The end of the year in Costa Rica starting to look good. A couple weeks back, when word got around that Guns N Roses would be doing a concert in Costa Rica as part of their Not in This Lifetime tour, everyone was impressed. But today, even more so. Local producer Move Concerts (Evenpro) announced they have Metallica booked for November. A stop on their Hardwired 2016 tour.

Rumors had been surfacing since the beginning of this year that another Metallica concert in Costa Rica was in the works, but nothing had been formally announced until now. During the weekend several tour flyers leaked on social networks, and they showed a stop in San Jose, Costa Rica.

Cat out of the bag, the rumor was confirmed by Move. November 5, 2016: Metallica live at the National Stadium in San Jose, Costa Rica.

Not the first time we see Metallica in Costa Rica

This would be the second time Metallica visits Costa Rica. The first one was back in 2010 as part of the Metallica World Magnetic Tour. The setlist for that concert included Creeping Death, For Whom the Bell Tolls, Wherever I May Roam, Fade to Black, Sad but True, One, Master of Puppets, Nothing Else Matters, and Enter Sandman, to name just the bigger ones they played.

What’s in store for Metallica’s Hardwired tour in Costa Rica? Remains to be seen. But we’ll probably see classics like One and Enter Sandman once more.. You can never get too much of those. As well as material from the new Hardwired… to Self Destruct album.

Lineup for this tour has the usual band members: James Hetfield, Lars Ulrich, Kirk Hammett, and Robert Trujillo.

The National Stadium: the best place for seeing Metallica in Costa Rica

The National Stadium in downtown San Jose has become a hallmark location for the best concerts in Costa Rica. It’s got room for 35.000 seated spectators, which seems like too little when you compare it to other world arenas, but you have to remember this is a country with 5 million people in it. 35.000 seats is more than enough to keep any amount of local Metallica fans happy and comfortable, not to mention that most of those seats are likely to be empty: you’d have to be insane not to go for a stage area ticket in this concert.

So, where do you get tickets for Metallica in Costa Rica?

So far according to Move Concerts, there’s only one place where you can get tickets for Metallica in Costa Rica: and that’s online at eticket.cr. But, they’ve also said that tickets are going to be available at “participating sales points”, which probably means Walmart is getting in on the deal and you’ll be able to get your tickets at Servimas centers.

And, no date has been set yet for ticket sales. It’ll probably be in the next few weeks. Something similar happened with Guns and Roses: a couple of weeks of silence went by before the event producer actually said something about tickets and where to get them. And only because the information leaked previously on the official GnR website. So we’re probably going to have to wait a few weeks before we actually have any information on ticket availability and prices for the Metallica concert in Costa Rica. On the other hand, it might be less than a couple of weeks: both Guns N Roses and Metallica during the same month has fans thinking hard about whether to do both or just one. And if Evenpro wants to get the most sales for their concert, they’re not very likely to wait to get those tickets out there.

Of course as soon as we hear anything, we’ll have it posted here.

What if I want to do both Metallica and Guns N Roses?

You absolutely can go for both concerts, if you want to see both Metallica and Guns N Roses in Costa Rica. The concerts have different producers and ticket sales points, but sure, you can do both. Guns N Roses is going for $60-$150 depending on the seat you choose, Metallica is likely to be in that same price range.

The Metallica concert is on November 5th, and the Guns N Roses concert is on November 26th. That leaves about two weeks between them both that you can use to travel the country and see the sights. If you can manage a month off from work and take a trip down, you can do the Metallica concert upon arrival and Guns N Roses as you’re leaving. And why not, while you’re at it you might as well stay a bit longer and the festivities and the dry weather during the month of December.

Costa Rica is a very popular tourist destination, especially during the end of the year. So if you’re planning on making the trip for Metallica or Guns N Roses, you should make your reservations early on. Hopefully around October, though October might be a bit late given that high season starts in the middle of November.

Can we be certain that the Metallica concert in Costa Rica won’t be a flop?

Well, as with anything in showbiz, you can never be 100% certain that it won’t be a flop. With this Metallica concert, the show itself won’t be a flop, that’s for sure. Metallica’s known to put on a good show no matter where they are, and even more when they’re touring for a new album, like with Hardwired… to Self Destruct.

Things that have gone wrong in past concerts (Guns N Roses 2010 comes to mind) mainly had to do with the producers themselves: they bit off more than they could chew, and the show didn’t go well as a result. But, Evenpro (now Move Concerts) has done quite a few large shows in the past, and they’re recognized as one of the best producers in the country. So as far as it goes, nobody’s presently doubting Metallica in Costa Rica is going to happen, and it’s going to be a hell of a ride.

Where can I stay if I’m visiting Costa Rica to see Metallica?

There’s a whole bunch of places you can stay if you’re visiting Costa Rica for the Metallica concert. The big advantage of the concert being in dowtown San Jose is that you can get there from anywhere in the metro area, in an hour or so at the most. So that opens up a lot of possibilities for places to stay.

Plus, the Metallica concert is on a Saturday, which means traffic will be much more tame than during the week. The downtown area tends to empty out on saturdays around noon, which makes for a great day for a concert in the National Stadium.

You can book your favorite place to stay, be it a hostel, hotel, AirBnB, or whatever, almost anywhere in San Jose, and will find it easy to get to the concert. Some places you might want to check out that have easy access to the National Stadium:

Anywhere in downtown San Jose. Barrio Amon is a popular neighborhood that’s got lots of places to stay. Paseo Colon also has some accessible hostels.

Barrio Escalante

Barrio Otoya

Barrio Tournon

Any of the “Sabana” locations (Sabana Norte, Sabana Sur, Sabana Oeste)

San Pedro

Curridabat

Rohrmoser

Escazu

Any of those locations will have you less than 20 minutes from the stadium. Best part is, take any bus line you find, and they’ll drop you off downtown, 10 to 15 minutes walking distance to the stadium.

If you need a ride, Uber works in Costa Rica, and it works pretty well. During important concerts such as this one, they offer special bargain rates.

Concert rules and such

The usual rules for any concert apply… no cameras, no video, no weapons, the usual. No alcohol is allowed inside the stadium, or in the surrounding areas. And if you’re travelling with a backpack, you’re probably better off leaving it at the hotel, especially if it’s big or has metal frames attached.

So, think you’ll make the Metallica concert in Costa Rica? Or even better, Metallica and then Guns N Roses in Costa Rica?