Quepos City in Puntarenas - Costa Rica central pacific

The bay where is located Samara is among the Ticos and outsider tourists a very popular destination, the average age of visitors to Samara is a little older than the rest of the destinations of the country.

Because the reef that is located in Samara this beach is one of the most secure not only of the Nicoya peninsula but throughout Costa Rica. This is why Samara is a suitable destination for family vacations during all the year. Samara and the surrounding area offer to the tourists the perfect place to relax and have a nice and interesting vacation. There are a variety of rare plants and animals that can be found in the 3 kilometers of the strip of beach in Playa Samara and along some spectacular coral reefs. The island of Chora is situated opposite the bay and is a destination for kayaking and scuba snorkel.

This beach has a length of 3 kilometers and in some sections there are palm trees that allow to rest at certain times of day when the sun is very strong. Here you can find one of the best sites for surfing and to practice all kind of water sports from around the country. Also you can practice other activities such as horseback riding, deep sea fishing, snorkeling, scuba diving, visits to waterfalls and canoe tours.

Quepos City in Central Pacific Costa Rica

Surf lessons are offered in Samara and its waves are perfect for beginners, but too small for more experience surfers. The people of the surf schools in Samara will be able to indicate where to find bigger waves to experts.

Many luxurious homes in Samara belong to famous citizens of Costa Rica. The current president of Costa Rica, Oscar Arias, is one of them. In 1987 he was honored with the Nobel Prize for his peace plan for Central America. This document can be viewed at the National Museum in San Jose.
In the rested town of Samara, which is situated in the center of the bay, you’ll find restaurants, souvenir shops and tour operators for planning your activities in the area.

Pelicans, toucans, parrots and iguanas swarm in the vicinity. Especially during the winter months, humpback and gray whales frequent the waters near Samara. You will be able to see its enormous fins and water jets from the beach. In the village you can find everything from a supermarket until a large number of gift shops, bars and nightclubs. It is the ideal place to stop to go to the nearby national parks and reserves, is also perfect for a holiday or a quiet night away from home.

Samara is a destination easily accessible by car, all the way from San Jose or Liberia is done in asphalt road. Even a small airport is located four kilometers south of the village. This little airport has connections from multiple points of the country like San Jose and Liberia.

Dominical Beach in Costa Rica

Dominical Beach in Costa Rica is a village located opposite the beach, on the southern Pacific coast, just 45 kilometers from Manuel Antonio / Quepos in a southerly direction, and 35 miles west of San Isidro de El General. Originally a fishing village, Dominical is now home to a thriving and friendly community. With big waves throughout the year, Playa Dominical is a paradise for surfers from around the world. In addition, the area’s natural beauty and variety of activities and local services which converge in this town make it a great destination for any tourist.

In the past Sunday was a small fishing village, but eventually became a site known for surfers and travelers (backpackers). It is a point for national and international surfers travelers in Costa Rica. There are many places for accommodation for surfers on Dominical and if you do not bring your table to find a rent there, either at a store or on the beach there are places where you can rent surfboards.

In fact Dominical Beach is not a place for surfing for beginners, there are powerful waves that regularly broken the surfboards. Swimmers should not dismiss the waves or currents. The beaches in the southeast of Dominical are the most appreciated by the swimmers, the reef Dominicalito is a perfect place if you want to spend your day swimming in a beautiful beach because its calm water.

Dominical Beach in Costa Rica

There are many attractions, among which is important to mention the nearby Whale National Marine Park, there are also a myriad of things to do in this area, including hiking and camping in the forest, wildlife observation and excursions on horseback, among others. In addition, the beach is beautiful, every afternoon with stunning scenes of the spectacular sunsets.

In the opposite direction, northeast of Dominical beach, we found a good place for bird-watchers, many rare species of birds gather at the estuary of the River Baru.
Occasionally it is possible to see whales and dolphins from the beach. For those who want a closer look of the underwater world of Costa Rica just have to register at a school for diving in Dominical where there are many places for diving in the vicinity and you can also make a trip to the Isla del Caño where there can be found variety of species such as barracuda, king angel, clown fish turtles, big reef sharks and a variety of moray eels.

The beautiful Nauyaca Falls are located a little more inland, near the town of Platanillo. It is possible to swim beneath the waterfall of these two waterfalls of 60 meters in height. The Nauyaca Fallas can be reached on foot or by horseback riding, the tourist just need to take the route to the town of Libano in Platanillo. The Nauyaca Fallas are also known as Don Lulo or Holy Christ and is a beautiful place that you have to enjoy if you are visiting Dominical.

Herradura beach in Costa Rica - Central Pacific

Herradura beach in Costa Rica is located just 30 minutes from Jaco in Costa Rica and is renowned for having quite luxurious hotels, some of them famous in the country. The beach is protected by its own shape of horseshoe, for that reason the waves are small making it a good place for swimming. The town of Herradura is not very impressive but it has its own accommodations.

