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Winter has begun across most of the United States, Canada and northern Europe. As chilly winter weather freezes the north heading into Christmas, you are not alone if you have started dreaming about a sunny tropical holiday.

Escape this winter to the land of summer in Costa Rica – the “happiest country in the world”. It’s hard not to be happy with blue skies, warm sunshine, tropical breezes, rainforest, warm surf and soft sand. Sounds pretty good if you are looking out the window at freezing rai

You’ve been to Costa Rica on vacation, and you’ve thought: “Wouldn’t it be great to live there?” Or, invest in a vacation home that you can rent out and visit frequently?

Besides being one of the top five best places in the world to retire according to the 2015 International Living Retirement Index, a lot of people from other countries invest in real estate in Costa Rica for vacation homes and rentals.

But where do you start to look for property in Costa Rica?

Location is most important. Two of the

People in other countries pay big money for audio programs like this, while here at Portasol Rainforest & Ocean View Living eco-community it’s real. The sounds of the Costa Rica rainforest: crickets chirping, big bullfrogs burping and booming, Common Tink Frogs “tinking”, myriads of other insects whirring, and the Portalón River bubbling over stones and boulders.

I returned to Portasol Living eco-community on Costa Rica’s Central Pacific Coast a couple of months ago for a much-needed weekend get

Time to get away from it all, but you want something different than the usual packed beaches and crowded hotels? What if I told you there was a tropical paradise of rainforest and beach with bright sunny days and warm balmy nights, and you could have it all to yourself? No crowds.

You’d probably think: now hold on, I can’t afford a private island or multi-million dollar hard-to-get-to swanky hideaway. So what if I told you this place is completely affordable, easily accessible, and brand new in

It's really hard to beat a road trip across California's Central Coast. Challenging but spectacular terrain, wine regions rivaling Napa, beach towns ranging from art enclaves to laid back surfer hangouts, and eclectic lodging at every turn drive you forward towards new discoveries. But if Mother Nature isn't cooperating and extreme weather leads to coastal mud slides over the Pacific Coast Highway, here is an alternative approach:

San Francisco Touchdown

There are other logical points of arrival

Article by Shannon Farley

Famous for its year-round surf, spectacular sunsets and friendly beach town, Santa Teresa Beach in Costa Rica was once again named a top beach in Central America in the newest TripAdvisor Traveler’s Choice Awards.

The global travel site announced its 2015 Travelers' Choice Awards on Feb. 18, awarding Costa Rica the honor of having some of the best beaches and hotels in the world.

Santa Teresa Beach and Hermosa Beach by Santa Teresa were both listed as Top 10 Beaches in C

Most people when laid off from their job, especially a high-powered dot-com career, don’t do what Tierza Eichner did. Instead of polishing her resume and job hunting, Eichner took off on an eight-month surfing vacation to Central America, Hawaii and Mexico.

At the time, in 2001, the northern California native had only been surfing about a year. She had tried surfing in her early 20s. It didn’t go well – pummeled by waves, bashed by the board, and leg muscles ripped. Then, in her early 30s, Eichne

Traveling with friends is a must. A friends’ trip is the chance to share some amazing and memorable times, not to mention great stories. I’d even go so far as to say you haven’t lived until you’ve experienced a vacation with friends.

Have you heard about the amazing travel experiences in Costa Rica?  The hot travel destination of Costa Rica not only gives you thrilling scenery, exciting adventures and lots of off-the-beaten-path places to explore, the people are also really friendly. So you can g

The Nicoya Peninsula in the northwest region of Costa Rica in Central America is known as a “Blue Zone”. That means people here are more than twice as likely as elsewhere to reach a healthy age of at least 90 and frequently live to be over 100.

U.S. author and researcher Dan Buettner’s 2008 book, “The Blue Zones”, is written about his research with National Geographic and the world’s top longevity scientists to identify places around the world where people live measurably longer and better. After

If you love the idea of roaming through a rainforest looking for monkeys, snakes, exotic birds and wild cats, then this Costa Rica nature adventure tour is for you.

On your next Costa Rica vacation, you should go on the Bushmaster Adventures rainforest wildlife tour. This is one of your best bets in the Central Pacific region of Costa Rica to see an incredibly diverse array of wildlife.

Private or group guided tours visit the coastal rainforest at Portasol Rainforest & Ocean View Living, located

Coming very soon to Playa Hermosa by Jacó in Costa Rica are the Costa Rica National Surfing Championships for 2015. The annual national event will take place July 17 to 19 on Playa Hermosa in front of the Backyard Bar & Restaurant.

If you are in Costa Rica at this time, don’t miss this fun beach party and exciting Costa Rica surfing competition on the third weekend in July 2015. Newly opened Hotel Tramonto is the best place to stay in Playa Hermosa by Jacó. The modern 76-room hotel is located on

It’s no wonder that Jacó Beach is one of the most popular beaches in Costa Rica. There is so muchto do on the Central Pacific Coast of Costa Rica – beaches, surfing, outdoor adventure sports, the Carara National Park, Manuel Antonio National Park, and the Tarcoles River with its famous huge crocodiles.

The thing about Jacó, though, is that it is one of the closest beaches to the capital city of San Jose, and is always really busy. If you’re like me, and you want to experience this spectacular re

Article by Shannon Farley

Continuing to be a favorite with world travelers, beaches and hotels in Costa Rica were named among the best in the world according to the latest TripAdvisor Traveler’s Choice Awards.

The popular global travel site announced on Feb. 18 its 2015 Travelers' Choice Awards for the best beaches and hotels in the world. The annual awards are based on traveler reviews gathered by TripAdvisor over the past 12 months. In addition to an over-all top 25 world winners list, top winne

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

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

Chabil Mar Resort in Placencia, Belize announces the 2014 Jungle and Sea Belize Vacation Package Series. Choose from three premier jungle destination resorts, The Lodge at Chaa Creek, Ka'ana Boutique Resort or Amber Sunset Jungle Resort.

Each of these premier destinations offers a unique accommodation experience while nestled in the jungle of Cayo District of Belize. Enjoy, canoeing, horseback riding, zip lining, Maya excavation tours, cave swimming and tubing, jungle treks and the world's second

I remember the first time I visited Volcano Irazu. It was my first year living in Costa Rica. A friend of mine and I rented a car to drive around and explore this magical country we now called home.

We set out in the morning from San Jose, a hot and bright sunny day. We drove through Costa Rica’s first historical capital city of Cartago, past the soaring and majestic Basilica of Our Lady of the Angels, on up through patchwork farm land ascending the flank of Irazu Volcano. Up and up we wound, pas