For us, the best beaches to go to in the Pacific Beach area are Playa Samara and Playa Carillo. They happen to be the closest beaches to the Arenal Volcano or La Fortuna and the Cloud Forest of Monteverde. It’s a quick drive down across the new bridge over the Tempisque River of the Nicoya Penninsula and only about 1.5 hours from the Liberia airport.
This part of the Pacific Coast of Costa Rica is still reasonably undeveloped and has a small, fishing village feel to it, amazing white sandy beaches and friendly waves.
There are a few luxury resorts, but the majority of places are small, family-run, quaint hotels for a true, Costa Rican experience. You can also find great opportunities for Spanish-language schools, adventure activities and much more.
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The Caribbean Coast, specifically the colorful town of Puerto Viejo, is probably the most-diverse part of Costa Rica. There is a coming-together of cultures unlike anywhere else – you’ll find Caribbean blacks whose origin dates back to working on the banana plantations, a strong indigenous population, plus an eclectic mix of Europeans, North and South Americans.
From Cahuita to Puerto Viejo to Playa Cocles to Playa Chiquita to Punta Uva to Manzanillo, all the way to the Panamanian border, you’ll encounter a wide-array of beaches from white sandy palm-tree-lined tropical paradise to black sand beaches and wild surfing hangouts with great breaks – this area has it all! To get around, your best bet is renting a fun beach cruiser and several hotels have them on hand.
And the food? Well, that’s one of our favorite parts -- we never ate at a place we didn't like – plus there's fabulous live music and fun activities from surf lessons, to sea kayaking and snorkeling, hiking and wildlife tours to organic farms, animal rescue shelters and indigenous housing. It’s more-bohemian than most places in Costa Rica and more-remote, but worth the long travel day to get there!
Click here for Caribbean Coast/Puerto Viejo Hotels. |
