Source: Not Just Spring Break (PRWEB) May 18, 2015 --Summer is around the corner, and the vacation season officially begins Memorial Day weekend. Whether urban professionals and college students are traveling locally or internationally, the Not Just Spring Break® (NJSB) mobile app features events in Miami, Myrtle Beach, Jamaica, Dominican Republic, and more. The infamous Miami Beach Takeove...

"Kanamara Matsuri 2007 (phallus festival)-crop" by Saya M. - Flickr. Licensed under CC BY-SA 2.0 via Wikimedia Commons Over a period of two days, a trendy Japanese restaurant in the capital city of Costa Rica celebrated the traditional Shinto Kanamara Matsuri (the Festival of the Steel Phallus) with an unusual gastronomical display that tested the decorum of diners. According to lifestyle jour...

Jazz musician Houston Person. Wikimedia Commons Casselberry, Florida (McKenzieNewsService.com) - The 12th Annual JazzFest at Sea will be taking place onboard the MSC Divina departing Miami to the Southern Caribbean on November 11, 2015 for 10 nights. The cruise presents Classic Jazz, Chicago Jazz, Traditional Jazz and other jazz styles which emerged during the first half of the 20th century. ...

A galllopinto breakfast during Lent. Wikimedia Commons In Costa Rica, the Lent season coincides with beautiful weather and traditions that are emblematic of the religious heritage of this country. By virtue of her Constitution, Costa Rica is a Roman Catholic country, and thus the Lent season is always special. The following recommendations for visiting our country during this time are kindly p...

Jungle Jam 2015, Jaco Beach, Costa Rica Jaco Beach, Costa Rica (March 8, 2015) - Jungle Jam V returns to Jaco, Costa Rica for its fifth consecutive year with a stellar line-up on the grounds of the beautiful Hotel DoceLunas for 4 days of music in paradise March 19-22, 2015. This year’s performers include: Slightly Stoopid, Thievery Corporation, Steel Pulse, Morgan Heritage, Mykal Rose (of Blac...

Source: Tulemar Resort (PRWEB) February 27, 2015 - Tulemar Resort, located in the Manuel Antonio and Quepos area of Costa Rica, was thrilled to see the Fiestas de Quepos of 2015 kick off this past week. The Fiestas de Quepos are an annual week long gathering of the town in order to raise money for civic causes and celebrate all things Costa Rican with one another. The resort, which offers luxu...

Wikimedia Commons Costa Rica has been eager to adopt some of the so-called Hallmark (or commercial) holidays created in the United States; a good example in this regard is Black Friday, a shopping extravaganza that our country has expanded into Black November. Such has not really the case with Valentine's Day, which is mostly known as día del amor y la amistad (Love and Friendship Day). Whe...

Go Film Magazine Later this year, film lovers in Costa Rica will once again be treated to a unique, international festival that highlights the many facets of short cinema. The shnit International Shortfilmfestival is hosted around the world in various cities, and San Jose has been once again selected to host this special cinematic event. Go Film Magazine, a publication dedicated to the digi...

Source: Ylang Ylang Resort As 2014 comes to an end, beach resorts in Costa Rica are preparing special activities for their guests, visitors and residents. One such resort is the Ylang Ylang, located on the Puntarenas portion of the Nicoya Peninsula, right near the tip. This resort is close to the coastal town of Montezuma, a prime tourism spot in Costa Rica. Like other beach resorts, Ylang Yla...

Source: Facebook She is 20 years old and lives near one of the worst spots in terms of gridlock in Costa Rica. Carolina Vargas is a beautiful woman who was recently crowned Señorita San José, which means that she will reign over traditional holiday festivities such as El Tope (equestrian parades), Toros a la Tica (bull runs inside a bullring), the Zapote Holiday Fair, and others. Carolina Varg...

Source: Flickr CC The loveable city of San Jose will be filled with horses this Friday, and by the end of the traditional Tope (equestrian parade), there will be plenty of horse fecal matter left on the street and sidewalks of Costa Rica’s capital. As reported by Annie Innecken Zúñiga of daily tabloid Diario Extra, this year’s Tope will begin next to the train tracks on Plaza Gonzalez Viquez; ...

