Feria Verde
The Feria Verde was easily our top pick for dog friendly places in San Jose. From 7AM - 12:30PM every Saturday, a whole punch of people who like kids, dogs, natural products, healthy food and good music get together to hang out and enjoy these things. You can walk around with your dog and explore the for stalls - where you both can get free samples. Afterwards, sit down to have a coffee or lunch, then take fido for jog around the track or into the football field to run around and play with the other dogs. The Feria Verde is a Saturday morning must for all downtown dog owners. 

Barrio Aranjuez - Street 19 and Av 15
More info: 8884-1694; feriaverde.org
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La Sabana
Parque La Sabana is the biggest park in San José, meaning it easily has the most space for your dog to run. What's lacking is closed off areas, so La Sabana is best for dogs who are well behaved off leash. However, it's still a great option for going on runs or walks with your furry companion. 

National Park
Smack in downtown is a lovely green space where many local dog owners come to walk their pups. Although it is not an official off leash area, you’ll see more than a few off leash dogs, especially in the morning when the park is relatively quiet. 

Polideportivo Aranjuez
The field where the Feria Verde is held on Saturdays is the easy winner for best dog friendly run downtown. The football (soccer) field is fenced in, so many dog owners take their dogs here to play off the leash. It is the only real fenced off field that we found anywhere near the downtown area. The football field is also encircled by an asphalted track, making it perfect for owner+dog runs. 

San Pedro Dog Park 
I have to include the dog park because someone will inevitably google "Dog Park San José." They will see this park, and they will get excited. If your dog is small and likes running dog agility courses, stay excited! If your dog is big and would rather run around and play with other dogs who are not small, then perhaps skip this one. The park itself is pretty small (not ideal for long legged dogs to run), and unfortunately most of the (little) dog owners that frequent here were not keen on their pups playing with our very big dog. 

​Mantras
Mantras is everything friendly. Vegetarians, vegans, kids, parents and dogs are all welcome at this Escalante oasis. We had a very lovely brunch here with our pup hanging out on the indoor/outdoor back patio. The residents of San José are so friendly towards animals, that we often find our dog ends up a tourist attraction in her own right. 

Costa Rica Brewing Company.
Sunshine, craft beers, picnic tables and a fido friendly lawn - need we say more? Although really it's much more of a "drink your beer with your dog by your side" than a "run around and play" kind of place, we still considered the Costa Rica Brewing Company a great destination for pet-owning beer lovers in San Jose.

Cafe Miel Garage
The new location of Café Miel in the Amon neighborhood is a perfect pet friendly hang. The counter where you order is located directly on the sidewalk, as are several of the benches for seating, so you don’t even have to enter inside to enjoy your delicious coffee or frozen smoothie concoction. Great for those whose dogs are still learning table manners. 

La Ventanita Meraki Burger
The same goes for La Ventanita Meraki as goes for Café Miel - sidewalk ordering and eating means that dogs can never be turned away. However, keeping our pup from trying to steal the delicious juicy hamburgers proved much more difficult than it was to keep her out of our coffees. For experienced dog owners only. 
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Join a Walk at the Territorio de Zaguates (The Land of the Strays)

This non-profit no kill animal shelter center has been rescuing pups in Costa Rica for nearly a decade. The land of the strays currently has about 800 residents. The Land of the Strays hosts a three hour hike thorough the hills of Heredia with their pack, taking place monthly or bi monthly. Dog lovers are invited to join free of charge. The hope is that attendees will forming new bonds, thus encouraging adoptions. Walks take place from 9am -12:30 PM, and shuttles are offered from San José up to the hills for a few dollars.

Check the Facebook page for up to date information on dates of the upcoming walks. 

San José, Costa Rica is no longer just for visiting the airport or passing through on your travels from one coast to the next. 

While we started to see a cultural shift 5 years ago the past two have shown a real change in locals' opinions of the city and their desire to work on its potential as an adorable, culturally vibrant and livable city. Many new projects are underway and we can't wait to see what the next two years will bring. In the meantime we have created a list of 10 reasons to visit San José now. 

1. Walkable
The entire size of the downtown area is about 2 miles in length. Streets are on a grid, and finally there are street signs to help visitors get around. There are 2 main pedestrian-only routes down Avenida Central and Avenida 4 for sightseeing. There are many historic and tasty treasures hidden on the side streets of these paths so we recommend any of our city walking tours to get a real look at the history and new developments of the city. 

2. Nighttime Views
San José sits in a valley and if you can get high enough you can see the lights rising up the mountainsides in every direction. Our favorite choice in downtown is the restaurant on the 17th floor of the Holiday Inn at Parque Morazan. The food is ok and a little more expensive than usual so maybe pop up right at 6:00 for sunset and early drinks and appetizers, or dessert at the end of the night. 

