HIGHLIGHTS OF COSTA RICA

The geography of Costa Rica

This small country sits on the isthmus that separates North and South America. Costa Rica has two volcanic mountains, six active and many extinct. The country is bounded by the Caribbean Sea and the Pacific Ocean and has a total coastline of 1260 km.

With a very rich biodiversity and breathtaking landscapes, the country is mountainous in nature, criss-crossed by three mountain ranges and surrounded by two seas. In the center of the country are plateaus and volcanoes, which can reach over 3,000 meters in height.

Fauna and flora in Costa Rica

The territory of Costa Rica alone (covering only 0.03% of the Earth’s land surface) is home to over 6% of the world’s biodiversity, of which 1.3% is unique fauna. About 160 new species are discovered each year. Costa Rica’s abundance of animals is due to its geographical position between two continents, which greatly influences animal migration. The government has stopped deforestation and created national parks covering 26% of the country. Among the thousands of animal species, there are 7000 species of butterflies, about 220 species of reptiles and over 900 species of birds.

Landscapes of Costa Rica

Costa Rica, due to its particular geographic location, offers many landscapes in five major regions: North Pacific, Central Valley, Central Pacific, South Pacific and Caribbean. The 1260 km coastline has many beaches with different types of sand. Costa Rica is characterized by her three units: the Pacific Ocean, the Caribbean Sea, and a central axis made up of a series of volcanoes. The Caribbean Sea forms a vast plain extending from Nicaragua, with many mangroves and wetlands.

The highest points of Costa Rica are Cerro Chirripo Grande (3,820 m) and the still active Errás (3,432 m).
Other volcanoes include Poas (2708 m), Arenal (1630 m), Barba (2906 m), Turrialba (3339 m), Rincón de la Vieja and Cerro de la Muerte (3491 m). The Caribbean coastal plain is very large, comprising almost one-third of the country’s land mass, while the Pacific plain is narrow and intersected by gulfs (Gulf of Nicoya, Gulf of Dulce, and Gulf of Coronado).
Costa Rica’s main river is the San Juan River (230 km), which borders Nicaragua in the north.

Cities of Costa Rica

The capital of Costa Rica is San José, located in the Central Valley. Although the city has 360,000 inhabitants, the agglomeration has about 2 million inhabitants, more than 32% of Costa Rica’s total population. Other most important cities in Costa Rica are Puerto Limon (about 64,000 inhabitants), Alajuela (about 48,000 inhabitants) and Puntarenas (36,000 inhabitants). There are many villages along the coast of Costa Rica, each with its own unique charm and paradise beaches.

Biodiversity of Costa Rica

Born from the ocean more than three million years ago, Costa Rica forms a veritable crossroads between the biotopes of North and South America. The country gathers 6% of the world’s biodiversity in just 0.03 of the Earth’s land surface. No other region boasts such diverse habitats in such a small area. Costa Rica has 615 species concentrated in 10,000 km2! For reference, Rwanda, a world-renowned flora and fauna country, has a ratio of 596 species/10,000 km2 and North America has a ratio of 104 species/10,000 km2.