Caribbean swank in Condado
Condado marks the spot where the age-stained colonial edifices of Old San Juan give way to the palm-peppered promenades and the sloshing waves of the ocean. It's the playground of the city, if you like, a place to recline on powdery sands and slap chips on the Blackjack tables in the glitzy casinos that fringe Avenida Ashford. Meanwhile, trendy shopping strips shoot out from the seafront area, replete with names like Gucci and Louis Vuitton, and there are Condado vacation rentals that ooze opulence and luxury. Culture hungry? The UNESCO forts and amazing museums of the old town area can fill that hole.
Culture aplenty just steps from Condado
Condado might have the swish casinos and the happening shopping strips, but it's Old San Juan just down the road that packs in the culture. You can easily get there by car or bus, to delve into a medley of tight-knit alleys where beautiful churches shoulder overhead and formidable fortress walls herald the Spanish influence on the city. The world-class Museo de Las Americas makes its home in those parts, brimming with Carib folk art, colonial relics and sobering tales of the Atlantic Slave Trade.
Chilling in Condado
Chill and unwind in Condado _ that's what this fun-loving patchwork of glistening sands and chic Condado vacation rentals is really for. That could mean retail therapy in the chichi fashion boutiques that adorn the boulevards. It could mean relaxing strolls to watch the sunset along the salt-sprayed promenade. It could mean bouts of Carib fine-dining in the acclaimed bistros. Spas and massage parlors abound, too, while the call of Condado Beach and its palm-topped, wave-washed sunbathing spots is unceasing.