Travel Guide Costa Rica

The Valle Central is the highlands in the heart of Costa Rica, home to the capital San José and the cities of Alajuela, Heredia, and Cartago. Almost every trip begins here, as the international airport is located in Alajuela, and from here you can quickly reach active volcanoes, museums, and colonial churches. The valley lies at an altitude of about 800 to 1,500 meters. To the north, it is bounded by the Cordillera Central with the volcanoes Poás, Barva, Irazú, and Turrialba, and to the south by the Cordillera de Talamanca. Temperatures are mostly between 18 and 30 degrees, significantly milder than on the coasts. Almost…

The South Pacific is Costa Rica's most remote coastal section: Between Uvita and the Osa Peninsula, the rainforest extends right to the beaches, and Corcovado National Park is home to one of the country's most biodiverse protected areas. You come here for wildlife viewing in the primary forest, whale watching off the coast, and an infrastructure that has deliberately remained simple. The region is divided into two parts. To the north lies the Uvita coast with the Marino Ballena National Marine Park, reachable from San José in about four hours via the Costanera Sur coastal road (Route 34). To the south follows the Osa Peninsula,…

The Caribbean coast encompasses the Limón province in eastern Costa Rica, from the Tortuguero canals in the north to the border with Panama in the south. This is where you go for rainforest that stretches right to the beach, for nesting sea turtles, and for an Afro-Caribbean culture that distinctly differs from the rest of the country. The city of Limón is located approximately 170 kilometers from San José; the road leads through the Zurquí Tunnel and Braulio Carrillo National Park. The north, around Tortuguero, is only accessible by boat or plane; you reach the Southern Caribbean, with Cahuita and Puerto Viejo, via the coastal…

The Nicoya Peninsula, in northwestern Costa Rica, juts about 120 kilometers into the Pacific, separating the Gulf of Nicoya from the open ocean. You come for its long, sparsely developed beaches, the surf spots on the west coast, and the small towns where roads often still consist of gravel. Politically, the peninsula is divided: the north belongs to Guanacaste Province, while the south, with Santa Teresa, Mal País, and Montezuma, belongs to Puntarenas Province. Nosara is located on the west coast in the Nicoya Canton, near the turtle beach of Ostional. The peninsula is counted among the so-called Blue Zones, regions where many…

Guanacaste is Costa Rica's dry northwestern province on the Pacific coast, approximately 215 kilometers northwest of San José. You come here for the beaches of the Pacific coast, for volcanic landscapes like the Rincón de la Vieja, and for the light blue Río Celeste. From November to April, there's hardly any rain here, which makes Guanacaste the country's most reliable beach destination during this time; from May to October, it usually rains daily. The landscape is characterized by pastureland, dry forest, and volcanic ranges; the Area de Conservación Guanacaste in the north is a UNESCO World Heritage site. The capital is Liberia,…

Arenal and Monteverde form the green highlands in northwestern Costa Rica, about three to four hours' drive northwest of San José. You travel here for the cone-shaped Arenal Volcano with its hot springs and for the cloud forests of Monteverde, two of the country's most visited natural destinations. Arenal was continuously active from 1968 to 2010; today it is dormant, and around the town of La Fortuna, hiking trails over old lava fields, suspension bridges, a waterfall, and numerous hot springs have developed. Southwest of it, beyond Lake Arenal, lies the Monteverde highlands with its privately and communally managed cloud forest…

The Central Pacific is the stretch of coast between the Tárcoles River and Quepos, the quickest to reach from San José. You come here for Manuel Antonio National Park with its rainforest right on the beach, the surf beaches around Jacó, and sport fishing off Quepos. Jacó is approximately 100 kilometers from San José, about a two-hour drive via Route 27 and coastal Route 34. You reach Quepos and Manuel Antonio by continuing further south on the same road, a journey of around 157 kilometers from San José. The region is more developed than the Nicoya Peninsula: Paved roads, regular bus services, and a domestic airport near Quepos make…