Last Updated on: 13th August 2024, 10:52 pm
In the following guide, we’ll be covering the top things to do in San Salvador – a city that, frankly, has never really been known as a tourist destination.
But the city – and the country as a whole – has recently been the focus of media attention for miraculously reducing its crime rate in a matter of years. While El Salvador was previously considered a no-go zone for tourists, it’s now become one of the safest nations in the Western Hemisphere!
But the question remains – even if San Salvador is now safe, what does it have to offer tourists? I spent several days in the city to find out.
For more information on accommodation, and thoughts on whether San Salvador is actually worth visiting, be sure to check the end of the article.
Around Centro
The obvious place to start when exploring San Salvador is its Centro Histórico, where some of the capital’s most important structures are centered around Plaza Gerardo Barrios.
Among them, the National Palace is arguably the most impressive.
Built in a combination of the Neoclassical and Renaissance styles between 1905 and 1911, it replaced an earlier palace that was destroyed by fire. While no longer the seat of government, the building did host government offices up until the 1970s.
Today, the National Palace can be accessed as a museum. Unfortunately, they were still refurbishing the interior at the time of my visit, and access was off-limits. But the museum has already reopened at the time of writing.
Just to the west of the palace, meanwhile, is a new garden area that’s recently opened up to the public.
Situated at the north end of the plaza is the Catedral Metropolitina. Though far from the most eye-catching church you’ll find in El Salvador, it’s easily the most historically significant structure here.
Again, this is a replacement of an older, original structure. The very first church, the Temple of Santo Domingo, was destroyed in an earthquake in 1873. And then its replacement would be destroyed by fire in 1951.
It was replaced by the structure we see now, which was actually left unfinished for decades. The reason is that Archbishop Óscar Romero wanted to use the funds to help the nation’s poor instead.
Throughout the Salvadoran Civil War period (1979-1992), the church saw numerous massacres and assassinations, while it hosted the funerals of prominent figures who’d been assassinated elsewhere.
Among them was Archbishop Óscar Romero himself, who was known for criticizing the government in his sermons. He is now interred at this very cathedral.
The central plaza’s newest structure is the National Library, opened as recently as 2023. It was funded and built with help from China
No matter what your thoughts are on the modernist design, the fact that it doesn’t match the structures which surround it cannot be denied.
It’s possible to step inside, though unless you’re planning to borrow a book, there doesn’t seem much to do that’s not geared toward children. As such, this is a very popular place for families to come on weekends.
Other landmarks around the center, meanwhile, are the Teatro Nacional, which was constructed in 1911 in the French Renaissance style. It continues to function as a theater to this day.
Not far away is Iglesia El Rosario, a concrete church built in 1971 and designed by sculptor Ruben Martinez. Lonely Planet bizarrely describes it as ‘arguably the finest church in Central America.’ Supposedly, the interior is more impressive, though it was closed at the time of my visit.
Otherwise, aside from the landmarks mentioned above, I found the rest of the center to be rather dilapidated and quite chaotic. With that said, at the time of writing, San Salvador’s historical center is still in the midst of receiving a major facelift, so expect new areas to be open by the time of your visit.
University Museum of Anthropology
The University Museum of Anthropology, situated outside the Technological University of El Salvador (about 20 minutes on foot from Plaza Barrios), is an overlooked yet worthwhile destination.
At the time of writing, entrance to the museum is free, while the museum is open daily except Sundays (it closes during lunch hours).
The bottom floor features a historical overview of pre-Hispanic El Salvador, though information is in Spanish only. Some of the ceramics on display here are especially unique, such as a double-headed vase and one featuring a creature sticking its tongue out.
Here you’ll also learn about the folk dress and customs of the country’s different ethnic groups.
The upper floor, meanwhile, focuses on more modern issues, such as the mass emigration out of El Salvador in recent decades and the dangerous journey north.
You’ll also find a timeline detailing major events happening in the country throughout the 20th century.
