More than one million tourists visit Costa Rica each year. What draws a lot of people to this lightly advertised destination? Natural beauty and diversity will be the answers. Costa Rica covers only 0.03% of the surface of the planet but it has about 6% of the world's biodiversity.
Visitors encounter seas, beaches, rivers, waterfalls, mountains, and a good amount of flora and fauna. Twelve major life zones provide habitat for over 10,000 kinds of flowering plants, 850 bird species, 3,000 butterfly species, and 209 species of mammals. Volcanoes, rainforests, cloud forests, lowland jungles, the Pacific coastline, and tranquil Caribbean beaches stretch across seven provinces. 30 % of the land is protected by national and private reserves, which harbor more than five percent of the world's plant and animal species.
Costa Rica is Central America's jewel. It's an oasis of calm among its turbulent neighbors and an ecotourism heaven, making it one of the best places to experience the tropics with minimal impact.
Costa Rica boasts 20 national parks, 8 biological reserves, and a wealth of other protected areas to enchant those that marvel at the wonders of nature. It draws ecotourists from around the globe. Activities include horse-back riding, hiking mountainous paths in the cloud forests, guided bird-watching tours, volcanoes, scuba diving, snorkeling, sailing, canopy tours, golf plus much more.
Ticos, as the people of Costa Rica are known, are well-known for being hospitable, and are quite happy to live up to their reputation. They seem to be well aware that their country is really a special place, and they go out of their solution to accommodate their visitors, explaining things that may seem foreign to a foreigner, and helping make their stay as enjoyable as possible.
Northwest Costa Rica, the Guanacaste province is for the active soul, drawing visitors with its beaches, rivers, waterfalls and natural attractions. Forming the eastern border is really a band of volcanoes that form the Cordillera de Guanacaste and Cordillera de Tilar�n.
From the mountains flow various rivers that roll down and form an alluvial plain drained by the Rio Tempisque, which empties into the Gulf de Nicoya. The name Guanacaste is derived from quahnacaztlan, a native word for the guanacaste tree, which is Costa Rica's national tree.
With a fresh airport at Liberia, tourism to Guanacaste has boomed.
Costa Rica is really a tropical country with two seasons - dry and wet. The Guanacaste Province is the driest region of the united states with significantly less than 55 inches of rain in the coastal areas.
Costa Rica occupies a territory of around 20,000 square miles in the southern section of Central America, and includes several small islands mostly on the Pacific side. It is much like the state of Florida with two long coastlines. The country is only about 200 miles long and 70 miles wide at the narrowest part.
Costa Rica is often compared to Switzerland and Hawaii due to the mountains and forests. Unlike many areas of Mexico, Central and SOUTH USA, Costa Rica remains beautiful year-round. That is partly because it borders the Pacific Ocean on the west, the Atlantic Ocean on the east, and contains a string of towering volcanoes on the Central Plateau. Combine all of this and you have a unique tropical paradise with 11 climatic zones.
The high season in Costa Rica, December through April, is the dry season. The green season, which lasts from May to November, usually sees sunny mornings, with rain showers in late afternoon and evening. Overall, the climate is tropical, with an average temperature of 72�F (22�C). It can be much hotter across the coastal areas of the united states, and much cooler in the mountains.
During the past, agricultural exports, like bananas and coffee, have already been the staple of the Costa Rican economy. However, tourism has always played an ever-increasing role, and today it has become the dominant economic force. Ecotourism travel may be the most preferred for expansion since it will provide a sustainable resource for tourism for generations of Costa Ricans to come. Costa Ricans want to showcase their country, and sincerely welcome all travelers and vacationers.
San Jose, population over one million, may be the capital and cultural heart of Costa Rica. Other major cities (by population) are: Alajuela, Cartago, Heredia, Liberia, Lim�n and Puntarenas.
To enter the country you now must have a valid passport. Some countries now require your passport to be valid for at least 6 more months in order to leave your country to come here. Talk with you embassy or airline. Costa Rica is on Central Standard Time, six hours behind Greenwich Mean Time and something hour behind EST in the States. It does not currently use daylight saving time.
No shots are required. The water in the major cities of Costa Rica is safe and most hotels and restaurants offer purified tap water. You might would rather drink bottled water or seltzer to be certain. Costa Rica has excellent, low-cost medical care and well-qualified practitioners. Many AMERICANS arrived at Costa Rica for cosmetic surgery or dental work.
Costa Rica is really a safe destination for 99% of its tourists, but it's always smart to exercise caution whenever one travels. Generally, the country includes a low crime rate. Typically, https://www.discoverpuravida.com/ are simple thievery - non-violent crimes of opportunity, so just exercise caution, as all over the world.
Costa Rica has a reputation as one of the most stable and prosperous Latin American countries.
Costa Rica has something for everyone! Whatever your interests; eco-tourism trips bird watching, adventure tours, fishing, diving, rafting, canopy tours, golf, all inclusive hotels, vacation homes or just relaxing on an unspoiled tropical beach, you will find all of that and more in this tropical and secure paradise.