Gay Bars/Clubs

From Costa Rica Travel Guide: Vacation and Travel tips

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The majority of gay & lesbian bars, clubs, and discos in Costa Rica are located in downtown San José. They offer live DJ music (Latin, hip-hop, trance, house, top 40’s, and techno dance music), entertainment and shows. These bars are visited by students, tourists, couples and ticos in general, and they are a sure bet for a good party!

In the streets located around the downtown bars, you will see a lot of transvestite prostitutes. The neighborhood, although dingy, is decidedly gay and relatively safe to walk around in the early hours of the evening. But anyone leaving the bars after dark should catch a legal taxi back to the hotel.


If you know of a gay bar, gay club, or gay disco in Costa Rica that is not on the list please let us know. If you see a listing here that is no longer around or the information does not portray them right please let us know.

-- Our Readers Reviews on Clubs & Bars in CR-- There are no dress codes anywhere. What you are used to in the states is not what your gonna find in Costa Rica. The clubs here are so/so. The one with the best music for me , more house music , is Club Oh! on Saturday night. If ur gonna go I would get there around 11 and get VIP for 9000 colones.. (about 18 bucks) its all you can drink til 1:30am. - Rick C. temporarily from San Jose, Costa Rica As far as a dress code: usually at night wear long pants (jeans are fine) and a collared shirt. Be very very careful at night if you are alone. Try to stay with a group or where there are people around because the city can be dangerous. - Gary The good thing about gay bars and discos in SJ is that they are quite close to each other, Puchos and Bochinche are even within walking distance. Even though the area around the bars is safe, I wouldn't recommend walking long distances and in lonely places by yourself... Every bar offers a different ambiance and is therefore frequented by a different crowd. - Fabián from San Jose, Costa Rica

Gay Bars, Gay Clubs & Gay Discoteques in Quepos (Manuel Antonio)

There’s not really any gay night life going on in the town of Quepos and Manuel Antonio area other then the new bar called Liquid Lounge or the occasional gay party put on by one of the local gay hotels.

Liquid Lounge

• Liquid Lounge -

Address: 200 meters before Mar y Sombra which is connected to Cabinas Piscis
Phone: (506) 2777-5158
Website: http://liquidloungecr.com
E-mail: no email

Arcos Irus

• Arcos Irus -

-- Our Readers Reviews -- A very popular after-hours bar, it is very mixed. After most bars close a lot of the gay crowd goes there. - Jose C. from San Jose, Costa Rica

San Jose Gay Bars, Gay Clubs & Gay Discoteques

Top - San Jose

• A touch of class in San Jose. Top San Jose is a bar / restaurant. Open from 4 p.m. to 2 a.m.

Address: 150 mts. north of Hotel Eruopa on 0 street between 7th adn 9th avenue in San Jose, Costa Rica
Phone: (506) 2223-0004
Website: http://TopSanJose.com
E-mail: info@topsanjose.com

La Avispa

• La Avispa is a legendary Costa Rican gay nightclub. Gay or straight, this is the club for you. So long as you are stylish, this is a great place to visit. One of the best places to visit in downtown San Jose, Costa Rica. La Avispa is the oldest gay disco in Costa Rica and has been open for over 30 years. Great Latin music and ambiance will help you dance the night away. La Avispa is a lesbian-owned two story bar that features two dance floors, big screen TV, restaurant, and pool tables. La Avispa draws gay men, especially Tuesday and Sunday nights (large twink gathering on Sundays). La Avispa has ladies night twice a month catering to the lesbians and on those night no men are allowed in the place. The nights do change from time to time so check their website for dates. Closed Mondays. Best day: Sundays. Cover $4

CHECK IT OUT...Lots more about La Avispa - plus Video of La Avispa

El Bochinche:

• El Bochinche is a two level (small) gay club in San Jose, Costa Rica. It has a Restaurant, Bar & Dance floor. This is a fun little club, great BEATS (mostly top 40, electronic, & Latin), atmosphere, good drag shows, and plenty of dancing. An upscale Drinking Bar pretty popular among the professional gay Tico Yuppies for a night of fancy cloths and flirting. The bar caters towards more of the gay twink crowd where the guys barely look old enough to get in.
  entrance $5 to $7 depending on the day and time
  Wednesday to Sunday open from 8 p.m. - 3 a.m. (Friday & Saturday open till 5 a.m.)

