Chillout Hostel Barrio Escalante · Hostel in San Jose Costa Rica
Sleeping inside the city's restaurant row
About this stay
Barrio Escalante is where the capital eats, and this hostel is inside it rather than a walk away, with Alma de Árbol four minutes off and the architecture faculty a minute in the other direction. The street tree cover here is heavy enough that the birds are audible over the traffic in the early morning, which is not something most hostels in a capital city can claim. Kitchens are available in some rooms, which keeps the cost down in a district where the restaurants are the attraction and priced accordingly. Free Wi-Fi runs throughout and the property is smoke-free. The Historical Museum Dr. Rafael Angel Calderon Guardia is eight minutes on foot. The airport is twenty-nine minutes by taxi with a shuttle available, and the score is eight point six out of ten.
- Hostel in the restaurant district
- Kitchen in some rooms
- Free Wi-Fi and airport shuttle
- Smoke-free property
Our take
Light sleepers should think twice, because a hostel inside the restaurant district means the street stays awake later than the guests do. In return you get the best eating in San José at the end of the block, kitchens in some rooms for the nights you cook instead, an eight-minute walk to a serious museum and a twenty-nine minute airport run. Social travellers and food-driven visitors get the most from it, and I would book it for exactly that profile.
- ✓Request a room with kitchen access, only some of them have it and it changes what the stay costs.
- ✓Eat at Alma de Árbol four minutes away once, then cook the rest, Escalante prices add up quickly.
- ✓Take a room at the back if you sleep lightly, the restaurant row runs late most nights of the week.
Why we love it
- Inside Barrio Escalante, not near it
- Kitchens available in some rooms
- Eight minutes to the Calderon Guardia museum
- Twenty-nine minute airport transfer
Why guests love itI would pick Chillout Hostel for the address more than the beds. It sits in Barrio Escalante itself, four minutes on foot from Alma de Árbol so dinner is a short walk. Some rooms have kitchens, Wi-Fi is free, an airport shuttle and a smoke-free policy are listed, and the Historical Museum Dr. Rafael Angel Calderon Guardia is eight minutes away on foot. The airport is twenty-nine minutes by taxi. Rated 8.6 on 122 ratings.