Colourful Costa Rica: 3 ways to experience Costa Rica’s culture

The Ticos love a good party, and feriados (festivals) pepper the Costa Rican calendar. Time your visit for any of the following, and you’ll see how the locals embrace their pura vida attitude.

There’s no fear of January blues in Palmares, which starts the year with a bang. Join in with the boisterous celebrations that take over the small central valley town for two weeks every January. Las Fiestas de Palmares brings outdoor concerts, dancing, food stalls and late-night partying, as well as traditional events such as the annual horse parade (or tope), complete with riders in full cowboy or cowgirl gear.

Visit during carnival time and you’re in for a treat, particularly in the port city of Puntarenas, which explodes in a spectacle of colour and noise. Expect street parades with costumes and energetic dancing, incredible firework displays and live music.

The laidback Limón Province on the Caribbean coast is the place to be in April. Home to a heady mix of Latino, Afro-Caribbean and Bribri cultures, the region’s diverse music styles are celebrated at the Southern Caribbean Festival. The stage for this music fest is Chiquita Beach, a usually quiet stretch of jungle-draped soft sand.

Celebrations take hold of the entire country on September 15, a national holiday that marks the date that Costa Rica gained independence from Spain in 1821. A ‘freedom torch’ is carried through El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras and Nicaragua before reaching Costa Rica’s former capital, Cartago. You’ll also see patriotic street parades, folk dancing and flag waving erupt around the country.

To seek out the regional arts and crafts of Costa Rica is to unearth this small country’s creative heart. With its origins deep-rooted in rural life, the elaborate painting of handmade oxcarts (or carretas) is a tradition that started in the early 20th century. Oxen were used to transport coffee beans from the mountains to the Pacific coast, with these colourful and customised modes of transport enabling the oxherders to identify their own carts (as well as boast of their family’s social status). Many were also kitted out with bells and whistles, to play music as they were pulled along the rugged terrain. Learn about the tradition in Sarchí, a small town at the hub of the oxherding community.

Visit the communities of Guaitil and San Vicente in the Nicoya Peninsula to admire the pottery of the Indigenous Chorotega people. Made here using local clay for generations, the region’s artisans adopt the same techniques today. The ceramics are hand-painted with animal designs using natural dyes. Visit the San Vicente Eco-Museum to see some examples.

Elsewhere, the Limón Province is home to the Indigenous Bribri people, who live in remote villages in the Talamanca Mountains. You can visit communities of this matrilineal society to see how natural materials are used in their handicrafts – baskets are woven with palm fibres, while jewellery is made with carved shells and seeds.

There’s a strong creative community in the Monteverde region too, with independent galleries showcasing local art. Support its women artists by visiting the Cooperative of Artisans, Santa Elena, Monteverde. Its workshop exhibits and sells decorative objects, paintings, ceramics, clothing and jewellery so these women can support themselves and their families.

The rhythmic beat of calypso, soca, salsa, merengue and reggae fills the air in Costa Rica, from the clubs of San José to humble sodas. At every street parade and local event, you’ll find live music and dancing.

The country’s music traditions are deep-rooted, with some of its oldest found in the Guanacaste province. Its folkloric music features the quijongo (a musical bow) and oboe-like chirimía, and it dates to pre-colonial times. Visit on Guanacaste Day in July, when the annexation of Nicoya from Nicaragua to Costa Rica in 1824 is celebrated, to see performances in costume. The province is also known for its dancing, influenced by Andalucian flamenco. Take to the dancefloor yourself in the region’s fun-loving beach town of Tamarindo. It lures visitors with its beaches, breaks and late-night beats. There’s always a venue with live salsa, merengue or reggae there, so stake out a seat and settle in for the night.

There’s no better time to hear the infectious rhythms and beats of the Caribbean than the Southern Caribbean Festival and the Carnaval de Limón. A vibrant celebration of local Afro-Caribbean culture, the carnival happens every October. Head to Puerto Limón to shimmy with abandon in the streets to the distinct strains of Limón calypso, soca, reggae and more.

For a more chilled out vibe, you’ll find local bands performing beachside along the coast in Cauhita and Puerto Viejo. It’s hard to beat El Sendero Beach Club in Puerto Viejo for dancing to live reggae on the sands with a guaro sour. A real taste of pura vida!