The last few days of 2018 are here and Costa Rica begins the celebration with the famous horse parade “tope” this Wednesday, December 26.

The tope takes the streets of downtown San José, so if you use the bus service take this into consideration as the bus stops change this day, and, if you don’t want to get stuck in traffic or rerouted avoid going to San José. The tope begins at noon, but the roads are closed early in the morning, this includes Paseo Colón, Second Avenue and Plaza Víquez.

On Thursday, enjoy the San José Carnival, full of music, color and dance. This year the carnival promises more variety and surprises, in past years it has offered motorcycle parade and vintage car parades, as well as the “mascaradas” and bands. The carnival kicks off at 2 p.m. in front of the National Theather and will continue towards the Toyota in Paseo Colón.

The popular Zapote Fair began on Christmas Day and will extend through January 6 with roller coasters and mechanical games for children and adults, food stands, bars, games, concerts and, of course, the bullring with the traditional “toros a la tica” Costa Rican style bullfighting. If you have never witnessed this in person and you want to get a real taste of a Costa Rican tradition, this is an event you can’t miss.

Enjoy the end of the year with this taste of Costa Rican flavor.