Costa Rica Vacation Rentals

Costa Rica is renowned for its beautiful natural landscapes, great climate year-round and vibrant culture. This Central American country has a lot to offer the traveller: beautiful beaches, stunning cloud forests, excellent hiking and world-famous surfing, to name but a few highlights. It also offers some great places to stay. Costa Rica vacation rentals range from colonial-style houses and beachside cottages to stunning hillside villas with sweeping ocean views. These make the perfect base to enjoy Costa Rica's spectacular nature, or simply learn about "pura vida" (the pure life) first hand.

Journey into Costa Rica

Traveling to this beautiful nation is easy and convenient from anywhere in the world. If you are arriving by air, the largest airport in the country is the Juan Santamaría International Airport. It is located around 10 miles from downtown San José, Costa Rica’s largest and capital city. You may also arrive at the Daniel Oduber Quiros International Airport, an airport near Liberia, one of the largest cities in the country. From the airport, you have the option of traveling by coach or taxi to your desired destination. You can also rent a car at any airport you journey to, so your trip is made easier and more comfortable. However you may decide to journey into and around this country, remember to choose from a variety of Costa Rica vacation homes so you have the perfect base from which to see this breathtaking country.

Experience local food in Costa Rica

A visit to Costa Rica wouldn't be complete without sampling their unique traditional cuisine. Costa Rican cuisine reflects both their history as a Spanish colony and their pre-Colombian past, as well as the country's abundance of natural resources. The local diet is rich in tropical fruits and vegetables, seafood, meat, and of course the regional staples, rice and beans.

A must try is gallo pinto, arguably the national dish, although there is some disagreement over whether this was invented by the Ticos (Costa Ricans) or their neighbours, Nicaragua. Gallo pinto is made up of rice and beans which are cooked separately and then fried together, and is traditionally served with breakfast, often accompanied by eggs, local cheese and/or bread.

Other typical dishes include black bean soup, ceviche (raw fish marinated in lime juice), fried plantains (a local vegetable which is essentially a larger, savoury version of a banana) and countless types of seafood. Beer is very popular here, and you will be able to try the produce of local craft breweries. For dessert, Tres Leches is very typical: this is a cake soaked in three types of milk, forming a sweet, refreshingly cool dessert.

Vibrant nightlife in Costa Rica

Nightlife and going out in Costa Rica is generally characterized by beachside bars, discos, karaoke bars and large street parties. This varies depending on where you are in the country. In the capital, San Jose, you can dance all night at large nightclubs such as the multi-dance floor Club Vertigo, or have a more relaxed evening at a craft brewery or chic cocktail lounge.

On Sunday nights in the resort town of Puerto Viejo on the Caribbean coast, the town comes alive with live bands and DJs. Over on the Pacific coast, in Tamarindo, you can try your luck at the casino, or sing the night away one of the many lively karaoke bars in town. Across the country, many bars also double as restaurants, meaning you can enjoy a meal at practically any hour.

Explore Costa Rica's natural landscapes

Many Costa Rica villa rentals are located on the coast. This is not surprising since the country has a large amount of beautiful, pristine coastline. You can find stunning beaches at Jaco and Tamarindo on the Pacific side, or Limon and Puerto Viejo on the clear waters of the Caribbean. The Pacific side is well-known for its excellent surfing, while both coasts offer countless sandy beaches for swimming, sunbathing and relaxing.

Costa Rica is also renowned as an eco-lovers paradise. Throughout the country you will find spectacular national parks where you can hike volcanos, visit rainforests and cloud forests, and see unique wildlife. You can hike the active volcano Arenal, around 90km northwest of San Jose.

In the southwest is Corcovado National Park, which encompasses a variety of tropical ecosystems, making it one of the most biodiverse regions in the world. The coastal natural reserve Tortuguero protects a number of native species including the endangered green turtle.

Costa Rican Fiestas and Festivals

Throughout the year, you will find a number of exciting, colourful festivals and fiestas (parties) in Costa Rica. Fiestas Palamares is held each January in the town of Palamares and features outdoor concerts from several bands across two weeks. Although predominantly a music festival, Fiestas Palamares also starts with a soccer game and lantern parade each year.

Another major event on Costa Rica's annual calendar is Carnival. Carnival is celebrated in various parts of the country just before lent starts, but the biggest celebration of all is in Puntarenas on the Pacific coast. The lively port town celebrates Carnival with a series of colourful parades. If you visit Costa Rica in October, head to Limon on the Caribbean coast for their own Carnival, which features dancing, parades and local food from the region.

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