The Zen of Navigating Costa Rica's Unique Address System: Embracing the Challenge of getting Around a Country Where the Streets have No Names

Nearly 30 years ago, I was a tour leader in Costa Rica and had to quickly learn how to navigate a country known for its lack of street names and address numbers. Directions often sounded like this:

“Go 200 meters north, take a left at the restaurant that used to be called Soda Los Laureles, then 50 meters west. It’s a grey house with a metal fence…”

I adopted a Zen approach. Asking strangers for directions became a daily ritual, and I embraced the sense of connection and community it fostered. Some attribute this unique system to Costa Rica's agrarian past, when verbal directions were enough in a simpler time.

One of our drivers explained it like this: "It's all about Zen... you just have to feel your way from place to place and practice plenty of patience." Costa Ricans don’t shy away from asking for directions; instead, they welcome the opportunity to interact with others and share knowledge.

For many foreigners, however, navigating this system on their own can be daunting. Enter technology. With smartphone apps like Waze, our drivers found a new way to navigate Costa Rica's winding roads more efficiently. Still, the tradition of using landmarks and verbal directions continues.

Costa Rica, with a population of over 4.5 million people and a reputation for good education and high living standards, now faces the need for a more standardized address system. Fortunately, change is coming. The government is working on a project to modernize the address system, assigning building and house numbers, street names, and ZIP codes nationwide.

While this marks the end of an era of Zen-like navigation, it also signals the beginning of a new era of convenience for residents and visitors. In the future, finding your way around Costa Rica may no longer require intuition. Instead, you'll be able to relax on a beach, knowing that getting there was as simple as typing an address into your smartphone.