hi all! i'm flying into san jose, CR ~8PM and needing to
get myself into a hotel for the night. the airport's a bit
out of town, so i'm wondering: is it easy enough to get into
san jose? should I bus, or what's a reasonable price for a
taxi? how about alajuela? has anyone stayed in the place
with the treehouses (tuetal lodge)? should i book something
ahead of time? bob- you seem to think tica linda's a great
place. do you have a contact e-mail, fax or phone? thanks!
:)
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Actually I described it as funky not great..but a great place
to meet other travelers. Phone 233 0528 fax 257 2272 Its at
Avenida 2, Calle 5 and 7.
directly in front of the airport is a busstation for public
busses to the city (costs 135 colones = 0,5 $) and takes
about 30 minutes.
from there you take the next taxi but don┤t pay more than
400 colones (which is still too much but do you really want
to argue and hassle when you just arrived ???)
a shared taxi into the city costs about 8 - 10 $.
i always stayed in the pension otoya which is cheap and nice
and SAFE!
Calle 1 between avenida 3 and 5
if you need more information contact me
We just got back from Costa Rica.
If you go into San Jose, and I would spend at least a day
looking around there, I'd recommend the Hotel Johnston.
It's right downtown and has very good security. Under
US$20 a night for a single.
The cab drivers at the airport are a little bad. If you
ask to be taken to a specific hotel, they often tell you
it's full, but they can take you to another one.
Apparently "their" hotel gives them a kick back which is
added to the price of your room. Just insist you be taken
to the hotel of your choice and I can guarantee it won't be
full.
We walked around at night in San Jose without any trouble,
but there is a lot of "purse snatching" type crime, so be
prepared.
We also stayed in Alajuela which is much smaller, but very
pleasant and safe. The Hotel Alajuela is right on the
public square and is nice, but a little high - about US$25
for a single. You can take a cheap bus from the airport
right to Alajuela.
Have a great trip.
thanks guys for the info/advice! very much appreciated.
and bob- funky and a good place to meet other travellers
equals GREAT in my books!
LYNDA.....YOU CAN CATCH A TAXI IN FRONT OF THE AIRPORT
(ABOUT 8$ US DEAL WITH THEM DON'T TAKE THE FIRST PRICE )
SOME THE BETTER HOTELS ARE WITHIN 10 MINUTES OF THE AIRPORT
YOU COULD TRY THE SAN JOSE PALACIO THE NUMBER
IS....506-220-2034
THE PEOPLE THERE ARE GREAT. I HAVE JUST RETURNED FROM 6
WEEKS IN COSTA RICA......DROP ME A LINE IF I CAN BE OF
FUTHER HELP. .........RABBIT......
Just to make it clear, since there are lots of buses that
stop at the airport coming from the coast and the mountain
towns, the ones to take are either Tuasa (red and black) or
the Stationwagons "los estation" (orange/yellow and white).
These buses make the Alajuela, airport, San Jose and return
run and the fare is 135 colones (less than 50 cents US).
There is a bus stop in front of the airport and when the
buses pull in a guy will yell out the destination (either
Alajuela or San Jose). The only restriction is you have to
be able to hold your luggage on your lap if the bus is full.
These buses don't take anybody standing up so they don't get
jam packed. Once you get to San Jose you can grab a cab to
your hotel which shouldn't cost more than about 400 colones
max if your hotel is in the downtown area. Just make sure
the driver turns on the meter (la maria)--the minimum fare
is 165 colones which is good for 1 kilometer, then it's like
100 colones for each additional kilometer, although there is
a surcharge for night time fares.
The buses are good, they will take you cheaply into the
city. But you are arriving at night time, and SJ can be a
pretty dangerous city. I have been to several Capital
cities of various Latin American countries, and I found SJ
to be one of the sketchies, in fact the sketchiest. Even
the Ticos warn about SJ at night. I would recommend a taxi
at that hour of the day. Just a precaution, especially if
travelling with luggage and/or alone. Have a great trip!
San Jose is getting dangerous enough in broad daylite. No
need to risk going there on your 1st nite here in CR-by the
time you get your luggage, get thru customs and into San
Jose by bus or taxi, it will be plenty late, and you will be
tired,loaded with luggage, and totally unfamiliar with the
surroundings and the potential dangers, plus it sounds like
you're traveling alone.
There is a hotel right by the airport and there are close by
options in Alajuela center as well.
Good luck, enjoy, but be careful to the max in SJ!