San Jose Guided City Tour: Architecture, Culture, Food and History

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From $140.00

Price varies by group size

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Pricing Info: Per Person

Duration: 6 hours

Departs: San Jose, San Jose

Ticket Type: Mobile or paper ticket accepted

Free cancellation

Up to 24 hours in advance.

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Overview

We made a tour taking into account the past and the present in San Jose.

Immerse yourself in Costa Rican culture and history on this walking guided tour of the capital city. Highlights include the National Theater, the Pre-Columbian Gold Museum, the National Museum, the Supreme Court, and Central Market. A bilingual guide is on hand to answer questions and provide insight about what you see along the way.

We know the artistic part, including its most recognized spaces in this area, the culture, history and architecture of the city. The tour will show you the most beautiful areas of San José. The tour describes the past and the present of San José, in order to know it´s actual life. You get to know from art, culture, history and architecture of the city.

What's Included

Air-conditioned vehicle

Bottled water

Hotel pickup and drop-off from San Jose, Escazu and Alajuela only

Local Professional Driver

Local Professional Tour Guide

Lunch

Parking Fees

Snacks

WiFi on board

What's Not Included

Dedicated Vehicle and Driver

Gratuities

Hotel pickup and drop-off outside San Jose and Alajuela

Traveler Information

  • INFANT: Age: 0 - 4
  • CHILD: Age: 5 - 9
  • ADULT: Age: 10 - 99

Additional Info

  • COVID-19 vaccination required for guides
  • Face masks required for travellers in public areas
  • Guides required to regularly wash hands
  • Infants and small children can ride in a pram or stroller
  • Public transportation options are available nearby
  • Regular temperature checks for staff
  • Service animals allowed
  • Suitable for all physical fitness levels
  • COVID-19 vaccination required for guides
  • Face masks required for travellers in public areas
  • Guides required to regularly wash hands
  • Infants and small children can ride in a pram or stroller
  • Public transportation options are available nearby
  • Regular temperature checks for staff
  • Service animals allowed
  • Suitable for all physical fitness levels

Cancellation Policy

All sales are final. No refund is available for cancellations.

  • This experience requires good weather. If it’s canceled due to poor weather, you’ll be offered a different date or a full refund.

What To Expect

Teatro Nacional Costa Rica
Since 1897, this elegant theater has been a source of pride.

The National Theater of Costa Rica (TNCR) is a public institution created by Executive Decree No. XXXIII, May 28, 1890, which establishes “That the construction of a National Theater in this city [San José] is a demanded necessity for the civilization and culture of the country… ”. Its construction required the joint work of Costa Ricans and Europeans, who contributed their knowledge and made possible the creation of this temple of art, in accordance with the desire of the turn of the century republican architecture.

Our professional local tour guide will give you an explanation about the history and what this theatre represents for a better understanding of the evolution of Costa Rica.

20 minutes • Admission Ticket Not Included

Morazan Park
Initially it was called Plaza La Laguna, since it was built on a small lake called Vilanueva, where many Costa Ricans were looking for mud to build the first adobe houses in the 19th century. For health reasons the lagoon was drained and the square was built, which began as a meeting point in the celebration of the New Year.

Officially, the park was inaugurated in 1887, however the Executive of that time decided to name it Francisco Morazán, in homage to a hero of Central American history, without ever knowing the reason for this decision. Years later, a large octagonal kiosk with an art nouveau style was created to perform civic events, which more recently was transformed into the Temple of Music.

Our professional local tour guide will give you an explanation about the history and what this park represents for a better understanding of the evolution of Costa Rica.

20 minutes • Admission Ticket Included

Templo de la Musica
Music is a big part of Costa Rican culture. Most times, you could see them festively dancing and singing, with musical horns roaring in the background. These fun loving Latin Americans enjoy a fusion of American, Latin and British contemporary rock and a timeless adoration and influence of 60’s and 70’s music.

Enjoying music collectively is another characteristic Costa Ricans possess. They believe as many others do that music is best experienced when shared.

To have a venue to house bands, musicians and even orchestras like the Templo de la Musica continues to bring life to the surroundings of Costa Rica. That’s why this temple is truly a big draw for tourists and locals alike.

Our professional local tour guide will give you an explanation about the history and what this temple represents for a better understanding of the evolution of Costa Rica.

