Traveling to the Guanacaste Region of Costa Rica

Tamarindo is the "hub" of Guanacaste from a traveller's perspective, and puts you right on beaches with great sport fishing, easy access to hiking and volcanoes, access to great surf (including 'Ollies', the point break named for Ollie North), and even a nearby city in San Jose. Violent crime is not an issue here, although some areas of San Jose can be rough and should be avoided, but you do not want to leave valuables laying around in an unattended vehicle.

The region is named for the national tree of Costa Rica which you will see in addition to many sugar cane fields. One of my favorite things about the local food products is that they are generally sweetened with sugar cane instead of the nasty high fructose corn syrup used in the US.

Environmentalists should really love the area, as everyone from the government down to the people are very supportive of "green" lifestyles and initiatives. Likewise, wildlife has been preserved and is not threatened like in neighboring Nicaragua.

There is an abundance of great local restaurants to choose from, and are usually easily distinguished from the more "tourist trap" places both in look and cost. If you are paying more than you would pay in a comparable American restaurant, you're getting ripped off. There are plenty of ATMs, and most places take USD so you don't need to do conversion if you don't want to. Also, you can get by on just English in Tamarindo and most of the neighboring towns if you no habla.

Something to be aware of when traveling to the Guanacaste region of Costa Rica is that unlike most other areas in the country, for this you'll want to fly into the Liberia airport. Basically you'll either be setting up a shuttle ride with a service, or getting your hotel to provide you with transport.

For surfers, I'd recommend checking out Witches Rock (boat accessible only) and Playa Negra. Have a great trip down there, you won't be disappointed!

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