Here, in the heart of the Meseta Central at higher than 1100 meters, travelers get their first impression of the atmosphere which is typical of ‘Central America‘.

San Jose is the administrative and cultral centre of Costa Rica.  The city was established in May 1737 as Villa Nueva Boca del Monte, and was the third city in the world to have public electricity and one of the first with telephones.

In Costa Rica there are no street names, addresses are traditionally given from nearby street intersections or local landmarks using meters or blocks.  This archaic address-system is easily understood by ticos but often leads to confusion for foreigners.

A typical  Tico-adress would be:  200 meters north and 50 meters east of the post office.

To completely understand this address- system you must know which direction east and north are and the amount of meters in a city block (100 meter).  One should also know which quarter it is in.  San Jose is sub-divided into quaters or ‘barrios‘.

Although San Jose is very loud and hectic, it offers many posible tourist attractions.  You can relax in the parks or on the stairway of ‘Plaza del la Cultura‘ while observing local customs or visit one of the many fine museums.  The inner city offers many cozy cafes and restaurants.  One of the most popular is the cafe Parisienne in the Grand hotel Costa Rica.

In the evenings you can visit the local theatres, cinema or one of the many recommended specialty restaurants.  When these let out is when the real night life begins.  Bars, discos, nightclubs and casinos are full of lively party-goers.  One of the most popular is the ‘el Pueblo‘ with various restaurants, bars and discos.

Be Cautious:

In the evening, it is advisable to take a taxi.  Above all in the red light-district around hotel ‘del Rey‘ or around the hotel ‘Best Western San Jose Downtown‘ where many robberies have taken place.