20 minutes • Admission Ticket Included

Parque Espana
The space occupied by Parque España emerged in 1862 as a plaza linked to the service of the National Liquor Factory (currently, CENAC). This factory had been built in 1856 by President Juan Rafael Mora Porras with the purpose of increasing the public purse and controlling the manufacture of contraband alcohol. This square became the place where the cattlemen who brought the bundles of candy with which the cane liquor was made rested. Over time, circuses were also installed on the site, public festivals were organized for the end of the year, and bullfights were held. Later, soccer matches were also played and finally, it became the place where the students of the Metallic School carried out their physical activities.

Our professional local tour guide will give you an explanation about the history and what this temple represents for a better understanding of the evolution of Costa Rica.

20 minutes • Admission Ticket Included

he “Casa Amarilla” (Yellow House) must be one of your must-see places in San José. This building takes its name from the other color of its facade. It is the current headquarters of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the country. Located in the district of El Carmen, at the intersection between 7th Avenue and 11th Street, it is a neocolonial architecture building with neo-baroque decorations, built-in 1920 by the American architect Henry D. Whitfield, with the purpose of it being the headquarters the Central American Court of Justice. Considered a fundamental vestige of Costa Rican urban heritage, it was declared a National Monument on September 17, 1976, and it is a historical-architectural heritage.

Our professional local tour guide will give you an explanation about the history and what this temple represents for a better understanding of the evolution of Costa Rica.

20 minutes • Admission Ticket Included

Parque Nacional Park
Emblematic park. It is one of the most important open spaces in the capital that emerged in the 1870s as the Plaza de la Estación, a name given because of its proximity to the terminal of the Ferrocarril al Atlántico.

This park was inaugurated in 1895 by the National Monument; sculptural ensemble that influenced the change of name to the park. It has been the scene of important national celebrations throughout this century.

It is characterized by being one of the largest parks in space. So much so that it has its own narrow streets where you can walk and why not sit on one of its benches to have a good time.

Our professional local tour guide will give you an explanation about the history and what this temple represents for a better understanding of the evolution of Costa Rica.

20 minutes • Admission Ticket Included

Museo Nacional De Costa Rica
The birth of the National Museum, at the end of the 19th century, was framed within the liberal project of "order and progress" that implied the reorganization of the national culture through reforms in the educational field and the creation of institutions for cultural and scientific purposes. , like the National Museum.

This is how on May 4, 1887, under the presidency of Bernardo Soto, the National Museum was created with the purpose of providing the country with a public establishment to deposit, classify and study natural and artistic products.

Our professional local tour guide will give you an explanation about the history and what this temple represents for a better understanding of the evolution of Costa Rica.

20 minutes • Admission Ticket Not Included

Plaza de la Cultura
In the third part of the 20th century, the city of San José had such an important architectural and demographic growth that the space for its inhabitants was occupied by buildings, buses and automobiles. As a result, various characters from the cultural sphere began to show the need to give the city public spaces that would improve the quality of life of visitors to the capital.

Within this context, the Plaza de la Cultura project was born in 1973, after the Theater building was declared a National Monument and the surrounding area declared of public interest. In 1975, the Central Bank of Costa Rica took over the financing and execution of the project in order to have a space to display its collections of pre-Columbian gold, numismatics and art. The architects Jorge Bertheau, Jorge Borbón and Edgar Vargas were the chosen designers.

20 minutes • Admission Ticket Included

Central Market (Mercado Central)
The Central Market of San José is a beautiful century-old building. Part of the building was erected at the end of the 19th century and another stage was built during the 1940s at the end of the last century. It is located on avenues 0 and 1 and streets 6 and 8, established in 1880 and declared as national heritage in 1995.

In its narrow corridors you find everything from clothing to fresh fish and meat, passing through the best webbed tortillas.

50 minutes • Admission Ticket Included

Banco Central de Costa Rica
Given the difficult economic situation that our country experienced as a result of the First World War, there is a reduction in income for the Government and a decline in the coffee sector. The National Banking System was made up of private banks, which denied the Government a loan that was necessary to meet their fiscal needs.
Within this context, in the government of Alfredo Gonzalez Flores (1914-1917), the first state bank was created, called Banco Internacional, with two main purposes, which were to make the State independent from the financial control of private banks and guide a part of the public credit towards domestic market agriculture. At that time, the current Costa Rican monetary system was governed by the use of gold, and the State did not have this metal to be able to support the issues, so “… .it was then agreed to suspend the convertibility of the banknotes and extend this measure to all existing banking institutions ”(Central Bank of Costa Rica, 1990).

20 minutes • Admission Ticket Not Included


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