3. Affordable Shows
At any moment downtown you can catch concerts and theater shows for a reasonable price. The National Theater offers short performances Tuesdays at noon and Thursdays at 5 for under $8 a person. International acts perform at the National Stadium and Teatro Melico Salazar for usually much less than a ticket in the US or Europe. If you speak Spanish there are dozens of small theaters for live performance and stand-up comedy such as on the Teatro Urbano on the south side of the Plaza de la Democracia. Club Vertigo, El Lobo Estepario, Latino Rock, Steinvorth and Hoxton are also great for live music and DJs. 

4. Microbrew Beers
It has been an uphill battle for small brewers to bring beer to the local market between fighting the monopoly beer company La Cervecería and getting Ticos to try something new. Finally, gastropubs are opening and featuring these brewers. An entrepreneur just hosted the first Oktoberfest and this year saw the second annual beer tasting festival. Our food tour gets you 10% off a beer tasting sampler at one of the new gastropubs. 

5. Century-old Architecture
Downtown neighborhoods continue to clean up and many historic sites have experienced some form of restoration. A stroll through many streets in the immediate center and Barrio Amon can take you back in time to see the direct European influence and to appreciate the luxuries people had in such a small pueblo. 

6. Green Fashion Design
Downtown boutiques display costa ricans' environmental conscienceness via fashion design with recycled fabrics and materials. Tienda Eñe always provides a look at the newest trends in this field. 

7. La Sabana City Park
Originally the airport, this city park, now swallowed by urban sprawl, provides a green escape from the noisy city streets. One can run on the marked trails, speed skate on the rink, swim at the public pool or visit the free art history museum on the eastern end. On the weekends you can people watch or join others in pic- up soccer games or sponsored aerobic dance classes. 

8. Street Art
Growing as a popular art form, incredible graffiti murals decorate different areas of the city. A new program is even commissioning artists to paint the metal doors of downtown shops, turning ugly security panels into visual stories of San Jose. Works still exist from the Transitarte festival held 2 years ago at the Legistlative Assembly. 

9. Free Festivals
At almost any time of year one can find a free festival happening downtown. Every Sat. except the Christmas holiday season you can visit Parque Morazan and Parque Espana for free dance and art classes, and catch concerts. December to April are host to Topes, Festival of Lights, Rock el Farolito, FIA and Transitarte. 

10. Day Trip Hub
San José is centrally located in the country and if you have 5 or less days it might be easiest to base yourself in the city and take day trips out to volcanoes, birding, hiking, rafting and beaches. On a side note, we think the Arenal Volcano and Monteverde are two places to stay overnight. Many agencies sell these as a 1 day trip but it's 4-6 hours each way. For closer destinations see our recommendations. 

From time to time I get to guest write with the English-speaking newspaper The Tico Times. 

Last Sunday I had the pleasure to finally participate in a biking event with the 3-year-established Chepe Cletas, a group working on promoting zero transmissions as a way to create a better San Jose. 

After being temporarily gifted a bike I took off with this group to see how the group has advanced and to see for myself what changes were happening because of Chepe Cletas and what challenges still exist. 

You can read my review of riding a bike in San Jose. Overall, I had a great time socially and look forward to the next event, but I realize we are farther off from a bike-friendly San Jose than I was hoping. 

Our walking tours strive to show tourists and expats the history and new advancements that give this city great potential. Chepe Cletas is also working towards the same goal. We want a healthy San Jose, a city people can be proud of at every turn, but it will take the effort of more than a few hundred people to create this change. Please continue to support downtown businesses and activities -- We get the city we deserve. 

In as little as two months riding the bus in the metro area will become a little less sloppy and will start to resemble other metro area technologies that expats and tourists are familiar with. Eight inter-city bus lines will begin to accept payment via a chip on your phone (TAG) or an electronic card. 

Many do not realize that each route here is owned by a different company. This makes it more difficult for one central governing body to distribute all route information and maintain well-marked bus stops, which is the biggest problem for visitors, 'how the hell do I find the bus stops or get anywhere in SJO on public transport!' 

While there won't be a decent 'bus map' coming out anytime soon, this new payment method will be a foundation-laying collaboration between the Santa Ana, Escazú, Moravia, Curridabat, Tres Ríos, barrio Luján, Sabana-Cementerio and Estadio bus routes. 

Users can obtain the chip or card for free in a Banco Nacional or pulperias located near the bus stops. A minimum charge of 6.000 is required for either, and the route price will be deducted each time you board one of these buses. This will help riders more easily track their transport expenditures, and help the drivers move more quickly without having to count change at each stop, not to mention the extra security for drivers not having as much cash on the bus. 

This product has already been tested over two years, most specifically with the 'seniors' card currently accepted on buses by the product developer Corporación de Investigación Electrónica. The company is also trying to work with the cell phone companies to reach an agreement to provide extra free minutes or some kind of incentive to users with the cell phone chip. 

There are many nuances that have made San Jose feel like such an 'other world' experience for visitors and I would say paying with cash and even receiving exact change on the buses is one. With this change we'll see better efficiencies but a little part of a more simple (yet somehow more complicated) way of life will disappear. Can I be happy and sad about this? If you want specific directions on how to travel by bus in San Jose please contact our concierge staff.