Blogs

When you think of having a destination wedding, is the usual location of a picture-perfect beach in some exotic tropical setting what comes to mind? What about scenic countryside? Or a live volcano?

What if you and your betrothed, or your family and friends, are not really beach people? Luckily, beaches are not your only option for a destination wedding in Costa Rica. An equally romantic choice for where to tie the knot is at Hacienda Guachipelin by Rincon de la Vieja Volcano in the countryside o

Whether or not you can name the constellations or planets, it is always fascinating to look up at a clear night sky and get lost among the stars.

Anyone can enjoy stargazing. The best places to go, of course, are where the sky is wide open and very dark, with no distracting city lights. Up in the mountains, or in the desert, or out on the open ocean; it is breathtaking to stare upwards at night at millions and millions of twinkling stars and planets in a blue black sky.

Costa Rica is one of the

If you like to adventure, these four iconic places in Costa Rica need to be on your travel list.

From the towering Rincon de la Vieja Volcano to an endless horizon of water birds during migration season in Palo Verde National Park, here are some of the most iconic places in Costa Rica to visit in the Guanacaste province.

RINCON DE LA VIEJA NATIONAL PARK

To Do: Hiking, waterfall swimming, hot springs, horseback riding, wildlife viewing

The massive, 600,000-year-old geological wonder of the Rincón d

For those looking to relax and detoxify their bodies, hot springs in Costa Rica are the “new, hot destination.”

Hot springs have been treasured for centuries by people all over the world for their therapeutic benefits. Luxuriant warm water rich in minerals like sulfur, silica, calcium, iron and magnesium are rejuvenating, detoxifying and relaxing. Not to mention great for stress reduction. Reported health benefits of hot springs include relief from arthritis, fibromyalgia, skin conditions, and hi

Coming to Costa Rica on vacation?

Here are some quick and easy tips on what to pack for your vacation in Costa Rica. Of course, what you need depends on where you are going and what you will do, but these general guidelines will serve you well.

Costa Rica is a top 2016 vacation destination, offering warm tropical sunshine, beautiful beaches, rainforest adventures, and affordable travel. It is one of the safest countries in Latin America and easy to get around since English is widely spoken.

For

It’s 5:45 a.m. The sun is already shining, and I am gingerly making my way through the cow corral, being careful not to step in anything I shouldn’t nor get too close to the long-horned cows.

I’m headed to the cow barn at Hotel Hacienda Guachipelin at Rincon de la Vieja, Costa Rica, to see how the ranch hands handle the morning milking. Inside, several buckets of steaming, frothy white milk wait in the holding area until they are carried to the hotel restaurant kitchen for processing.

One of the r

It’s the new year, and that means it’s time for Costa Rica’s summer festival season! Known for their gregarious, fun-loving style, Costa Ricans’ enthusiasm is contagious when the country celebrates its numerous fiestas, festivals and horse parades from January to April. Plan your travel to Costa Rica to experience these fun cultural events with rich local traditions, tasty cuisine and vibrant music. Besides the main festivals, every town and community has its own “turno” (a country fair) to enj

Christmas is right around the corner, and with it are holidays and school vacations. For a fun adventure in the sun with rainforest, beaches and volcanoes, head to Costa Rica for your family vacation.

Costa Rica is a top family vacation destination for warm tropical sunshine and seas, beautiful beaches, rainforest adventures, affordable easy travel and plenty of kid-friendly activities. It is one of the safest countries in Central America and English is widely spoken.

What makes Costa Rica so grea

Vacation rentals in Costa Rica are very popular, and often the most economical travel option for families and groups of friends. Pay per night for multiple hotel rooms, with maybe only breakfast included? Or stay in a Costa Rica beach rental for a few days, weeks or month with plenty more space and luxury amenities, at much lower prices than a luxury beach hotel.

The North Pacific Coast of Guanacaste, Costa Rica is known for beautiful beaches. You can pretty much find it all here – white sand, go

Wouldn’t it be nice to dine in a restaurant that only served freshly-made meals made with locally-sourced ingredients, vegetables picked that same day, sauces that didn’t come from a jar or can, bread hot out of the oven, juices that only a moment ago were whole fruit, and desserts loving crafted by an on-site pastry chef?

