Central Costa Rica

By Patricia Earnest

Look at pictures of Costa Rica and you will see mountains draped with misty rain forests, exotic birds and butterflies. Costa Rica is devoted to wildlife protection and the National System of Conservation Areas manages a wide variety of parks, refuges, reserves, and other protected areas. For these reasons and more, visitors are drawn here to enjoy the varied and beautiful environment and people.

Parks Near San Jose
Several parks and monuments are within easy reach of San Jose, including Irazu, Costa Rica's highest volcano at 11,000-plus feet with four craters, located in Irazu Volcano National Park.

Irazu Crater

In Guayabo National Monument visitors can see stone structures believed to have been built between 800 and 1400 A.D. Tapanti National Park features about 45 species of mammals and some 260 varieties of birds.

Diverse plant life and ecosystems, such as marshlands, lagoons and a variety of forests are features of Carara Biological Reserve.

National Biodiversity Institure
Just 15 minutes away from San Jose, in Santo Domingo de Heredia is INBioparque, Costa Rica's National Biodiversity Institute, a non-profit scientific association, where all funds are used to finance research and bioliteracy. INBioparque is also an educational and recreational center with interactive exhibition halls and interpretive trails, open daily from 7:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.

Exhibits include a biodiversity interpretive center, the SINAC interpretive center presenting the geology and evolution of life, plus sound and light presentations. Several trails of varying lengths can be followed guided or self-guided for a nominal charge. The park provides facilities for physically challenged persons. Shuttle service to the park is available from several locations in San Jose.

Accommodations
For the most part, accommodations in Costa Rica are small, in fact 70 percent of all Costa Rican hotels have less than 50 rooms. However, visitors will find a wide range of accommodations to suit every taste. The larger chains, such as Melia are well represented, as are boutique hotels, B&B's, cozy mountain lodges and jungle lodges.

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