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Food and drink
Gallo pinto is a traditional Costa Rican dish made of rice and beans | Courtesy of Costa Rica Tourism Board
When travelling around Costa Rica you’ll notice there are barely any food chains. Not a McDonald’s or Starbucks in sight outside the cities. That’s because restaurants, cafés and bars here are mostly independent joints serving up fresh and healthy Costa Rican food, which adds to the authenticity of a trip. This is real Costa Rica, not a tourist-ified version of it. Expect big portions of beans, protein and rice. Cassado, gallo pinto, cerviche, handmade tortillas and tamal can be found everywhere you go, along with big brown bottles of Salsa Lizano hot sauce. When it comes to the drinks, you can’t mention Costa Rica without talking about its coffee. The freshest, richest and most flavoursome in the world. Then there are guaro sours (a cocktail using a sugar cane liquor) and fresh fruit juices just about everywhere you go. Vida Campesina is a farm where you can get a taste of all the country’s different flavours and even try making it yourself.
Places to stay
There’s something for everyone in Costa Rica: whether you’re looking to go on a family holiday and stay in a hotel that caters for all ages, or if you’re a solo traveller trying to save money and avoid avoid kids in a budget hostel, you’re sorted. There are romantic getaway options for couples, and boozy places with great nightlife like San Jose for groups of friends. And, of course, eco-lodges are the name of the game in Costa Rica. You can choose from a range of places in the thick of the jungle, some so remote you have to take a boat to, like Iguana lodge, some perfect for all the family. Check out our favourite solar-powered stays in Costa Rica.
The Ticos
Eddie is a great example of the kind of friendly reception you can expect here | Benjamin Kempton
Last but by no means least, the Ticos – a nickname for Costa Ricans themselves! They are an extraordinarily friendly bunch, who are passionate about cooking, wildlife and making sure visitors to their country are well looked after, bearing in mind tourism for more rural communities can sometimes be as much as 90 percent of the local economy. They will ensure, whatever you do and wherever you go in the country, that you will have a pura vida trip.
Head over to Visit Costa Rica to find out more about this wonderful country.
Want all the planning done for you? That’s where we step in. Our eight-day Real Costa Rica trip is an authentic, immersive way to see this beautiful country without the stress of planning it all. We’ll take you white-water rafting, on a waterfall hike in Arenal and a sloth safari – and that’s just the tip of the iceberg.
Source link : https://theculturetrip.com/central-america/costa-rica/articles/why-visit-costa-rica
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Publish date : 2022-12-22 03:00:00
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