costa rica guanacaste tamarindo scuba diving surfing sportfishing

The Guanacaste region of Costa Rica is very different from the rest of the country with a separate climate and cultural history. While most of Costa Rica is either lowland rain forest or high mountain plateaus and valleys, Guanacaste is an area of dry forest. Sporting a number of world class beaches, numerous national parks and biological preserves and the best roads in the country, Guanacaste has become a tourists' Mecca. Receiving the least annual rainfall in the country, the region is also very popular year round.

Culturally, the difference between Guanacaste and the rest of Costa Rica can be traced all the way back to Pre-Columbian times. While the rest of what was to later become Costa Rica was sparsely populated, because of its difficult terrain, high mountains and dense jungles, Guanacaste was home to large and technically advanced tribes, including the Corobicis. These tribes had closer ethnic and religious ties with the Mayan Empire of Guatemala then they did with the widely spaced and sparsely populated tribes of the rest of the country. Later, after Columbus discovered Costa Rica on his fourth voyage, the first successful colonization effort occurred when Gil Gonzales Davila converted the Corobicis to Catholicism in the middle sixteenth century. In fact, Guanacaste was not even part of Costa Rica during the colonial period. Only after the population of the area decided to secede from Nicaragua did it become a part of the country.

Economically the region is also very different from the rest of the country. Whereas the main product and means of wealth in other areas of Costa Rica is coffee, in Guanacaste it is cattle. The beef industry in the region has a long and very proud tradition and dates back to the colonial period. Because of the dryer weather, wide, sweeping territory and abundant Indian population the establishment of the traditional hacienda system was able to succeed.

In modern day Costa Rica, Guanacaste holds a very important and special place in the fabric of the country. The tourism that the region draws to its magnificent beaches, impressive volcanoes and plentiful natural wonders has helped make Costa Rica, Central America's most popular destination. With the opening of the Daniel Oduber International airport it is now possible to fly directly into Guanacaste, bypassing the need to go into San Jose first. From the new airport, the beach resorts of playas Hermosa, Flamingo, Tamarindo and Nosara are all within about an hours drive by car. This means that tourists flying in from Florida can be checked into their rooms and be sunning themselves on the beach in under four hours.

Once at the beaches, the number of different activities available is plentiful. The deep sea fishing of the region is world famous for marlin, yellow fin tuna, sail fish and dorado. The surfing at playas Junquillal, Nosara and Tamarindo draw surfers from around the world to their incredible beach and point breaks. Sailing, scuba diving, snorkeling and horseback riding along the beach are all very popular and enjoyable. Playa Flamingo, with the only marina and harbor on the Pacific coast other than Puntarnas, is a major destination for sailboats and yachts traveling down the coast to the Panama Canal and South America.

The national parks of the region such as Santa Rosa, Rincon del la Vieja and Barra Honda give visitors more opportunities for excursions and sightseeing. Santa Rosa National Park holds the largest remaining, continuous area of dry forest in Central America. Rincon del la Vieja has six different volcano peaks, boiling mud pits and some of the most amazingly beautiful waterfalls in the country. Barra Honda has hundreds of miles of underground caves and caverns perfect for those people interested in spelunking.

Guanacaste has something for every interest and desire from beaches to volcanoes. Put this together with the best infrastructure in the country, the most developed resort areas and accommodations and you have the perfect place to spend a vacation in paradise.

To Liberia from San Jose - Departing from San José you hed west, passing the airport on the left side; follow the signs for San Ramon. Continue on this road, which turns north, along the Panamarican Highway; following the signs for Liberia. The trip should take three to four hours, depending on traffice and the distance covered is 135 miles. Arriving in Liberia you will come to a traffice light on the highway with three gas stations on the corners; Texaco, Union 76 and Esso. Take a right at the light heading east and you will be on Avenida Central and six blocks down will bring you to Central Park and the middle of the city. Make a left and you will be heading towards the airport and beaches dispersed along the Pacific coast.

Liberia Airport - From the main stop light intersection on the Panamarican Highway, instead of going right into town you proceed left heading west. This is the main highway contecting the beach areas of Guanacaste to Liberia. Getting to the airport should take no more than ten minutes and is 8 1/2 miles down the road. When you come across the white sign that says airport you will take the next right and then drive up the entrance for another mile before you get to the main terminal. The sign for the entrance to the airport is not the easiest to see so if you start to see the airport on your right you already passed it.

Rincon de la Vieja National Park - From the main stop light intersection on the Panamarican Highway you continue strait ahead to the north. A little over 3 miles up and you will come to a sign for the national park, make a right after the sign. But make sure you take the exit that is perpendicular to the road, as the other exit has a very large dip in it and is difficult to get over.The road to the park is rough, but is passable by two-wheel drive vehicle, except for the last mile where it is even difficult in a 4x4. Follow the signs in the road as there are a couple of different intersections, the first of which is in the town of Curubande, 7 1/2 miles off the main road, where the road comes to a T and you need to follow the right. Two miles down the road you will come to a private gate, you must pass through here to get to the park and the cost is c350 per person in the car. Another mile up the road you will come to an intersection with a lodge strait ahead and the way to the park is to the left. The last of the intersections is another mile up the road, up till here the road is passable by all vehicles. There is a sign say the name of the park and you continue strait for the last mile. The park entrance is only 15 miles from the intersection on the main highway at Liberia, but the trip takes 45 minutes.

