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The Coastal Provinces of Costa Rica
Home » Costa Rica » Costa Rica Major Cities and Regions » The Coastal Provinces of Costa RicaPosted by Your Guide on May 10, 2006 4:50 PM
The provinces of Guanacaste and Puntarenas cover the Pacific coastline, while Limon covers the Caribbean coast. It should be noted that the two coasts are very different in terrain, culture and industry. The Pacific Coast is characterized by forested mountains meeting the ocean, and can be divided into three regions – Guanacaste, the Central Coast and the Southern Coast. Although most of the Pacific coast is easily accessible and popular among tourists, the southern half of the area is extremely remote and undeveloped. The Caribbean coast can be divided into a northern half and southern half. The northern half is remote and mostly accessible only by boat or small aircraft. It is a flat plain containing several rivers and rain forests, while the southern half is full of uncrowded beaches that can be reached by automobile.
Located in the northwest corner and divided into eleven cantons, Guanacaste is the most sparsely populated province in Costa Rica. Unique to Costa Rica, this province doesn’t experience a rainy season and steady heat from November to April. This unique climate combined with the beautiful beaches that line the Pacific Ocean lend itself to attracting vacationers from across the world who are trying to escape their cold, wintry climates. The months from May to October have moderate temperatures, but are still considerably warmer than the provinces that have higher elevations. The population in Guanacaste is a mixture of Native Americans, Spaniards and sub-Saharan Africans, which results in the different dialect that Guanacastecan residents have. There are several new developments popping up in Guanacaste due to the increasing popularity of the beaches. Condominiums, homes, luxury resorts and even golf courses are starting to populate the landscape here. Although the growth is significant, a stretch of deserted beach can easily be found in this part of the country.
The province of Puntarenas covers the rest of the Pacific coast with a large bulge of the province in the southwest and a smaller bulge in the northern end. Puntarenas is the second largest province and has a population of over 360,000, although the southern portion contains some of the most remote areas of the entire country. The southern portion is hot, humid and has dense rainforests and rugged coastlines. This area is mostly protected from development and deforestation because much of it is part of the National Park system. It is difficult to access the southern parts of Puntarenas, but there are some nature lodges located along the shores that eco-tourists find captivating. Perhaps this province is most famous for its rare cloud forests that are created from mists that sweep over the mountaintops. Monteverde is an especially popular location for this type of forest and offers a number of canopy tours for visitors.
The entire Caribbean coastline lies in the province of Limon. It stretches from Panama in the South to Nicaragua to the North. The population here is about 340,000 with six cantons. The culture here is mostly Afro-Caribbean with the majority of descendents coming from Jamaica. English Creole and Spanish are both spoken within this province. The coast is a wide lowland that is populated with rivers, rain forests and banana plantations. If you want to access the northern part of Limon, you will have to do it either by boat or small airplane. Located there is Tortuguero National Park which is home to nesting sea turtles and famous river boat trips. The southern part of Limon has beautiful beaches and is relatively undeveloped – making it a great vacation spot if you are looking to share a deserted beach. The rainy season between December and April does affect this area, so if you want to visit plan your trip accordingly.
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