Source: Wikimedia Commons For many decades, the Republic of Costa Rica and the State of Japan have shown the world that they are willing to take a chance on peace by taking on strong, constitutional commitments. Costa Rica did so by abolishing its armed forces; this was a constitutional act was inspired by Japan, a nation which had earlier renounced war itself.   Earlier this month,...

Source: Wikimedia Commons The Big 3 wireless carriers in Costa Rica are expecting a massive spike in voice calls, text messages and mobile Internet use right at the stroke of midnight on the 25th and 31st of December. Mobile devices such as smartphones and tablets have become the favorite delivery method for Christmas and New Year’s greetings in Costa Rica, and users are not particularly conce...

A surprising, last-minute resolution by the Committee on Traditional Celebrations of the Santa Cruz canton to move the National Folklore Festival is being blamed on politics and the Chikungunya virus. According to Guanacaste news website Primero en Noticias, the hasty resolution consists of moving the fair from Plaza Lopez, also known as Los Mangos, to the fairgrounds, and the reason given by the ...

Overall good weather will be enjoyed by families and tourists in Costa Rica over the holidays. According to a weather forecast reported by national television network Repretel, sunny skies and moderate breeze will be predominant during Christmas Eve and Christmas Day. Average daytime temperatures will fluctuate between 22 and 24 degrees Celsius (71 to 72 Fahrenheit). After the sunset, however, a s...

Source: Jabad Lubavitch On a sunny and pleasant Sunday afternoon, the Jabad (Chabad) Lubavitch of Costa Rica celebrated the Januka Fiesta de las Luces (Hanukkah Festival of Light) with a very special activity for children in the loveable city of San Jose. The event took place at the elegant Avenida Escazu, and it was filled with fun, learning, and spirituality.   In addition to the ...

Source: JPS A cherished holiday tradition in Costa Rica consists of participating in the madness of the Gordo Navideño, which roughly translates into “Christmas Fat Cat Lottery.” For this holiday season, the jackpot prize of the lottery in Costa Rica paid a cool $10.5 million for whoever held an entero (whole lottery bill), which can be purchased on a fractional basis since each lotto bill hol...

With the holidays right around the corner, people are scrambling to get thoughtful, high quality gifts for their loved ones and associates. Fine coffee from Costa Rica is shaping up to be a hot present under the holiday tree this year; a couple of months ago we reported on gourmet coffee from Tarrazu offered as an executive gift by J. Martinez & Company, this time we bring you this press relea...

The traditional seafood cocktail of Costa Rica is known as ceviche, but the Institute of Pacific Ports in Costa Rica (Spanish acronym: INCOP) insists on writing it as cebiche. Nonetheless, the INCOP, the National Tourism Board (Spanish initials: ICT) and Travel Show Expo have put together a weekend festival in celebrating this dish.   According to travel reporter Gianluca Boncompagni of...

Envision is an annual gathering in Costa Rica that seeks to provide a platform for different cultures to inspire one another to co-create sustainable community and practice yoga, spirituality, art, music, dance performance, education and acknowledge our fundamental connection with nature. As previously reported by The Costa Rica Star:   Some gatherings around the world have become emblema...

A very special and unusual tourism activity in Costa Rica consists of releasing baby sea turtles just as soon as they hatch, thereby helping them to reach the surf for the first time as they begin their long lives in the ocean. A few tourist resorts participate in this unique activity, and Manuel Antonio's Tulemar is one of them. Here is a recent press release issued by Tulemar on this topic: T...

The 2014 Miss Latina Internacional Gay beauty pageant will be hosted for the first time in Costa Rica, and it will feature two separate events. On Friday night, the transgender contestants will be introduced at the Ribs Bar and Restaurant in San Joaquín de Flores; the gala event and awards ceremony will take place at the Lucho Barahona Theater in San Jose on Saturday night. Organizer Ricardo Casti...