Playas Hermosa & Panama - From the main stop light intersection on the Panamarican Highway you head west along the main road to the beaches. 12 miles downt eh road you will come to an intersection in the town of Comunidad, follow it and the signs for Playas Panama, Hermosa and Coco to the right. Continue on through Sardinal for another 8 miles until you come to a large intersection with large green signs for the beachs and follow to the right. The turn off for Playa Hermosa is three miles up the road and Playa Panama is an additional mile. Total travel time is around 30 minutes and the road is in very good condition all the way along its 24 miles.

Playas del Coco - From the main stop light intersection on the Panamarican Highway in Liberia, you head west along the main road to the beaches. 12 miles downt eh road you will come to an intersection in the town of Comunidad, follow it and the signs for Playas Panama, Hermosa and Coco to the right. Continue on through Sardinal for another 8 miles until you come to a large intersection with large green signs for the beachs. Follow the sign for Coco and go strait ahead another 2 miles until you enter town. The beach is at the end of the road about 22 miles from the Panamarican Highway, the road is paved and in good condition and the trip is under 30 minutes.

Playa Ocotal - From the main stop light intersection on the Panamarican Highway in Liberia you head west along the main road to the beaches. 12 miles down the road you will come to an intersection in the town of Comunidad, follow it and the signs for Playas Panama, Hermosa and Coco to the right. Continue on through Sardinal for another 8 miles until you come to a large intersection with large green signs for the beachs. Follow the sign for Coco and go strait ahead another 2 miles until you enter town. Just as you enter Coco there will be a street on the left that heads south. There is a sign for Ocotal and on the corner is a dive shop, follow this road over the small bridge until you come to a T and turn right. Follow the signs to Hotel Ocotal and stay to the left when you get to the intersection with the big tree in the middle. The beach is only three miles south of Coco and the trip only takes an additional 10 minutes. The road is in fairly good condition and is passable by all vehicles.

Playa Flamingo - From the main stop light intersection on the Panamarican Highway in Liberia, you head west along the main road to the beaches. 12 miles downt eh road you will come to an intersection in the town of Comunidad, follow it and the signs for Playas Flamingo and Tamarindo and stay to the left. This route will take you through the town of Filadelfia and on to the smaller town of Belén, about 12 miles. Cross the bridge and you will see the large green signs for the beaches and turn right after the signs. Continue on 18 miles to the town of Huacas and follow the signs to the right. Go down the road about 1/4 of a mile and make a sharp right and stay on the paved road. Drive through Brasilito and take the paved road as it turns to the right, continuing on the final two miles follow the signs. The trip takes about an hour and is 47 miles in total. As you reach Playa Flamingo you will make a left turn along the beach heading towards the large group of hotels situated on the mountainside to your left.

Playa Potrero - Use the same directions as you would in order to get to Playa Flamingo mentioned above. Just prior to Flamingo Beach there will be a turn-off to the right with signs pointing towards Playa Potrero, approximately 3 km. The road is a dirt road, however, it is in good condition and can be reached without a four-wheel drive vehicle.

Playa Tamarindo - From the main stop light intersection on the Panamerican Highway in Liberia, you head west along the main road to the beaches. 12 miles down the road you will come to an intersection in the town of Comunidad, follow it and the signs for Playas Flamingo and Tamarindo and stay to the left. This rout will take you through the town of Filadelfia and on to the smaller town of Belén, about 12 miles. Cross the bridge and you will see the large green signs for the beaches and turn right after the signs. Continue on 18 miles to the town of Huacas and follow the signs to the left. From there you will continue on through the Villa Real and then continue on the last two miles into Tamarindo. The trip takes about an hour and is 48 miles in total.

Playa Grande - Continue on the same route you would normally take in order to reach Playa Tamarindo or Playa Flamindo. Continue straight just after the fork in the road pointing left to Playa Tamarindo. Just after this fork the paved road turns sharp to the right which continues to Playa Flamingo and Potrero. In order to reach Playa Grande you must continue straight along the dirt road which runs all the way to the beach; the beach can be accessed without a four-wheel drive vehicle. It is approximately 10 km (6.2 miles).

Playa Sámara - From the main stop light intersection on the Panamerican Highway in Liberia, you head west along the main road to the beaches. 12 miles down the road you will come to an intersection in the town of Comunidad, follow it and the signs for Playas Flamingo and Tamarindo and stay to the left. This rout will take you through the town of Filadelfia and on to the smaller town of Belen, about 12 miles. Cross the bridge and you will see the large green sign for Santa Cruz, stay to the left and continue on through the towns of Palestina and Rio Cañas. After 13 miles you will enter the town of Santa Cruz, follow the main street through town and on to the city of Nicoya. It is a strait shot of about 15 miles till you get just outside of town. When you get to the intersection with the traffic light follow the signs to the right and through the center of town. Once through town follow the paved highway all the way down the 25 miles to Sámara. The road dead ends into the main beach. The road is paved the whole way with only a couple of places where there are pot holes, the trip takes a little over two hours and is almost 80 miles.