My research suggested that there were at least two bus companies going from San Jose to Heredia – TUASA web and BH web. Fortunately, they are near each other so I decided to take one to Heredia and another one back to San Jose. Notice they are both across from Parque La Merced.
Here are the times for buses leaving San Jose for Heredia from thebusschedule site for BH. All you need to know is they leave continuously so just show up.
Here is the TUASA bus. TUASA Routes. Note it goes through Heredia on the way to Alajuela and you need to tell the bus driver you are getting off early to pay the c520 instead of the full c560 fare.
It is not a long trip from San Jose to Heredia in distance (7 miles) but traffic made it take at least 30 minutes if not more.
On the way to Heredia, I noticed this guy with a cool product and set up. He was selling fresh squeezed orange juice but was also taking the oranges and using an “apple” peeler to remove the skin which made it easy to hold and eat. Our bus driver who was stopped in traffic ordered two.
One small confusing part was that TUASA does not have a terminal in Heredia but passes through so I had to decide where to stop and get off. If I had waited too long, I would have ended up in Alajuela. I suggest getting off where I did since it is a short walk DOWN hill to the central park.
I thought Heredia was a beautiful town with lots to see. I usually circle the town square to get the lay of the land. Like most CR towns, Heredia has church and park in the center which is always a great reference point to start. The church in each town is unique and tells the story of when the town was prosperous enough to build their own church. In addition, each town uses what ever material are local and affordable. Heredia’s main church seems to be quite old with strong construction and was well kept. The park was unusual compared to others we have visited. For example, the central park in San Ramon is mostly grass and trees while Heredia decided to pave much of their central park to give huge open plazas that must make for a great place for celebrations. Also, I wanted to mention that there are a few other parks around town I stumbled on that were smaller, unique and inviting.
When it was time to go back to San Jose, I boarded the BH bus on the south end of the central market shown on the map above. There is no real BH terminal, just lots of buses lined up on the street all headed to San Jose. The return trip cost c520, same as the cost to get to Heredia on TUASA. Here is the BH website again.
The return trip at 1pm did not take as long since traffic had died down. I got off early at Sabana Sur instead of going all the way back to the terminal.
Next time, I want to take the train to Heredia and experience that mode of transportation. Note, I think these ticket prices are dated.
Costa Rica By Bus 