Guanacaste Costa Rica – In Search of Living Pura Vida

The Costa Rican province of Guanacaste is a vibrant collection of charming towns and sparkling shores. Home to many of Central America’s most spectacular beaches, Guanacaste’s legendary blue waters and near perfect weather have a habit of luring surfers and beach fanatics from around the globe to her easy going resort towns.   From volcanoes to rainforests and waterfalls, and monkeys to more than 250 species of birds, Guanacaste’s impressive show of untamed nature meets rustic elegance in a place where the country’s landscape collides with the some of the most notable resorts and communities anywhere in Central America.  The effect is one of delicious contrast, rugged and exotic yet rife with indulgence. It’s a combination that makes Guanacaste’scaballero past a star in Costa Rica’s brilliant crown, a place that is so much more than a great destination: Guanacaste is a way of life.

Rolling Landscapes in Guanacaste, Costa Rica

Scattered throughout Guanacaste are dozens of charming surf towns and fishing villages made for discovery. From the great surfing and laid back elegance of Tamarindo to the white sand beaches and warm, Latin welcome that greet guests at Playa Flamingo, experiencing the myriad of towns that comprise the province of Guanacaste is a right of passage for visitors to the area and those that call it home.

With little rainfall and even less humidity, Guanacaste offers countless activities year round and a kaleidoscope of breathtaking views that sweep down the Pacific coastline, framing vignettes of rocky bluff and tiny islets.

Avellanas Beach

In Guanacaste, luxury seekers in search of the perfect holiday or vacation home have a host of impressive options at their fingertips. At the Four Seasons Hotel & Resort at Peninsula Papagayo guests are immersed in a place that is part exotic playground, part world-class resort and entirely five-star.  At Hacienda Pinilla, the luxurious yet Hacienda-style architecture of Central America’s only JW Marriott and Hacienda Pinilla’s tree lined neighborhoods are surrounded by amazing blue-flag beaches, renowned surf breaks, championship golf, tennis, as well as miles of hiking, mountain biking and horseback riding trails – all encompassed within the resort’s 4,500 acres. Once a sprawling cattle ranch, Hacienda Pinilla’s rustic cowboy charm and 3-miles of breathtaking coastline is now home to families from around the world who live full time or own vacation homes here.

Sunset on Playa Tamarindo

With such orphic allure it comes as no surprise that once experienced, it’s easy to see why Guanacaste is Costa Rica’s most popular tourist and second home destination. The hedonistic sensation of a sea breeze through your hair, the warmth that comes from burying your toes into soft sand, the exhilaration of a freshly waxed surfboard meeting Pacific surf and the radiance of Costa Rica’s tropical sun as it melts away winter’s chill.

What may come as a surprise though, is how attainable this luscious, Costa Rican lifestyle can be. With affordable real estate readily available, convenient access into and out of the country and a host of real estate choices that range from beachy casual to uber indulgent, Guanacaste is rapidly rising to the top of the short list for property buyers looking to make paradise their home.

Howler Monkeys in Guanacaste, Costa Rica

Once a local landing strip, Daniel Oduber Quirós International Airport (LIR) in Liberia now offers visitors a convenient place to being their Costa Rican adventure, as a nice alternative to Juan Santamaría International Airport (SJO), where you will find the Gold Cost Beaches a 3- 4 hour drive away. The international airport in Liberia has undergone significant growth and improvements resulting in an exponential increase in both convenience and capacity, combined with the expanded availability of taxi, shuttle and limousine service.  What this means to Guanacaste bound travelers coming into Costa Rica via Liberia is the promise of going from landing to beach, in less than an hour.

While the addition of the Daniel Oduber Quirós International Airport may have catapulted Guanacaste to international esteem, the region’s true appeal stays firmly rooted in its unrivaled beauty, raw authenticity and, of course, its unique ability experience more with less.

Surfing in Guanacaste is great for both experts and novices.

Revered as Guanacaste’s golden child, Hacienda Pinilla illustrates the very essence of ‘pura vida’. And through the Hacienda Club, Hacienda Pinilla’s fractional ownership residence club, ‘pura vida’ is well within reach.  Lavish, Colonial villas at the Hacienda Club start at under $100K, making the prospect of home ownership a reality rather than a distant dream.

Created through the visionary planning of H.G. Pattillo, in addition to beaches, trails, golfing and tennis, Hacienda Pinilla boasts a 5-star JW Marriott hotel, six restaurants, a wellness center and some of Costa Rica’s finest equestrian facilities. The result is the reality of Hacienda Pinilla:  a tribute to the environmental, social and educational programs that the development sponsors in an exquisitely beautiful, safe community that works in harmony with its neighbors and the natural surroundings of beautiful Guanacaste.

Whether you’re daydreaming, or dreaming big, Guanacaste Costa Rica is all you can imagine – and more.

The Hacienda Pinilla Beach Club at sunset