I don’t know about you, but I’m doing a happy dance this week along with the rest of nature in Costa Rica. The rains have returned! The land here welcomes the beginning of “Green Season” like a parched traveler finally reaching a watering hole after a long dry desert-crossing.
My gardens are thrilled … if I can get a little anthropomorphic. The flowers seem to stand straighter, as if to drink in the rain even better. After just 3 afternoons of rain this week, already millions of tiny fluorescent green grass shoots are springing up everywhere. Birds are singing and delightedly swooping through the air feasting on hatching insects. The dust is gone and colors are more vibrant.
Living in Costa Rica now going on 12 years, people always ask me, “When is the best time to visit Costa Rica?” I always respond, “Well, that depends on what you’re looking for.”
Located within the tropic zone between 8˚ and 11˚ north of the equator, Costa Rica experiences two major seasons – “Summer,” or the dry season, that lasts from December to April with little to no rain in most of the country; and “Winter,” or the rainy season, which has now been re-branded as the “Green Season,” lasting from May to November.
The climate during the dry season is generally hot and sunny with very little rain. That’s great for enjoying the beaches and Costa Rica’s myriad outdoor activities, especially if you are visiting from a cold snow-covered country and all you want is sun and more sun. However, the sunny season is peak tourist season, which means higher prices, crowds, harder-to-get reservations, etc. Lack of rain means the landscape eventually turns dry and brown, fewer flowers bloom (until the spring March explosion of flowering trees), and the hot earth turns to dust. During the dry season, strong trade winds blow, making it even dustier and drier, especially in Guanacaste, along the Pacific Coast, and the Central Valley.
In the rainy season, Costa Rica’s countryside springs back into life. The rain creates lush vegetation and carpets of blooming flowers, hence the moniker “Green Season”. Baby animals are being born everywhere. The air is fragrant and humid. Mornings during Green Season are almost always sunny, with showers in the afternoons or evenings, which delightfully cool things off to a pleasant temperateness. And there may be many days when it does not rain at all. Rains start gradually in April-May, with a “mini-summer” break for a few weeks in July, building to a downpour crescendo in September and October over most of the country; then the rain tapers off in November-December.
The caveat to all of this is Costa Rica’s Caribbean Coast, especially south of Limón, where you can count on rain year-round, especially during “Hurricane Season” in July and August. The area gets less rain in September and October, which works out perfectly since the rest of the country is usually deluged this time of year.
Those “in the know” about traveling to Costa Rica know that Green Season means cheaper rates in hotels and on tours, great deals, lower airline fares, plenty of reservation space, and less crowds. For me, the Green Season – especially April-May, July-August and early December – is the best time to visit Costa Rica. Besides, if you are going to visit a rainforest or a cloud forest, you should expect rain and clouds some of the time!
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Top reasons to visit Costa Rica in Green Season:
Better values in off-peak season on vacation packages, hotels, tours, and transport.- No tourist crowds (or at least a lot less) on tours and at attractions.
- Mornings are almost always hot and sunny. Rain usually falls for a few hours in the afternoon or at night.
- Sea turtles come to nest on both the Pacific and Caribbean coasts during this period, so many also call this time “turtle season”.
- Rain makes the rivers full and whitewater rafting is at its best.
- Green Season is so named because the landscape everywhere turns lush, verdant and colorful.
- It is always warm in Costa Rica, no matter the season.
- There is usually a “little summer,” lasting a few weeks with little or no rain, in July.
- Airfares are generally lower and some great deals can be found.
By Shannon Farley
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