San Juan Bay is the bay and main inlet adjacent to Old San Juan in northeastern Puerto Rico. It is about 3.5 miles (5.6 km) in length, the largest body of water in an estuary of about 97 square miles (250 km2) of channels, inlets and eight interconnected lagoons. The San Juan Bay is home to the island's busiest harbor and its history dates back to at least 1508.
Mercator projection of San Juan Bay
Rodrigo de Figueroa's 1519 sketch of the Villa de Puerto Rico, before Caparra's settlers relocated to the harbor
1919 drawing of the wooden San Antonio Bridge in 1597, where the Battle of San Juan (1598) took place.
A newer San Antonio Bridge, not made of wood (c. 1922)
Old San Juan is a historic district located at the "northwest triangle" of the islet of San Juan in San Juan. Its area roughly correlates to the Ballajá, Catedral, Marina, Mercado, San Cristóbal, and San Francisco sub-barrios (sub-districts) of barrio San Juan Antiguo in the municipality of San Juan, Puerto Rico. Old San Juan is the oldest settlement within Puerto Rico and the historic colonial district of the city of San Juan. This historic district is a National Historic Landmark District named Zona Histórica de San Juan and is listed on the United States National Register of Historic Places as the Old San Juan Historic District. Several historical buildings and structures, particularly La Fortaleza, the city walls, and El Morro and San Cristóbal castles, have been inscribed in the UNESCO World Heritage Site list since 1983. Historically the mixed-use commercial and residential real estate in the main streets of Calle Cristo and Calle Fortaleza from Calle Tanca to the Governor’s Mansion is the most valuable in the area and it has kept its value and increased steadily through several years despite the past economic turmoils.
Aerial view of Castillo San Felipe del Morro and Old San Juan
Satellite image of Old San Juan within San Juan Antiguo alongside Santurce
Aerial view of Old San Juan in 1952
The 42-foot (12.8 m) wall that surrounds Old San Juan (as seen near the San Juan Gate)