CHECK IT OUT...More about El Bochinche Plus Video of Bochinche
CHECK IT OUT...michael alan's Blog REVIEW of Bochinche's

Pucho's Night Club:

• An Icon of the gay life in Costa Rica where everyone goes, yet no one will admit to it. Drag shows every night and nude strippers that take EVERYTHING off leaving nothing to the imagination....and offer "private dances" in little stalls, so you can imagine how crazy they get… As they dance, they play with themselves, and don't be surprised if their dick ends up in your drink..... There is a Dark room on the back area of the bar. Best day of the week: Tuesdays. Weekends open bar from 9:00 PM till 1:00 AM. Cover: $10.

michael alan's REVIEW of Pucho's
Address: Calle 11 and Avenida 8 San Jose, Costa Rica
Phone: (506) 2256-1147
Website: http://www.PuchosNightClub.com

-- Our Readers Reviews -- Lots of fun across the street from EL Bochinche, nude guys dance here. - Jose C. from San Jose, Costa Rica Friday/Saturday nights best after around 11PM or so – Viagra induced nude dancers – some better than others. Has a dark room, but never used it – the reputation is the room has petty thiefs from time-to-time. The crowd is usually older and the dancers are willing to be touched/sucked on stage. A little more raunchy – not negatively, but raunchy fun. - Walter M. from San Jose, Costa Rica My favorite bar in San Jose - Awesome full frontal strip shows on Tuesdays/Saturdays. - Joshua B. from Chicago, Illinois If Bochinche were caviar, Puchos would be the dirty can that's left after you eat the caviar, or at least used to be. That doesn't mean it's not worth a visit. There's a raunchy stripper show and a very small darkroom in the back, the crowd here is older and less interested in designer clothes and perfume. Good days to visit Puchos are anyday during the week, not really busy on weekends. - Fabián from San Jose, Costa Rica Puchos is really fun it gets a little crowded but is nice they have full frontal strippers and drag show pretty much all the time they have open bar...or all u can drink for about $12 bucks i think i haven't been there in a few but i know it hasn't changed at all a lot of tico guys not the cutest ones probably but i dont know ur taste for guys so...... - Francisco A. from San Jose, Costa Rica Full frontal gay stripper club, kinda fun if you wanna see a lot of horny old guys drooling all over the strippers, it's fun if you go with some locals (someone you can trust of course). There are a bunch of gold-diggers there as well. The place is OK though if you're a smart guy. - David G. Add your 2 cents...

CLUB OH! - Formerly known as Déjà Vu:

• Club Oh! is a mostly gay crowd. Their music tending towards electronic, U.S./U.K. dance club hits, techno-heavy disco with two dance floors and weekly drag shows. The weekends are packed with good looking guys as this is the place to see and be seen for the local gay Costa Ricans. Get there early or you'll wait on line for awhile. The neighborhood is sketchy so you'll definitely want to take a taxi to and from the bar. Open bar from 10:00 PM till 1:00 AM. Don't miss the Midnight shows. Cover with open bar in VIP lounge. Also Club Oh's! VIP area has its own DJ: $ 15

CHECK IT OUT...Lots more about Club Oh! - plus Video of Club Oh!
michael alan's REVIEW of Club Oh!

Al Despiste Bar:

• Al Despiste Bar is a popular hangout in the Zapote part of San Jose, Costa Rica. Al Despiste is well known for the "bocas", great variety of tasty foods. Live music and activities all the week. Karaoke on Fridays and Gogo dancers on Saturdays.

Open Wednesday through Saturday, 7 p.m. to 2 a.m.; Sunday, 6 p.m. to 10 p.m.
Phone: (506) 2234-59-56
Address:next to Universal, Multiplaza del Este, in front of Mudanzas Mundiales. Zapote, San José, Costa Rica

-- Our Readers Reviews -- We went for their 5th year anniversary and had a blast... Although, it's not a club/bar like you would see at El Bochinche, Club Oh! or Avispa. This is more of a local neighborhood gay dive bar. - Marcello M. from Phoenix, Arizona Add your 2 cents...