El Canario was a good place to stay. We only stayed one night before our cruise. I thought the room was good, the bathroom was a little small, but we didn't need a huge one. The balcony overlooked parking and other buildings, but it was nice to have. Location was great, we were in walking distance of the ocean and some really great restaurants. A/C worked great
Our room was prepaid for so checking out was a breeze. The clerk loved that it was already taken care of. Other than checking in/out, it was the only time we used the desk. While waiting to check out, the clerk was helping these young girls find a kayaking/beach guide for the day, even negotiating a price for them, which I thought was nice. There are taxi drivers within walking distance ( I mean less than half a small block), so we walked down to get one to take us to the ship. It was a nice stay, and I would use them again if I am cruising out of San Juan.

Stayed just one night in this small hotel in the Condado beach area of San Juan. Hotel is located near the Lagoon with some rooms having a partial view and just one block to beach. Lobby is tastefully furnished with tropical bamboo chairs and loveseat with a small breakfast room for complimentary morning rolls, coffee and juice. There is also a roof deck that could be very charming (but isn't) with a great view. Four suites are located on the roof deck.

They advertise themselves as a "boutique hotel" but the problem is the rooms. They are dated and unattractive and pretty dark. We had room 306 with a view of the Lagoon from our balcony but there was nothing charming about it. At $126 a night (including all taxes) this is a fairly good deal for the area but with new bedspreads and curtains and a couple of scatter rugs this hotel would get more than just one night stands.

Desk clerk on the Sunday we arrived was surly and uncooperative, but the person the next day was very helpful.
Would recommend only if you don't care about the ambience of your hotel room. I would also check out El Canario by the Sea and El Canario Inn which are the same price but might have a bit more charm.

We stayed for only one night and would never do it again. Our room was dirty, dark and smelly. The bathroom was tiny, the shower fixture was broken, and there was no hot, or even tepid, water. There was no waste basket in the room, not a single napkin, and no glassware. Promised internet connection, a must in our case, was nonexistent. The staff was not able to move our car, claiming that it was too complicated to start it. We ended up parking it ourselves on the street in the middle of the night. As for being B&B, sufficient to say that self-served breakfast, more like a coffee stand in your local grocery store, offered rotten apples along with bread, bananas and cold cereal. Maybe it was just our luck, but it was a worse hotel stay ever. Shame, really!

I am attracted by the top 5 ranking in san juan hotels. And I would say it is a pretty good hotel: good location and clean room, simple decoration. If you pay below 120, this is something you should consider .
Also I want to say the ranking is a little bit overated. Most people here are satisfied with this hotel because their low expectation. I would recommend holiday inn express to you if you increase your budget a little bit(10 bucks per day). You will have a better and modern service there.