Believe it or not Costa Rica has its own prison that is situated out on its very own island similar to that of other famous prisons around the globe such as the French Devil Island and the Alcatraz prison in San Francisco, United States.
The prison, known as ley 5469, lies on the island of San Lucas which is part of the Puntarenas province and has been made available for public access for tourists to check out and remember some of Costa Rica’s history. Only 5.5% of the island has been made available for tourist activities, which includes the prison, and renovation will begin to install a museum, a restaurant, toilet facilities and various retail outlets.
San Lucas was shut in 1992 and had the reputation of being one of the hardest prisons in Costa Rica. There are many tales of betrayal, gangs and violence from within the walls from prisoners who spent large majorities of their life behind these walls. The prison is essentially made up of under ground cells from where the prison community helped to run their own lives by fishing, farming and doing chore under the watchful eye of the guards.
When the prison will be open for tourists remains unclear, but perhaps within a year or so you will be able to complete deviate yourself from the main attractions of wildlife, beaches and canopy tours and learn a bit about some of Costa Rica’s gruesome past.
