Note: This article is a real life experience of a pig farm in Guanacaste Costa Rica. If you eat Chicharrones, you need to know where they come from and how the process works. This day has been in the works for months, the one my brother-in-law has been threatening me with. I'm back on the enormous rice farm in Guanacaste. I've had a day to settle in and fired off about 150 pictures wanderin...

Crossing Latin American international borders is rarely easy or pleasant (why do they always smell like pee and desperation?). Things are even more complicated when you’re driving across in your own vehicle as part of an overland road trip. We hope these border crossing tips help you travel across the Peñas Blancas border from Nicaragua into Costa Rica smoothly with or without a vehicle. From: ...

Updated November 2017: With a total of 1228km of coastline to offer, it is no wonder Costa Rica is known for its countless beach destinations. It is also no surprise that travellers have a hard time deciding on which beach town to visit, since there are so many different options to consider. For the purpose of this post, we will focus on Costa Rica’s northern pacific beaches stretching from the...

For 20 years, I’ve been fortunate to live and work in this fabulous country and I’ve assembled the following information with links to share a slice of paradise with you. CENTRAL VALLEY - The heart and soul of Costa Rica, where 70% of the population lives and works. Strikingly beautiful with a mild, spring-like climate year-round. Costa Rica’s Central Valley lies at an elevation of 3,000 to 5,...

For most people the mention of Guanacaste conjures up visions of ocean, surfing, palms and most anything beach related. That's because most of us head there on vacation. Locals have a life to live and it usually doesn't involve sand in their toes. I took the bus from San Jose to Liberia on a trip to meet my in-laws. Family dynamics aside, taking the bus really changes your perspective on this ...

Starting on June 24th, 2012, perpetual tourists residing in Guanacaste and the northern zone of Costa Rica will have Panama as a sensible option for a visa run. Copa Airlines will begin flying from the new Daniel Oduber Quiros International Airport in Liberia (LIR) directly to Panama. The new route will operate on Thursdays and Sundays, starting in Panama at 9:52 pm and arriving in LIR at 10:23...

SANTA ANA – The most senior man in Costa Rica celebrated his 112th anniversary on this Earth with a birthday party at the TGIF restaurant in Escazu on Saturday, March 10. Jose Uriel Delegado Corrales is a resident of a senior living center located in Piedades, Santa Ana. Don Jose Uriel's birthday party also served to celebrate the noble work of the senior living center that is managed by pious...

Costa Rica is getting some free worldwide publicity thanks to the hottest tablet computers in the market. In Wednesday's video presentation of the long-awaited new Apple iPad, which is not called iPad 3, images of the Poas volcano and some of our beaches are clearly seen. The iPad promotional video, which can be seen here (QuickTime download and installation may be required), includes a section...

Brian Farley is the owner and operator of CR Surf Charters. Every year in January the ”Papagayo Winds” arrive in Guanacastes on cue , as if directed by Spielberg or Scorsese. And for many, heavy winds at the beach and surf are somewhat of an annoyance. But for sport fisherman and surfers the mind races and the pulse quickens in anticipation of this epic part of the summer season here in the dr...

Costa Rica has become one of the top destinations for tourists and travelers seeking close contact with nature, pristine beaches, National Parks and tropical rain and cloud forests. It is well established as one of the best countries to visit for biological diversity, primary forests, coral reefs, endangered species and enchanting white sand beaches, with outstanding surfing and scuba diving. Yet ...

Nature made Costa Rica’s beaches beautiful, and the local government is making sure that they also remain clean thanks to the Bandera Azul Ecologica (Blue Ecologic Flag) program. The PBAE was created in 1996 with the objective of preventing or stopping pollution and to safeguard the public health. The program (which is an adaptation of a similar one launched in Europe back in 1985) has been promot...

If you happen to be in Guanacaste while traveling in Costa Rica, you should definitely visit the Rincon de la Vieja National Park, one of the most ecologically diverse areas in the province. It will be the perfect opportunity for you to check Volcan Rincon de la Vieja, one of the country’s few active volcanoes. The last eruption took place on September 16, 2011, and access to the crater is stil...

A beach community in Guanacaste will be getting a special Christmas gift in January. Nine brilliant young minds from the New York Institute of Technology are coming to Costa Rica in January to share their knowledge and environmental moxie with the people of Playa Nosara in an effort to promote sustainability. One of the most difficult lessons being learned by people in Costa Rica is that their...

Is Costa Rica destined to become the Malibu Beach of Central America? The tabloids of the world are awash with reports of Hollywood's most glamorous power couple coming to spend the holidays in a rented hacienda. Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie, collectively referred to as “Brangelina” by gossip mavens, might be heading to the Guanacaste province to spend the holidays in a rented hacienda, according ...