A jam-packed shocking-pink building offering everything from roulette to slot machines and what has to be the highest density of prostitutes in the city.
Casino del Rey
San José
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Lonely Planet's must-see attractions
0.19 MILES
On the southern side of the Plaza de la Cultura resides the Teatro Nacional, San José’s most revered building. Constructed in 1897, it features a columned…
19.69 MILES
This polished storybook garden complex just east of Volcán Poás offers the most easily digestible cultural experience in the Central Valley and is the…
0.18 MILES
This museum houses the world’s largest collection of American jade (pronounced ‘ha-day’ in Spanish), with an ample exhibition space of five floors…
Museo de Oro Precolombino y Numismática
0.16 MILES
This three-in-one museum houses an extensive collection of Costa Rica's most priceless pieces of pre-Columbian gold and other artifacts, including…
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0.51 MILES
Though josefinos mainly do their shopping at chain supermarkets, San José’s crowded indoor markets retain an old-world, authentic feel. This main market,…
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Catarata del Toro & the Blue Falls
25.75 MILES
Find a beautiful 90m-tall waterfall that cascades into a volcanic crater (free for overnight guests) and two trail options through virgin forest (one 4…
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27.61 MILES
In front of the Church of San Rafael, this park was a normal plaza until the 1960s, when a gardener named Evangelisto Blanco became inspired to shave the…
0.24 MILES
Entered via a beautiful glassed-in atrium housing an exotic butterfly garden, this museum provides a quick survey of Costa Rican history. Exhibits of pre…
Nearby San José attractions
0.08 MILES
Since the 1920s, this large metallic dome perched atop columns in Parque Morazán has sheltered concerts, dance parties and political rallies.
0.08 MILES
Parque Morazán is named for Francisco Morazán, the 19th-century general who attempted to unite the Central American nations under a single flag (for his…
0.11 MILES
One of downtown San José's most striking buildings, this century-old two-story metal edifice on Parque España's western edge was prefabricated in Belgium,…
0.12 MILES
Surrounded by heavy traffic, Parque España may be small, but it becomes a riot of birdsong every day at sunset when the local avian population comes in to…
5. Museo de Oro Precolombino y Numismática
0.16 MILES
This three-in-one museum houses an extensive collection of Costa Rica's most priceless pieces of pre-Columbian gold and other artifacts, including…
6. Centro Nacional de la Cultura
0.17 MILES
Housed in the historical National Liquor Factory, this cultural center contains the museum of art and design, a video museum, a gallery and two theaters.
0.17 MILES
On Parque España’s northeast corner, this elegant colonial-style yellow mansion (closed to the public) houses the Foreign Affairs Ministry. The ceiba tree…
0.17 MILES
This architecturally unremarkable concrete plaza in the heart of downtown is usually packed with locals slurping ice-cream cones and admiring the wide…