Blogs

Article by Shannon Farley

People around the world have their eye on Costa Rican football star Keylor Navas.

Not only is Navas a national hero for helping lead his team as goalkeeper to the quarterfinals in the 2014 World Cup, he also is a rising star as goalkeeper for the prestigious Real Madrid football team. Now, Navas has been appointed Costa Rica’s first official Tourism Ambassador.

In a big event at the official Costa Rica stand at the FITUR tourism trade fair in Madrid, Spain on Jan. 29, one

Article by Shannon Farley

Every February 14, around the world, people exchange cards, flowers, candy and gifts with their loved ones on this day of romance we call Valentine’s Day. But who is this mysterious St. Valentine, and where did these traditions come from?

February has been celebrated as a month of romance dating all the way back to ancient Rome. The Roman fertility festival, Lupercalia, was celebrated in the middle of February from Feb. 13 to 15. In the 5^th century, two martyred saints na

Article by Shannon Farley

The exciting, adrenaline-charged whitewater rafting and kayaking competition of the Chorro Race 2015 comes again to Costa Rica’s Central Pacific Coast on Feb. 21 to 22.

The second annual event is organized by the Quepos Whitewater and Adventure Association and sponsored by TEVA. The competition in the Chorro Canyon of the Naranjo River, by the Manuel Antonio National Park, will have both whitewater kayaking and four-person team whitewater rafting races and slalom events

Guanacaste’s celebrations are coming up, exciting dates for this side of the country; full of traditional activities, typical music and folklore dancing.

Up coming for the week of January 15th we have lots of festivities in Santa Cruz, typical Costa Rican rural town, where people gather to celebrate with typical music, folkloric dancing and bullfighting to honor the Black Christ of Esquipulas. Since 1926 it’s celebrated in commemoration of their catholic religion when Christ suffered before being

If you visited the beautiful property of Playa Nicuesa Rainforest Lodge four decades ago, instead of a high-end Costa Rica eco-lodge, you would have found only “chocolate trees.”

Cacao tree plantations were once plentiful in Costa Rica’s southernmost region of the Golfo Dulce and Osa Peninsula. Cacao was an important export market for Costa Rica until the fungus blight called Monilia destroyed 95% of production in 1979.

On the Chocolate Tour at Playa Nicuesa Rainforest Lodge, you will learn abo

Just in time for Christmas, travelers to Rincon de la Vieja Volcano in Guanacaste, Costa Rica, can enjoy charming new guest rooms at award-winning eco-hotel Hacienda Guachipelin.

At the base of the Rincon de la Vieja Volcano, Hotel Hacienda Guachipelin is one of the best places to stay in Guanacaste. The eco-tourism hotel is a working horse and cattle ranch and has a fantastic adventure park. They were awarded the TripAdvisor Certificate of Excellence for 2014.

The spacious new Superior rooms ha

Thousands of visitors come to Costa Rica each year with the hope of witnessing the extraordinary phenomenon of seeing sea turtles nest and lay their eggs. These ancient reptiles have been swimming Earth’s waters for at least 150 million years, mysteriously returning to the same beach where they were born.

Costa Rica’s Pacific Coast beaches receive mass arrivals of female turtles by the tens of thousands, and the Costa Rica Caribbean beaches have crucial world nesting sites. Of the seven species

For its fifth year Envision Festival returns to Costa Rica, where thousands of socially conscious people from all over the world gather together to share a magical experience of culture, art, music, yoga, meditation and pure nature.

The 2015 Envision Festival will be held from February 26th to March 1st at Rancho La Merced in Uvita, Costa Rica, next to the Marino Ballena National Park, famous for its beautiful Whale’s Tail sandbar formation.

The festival is known for its great music performances w

Need to get from San Jose to the Arenal Volcano in Costa Rica? Or from Guanacaste to the Monteverde cloud forest? How about from Arenal to the beach at Manuel Antonio?

Transportation in Costa Rica, unless you’ve booked a Costa Rica vacation package that includes transfers, can sometimes be complicated and expensive. Now there is a Costa Rica transportation solution that also makes your travel days fun.

Desafio Adventure Company offers Adventure Connections that take care of your transportation bet

Sunsets in Santa Teresa, Costa Rica are some of the most spectacular I’ve seen, especially if it is low tide. When the Pacific Ocean recedes from the long coastline of this stretch of the Nicoya Peninsula – Playa Carmen, Playa Santa Teresa and Playa Hermosa – the setting sun reflects its fiery colors in millions of little tide pools in the exposed reef and turns the white sand rosy pink.

