0.16 MILES
Built against the outside wall of the city, this long, gray and white building, once a jail, now houses the headquarters of the Puerto Rico Tourism…
0.17 MILES
On the southern end of Calle del Cristo, the pigeon-filled Parque de las Palomas is in a tree-shaded cobblestone courtyard on the top of the city wall,…