Costa Rica

Located in Central America, Costa Rica shares a northern border with Nicaragua, a southern border with panama and is flanked by the Pacific and the Caribbean. Unlike many of its Latin American neighbors, Costa Rica has long enjoyed a stable and peaceful existence. Ranking 5th in the 2008 Environmental Performance Index and 1st in the Happy Planet Index, Costa Rica is one of the greenest countries on the planet and has pledged to be carbon neutral within the next 20 years.

Main cities and general weather

The Central Valley of Costa Rica hosts the Capital city, San José, and other major urban cities such as Heredia, Cartago and Alajuela. San Jose is located at a suitable altitude of 1600 meters average, and surrounded by beautiful mountain ranges that look blue in the early morning and green during the afternoon. The temperature tends to be refreshing and ranges between 73 and 80 Fahrenheit (23 to 27 Celsius). If a warmer climate is desired, visit Alajuela, the Mango city, known for having a robust population of healthy elders who are said to live longer because of the weather. Alajuela is Costa Rica's largest province and as a result, its tropical forests in Sarapiquí along with its productive farms up north will provide diverse weather, depending on the season. It wouldn't be Costa Rica without volcanoes and the active Poás volcano with an elevation of 2700 meters and a temperature of 53 F (12 C) won't disappoint. The other celebrated volcano in Alajuela is Arenal, a northern trip of about 4 hours. Arenal has an elevation of 1,670 meters and experiences warmer weather with an approximate average of 86 F (30C).

An Eternal Spring Paradise: The Climate and Seasons

In the era of climate change, it has become increasingly difficult to predict weather and describe it appropriately. Nevertheless, Costa Rica has always been known as an eternal spring paradise and will continue to be for decades to come. Despite the country's small size, there are a range of climates not only due to the variety of mountains, beaches and cities, but also because of the seasons. Costa Rica is a country with microclimate zones.

For tourism purposes, there are two seasons: high season and green season. For everyday life, ticos use two different categories: dry (summer) and winter season. Summer arrives in December, although Christmas season still has its "cold" 64 F (18 C) nights due to the northern winds. January, February and March continue with the dry-summer season, with high-speed winds sweeping throughout most of the country. March, April and May are transition months towards the rainy season, and the rain begins officially in June.

The Caribbean, however, has a different dynamic: October until May is rainy, and dry season is from June until September.

Beaches

All Costa Rican beaches are warm and pleasant but vary in their local microclimate. For example, the tropical rainforests in the Caribbean offer a very humid atmosphere and exotic landscape full of birds, monkeys, turtles, crabs and other creatures of nature, not to mention the cultural contribution of Afro-Caribbean communities. The Pacific Coast also varies, although it is fair to say that it is drier up north, with the best infrastructure for leisure tourism. In the Central Pacific, there are some national parks that protect parts of the coastline, and it is a startling transition to the unique and extraordinary South Pacific, in the Osa Peninsula, which holds the largest tropical forest coastline of all Central America. With its well known Corcovado National Park, it is considered the region with the most intense biodiversity in the country, and the rainy season is particularly heavy in that region, a perfect destination for the adventurous visitor.

On the central pacific coastline, the dry season extends from January to March, and the rainy season goes from April until December. There is no decrease in rain during the July - August period known as "veranillo" (little summer), like in other regions of the country. The driest month is February and the rainiest is October.

The National Meteorological
Institute of Costa Rica
Weather Information for:
Quepos & Manuel Antonio Degrees Celsius:

Month	Mean Temperature oC/oF		Mean Total Preci-pitation (mm)	Mean Number of Preci-pitation Days
	Daily Min.	Daily Max.
Jan	21.6/70.9	31.3/88.3	45.9	7.2
Feb	21.9/71.4	32.0/89.6	25.8	4.2
Mar	22.7/72.9	32.4/90.3	40.0	5.4
Apr	23.5/74.3	32.2/90.0	156.9	12.4
May	23.4/74.1	31.2/88.2	389.0	22.9
Jun	23.2/73.8	30.8/87.4	413.3	23.6
Jul	22.8/73.0	30.5/86.9	444.9	25.7
Aug	22.8/73.0	30.4/86.7	468.7	26.4
Sep	22.7/72.9	30.3/86.5	544.3	26.5
Oct	22.6/72.7	30.0/86.0	533.5	26.7
Nov	22.6/72.7	29.8/85.6	349.0	23.2
Dec	22.3/72.1	30.6/87.1	159.7	15.2

Remarks:
* Climatological information is based on monthly averages since 1984.
Instituto Meteorologico Nacional Costa Rica
Geo-Location: 09º29 N; 84º12 O; 6m
Canton: Aguirre
Province: Puntarenas