The preparations for Thursday’s grand opening of the Palmares Festival are in their final stages. More than 250 police officers, 150 Red Cross workers and 100 transit police have been designated to maintain order among the thousands of visitors at the 12-day event.
This is the epitome of Costa Rican Civic Parties, with 5 mega-bars, 25 food stands, a carnival celebration, horse parade, rides, concerts and daily bull fights. This year’s concerts will feature reggaeton stars Jowell and Randy as well as Tito El Bambino, Spanish bachata group Aventura, Argentinean rock band Enanitos Verdes, and Mexican rock group Moderatto. Mexican singer Alicia Villareal will be the featured performer at the Jan. 19th Ranchero Festival, which includes 11 other singers at an indoor arena.
The opening day, Jan. 17th, will include a concert by Colombian singer Fanny Lu in the Imperial Bar. Panamanian reggaeton trio Comando Tiburon will play the same night at the X-tragos Bar. And the stars will keep shining through the weekend with performances by Mexican rock group Molotov and reggaeton artist Heddy Love. Most mega-bars will charge between $10 and $14 to enter.
There will also be a series of sports competitions including an important 37 kilometer mountain bike race called the “Clasica Palmarin” and a minor league soccer tournament called the Copa Palmarin.
Overall, most people find these parties to be safer than the parties that just ended in Zapote, in the south east end of San Jose. The Palmares Civic Association (Asociación Cívica Palmareña), which organizes the event each year, said that the festival brings an important economic boost to the area.
While attending the parties are free, visitors must pay to enter the bull ring, mega-bars, rides, as well as the horse parade. Visitors are warned to be vigilant at the two parades and concerts when they could be the target of petty crime, however more police officers will be on hand those days to minimize any delinquency.
Last year, almost 2,000 people had to be attended by the Red Cross due to various medical problems. Thanks to an increased transit police presence, 60 drivers were detained for driving under the influence, and 1,900 traffic tickets were issued as well.
The transit police have been outspoken about their “zero tolerance” policy this year, and hope that there will be fewer problems. Officers will be positioned at all major exits to issue breathalyzer tests when necessary.
While Palmares is about one hour North West of San Jose, during these two weeks it could take about up to three hours to get to the parties by car or bus due to excessive traffic. With the strict traffic laws and high prices for parking ($6/day), many people opt to rent a bus from a private transportation agency, which will wait around until your party is ready for the return trip to the city. Alternatively, there are public buses (625 colones) departing every hour from 5am to 9pm from the Coca Cola bus station in the center of San Jose.
The official list of activities is as follows:
Thursday, Jan. 17
12:00pm TOPE : A Horse parade featuring the best show horses in Costa Rica and beyond. The event will be dedicated to star participant: the president of Honduras.
07:00 pm Rodeo
Friday, Jan.18
07:00 pm BULL FIGHTING a la Tico ($6 entrance)
Saturday, Jan. 19
09:00 am CLÁSICA PALMARIN, bike race begins.
07:00 pm FESTIVAL RANCHERO A special ranchero concert will feature Alicia Villarreal. (entrance $20 and up)
Sunday, Jan. 20
12:00pm INTERNATIONAL CONCERT. Featureing Zion and Joel
03:00 pm BULL FIGHTING a la Tico
07:00 pm Horseback riding championship in the bull ring.
Monday, Jan. 21
07:00 pm BULL FIGHTING a la Tico. Kids and Senior Citizens enter for free.
09:00 pm FIREWORKS.
Tuesday, Jan. 22
09:00 am CHILDREN’S FESTIVAL. Surprises for the chilren.
02:00 pm Children’s Bull Show.
07:00 pm Competition
09:00 pm FIREWORKS
Wednesday, Jan. 23
06:00 pm Female Soccer Tournament
07:00 pm BULL FIGHTING a la Tico
Thursday, Jan. 24
07:00 pm Horse Riding Exhibition.
Friday, Jan. 25
05:30 pm GRAND CARNAVAL. A carnaval parade complete with floats and carnaval costumes.
09:00 pm CONCERT featuring Costa Rican national music groups. Fireworks
Saturday, Jan. 26
03:00 pm 13,5 Km. Athletic Competition
07:00 pm BULL FIGHTING a la Tico.
Sunday, Jan. 27
12:00pm INTERNATIONAL CONCERT. Moderatto and Enanitos Verdes.
03:00 pm Horseback riding Championship.
07:00 pm BULL FIGHTING a la Tico.
Monday, Jan. 28
03:00 pm BULL FIGHTING a la Tico.
07:00 pm More bull fighting.
09:00 pm FIREWORKS. Lo más novedoso en Juegos Pirotécnicos
