COSTA RICA GENERAL INFORMATION

Costa Rica caters to all classes of tourists, offering services to make its visitors stay a most enjoyable experience. Here you will find a wide range of hotel services, catering to all taste, styles and budgets. There are large hotels providing full services; swimming pools, restaurants, discotheques and conference rooms-either in the city itself, its outskirts or out in the countryside. Also you may choose from a long list of small, friendly hotels or bed & breakfasts located in beautiful, old converted homes. In addition there is a wide selection of mountain lodges and inns, beach hotels, jungle lodges and cozy cabins. May lodges offer facilities for every type of event, such as conventions, business meetings, etc. Restaurants in Costa Rica offer the tourist a wide variety of international cuisine and, for those wishing to try Costa Rican cooking, there are many places which serve typical regional dishes.

For the nature lover and conservationist, Costa Rica has become a true Mecca. Because of its natural resource conservation activities, Costa Rica has been awarded numerous distinctions, including the Saint Francis of Assisi prize, the award given in ecology by the Association of United States Travel Agents and the prestigious Smithsonian Institute Award. in 1992 Costa Rica was made the world headquarters of the Earth Council.

Two volcanic ranges dominate northwestern Costa Rica. The first is the Guanacaste Volcanic Chain with its Orosi, Miravalles, Tenorio, Rincón de la Vieja and Arenal volcanos. Arenal offers fairly constant eruptions, especially breathtaking at night, while Rincón de la Vieja's activity keeps natural mud pots in its foothills, bubbling permanently. In this area you can also visit Lake Arenal; with a surface area of some 85 square km, this is an ideal spot for water sports, such as windsurfing, water skiing, motor boat racing and fishing. The rivers of Costa Rica are of great interest, not only for their beauty, but also for the opportunities they provide for adventure, sport and leisure activities. On the Caribbean side is found the 145 km long Reventazón-Parismina River Systemand the 108 km long Pacuare. Both these rivers are ideal for fishing and white water rafting, they are enjoyed by kayakers and rafters in search of challenging adventure as well as those who are ready for white water thrills for the first time.

The Caribbean coastline stretches for 212 km in a generally north-south direction, with the whole coast inclined to the northwest. It is divided into two distinct sections; the San Juan River on the Nicaraguan border to the city of Limón, and that which extends from the city of Limón to the Sixaola River on the border with Panamá. The first section consists of a long stretch of coastline that separates a series of estuary lagoons and waterways, fed by numerous rivers, from the sea. These make up the famous Tortuguero Canals, over 100 km long. These navigable canals are the habitat of seven species of turtles. Located at the mid-point of the Caribbean Coast is the major port city of Limón, center of Costa Rica’s Afro-Caribbean culture.

The Pacific Coast extends over 1,016 km from one border to the other and offers a wide variety of geological features; islands, gulfs, headlands, coves, swamps, inlets and peninsulas. From Salinas Bay in the north to the tip of Burica Point in the south, the Pacific Beaches of Costa Rica offer an almost infinite number of beaches for tourist enjoyment. The Santa Elena, Nicoya and Osa Peninsula are the principal ones of the Pacific side. On the northern part of the coast is Salinas Bay (where the small Murcielago Archipielago offers fantastic scuba diving), the Santa Elena Peninsula and Culebra Bay (Where the Gulf of Papagayo tourist complex is under construction.) To the south is the Nicoya Gulf which also has great tourist appeal.