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Are there any Costa Rica experts out there that can recommend small towns that have a real distinct character?
Would you please give us a better idea of what you mean by”character”?
Scott Oliver – Founder
WeLoveCostaRica.comI ahve not been everywhere in Costa Rica but would love to find a place with a real identity. For example Ecaszu is pretty much for the dudes with plenty of dough and I do not have megabucks but prefer to live in an area that maybe has a real cultural identity. I love Antigua in Guatemala because it has real flavor and real indigenous people but its too dangerous in that counrty and would like to find something rich in costa rica .
I know that we do not have too much Indian in costa rica but we do have a town thats got lots of French people in it or Italian or Chinese or more from Spain and that flavor has gotten into the architecture and local cooking etc?
Check out Puerto Viejo on the caribbean side. There has been an interesting mix of locals and visitors in this area when we have visited.
I loved Antigua too and had a great time there, I found the locals and expats there incredibly warm & welcoming. Even though there are diverse indigenous groups in that city & certainly within Guatemala, the architure is from Guatemala’s Spanish colonization period and not a legacy from their indigenous groups so if what you’re looking for is arquitecture, CR has some little towns with great views, interesting architecture and different cultural flavors. If it’s indigenous you’re looking for, there are 8 indigenous groups and some of their original dwelling types can still be seen within some of their 22 different indigenous reservations which you could visit, but although there are plenty of non-indigenous within the territories, only indigenous are allowed to buy land/home within these reservations.
You can find colonial architecture in Cartago and the surrounding areas, also Barva de Heredia & some other towns in CR, but a lot of the older buildings have been lost or are in disrepair. You will not find as much in architecture as you did in Guatemala. However, there are still many old beautiful churches and ruins that you can still visit and enjoy their arquitecture throughout CR (Coronado, Ruinas de Ujarras, etc).
The Guanacaste/Northern Zone of CR has more influence from Nicaragua as it once belonged to them. San Vito in the Southern Zone has an interesting Italian heritage. Limon has Afro-Caribbean, indigenous, Chinese and more recently European influences that make some of those little towns from Cahuita on down such as Puerto Viejo, Cocles, Playa Chiquita, Punta Uva & Manzanillo have a distinct flavor from the rest of Costa Rica with Caribbean with Victorian trim architecture and people that couldn’t be friendlier. BTW, Escazu was not so different from other places in CR until fairly recently and actually had legends of witches that weren’t very welcoming–Interestingly enough, that didn’t stop the expat population from taking over the place and today it’s truly like traveling outside of CR. However, the expat influence can be felt from coast to coast in CR these days (some places more than others). You could also try rural living because there are plenty of little towns with names such as Puente in San Carlos, Atirro and Tuis in Turrialba and less rural places like San Ramon, Atenas, Grecia which are far from urban living, but have plenty of amenities available. If you were to be adventurous enough, there’s always la Southern Zone which you can be in Jimenez, Carate, Pavones, Punta Encanto (Enchanting Point) or some other MAGICAL little place in that very, very remote and very, very hot & humid area of CR that I just adore. Anyway, CR is small in size, but there is A LOT (too many to mention here) to see and you have to really do this in person to see if you, the place and the people that live there are a match for you….Best of luck!
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