This hotel just re-opened as a Crowne Plaza the day before my stay. It was formerly the Tryp Corobici. They have invested a lot in a facelift of the lobby and in updating the rooms. The rooms are now much nicer than before, though the bathrooms are still small and with the old steel bath tubs. The hotel is clean and the staff friendly and service oriented. The Corobici continues to have one of the best buffet breakfasts in San Jose.The location is very good for the airport or for downtown.

Our stay was only for one night after spending time in Jaco beach, since our flight left early in the morning and the hotel is only 15 minutes from the international airport. The hotel is going through some renovations, however it is very subtle. The hotel staff is friendly and helpful. Once escorted to our room, I noticed the many amentites that you should expect from a decent hotel. Coffee maker, iron board, many toiletries, in a clean environment. Now the best part...the bed is actually comfortable, and not rock hard...a far cry from all the other hotels I stayed at in Costa Rica, even the so called 4 star ones. The breakfast buffet is top notch, good selection and tastes good! Although the location is not central, downtown is only a short cab ride away. if you have to stay in san Jose, the Tryp Corobici is definately worth considering.

I stayed at the hotel for two weeks during October 2007 and must say, loved the experience immensely.

It's perfect for a business trip - easy access to the airport, and the rooms were terrific, buffet-breakfast was superb, and the staff were most helpful and friendly - from the porters to the cleaners and those serving you food in the dining room.

As for the hotel itself, amenities were good: ironing board, free in-room wi-fi, excellent television, good air-con, casino, nice swimming pool, travel shops, bar, car-hire, money exchange, 24-hour recption, in-house Japanese restaurant and plenty of taxis outside waiting to pick you up.

It's a short bus-ride into town (bus stop next to the hotel), or a 20-minute walk along the main street, which meant the area was a lot less dodgy than some in the centre. Next to the hotel was Sabana Park, which was good, and a bus stop right opposite the hotel where you can get to Alajuela, Heredia or the airport easily.
The best thing, however, was a supermarket right opposite the hotel though you'd have to negotiate through a busy motorway to get across there as there is no pedestrian crossing.

Now, the bad points. The noise from the motorway can be annoying. And if you choose not to eat in-house, then it's a bit fo a walk to the restaurants either on the main-road leading into twon or in town-centre. That said, the choices are plentiful: Mexican, Brazilian, local, Chinese, Japanese and Quiznos Sub.

All in all, I would recommend a stay there, if you like staying a bit out of the centre.

I used the reviews on TripAdvisor to choose the Tryp Corobici for a 4 day visit to San Jose where I got dental work done (at an excellent dentist for a fraction of the cost I would pay in the U.S.). I wasn't expecting very much, based on those reviews, so I was really pleasantly surprised when I arrived there. Check-in took about 3 minutes with staff who spoke to me in fluent English (even though I was willing to speak Spanish). The room had all of the amenities I needed. Like everywhere in Costa Rica, hot water and water pressure in the shower were sometimes a challenege, but usually these were sufficient.

The Tryp Corobici is in a perfectly safe area of the city. Feel free to walk anywhere, but beware that the cars rule over the pedestrians in San Jose. The pool was very nice and the gym is the best I have ever seen at a hotel. I really liked the breakfast buffet very much. The restaurant staff, like most Costa Ricans, are very very nice people.

One warning, do not use the taxi drivers that sit at the front of the hotel waiting to take advantage of you. They will try to charge you 2 to 3 times as much as if you simply walk a few extra feet to the very busy road the hotel is on and flag down a taxi. Don't trust the hotel staff to get you a taxi --- they'll get you one of the expensive ones. When taking a taxi in San Jose, always ask if they use the "Maria," which is their term for the meter. The honest ones who you flag down on the street will use this.

If I needed to stay in San Jose again, I would certainly stay at the Tryp Corobici. Though if you are going to Costa Rica, minimize the stay in San Jose and maximize it anywhere else in the country.