Herradura is fully equipped for marine sports such as sport fishin, also some of the largest private yacht in Costa Rica anchor in Herradura Bay. Due to its central location and proximity to San Jose, this is one of the most popular beaches for day trips. Many tourists who come to fish in Costa Rica are housed in hotels and resorts near Herradura and used fishing boats at their disposal to enjoy one of the best experiences of fishing that you can find in the country. In addition, Jaco with a lively and interesting nightlife is just a few minutes away by car.

The ocean is calm in Herradura beach and good for swimming as mentioned before, ideal for the family. The central Pacific region, where is located the Herradura beach, offers something different for each tourist, so is impossible to get bored in this place because there are a lot of things to do. These activities includes: swimming and the practice of surf (in Jaco beach), coastal villages, sports fishing, wildlife, outdoor activities and a beautiful national park.

Pelicans and other marine birds in Herradura Beach, Costa Rica

Herradura nearby areas are precisely in the transition zone where the Amazon and Mesoamerican biological environment meet each other, and is the meeting place for species from both environments. One of those areas is Carara, a famous national park that protects an evergreen forest of great complexity and density, with abundant wildlife, including the American crocodile, spider monkeys and frogs, and is also one of the best places to observe birds throughout all Costa Rica.

The 1492 film with Gerard Depardieu as Christopher Columbus was filmed on the Herradura beach in Costa Rica. The film was recorded on the Pacific coast, but the place where it happened the historical arrival of Columbus in reality was on the Caribbean coast. Several buildings and an Indian village were built for the film in which it was worked 10 weeks in this location. In the past Herradura was a sleepy village of fishermen, this has changed a lot. The bay is dominated by luxury condominiums and a golf course. Many owners of these condominiums are Americans and Europeans. With its tranquil waters, Herradura beach in Costa Rica remains as a major holiday destination for those seeking a quiet atmosphere.

Manuel Antonio in Costa Rica central pacific coast

Manuel Antonio is one of the most beautiful and expensive areas of Costa Rica for real estate and tourism. It is also one of the main tourism spot in the country famous for local and international tourists. It is a destiny almost mandatory for the international visitor. Despite of that the tourist can find cheap hotels and cabins. It is located in the Pacific coast of Costa Rica next to the town of Quepos. Manuel Antonio began as a small town that had a nice national park next door. As the national park became more known, hotels began to open. Because the town of Manuel Antonio is not very wide, the hotels and other buildings began to build on the road to Manuel Antonio National Park, and many of them took advantage of the panoramic views that this place offers. Soon, exclusive and expensive hotels were built to reach the current status of Manuel Antonio. Despite this, you can find cheap hotels but most of them are located next to the beach. The most expensive hotels and condos are located in areas of high hills that are more elegant and a little bit cooler.
If you want to go to Manuel Antonio first at all you need to go to Quepos that is located 4-5 hours to San Jose. In Quepos you can take a bus (run every 30 minutes) that travel to Manuel Antonio directly or rising from the town to the hills, but this can be difficult and heated because of the hot and sunny weather of the sun.

Manuel Antonio National Park in Costa Rica

Among the variety of diversions for tourists that are offered in Manuel Antonio the visitor can do sport fishing (very famous around the world), canopy tours inside the jungle, horseback riding on the beach or trails, hiking through the rainforest and the sea kayaking among others.

Manuel Antonio National Park is small natural reserve, with only 682 hectares. But it contains anything that attracts tourists to Costa Rica: beautiful and luxury beaches, a magnificent landscape with islands near the coast, a lush rain forest with a network of interesting roads easy to walk and lots of wildlife. There are excellent chances of seeing monkeys (aulladores, cariblancos and even titi monkeys), sloth bears and coatis. The red macaws fly through there but often you need some luck to see them.

Despite being small, the Manuel Antonio National Park is one of the most popular parks in the country, receiving about 150,000 visitors annually in recent years. A few years ago the deluge of visitors threatened to ruin the same resource that these visitors came to enjoy. The park’s director in those years believes the park can tolerate no more than 300 visitors per day. In 1994, the Park Service began limiting the numbers of visitors to 600 per day (800 on Saturdays and Sundays), and the park is now closed on Mondays.

Costa Rica - Central Pacific

This are the best real estate location available in Costa Rica central pacific, from Puntarenas to Quepos and Manuel Antonio.  This area features a lot of lush and green settings surrounding big apartment, condo and homes in Costa Rica central pacific coast.

• Central Pacific

  • Puntarenas

  • Jaco

  • Herradura

  • Hermosa

  • Esterillos

  • Bejuco

  • Parrita

  • Quepos

  • Manuel Antonio