Costa Rica is one of my favorite places to travel. My first trip there was in 2006 when I stumbled upon an acquaintance who owned a condo in a resort there and offered for me to stay free for a week. Coupled with a frequent flyer miles ticket, it was effectively a free trip, which is always a major bonus. Costa Rica is in Central America, located to the south of Nicaragua and to the north of Panama. It is a stable, liberal democracy with a high literacy rate and good healthcare. It has often been reported that it’s people are some of the happiest in the world. It is a naturally beautiful country with a wide variety of terrains that sits between the Pacific Ocean to the west and the Caribbean Sea to the east.
The climate
The climate is tropical as it lies between 8 to 12 degrees north of the equator. Sunrise and sunset are therefore fairly consistently around 6 AM and 6 PM give or take. Being from Texas, I am very familiar with being hot, but be aware, it’s hot…pretty much all of the time. Their seasons are basically divided into the dry season from December through April and the wet season from May to November. I have been there during both and perhaps was lucky to have favorable weather both times. In 2016, we were there during the peak tourist week of Christmas and it was consistently in the high 80s to low 90s during the day with about a ten degree drop in temperature at night. My first trip was in June 2006, and although I don’t recall the specifics this far along, I know we did not have any drenching rains, but several short lived showers.
the land and sea
I have personally traveled to Guanacaste Province which is the northwest portion of the country encompassing the Nicoya Peninsula. Liberia International Airport is your best bet to access most areas of Guanacaste and Nicoya. It is about a 35 minute trip to Playa Hermosa and about an hour and 15 minutes to Tamarindo. Playa Hermosa, where I stayed in 2006 is a bit of a sleepy town, but still has plenty to do with a small pristine beach, a cute beach bar (Aqua Sport) and a few boats that will take you out to snorkel or fish. I found back then that the most effective way to figure things out is to talk to the locals (Spanish helps here) and get their recommendations. In June, the beach was sparsely populated, making for a nice day to soak up the sun. I met a nice man on the beach who had a boat and he took us out for some snorkeling and fishing across the bay near the Four Seasons hotel.
We stayed one night at the Arenal Observatory Lodge which was on a lush property with hiking trails, suspension bridges, and a wide variety of flora and fauna. The rooms were cabin style with bunk beds, but clean enough and comfortable. We had dinner at their restaurant which has windows all around in order to provide a view of the lava at night. We were fortunate to see a glow, but not much full eruption activity as the cloud cover was moderate that evening.
Costa Rica boasts an extraordinary environmental protection record. It is for this reason that it is such a draw for ecotourism and general travel. I have immense respect for how they have planned legislatively for the future of their land and the earth. We heard many times on our recent trip from guides regarding their renewable energy goals. As of now, they produce 91% from renewable sources. Their aim is to become the first entirely carbon neutral country by 2021. This is to be accomplished by a variety of taxes and fees that are directed towards biodiversity protection and clean air. In 2010, Costa Rica was #3 of 163 countries ranked by the Global Environmental Performance Index. Unfortunately, since then, they have fallen to #42, behind the US who ranks at #26 of now 180 countries. This is mainly due to their poor rankings in wastewater treatment in that untreated water is often discharged into rivers, thus creating human disease risk. Favorably, however, government officials have recognized these findings and pledged to reverse the trend. Drinking water is reported by the CDC as safe, and I have never had an issue while there.
On our most recent trip, we found ourselves in Playa Tamarindo which is a bit further south from the Liberia Airport, and then Playa Potrero, not far to the north of Tamarindo.
Unbeknownst to us, we had chosen the busiest week of the entire year to visit. Christmas week draws thousands of tourists and Costa Rican families alike to Tamarindo. It is one of the busier towns on the Pacific Coast and the restaurants, nightlife and beaches make it an attractive spot. The beach was indeed beautiful and there was some good food. We found it to be a bit too busy for our tastes though, as the car traffic on the dirt roads kicked up tons of dust, making breathing a challenge. We spent three and a half days there and headed up the coast to Playa Potrero. We actually saw several area beaches over the next several days courtesy of our real estate agent who was showing us condos in the area. Playa Conchal and Brasilito sit along the Brasilito Bay and Playa Flamingo and Potrero grace the Potrero Bay just to the north of Brasilito.
We also spent some time in Playa Flamingo, a cute little town with shops, restaurants, casinos and bars. However, our favorite spot by far was where we ended up staying and as of now have put an offer on a small condo, Playa Potrero. We stayed in a gorgeous beachfront condo located right in the center of Potrero Bay. The beach was wide and clean and sunsets were fantastic. We were a 5 minute walk down the beach to the Costa Rica Sailing Center, which hosts a bar, restaurant, beach seating, and rentals of all types of beach and ocean equipment. The sailing center is owned by two life long friends, Jeff and Justin, who first visited Costa Rica as twenty-somethings who sailed there from California! Check out what the Costa Rica Sailing Center has to offer here. We rented two beach cruisers and used those to get around for two days, we managed to get as far as Flamingo Beach, partly on the beach and partly on the road. Bikes and pedestrians are a common sight on the roads, but beware as there are no sidewalks or shoulders. The road related fatality rate is quite high is Costa Rica and I would not recommend riding at night or without lights or reflective clothing. Aside from the safety lecture, really everything was within walking distance in Playa Potrero, including several great restaurants, the market, bank, and bars. We spent New Year’s Eve on the beach at the sailing center with some new-found friends. Potrero felt right for us and we hope to spend part of our time there over the next many years.
