Unescorted and female? The presumption is that you are a prostitute

By the A.M. Costa Rica staff


Office workers, young professionals and even tourists who might look Latin better be careful in downtown San José. That is if they are women.

At least two hotels are trying to reduce the number of prostitutes seeking business on their premises and are generally refusing service to unescorted women.

Prostitutes who already have a customer in tow seem to be welcome. This is the spinoff of a culture that embraces legalized prostitution.

The policy at the News Café in the Hotel Presidente became known Wednesday when an owner of A.M. Costa Rica and one of the company's lawyers, both female, tried to sit at the bar to discuss business. The bartender said he would not serve them and said the hotel was trying to cut down on prostitutes.

Eventually the hotel management apologized, but the women still felt unwelcome.

A similar event took place at the Gran Hotel Costa
Rica earlier this year. A guard approached a woman who was seated with a man and warned her that "We don't allow clothes like that in here." The woman's outfit was not out of the ordinary, and at first she thought he was trying to be the fashion police. But he meant she looked like a prostitute.

The Presidente always has had a policy against permitting women to solicit men. But those who enforced that policy generally could differentiate between young prostitutes and 40-ish lawyers.

In a seeming contradiction, the Presidente rents many of its rooms to single men who then find women in the San José zona rosa and bring them back to the hotel. The hotel even has a policy that these women must sign in before entertaining the men upstairs.

The Gran Hotel Costa Rica has gone through a very successful face-lifting. It now forbids single men to bring prostitutes to their room. The hotel styles itself as a family place.

Neither location seems to have policies about gay prostitutes and solicitation by males.

Neither location seems to have policies about gay prostitutes and solicitation by males.

A similar event took place at the Gran Hotel Costa
Rica earlier this year. A guard approached a woman who was seated with a man and warned her that "We don't allow clothes like that in here." The woman's outfit was not out of the ordinary, and at first she thought he was trying to be the fashion police. But he meant she looked like a prostitute.