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Costa Rica = Home
Here we offer the Costa Rica vacation information that explains our love for the place…
Most Costa Rica vacation sites have a page that provides general Costa Rica vacation information. Well, we want to do that to, but in a different way. Rather than just rattling off a bunch of Wikipedia facts, we would prefer to tell you why we love the place. First and foremost, because, you see, Costa Rica, for us, means home.
The Top 10 Reasons We Love Costa Rica (and you should too)
1. Biodiversity
Costa Rica is a teeny tiny country with some half a million species of flora and fauna. That represents 4% of the number of species that exist on the entire planet! That’s an amazing fact. If you are interested in learning about life, or simply witnessing it on a level that is hard to find anywhere else, perhaps Costa Rica is the right vacation destination for you.
Explore Costa Rica’s Biodiversity with INBio (National Biodiversity Institute)
2. Accessibility
What makes a Costa Rica vacation really cool is the amount you can actually see in the span of a week to a week and a half. You can visit a volcano, hike in a cloud forest and then relax on a beautiful tropical beach all within that short span of time. In fact, you can even visit two coasts (Pacific and Caribbean) if you want to. And travel within Costa Rica is easy and safe. There are howler monkeys lurking in the leafy shadows who may scare the bejeezuz out of you if you have never heard one before, but there are no “guerrillas” out there who might want to kidnap you. That makes a vacation in Costa Rica one that is open to outrageous adventure and fun that is hard to equal anywhere else.
List of Airlines with International Flights to Costa Rica
3. The People (Ticos)
The people of Costa Rica are the country’s most prized asset. Service is so good here that I have heard it said that it can be, well, intimidating. The locals are known as ticos (or ticas) and their hospitality and warmth is world renowned. But don’t take my word for it, come see for yourself.
4. Jungles – Mountains – Beaches
Not only does Costa Rican diversity stem from what is lurking out there in the jungle, but also in the land itself. In Costa Rica, within a week’s time, you can visit one of the world’s most active volcanoes, then climb some of the tallest mountains in Central American, and still only be a couple hours from two coastlines boasting some of the most exotic and romantic beaches imaginable. It is truly amazing what is contained inside the 4 borders of this little paradise.
5. Commitment to Peace
One of the things that makes ticos so charming and the country so relaxing is the enormous peace dividend stemming from the fact that Costa Rica has no armed forces whatsoever. The country did away with that years ago and invested the money instead in educating and providing health care to its people and later into developing one of the most attractive eco-tourism sectors in the world. Costa Rican’s love their peace and it shows in the way they treat others.
6. Commitment to Sustainability
Costa Rica receives the vast majority of its energy from renewable sources and is a leader in sustainable tourism practices. There was a time when Costa Rica was losing its cherished tropical forests to clear-cutting to make way for cattle grazing. Seeing the opportunity presented by tourism, Costa Rica decided to tax gasoline in order to pay landowners not to clear-cut and to plant trees instead. The result, now Costa Rica is literally covered with vibrant green tropical forests and a quarter of the entire country is either national park or some type of protected reserve. Costa Rica has vowed to be the first country in the world to become completely carbon neutral. A goal it hopes to complete within the next decade.
Costa Rica Certificate for Sustainable Tourism
7. Our Climate
Many customers ask me what time of the year is best to come climate-wise. My response is always the same, anytime is the best time to visit Costa Rica. We do have two seasons, a dry one (our summer) that lasts from mid-November to the end of April and a green (or wet) one (winter) that goes from May to mid-November. But the temperature in Costa Rica really varies little throughout the year. The main factor to climate experience is altitude, not time of the year. At higher altitudes like the Central Valley (where the capital city of San Jose is located) the climate is cool year around. Down at sea level, it is considerable more balmy. And don’t let the green season worry you. Rain during that time of the year is confined generally to afternoon showers. And it is also the time when the color of Costa Rica is the most vibrant green imaginable (hence the name “green” season).
Information on Costa Rica’s Climate
Costa Rica Meteorological Institute
8. A Natural Playground
Costa Rica is for the outdoor enthusiast. That is for sure. No matter what you might want to do outdoors, as long as it doesn’t involve (1) snow or (2) killing animals, it can be done here. Costa Rica has some of the best white-water rafting in the world. It has mountains to climb, birds to watch, waterfalls to rappel down, canopy zip-lines to soar from tree to tree on and some of the best waves for surfing in the world. One word we never hear from our customers about Costa Rica is “boring.”
9. Pura Vida
The ticos have a unique way of saying hello, or goodbye or just expressing general gratitude. It is “pura vida”and it literally means pure life. You won’t hear this phrase anywhere else in the Latin American world. It is 100% tico. And it really does reflect the attitude of Costa Rica. Here there is a live and let live attitude of life that one can find very refreshing when compared to the dog eat dog competition of daily life back home. Maybe that is why Costa Rica consistently ranks as one of the happiest countries on earth.
Forbes Article on Costa Rica as the Happiest Place on Earth
10. Because it’s Home Sweet Home
One of the reasons we may appear very biased in our opinions about the place is that it is home. And we love to share it with our customers. In fact, we are downright passionate about doing so. I think that makes us a good choice for the vacationer looking for a special experience of a very special place.
The Definitive Guide to Costa Rica Expat Living – 2nd Edition
Costa Rica Expat Tours & Consulting
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