Nature enthusiasts, surfers, adventure seekers and tanned sun worshippers all come together in Costa Rica, a dynamic country united in its rich charm and painted landscapes.
San Jose is Costa Rica’s capital and home to a quarter of its population, the country’s top restaurants and some of its best entertainment. The downtown area is a cultural gem with interesting sights such as the National Museum, Children’s Museum, Gold and Jade Museum, the National and the Melico Salazar Theatres, parks, plazas and the Central Avenue walking boulevard.
Costa Rica’s central mountain range surrounds a large valley with beautiful mountain views and many interesting places to visit such as the Poas Volcano where you can hike up to the crater’s edge, one of the largest on earth. Also visit the renowned La Paz Waterfall Gardens Park with its large butterfly farm and the town of Sarchí, home to the country’s best-known crafts and souvenir shops.
Known as the adventure capital of Costa Rica, the Arenal area’s verdant landscape is a cornucopia of bio-diversity dominated by the Arenal Volvano and surrounded by rolling hills, cattle farms, rainforest, and Costa Rica’s largest lake, Lake Arenal. Visit hot springs, hike rainforest trails at canopy levels, or embrace your inner thrill-seeker by indulging in zip lining, rappelling, kayaking, rafting, horseback riding and more.
Travel southwest from Arenal to the Monteverde Cloud Forest Reserve. Here, a nutrient-rich mist enshrouds the forest’s upper canopy, covering an astounding biodiversity that includes 2,500 plant species and over 100 types of mammals. Monteverde is home to the Quetzal, one of the true prizes for avid birdwatchers. Besides exciting hiking trails, there is also the serpentarium, frog pond exhibits, live bat exhibit, insect exhibit, and butterfly garden to visit.
On the country’s mid-Pacific coast, Manuel Antonio National Park boasts sublime views. Costa Rica’s smallest national park, it is also one of the most popular—and one of only two locations in the country where you can see all four types of monkeys from your hotel window. If observing sloths gets tiring, the area’s lively beaches are sure to entertain.
Costa Rica has nearly 300 different beaches along its stunning Pacific and Caribbean coastlines, each with a unique draw and distinct setting. The sand can vary from white, black, or brown coloration.
At the southwest corner hides one of Costa Rica’s most unique, off-the-grid getaways—the Osa Peninsula, where animals outnumber humans, and you needn’t travel further than your lodge’s deck to see it. The biodiversity here is teeming, with one third of the area protected as the Corcovado National Park. Adjacent, Golfo Dulce promises dolphin and whale sightings. Osa’s marine-paradise counterpart, the biological reserve of Caño Island houses spectacular snorkeling and diving places and coral reefs.
This is our Alluring Costa Rica, where no portrait of experience is ever the same.
