The South Caribbean, as the area is known, is small, comprising a handful of beach towns and settlements that dot the approximately 18 kilometers between Cahuita and Manzanillo. It’s about 250 km from San José, though thanks to the mountains that separate the South Caribbean from the Central Valley, the drive time is quite a bit longer than one might think. The South Caribbean is a lush part of the country, where jungle sweeps down the hillsides, sometimes right up to the beach. More often, plains about half a kilometer to 1km deep act as a buffer between the beach and the Talamanca foothills. The hills are also home to pastureland and farms with ocean views.

The South Caribbean has three protected areas: Cahuita National Park, the Gandoca-Manzanillo Wildlife Refuge and the KeköLdi Indigenous Reserve. The protection is warranted: The Talamanca area is home to 3% of the world’s biodiversity.

Cahuita National Park includes a strip of jungle that runs along the bay and covers the point just to the south, home to sloths, white-faced capuchin monkeys, and all manner of birds and insects. The park also includes a marine park to protect the coral close to the shore and the more than 500 species of fish endemic to the reefs. Unfortunately, the reef has begun to die out in recent years and the snorkeling isn’t as good as it used to be. However, the beach that is part of the park is connected to the town, very well cared for by the local park volunteers, and truly one of the most consistently nice, safe, and accessible places to swim in Costa Rica. The endangered Leatherback Turtle also breeds within the park, on the other side of the point from the most popular beach.

The Gandoca-Manzanillo Wildlife Refuge – at the southern extreme of the Southern Caribbean zone – covers land and water along the stretch of coastline from Cocles beach south to Gandoca. The refuge has the only surviving red mangrove left in Costa Rica and the park may even be a breeding ground for dolphins. The lucky visitors to the park encounter manatees and jaguars.

The KeköLdi Indigenous Reserve is located in the hills behind Puerto Viejo and Playa Cocles, and its 2,000 hectares are home to a few hundred members of the Bribri community. Unfortunately, the land is being threatened by illegal tree-felling and squatting, and the community is at the moment trying to find a way to purchase an additional 500 hectares to which they lay claim.

The region is home to a huge variety of bird species, including toucans, parrots, parakeets, oropendulas, blue dacnis, hummingbirds, sun bitterns, king vultures and cotings. As for mammals, there is everything from howler and white-faced monkeys, to kinkajous, tayras, coatamundis, anteaters, river otters, margays, and two- and three-toed sloths. Reptiles found in the area include boa constrictors, iguanas, anoles, eyelash vipers, three types of poison dart frogs, Jesus Christ lizards and geckos – just to name a few.

The South Caribbean is very wet, and rainfall is generally spread out over the year rather than concentrated in a single season. The warm, moist air that blows into the South Caribbean from the northwest means there isn’t such a pronounced dry season as in other areas of the country.

The drier months are March, April, September and October, although even in the rainy months there are plenty of sunny days. Average precipitation ranges from 186 mm to 1,650 mm per month, with humidity reaching as high as the low 90s. The temperature is usually rather high, averaging in the mid 20s (Celsius) and often rising quite a bit higher than that.