Most visitors will be fine visiting this museum instead of the much larger Dr. David J. Guzmán National Museum of Anthropology (see below).
While much smaller, the pieces on display at the University Museum of Anthropology are arguably more eye-catching. Furthermore, the price can’t be beat. That makes it easily one of the top things to do in San Salvador.
Dr. David J. Guzmán National Museum of Anthropology
The Dr. David J. Guzmán National Museum of Anthropology is considered El Salvador’s premier archaeology and anthropology museum. As an archaeology lover, these types of museums are usually a highlight for me when visiting a capital city. But sadly, this was a major exception.
The museum charges $10 for foreigners while locals only pay $1, which is simply wrong.
At the time of writing, the museum is open daily except Mondays from 9:00-17:00.
The bottom floor features some interesting petroglyphs, though it’s unclear where they were found, or even if they’re original.
Moving on, you’ll find various rooms dedicated to the region’s pre-Hispanic culture and history, and all the signs are bilingual.
But unlike Guatemala City’s National Museum of Mayan Art, which is free to enter, you won’t find any towering stelae or exquisitely carved altars here. Rather, a large majority of the pieces here are ordinary-looking ceramics.
The most noteworthy items on display are a large funerary urn and a sculpture of the Mayan god Xipe Totec, both from Tazumal.
Fascinatingly, one of the few stone carvings here is of a Toltec-style chac mool, also discovered in the Tazumal area. It’s the result of settlers from Central Mexico who arrived around 1,000 years ago.
Other prominent archaeological sites in El Salvador, meanwhile, include Joya de Cerén and Cihuatán, and you’ll find artifacts from those ruins as well.
But if you’ve already been to a few archaeological sites, you’ll know that they all feature on-site museums featuring the same types of ceramics, not to mention historical information. With that in mind, there’s little reason to shell out $10 for the Dr. David J. Guzmán National Museum of Anthropology.
Museo de Arte de El Salvador
The Museo de Arte de El Salvador is often touted as one of San Salvador’s top things to do. Located in the fancy San Benito district, its exterior, home to the massive Monumento a la Revolución, is especially striking.
As one might expect, the museum is entirely dedicated to art by Salvadoran artists. While the art is a bit hit or miss, it is an impressive collection overall. With that said, in contrast to the museum’s grandiose exterior, the interior is surprisingly small.
All things considered, the $5 entry fee for foreigners is a bit steep. At the time of writing, the museum is open from Thursday to Monday.
More San Salvador Museums
There are still more noteworthy museums in San Salvador. The city features two museums dedicated to Archbishop Monseñor Romero: the Monseñor Romero Center in the south of the city and the Monseñor Romero Historical Center further north.
And those interested in El Salvador’s Civil War period should consider visiting the Museo de la Palabra y la Imagen.
La Libertad
San Salvador is located less than an hour from the Pacific Coast, making it one of the closest Central American capitals to the nearest beach. (Though if you visit via public bus, the journey is more like 90 minutes.)
The closest beach town to San Salvador is La Libertad, though neighboring El Tunco and El Zunte are more popular.
It being the rainy season during my visit, I decided to start with a visit to La Libertad before deciding whether or not I wanted to do any further explorations along the coast.
La Libertad is entirely comprised of rocky beaches, while the waves of the Pacific Coast are often too rough for swimming (but perfect for surfing). While far from ideal, those details simply can’t be helped.
Regarding infrastructure, the area has a small malecón that is relatively new. Unfortunately, large portions were blocked off during my visit, and I wasn’t able to walk the whole thing.
So I decided to explore the local town but didn’t find much of interest. Wanting to give La Libertad a fair chance, I made sure to look up what’s considered the best beach. Multiple sources told me Playa El Obispo.
And so I made the fifteen-minute walk there, though most of the beach wasn’t accessible from the road, as it’s largely blocked by restaurants. I only found one access point, but had to walk through trash and an abandoned building to get there.
