Want shopping tips to know where to find the best shopping area's in Costa Rica. Ask any Tica and the response will be the San José area. Most locals, with the colones to shop, travel to San José for the best selection and bargains.
Whether looking for clothing, exporting fine woodworks, Latin art, or tourist souvenirs the best shopping is in and around San José.
The Central valley has three large malls providing great selection, nice ambiance, but few bargains. The Multiplaza mall chain has two locations.
The Multiplaza in Escazu is between the airport and downtown San José. This area is a favorite of expatriates and is home to the best restaurants and an excellent selection of hotels as well as bed and breakfast options.
Multiplaza del Este is in Zapote a suburb of San José and is approximately 15 minutes from downtown. This mall is similar to the Escazu location.
Terra Mall between San José and Cartargo is about 20 minutes from downtown and provides a good variety of stores and a central place to find what you need. No real bargains in my opinion.
For fun shopping try Ropa Americana. This chain is found around the central valley and provides American and a few Italian brands in a sundry (not organized by size) fashion. Here you will also find Tico products as well. Many of the products on sale are returns and second hand so select your products carefully!
In downtown San Joséthe Avenida Central area includes La Casona a 2 1/2 story building containing souvenirs for the family.
The city of Sarchi is all about street shopping for souvenirs, furniture of all sorts, and home of the Ox cart factory.
Another city, Moravia, provides street shopping as well and includes La Rueda with some nice stuff for a great time browsing and experiencing the Latin culture of the area.
In the Escazu area a famous woodworking factory called Biesanz Woodworks make signed creations that are one of a kind. These hardwood products are seasoned and hand crafted by Barry Biesanz and his employees using beautiful hardwood polished, smoothed, using only organic finishes.
Included in his list of customers are 4 US presidents, Pope John Paul II, Queen Sophia of Spain, China's prime minister Jiang, and every Latin American president.
Shopping for touristitems can be cheap or expensive depending on the location and your choice of products. Remember to only buy products easily imported back to your home country! Fun shopping means identifying the goods you want before you go!
Do you know of a great shopping area in Costa Rica? Please contact us and let us know. We want to include all the great Costa Rica shopping areas and bargains to be found for visitors.
