Puntarenas

Puntarenas is a small city on Costa Rica’s Pacific coast, located about 50 miles west of San Jose. It’s on a long and narrow peninsula in the Gulf of Nicoya. It's a very important tourism region in Costa Rica, as it’s home to Caldera, one of Costa Rica’s main ports. Because it has a busy port, travelers often use Puntarenas as a stopping point for another destination like Monteverde to the north or the Nicoya Peninsula just west across the Gulf of Nicoya. But Puntarenas has features of its own that make it worthy of a visit.

The peninsula has 264 miles of coastline full of islands, inlets and beaches that attract tourists and surfers. Playa Puntarenas, a large, long beach on the southern coast, used to be quite polluted and not easy on the eyes, but the city has put in large efforts to clean it up and refurbish it with new sand. Playa Hermosa is considered one of Costa Rica’s best surfing havens for professional surfers both national and international. Hundreds of surfers travel to Playa Hermosa in Puntarenas every year for the Quicksilver Surf Championships.

The Paseo de los Turistas is a long walking path that follows the southern coast and has shops, street vendors and bars to visit. On the weekends, vacationing Costa Ricans from San Jose will mingle with travelers while visiting the shops as well.

The Parque Marino del Pacifico is an aquarium where visitors can see 50 species of marine and coastal animals like sea turtles, tortoises, pelicans and sharks. It also has a marine animal rehabilitation center that helps rescue and rehabilitate injured marine animals. The beach around the park boasts a Blue Flag award, which recognizes the organization’s efforts to reduce environmental impacts.