The best place to be on the beach in Santa Teresa and watch the sunset, while you enjoy a refreshing cold dri

Have you always wanted to live in the rainforest by a tropical beach? Or are you looking for a vacation home in a warm climate? The special eco-community of Portasol Rainforest & Ocean View Living in Costa Rica is an excellent option.

Strategically located on the Costa Rica Central Pacific Coast between Manuel Antonio National Park and Dominical, the beautiful sustainable development encompasses 1,300 acres of pure rainforest, streams, waterfalls, mountain ridges and sea views along the Portalón

Whenever I travel anywhere that serves delicious meals, I always think, “How can I recreate this at home and enjoy it again?”

In the case of Playa Nicuesa Rainforest Lodge in Costa Rica, now I can. The Costa Rica rainforest lodge by the Osa Peninsula has released a free PDF downloadable Edible Landscape Garden Cookbook with a collection of 38 of their most popular recipes.

Read any of the TripAdvisor reviews about Playa Nicuesa Rainforest Lodge and guests always mention the delicious fresh meals

Some of the most elaborate traditional Christmas celebrations take place in the seven countries of Central America. Read on for more about each country’s unique festivity.

Christmas Celebrations in Central America

Panama

The Panama City Christmas Parade is the big festivity here. Decorated floats, marching bands and dancers in traditional costumes parade through Panama City to the beach where there is a tree lighting ceremony. At nightfall, there is also a parade of boats decorated with Christmas

Is it a good time to buy real estate in Costa Rica?

According to real estate experts, it is. Costa Rica – one of the hottest real estate markets in the Americas in the early 2000s – is coming back stronger than ever after the economic slump throughout the United States and Latin America.

“Costa Rica definitely has bounced back, especially in the Central Valley and the popular beach areas on the Pacific. Prices are on the rise again,” commented Dennis Easters, co-owner of Pure Life Development of

To your holiday decorations this year, add some pretty Christmas plants for a living touch of good cheer. Surprisingly, many holiday plants are tropical in origin, which means that you care for them like a houseplant if you live in a cold climate.

The Else Kientzler Botanical Garden in Sarchi, Costa Rica, has several fun ideas for traditional and novel Christmas plants to decorate your home this holiday season. They recommend using decorative planters in different levels, along with hanging bask

What do a little black mare and the Virgin of Guadalupe have to do with Christmas traditions in Costa Rica?

One of the more interesting Christmastime festivals held in Costa Rica is the Festival of “La Yeguita” (the little mare) on December 12. Held annually on the Nicoya Peninsula of Costa Rica, the celebration combines traditional native beliefs and Roman Catholic customs.

According to the University of Costa Rica, the indigenous legend tells about two brothers caught in a machete-fight over a

It seems nearly everyone has heard of Costa Rica and is intrigued about the little Central American country.

Besides being a peace-loving nation full of friendly people, Costa Rica fills its small territory with tremendous diversity. There is an incredibly large country-wide system of national parks, private reserves and wildlife refuges protecting exotic, unique nature. People come for the rainforest and nature, the beaches and volcanoes, and the widely varied tropical climate.

On top of all of

The fascinating fact about plants and trees in Costa Rica is that each one has a story, or a folk tradition or a specific use. There is much more than meets the eye in this tropical paradise.

Ovido Esquivel, director of the Else Kientzler Botanical Garden in Sarchi, Costa Rica, uncovered the mystique of some of Costa Rica’s commonly found plants and trees, which you will more than likely see in your travels around Costa Rica.

Bougainvillea(veranera in Spanish): Native to South America, the vibra

Going through my mind as I took my first bite of steaming, fresh pupusa – after, “oh my god, this is good!” – was, “why don’t I eat pupusas more often?”

There is a pupusa restaurant in my little country town of Atenas, Costa Rica. I’ve eaten there a few times, but now plan to be a regular.

Pupusasare the main national dish in El Salvador, the smallest and most densely populated country in Central America. You can find pupusas anywhere in the world where there is a Salvadoran community, and there

Travel can be stressful, there’s no doubt about it. Standing in line, airport security, incessant waiting, lugging bags and suitcases, crowds … and the sitting! Sitting on a plane, or in a car or taxi, or on a bus, or on a train – it plays havoc with your back, butt, hips, legs, and well, pretty much everything.

After a long airplane flight, I always feel about two inches shorter from my back and muscles being scrunched from so much sitting. Know the feeling? Ever want to be pulled apart from he