Central Zone of Costa Rica

Main Attraction of Central Zone in Costa Rica

NATIONAL THEATER

The National Teather is considered San José´s most impressive public building. Built in 1890, the National Theater is the center of Costa Rican culture and stands on the south side of the Plaza de la Cultura. Street 3 & 5, Central Avenue & 2. The outside is elegant though not particularly impressive. Most of the decoration of the is national monument was in hands of foreign artistans, where italians played the most important roll. The marble staircases, gilded ceilings, and parquet floors of local hardwoods are worth seeing. Inside the most interesting interior there are paintings of Costa Rica, of which the famous is a huge canvas showing coffee harvesting and export.

Treetop and Trail Adventure

The companies and organizations of treetop and trail adventure have developed facilities for visitors to enjoy adventure activities on nature trails and in the forest canopy: INBIO in Santo Domingo de Heredia; the Central American Livestock Farming School in Balsa de Atenas; and the TURU BA-RI Tropical Park in Turrubares, all offer activities with an ecotourism focus. These include gardens with exotic plant species, a herbarium, a garden maze and butterfly garden. The Butterfly Garden on the outskirts of Varablanca, offers trails linking several waterfalls on the La Paz River, as well as a hummingbird garden.

Recreational Cycling

The Central Valley offers the more active traveler a wide variety of scenic roads and adventure or leisure sites that are ideal for regular or mountain bikes. Routes of interest include San Antonio de Escazú to the University for Peace, Turrialba to La Suiza, and Cañón del Guarco to Copey de Dota.

Central Market

The Central market is interesting to visit if you´ve never been to a Latin American market, although it is a little tame compared to the market of many other countries. Nevertheless, it is crowded and bustling, has a variety of produce and other goods ranging from live turkeys to leather work for sale. Some of the cheapest meals in town are served there. The Central Market is at Avenida Central & 1, Street 6 & 8. Beware of pickpockets in these areas.

National Museum

The National Museum is housed in the Bellavista Fortress, the old army headquarters. The small museum displays Costa Rican Archaeology, some jade and gold. You will find the pre-Columbian history of the country in impressive pottery and artifacts. The museum is on Street 17, Central Avenue & 2.

Gold Museum

The Gold Museum houses a dazzling collection of pre-Columbian gold pieces and is well worth seeing. There is also a small numismatic museum and a display of Costa Rican art. The museum is in the basement of the Plaza de la Cultura complex on Street 5, Central Avenue & 2, under the tourist information office.

JADE MUSEUM

The Jade Museum is perhaps Costa Rica´s most famous museum. The Jade Museum houses one of the world´s largest collection of American jade and hundreds of pieces are on display. Many pieces are mounted with a backlight so that the exquisite translucent quality of this gemstone can be fully appreciated. There are also archaelogical exhibits of ceramics, stonework, and gold, arranged by cultural regions. The museum is on the 11th floor of the National Insurance Institute at 7th Avenue, Street 9 & 11.

Others Attractions in the central zone

• Irazu Volcano in Cartago
• Poas Volcano in Alajuela
• Chirripo National Park
• White water rafting
• Canopy Tour
• Bars, Restaurants and more...