Costa Rica 5 Hidden Treasures Off The Tourist Trail Costa Rica is a small Central u. S. country located in between Panama and Nicaragua. It has been well knownlike a tourist destination since the mid 1990's. Vacationers to CostaRica will typically go to the well known locations of Manuel Antoniocountrywide Park, Poas Volcano, Mount Arenal countrywide Park andTamarindo. These are all beautiful places, but are well marked oneach and every tourist brochure. It is still simple to find places inpanama and nicaragua , where there are few visitors and very beautiful and also natural settings.the southern pacific zoom of Costa Rica is still largely undiscovered. In the past , the road south was in poorcondition right after leaving the coastline town of Quepos/Manuel Antonio. Manuel Antonio is Costa Rica's popular National Park. To visit south beyond this time required a several wheel drive car. Formost visitors , they may as well possess put up a sign, “Only DragonsBeyond this Point”. Now it is feasible to travel south all the way to Panama over a good paved interstate. In the spring of the year 2010 the longanticipated construction of the coastal highway was finally completed,one month before the end of the expression of President Oscar Arias. President Arias was cited as saying“we are a country of 5 star hotels and 1 superstar highways”. Duringsome years he was in office, he has been responsible for manyenhancements to Costa Rica's infrastructure. In a region whereneighboring nations have been in the news for violence,political coups and quasi dictatorships, he was quietly keeping CostaRica on the right tracks. Traveling to the southern pacific zoom of Costa Rica is easy now, thanks to the fresh highway. Near the beach town of Dominical, you will find five locations that make for amazing experiences. Diamante rapids – Las Tumbas, Costa Rica The Diamante Waterfalls are usually an experience you will not forget. From the 3,300 foot summit, the crystal clear waters of the Baru River drop a single ,500-feet down the steep canyon to the Catedral de Piedra, before taking the 600-foot plunge off Diamante Falls to the valley floor below. An unbelievable feature of the drops is that located on one side of the mountain next to the falls is a natural cave house complete with a kitchen as well as the ability to accommodate around 25 guests immediately. From the cave you have a clear view to the Pacific Coast, twenty five hundred feet below. This is a two hour hike to the falls, in case you are at an average fitness level you can do the hike. There are a lot of traditional steps (didn't count 'em but it's above a hundred I'm sure) built into the trail, so if you have bad knee's you might need to pass on this one. We would the hike with your ten year old child and it wasn't an issue for anyone, but you is going to be sweating by the best. I think the hike keeps the drops special because it isn't easily accessible and maintains the fanny bunch toting, pot-bellied visitors in white socks away. Getting there makes the experience that much more special. Hacienda Baru – three km's north to fDominical Oh, the overused and over used word“eco-tourism”. Think about a jet-ski eco-tour or a sunset liquor cruise eco-tour? simply no thanks. Well if there is one place in the world deserving the ability to make
use of the term eco-tourism inside their marketingit is the Hacienda Baru. Since 1978 Jack Ewing and the wife Dianepossess devoted their life to Hacienda Baru. The property has beenannounced a National animals Refuge by the leader of Costa Rica. It is through the devotion of Jack and his household that this hasoccurred. Hacienda Baru has 800+ acres ofwetland, supplementary and primary rainforest. Three kilometers of beautiful sand beach with no development and also seven kilometers of walking trails. There is a butterfly garden as well as an orchidback garden. They have multilingual guides who havealready been with Hacienda Baru for years. They offer birdwatching and otherguided strolling tours. There is also a perfectly done zip line canopytour. If you are in to surfing, DominicalBeach is only three kilometers south. You will find surf shops in order to rent asurf board or to get training. The surf the t Dominical can be heavy from times, so if it is a big day, the search shops will organize transportation to the more mellow Dominicalito Beach just 4kilometers further south. Ballena underwater National Park – Uvita,Costa Rica In Spanish the phrase Ballena meanswhale. Pods of humpback whales pass through involving the months ofseptember to October, and also again from december to April. Today , is itbecause of the whales that the park was given it's name, or perhaps do youthink it absolutely was because of the distinctive function found within theplayground ? Look at the aerial photograph to the right of the beach and you can see why the referred to as Whales story beach, foundinside the park. The whales are not the only reasonto come to this park. Involving the months of might and October OliveRidley and Hawksbill turtles come on land to nest. RE-decorating awonderful spot to see a variety of dog species. The playground hasstunning shorelines that are practically abandoned. The largest coralreef on the Pacific coastline of Central America is found in the park.This makes for excellent snorkelling at low-tide. When you are at the beach looking again from the waters edge towards shore it is easy to imagine that this would be exactly the same view from one 100 years ago. Development is very low key the following and it is easy to forget that youare only several miles from the interstate. One point to be awareof when swimming at the shorelines inside the park, there aren't any lifeguards, which is the situation at almost every beach in Costa Rica.You should be aware and be safe, if you are at any of Costa Rica'sbeaches. Most of the beaches have robust waves and there are usually riptides. Knowing what to do in the event of in arip hold , you can get out of all of them safely. For more information on rip tides you can check out How to get out of the rip tide. Nauyaca Waterfalls – in between Baru andPlatanillo, Costa Rica Only a 10 minute drive up the road fromDominical Beach you will find the turn-off to the Nauyaca rapids.You can walk to the waterfalls on your own from your road, it's aboutone hour and a half hike, otherwise you can take Don Lulo's Horseback Nauyacadrops Tour. The tour starts with a breakfast every day and then a horseback ride with knowledgeable guides to the a couple of lovely waterfalls that make up the Nauyaca rapids. The main waterfall is a 140 foot drop intoa pool of water with apparent clean water that you can swim in. Myhousehold and I often swimming in the river on the way
to thedrops , where you cross over the river by connection. Visitors we've acquired that come to the region list the rapids as one of their favoriteexperiences. Boruca Indigenous arrange – Near theRio Grande de Terraba The four other locations in thethe southern part of pacific zone were all located in close closeness toDominical Beach. Getting to the Boruca Indigenous arrange is going totake a little more effort, but the distinctive experience is worth it. It's about an hour and a half push to the reserve. Despite the fact that most ofthe Borucans farm for a living, numerous continue to practice their own traditonal arts of mask carving and also weaving. Ornate face masks carved outof balsa or cedar wood can be found normal or brightly decorated. Weavings include vibrant cotton placemats, bags and othertextiles. Make arrangements ahead of time for a day trip that caninclude a cover up carving demonstration, 100 % cotton spinning and dying fromlocal indigenous plants and shellfish followed by a further demo of weaving using a pre-Colonial style back-strap loom. A scrumptious hot lunch will certainly round out a great day time. The Borucans keep an annualfestival the Fiesta de los Diablitos between december 31 andthe month of january 2. Make arrangements well in advance if you would like toattend this fascinating event that includes music, dancing andcostumes. This is a beautiful video of the hand designed and painted face masks produced in Costa Rica at the Boruca Indigenous arrange. The Borucans additionally produce lovely weavings using natural dyes. I'd love to read your comments if you have a "concealed Treasure" of your own to share about Costa Rica. Abandon me a comment and also I'll get back to you. Have you been in order to any of the places recommended in this article? Share your views in the opinion section at the bottom want to know ,. Pura Vida Costa Rica is a wonderful place to figure out how to surf. It is known as one of the better places in the world in order to surf. Whether you are an advanced surfer or starting surfer, there is a beach just waiting for a person. The Pacific coastline has great places like Santa Teresa or Playa Tamarindo for beginning surfers. How To Surf. A surf getaway here is sure to be a lifetime memory. Dominical Costa Rica