Located in Central America Costa Rica is a Spanish speaking nation (although English is widely spoken) and is situated between Nicaragua and Panama. The eastern coastline of Costa Rica sits on the Caribbean Sea with the west coast touching the Pacific Ocean, hence there are plenty of diverse diving environments here.

With plenty of rainforests, Costa Rica is a great destination for the more intrepid traveller, with the chance to take a tour through the rain forest and see the many birds, monkeys and animals that call the forest home. San Jose is the capital of Costa Rica and is a bustling city and worth a day to have a look around, although most travellers are quick to escape this busy city and head for the unspoilt areas of the country.

Depending on what you value in a tourist destination there are a few areas to choose from. The Cocos islands to the south of Costa Rica are a wildly popular live aboard destination. On the mainland, the Pacific coast has plenty of white sand beaches and hence attracts a lot of tourists to the area. The southern coast fringing the Caribbean is harder to access (only by canal boat) and is a major nesting ground for green sea turtles. The southern coast fringing the Caribbean Sea holds the countries only coral reefs, it is also renowned for its nice beaches and National Parks.

Although Costa Rica is relatively small the weather can be quite diverse depending on where you are staying, with most of the variation in climate due to altitude. Costa Rica tends to have two seasons being, the rainy season (May to November) and the dry season (December to April) with little or no rain. The average temperature is between 21C to 27C (70F to 81F).

Should you plan to visit the coast bordering the Caribbean the climate is different to the rest of the country, with trade winds keeping the temperature and humidity high almost all year round, with a higher rainfall compared to the rest of the country.

 December to May

At this time of year generally the seas are calmest and the water visibility is best. However Hammerheads are most common from June to December during the rainy season, so this may attract you here even though the weather will not be great.

Most divers come to Costa Rica to dive on the Cocos Islands from a live aboard, often combined with a trip to the Malpelo Islands (which are apart of Columbia). This area is well renowned for large pelagics and plenty of sharks. Other areas of interest for diving include; Bat Island and Catalina. The waters of Costa Rica are generally warm and a 3mm wetsuit will usually suffice. 

Direct flights from Europe and the continental U.S. are readily available, landing into San José. Flights from the UK are usually not direct with connections via Washington or Paris (with Virgin Atlantic, American Airlines or United Airlines) from Heathrow and via Miami or New York from Gatwick (with Continental Airlines).

Activities that we would recommend whilst in Costa Rica include:

• Rainforest tours
• White Water Rafting
• Surfing
• Visiting ancient monuments

Costa Rica is an amazing country yet less well known for its diving and less developed than many other locations.