Puntarenas, Costa Rica

Puntarenas began life as Costa Rica´s premier Pacific deep-sea port and popular seaside destination for Costa Ricans. A short ferry ride across the gulf now brings much better beaches within reach, so most foreign tourists find themselves just passing through.

Named after the long 6 klms peninsular strip of sand that houses the city, Puntarenas, grew rapidly after 1846, when an improved overland road to the Central Valley was constructed for coffee exports, hauled down in oxcarts. The harbor lost much of its importance in 1890 when work crews finished the Atlantic Railroad, opening the closer-to-Europe city of Puerto Limon for coffee exports.

Over te years, wealthy businessmen, prostitutes, workmen, families, vacationers, fortune seekers, travelers, as well as seasoned sailors of the town´s fishing, freight, and mother-of-pearl fleets,gave Puntarenas a unique rough-and-tumble seaport ambiance - and some vestiges remain today. In the early 1990s Puntarenas took an economic hit after the opening of Puerto Caldera, a port better suited to larger vessels and cruise ships, about 20km south. It´s still trying to recover. The long beachfront was cleaned up in 1999, and Puntarenas, as well as Josefinos are returning to the downtown again. Travelers used to dread getting stuck in Puntarenas overnight, but with the revitalization effort, reasonable prices and few tourists, it now makes a pleasant stop for savvy travelers, just a two-hour drive west of San Jose.

The long Paseo de los Turistas malecon is the city´s pride and joy - and so it should b. Seaside, the sandy beach stretches for several kilometers. Lined with palms, ice cream vendors, playgrounds, picnic areas, soccer players, swimming dogs and frolicking families,the beach and the paseo feature a broad sidewalk that attracts joggers, strollers and lovers walking hand in hand. Along the way there are some seaside restuarants and crowded gift shops, a favorite of passengers from small cruise ships, which stop at the refurbished watrefront pier. Across the boulevard are notable restaurant and some surprisingly good hotels. At the very tip of the sandy strip there is a public park and private yacht club.