Wow Place #288: Casa Bacardi, San Juan, Puerto Rico
There’s a phenomenon I’ve noticed in the travel world called “The Disneyland Effect.” Essentially, it’s when a place deliberately cleans and sanitizes its environment for the comfort of its foreign visitors, coaxing them to stay awhile, take pictures, and purchase generic drinks, meals and tchotchkes. Call it “travel gentrification.” Florence felt like that to me when I first visited it over 30 years ago. Kyoto is going in that direction as well, with its mass influx of foreign tourists due to the weakening of the yen. To be honest, many of the world’s greatest attractions have taken this approach, catering so much to tourists that actual locals are few and far between. Does that mean we shouldn’t visit places like this? It definitely depends on what you’re looking for.
One such location is “Casa Bacardi” in San Juan, Puerto Rico, otherwise known as the Bacardi Factory. If you go expecting a rustic tour through old Puerto Rican barrels and rum distilling equipment, concluding with a personal tasting session with a local owner, you WILL be sorely disappointed. This is the Disneyland of rum factory tours. And yet, with the right attitude, Casa Bacardi IS kind of fun—much like the House of the Mouse in Anaheim itself.
First off, getting factory takes some effort – which I think is a GOOD thing. I mean, what quest is ever easy?!! Ok sure, you could take a shuttle, or an expensive Uber from your hotel– but why not do it the old-fashioned way – via a 15-minute, $1-ferry across the bay from Old San Juan? Once you arrive on the other side, you then look around for the shuttles – not as obvious as one might expect – for the short hop over to the factory. Casa Bacardi offers several different tours, including a Rum Tasting Tour and a Mixology class—both rather expensive. I opt for the Legacy Tour which, at $30, is more within my budget.
Is the tour “Disneyland-esque?” Of course it is. You didn’t expect to see an actual distillery, did you? Instead, I visit a mockup of the Bacardi family’s old office…a mockup of a barrel aging warehouse…a mockup of an old tasting room. I learn about how the original family fled from Cuba to Puerto Rico. All along the way, the guide defers to frequent, state-of-the-art audio visual displays. It all reminds me of the experience of standing in line for Disneyland’s Star Tours ride, where you’re greeted by funny videos, fake assembly lines and talking Droids, all to take your mind off of how long it’s taking you to reach the actual attraction.
Ordinarily I would hate this kind of place – IF I came expecting it to be authentic somehow. Fortunately, I had read up on the place and knew what to expect. Casa Bacardi is a rum theme park, and to be honest, who doesn’t like a theme park where you can sample cheap rum in a tropical setting? Which is exactly what happens when I reach the end of the tour and enter the outside bar area. With my drink coupon in hand, I sidle my way over to the counter and order myself an “authentic” Bacardi mojito (or was it a rum and coke…I can’t really recall). Yum.
Would I go back to Casa Bacardi? Absolutely not! It’s definitely a one-off location. In almost every other case, I’d rather be sitting at a café in a little town in Northern Thailand or Southern Japan – the only tourist in town – enjoying a hot tea and observing “real” life go by. But every so often…on a lark…I throw “authenticity” to the wind and take in a theme park. “You say you’re designed for my comfort—okay, comfort me!”
(In travel, as in life, it always comes down to expectations. If you go to a developing country expecting donkey carts and spice markets and discover Starbucks and McDonalds, sure, you’ll be disappointed. Similarly, if you arrive at your first date imagining your potential partner will magically fill your love bucket to the brim, you’re setting yourself up for a let down. That doesn’t mean you should go expecting disappointment; negativity definitely has the ability to manifest negative results. I’ve found that a solid approach is to enter every situation with an open mind. It may disappoint you; it may exceed your expectations. But for sure it will be interesting if you treat the experience with curiosity. Better yet, the experience is sure to teach you something about yourself.)
365 Wow Places:
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