While surely El Tunco and El Zunte are nicer, I was so put off by La Libertad that it killed any desire to further explore El Salvador’s coast. Maybe you’ll have better luck.
GETTING THERE: San Salvador is home to multiple bus stations, though the buses to La Libertad (#102) depart from a random street. You can find them on 17 Avenida Sur, near the intersection with Calle Gerardo Barrios. The spot is marked as ‘Punta de Buses Ruta 102’ on Google Maps.
These buses do not stop at the Terminal de Buses de Occidente, though they will make a stop along the road just outside of that station.
Additional Info
If you’d prefer to explore the city center in the company of a local expert, consider this highly-rated three-hour walking tour.
When it comes to day trips from San Salvador, there are plenty of options to choose from. Santa Ana to the west actually makes for a better base for day trips overall. But considering how small the country is, some of those trips can be done from San Salvador.
For example, if you don’t have time to base yourself in Santa Ana, you can still visit Santa Ana Volcano. This popular tour will pick you up at your hotel in the capital and take you there.
And when it comes to archaeological sites, this highly-rated tour picks you up in San Salvador before taking you to the ruins of Tazumal, Joya de Cerén and San Andrés. It even includes some of the landmarks around Santa Ana.
As mentioned above, El Salvador was previously the murder capital of the world, but now the country is one of the safest in Latin America. But how?
While we won’t go into too much detail here, what essentially happened is that President Nayib Bukele finally started rounding up and imprisoning gang members who’d long been terrorizing the country.
While Bukele’s methods have been criticized by the Western mainstream press, anyone sympathizing with gang members and career criminals over innocent civilians should have their morals – and true motives – called into question.
All in all, I felt quite safe in San Salvador. I did a lot of walking throughout the city and almost always felt safe (though not stress-free – traffic is atrocious). My only incident occurred at Plaza Gerardo Barrios itself while waiting for an Uber.
An annoying man – perhaps drunk or high or just mentally disturbed – approached me and started repeatedly shouting ‘Extranjas!? (‘Foreigner!?’). And when I ignored him, he kept aggressively saying ‘Hey! Look at me!’ in English. While more annoying than scary, I couldn’t help but wonder if perhaps the current government hasn’t been quite thorough enough.
Anyway, the question remains: Though San Salvador may now be mostly quite safe, is the city really worth the visit? Speaking from a first-time tourist’s perspective, I tried to give the city a fair shot, but was simply unimpressed.
Crime aside, San Salvador still suffers from the same issues that plague most Latin American capitals: awful traffic, poor walkability and bad air quality. It’s quite rough around the edges, while its main attractions don’t make up for it.
With that said, if you’re already doing a trip across Central America, then it’s worth stopping in the city for a few days. You can also take day trips to places like Suchitoto, Joya de Cerén and Cihuatán.
But if you’re coming from afar and only have time for a single country in this region, Guatemala and Mexico have much more to offer.
San Salvador is a large and sprawling city, but in terms of visiting its main tourist attractions, you should focus on a few particular neighborhoods. No matter where you stay, expect to rely on Uber a lot to get around the city.
The fanciest part of San Salvador is San Benito/Zona Rosa, which is home to numerous cafes, shopping malls and museums. If you’ve been to Guatemala City, it’s San Salvador’s equivalent to that city’s District 10.
One of the highest-rated hotels around here is the Il Buongustaio, though you could save money by staying at the Hotel Villa Florencia Zona Rosa.
Of course, you could also base yourself within the Centro Histórico, which would give you easy walking access to all the attractions there. Hotel Abrego has high ratings, while Hotel Villa Florencia Centro Histórico is one of the most affordable places in the area.
Another convenient place to stay would be somewhere near the Monument to the Divine Savior of the World, located right in the heart of the city. That’s where I stayed, and found it pretty convenient.
Lujoso Condo seems like a great higher-end option, while Hotel Luigi is much more affordable.