In fact, you can. This is what is cooking at Hotel Hacienda Guachipelin in Guanacaste, Costa Rica. The renowned Costa Rica eco-adventure hotel at the base of the Rincon de la

Pay per night for a hotel room, with maybe breakfast included? Or, enjoy a private spacious condo or beach house that lets you have your own, comfortable “home away from home” while on vacation?

Over the past 10 years, vacation rentals in Costa Rica have become very popular, and it’s no wonder. Vacation rentals can be a really economic travel option for families, groups of friends, and couples. Staying in privately-owned apartments or homes that are rented by the day, week or month gives vacation

Nearly all of Costa Rica’s two million-plus tourists each year visit at least one beach during their vacation. Logistics are easy given that the San Jose International Airport is a little less than one hour from the closest Pacific Coast beach, and it only takes 30 minutes or so to get to the coast from the Liberia International Airport in Guanacaste in the north Pacific.

Called “El Coco” by Costa Ricans or “Coco Beach” by foreign visitors and residents, Playa del Coco is one of the oldest beach

Costa Rica posee 27 parques nacionales, 58 refugios, 32 áreas protegidas, 15 humedales pantanosos, 11 reservas forestales y 8 reservas biológicas. La totalidad de territorio protegido representa el 25% de su extensión geográfica completa. Un lugar especial dentro de estos lo ostenta la Reserva Natural Absoluta de Cabo Blanco. Esta forma parte del Área de Conservación Tempisque, en la provincia de Puntarenas. Cuenta con una superficie terrestre de 12,7 Km.² más 17,9 Km.² marinos. Fue la primera z

Guanacaste – the northwest province of Costa Rica – is known for its rolling grassy plains, “Gold Coast” beaches, towering mountains and volcanoes, sunny dry climate and unique dry tropical forest. For generations “Guanacastecos,” as the residents here are called, have been dedicated to farming, cattle and horse ranching. The “sabanero” (cowboy) traditions, folklore, music and dance are deeply rooted in the country’s culture.

But Guanacaste wasn’t always a part of Costa Rica. Once belonging to Ni

Eco-friendly travel and sustainable tourism are some of the top buzzwords today in the travel and tourism industry worldwide. “Go Green” is the slogan you hear most often nowadays. Planet-conscientious travelers are more frequently seeking out eco-friendly lodging wherever they travel.

In ecotourism hotspot Costa Rica, L'acqua Viva Resort & Spa is a leading eco-friendly hotel in Nosara on the Nicoya Peninsula. The Bali-style Costa Rica luxury hotel is located between the beautiful white sand bea

Like all travelers, when you plan a vacation to an unfamiliar location, you want to have an idea of what to expect. TripAdvisor is a great resource for getting insider information about a place from guests who have been there.

Here are 5 great travel tips for your vacation to Nosara, Costa Rica from guests who stayed at L’acqua Viva Resort & Spa by Playa Guiones.

1. What’s the best way to get to Nosara, Costa Rica? Fly.

The area of Nosara includes the town of Nosara and the beaches of Playa Guio

After a big day of hiking, zip-lining, horseback riding or other adventure tours in Costa Rica, there is nearly nothing better than soaking in steamy thermal springs so hot they make you tingle all over. Your tired muscles are soon relaxed into spaghetti-like existence and the cares of the world melt away.

Mineral-rich hot springs have rejuvenating and therapeutic properties treasured for centuries by people all over the world. Travelers pay big bucks to visit famous spas with mineral springs. A

Article by Shannon Farley

In the easy-going surf and yoga town of Playa Guiones, Costa Rica, there is a very strange smell in the air this time of year.

Besides the fresh scent of the ocean, from January to April, it smells like a giant stack of maple syrup covered pancakes. What is that gingerbread cookie smell pervading everywhere?

It's molasses – all over the streets.

No, the residents of this little tourist town in the Nosara region of Costa Rica’s Nicoya Peninsula don’t have such a sweet tooth

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

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