In late 2014, the sashay will no longer be confined to San Jose. The Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week is Costa Rica’s most prominent event for the haute couture and prêt-à-porter industries, but until recently this extravaganza only took place in the lovable city of San Jose. In recent years, however, the Guanacaste region has been flourishing in terms of fashion design. To this end, Allan Andino of nat...

Source: Bing commercial reuse With more than 70,000 visitors attending the 15th International Book Fair in San Jose, organizers and exhibitors were certainly pleased to see that reading is still capturing the interest of many people in Costa Rica. For the second year in a row, the International Book Fair expanded its presence beyond the Antigua Aduana (Old Customs Building), and held activitie...

Source: ASOTU Costa Rica One of the most family-friendly and fun-filled festivals in Costa Rica is happening again in just a few days. The 6th Whales and Dolphins Festival in Ballena Bay will star this Friday, September 5th. Although whale watching season in Costa Rica runs from July until October, the peak month for migration is September. Some of the activities that visitors to the Osa Penin...

  Afro-Costa Rican Fashion. Source: Corredor Cultural del Caribe The history of Costa Rica cannot be told without recognizing the important sociocultural contribution of the Afro-Caribbean community. In 1980, the Union of Educators in Costa Rica realized that a truly multicultural and ethnically diverse society needs to take time to celebrate its roots, and thus El Día del Negro (Afro-...

Coming at the end of March to the Osa southern region of Costa Rica, the ninth Festival of the Stone Spheres celebrates one of the most enigmatic historical and cultural mysteries of Costa Rica. The 2014 Festival of the Spheres will be held March 26 to 30 in Palmar Sur, Palmar Norte and Sierpe. Put on by the National Museum of Costa Rica, the majority of the activities will be at its new satell...

The Puntarenas Carnival is one of the most prominent beach celebrations in Costa Rica, and this year it will feature an international gathering of motorcycle aficionados, one of the largest conventions of iron horse riders in Latin America. This event will follow the successful live music presentation by Inner Circle, the legendary Jamaican reggae band known for their hit songs “Bad Boys” and “Swe...

Liberia bullring under construction Costa Rica is feeling the growing pains of transitioning from a dignified rural economy to a developing nation under the rule of globalization. News reports from the municipality of Liberia, one of the most important cities of Guanacaste, indicate that a requirement from the National Institute of Insurance (Spanish initials: INS) could effectively prevent th...

One of the best music festivals in Costa Rica takes place in Playa Nosara, province of Guanacaste, each year. The Caricaco (Beach Crab) Music Festival has been taking place since 2009, and each iteration has been more exciting than the previous one. This year's Caricaco Music Festival will be no exception, and it will be held in Finca Austria, closer to Playa Guiones, in order to accommodate t...

Valentine’s Day is around the corner and what better way to express your feelings to your beloved than through a love letter. Historically, love letters were possibly the only form of communication between lovers who might be separated for months at time most commonly during times of war. And with this void, emotions often intensified and romantic feelings soared. The most engaging love letter ...

The master penthouse suite at Hotel Chantel, in Playas del Coco, GuanacasteHotel Chantel, the premier ocean-view boutique hotel located in one of the prettiest beaches of Guanacaste, recently announced a promotion for couples who want to spend a special Valentine's Day weekend in Costa Rica. Guests who book a room during this Valentine's weekend for 2 nights will receive the 3rd night for free. ...

Expotur Costa Rica Travel Mart 2014 The 29th edition of Expotur will take place from May 14th to May 16th, 2014. This event, which is organized by the Costa Rican Association of Tourism Professionals (Spanish acronym: ACOPROT), will bring together more than 300 tourism and hospitality businesses from across the country and the region for three days of industry insight and networking at the Wyn...

The annual Que Lindo (How Lovely) art fair, held on Friday, January 24, at the Natural Center in downtown Samara, attracted close to five hundred visitors, eager to see the artwork, as well as to enjoy some guitar music and sample the goods being sold simultaneously at the weekly Samara Organic Market. The fair took place from 2 to 6 p.m., about 30 local artists and artisans showed their colorf...

Playas del Coco Tope horse parade, Saturday January 25th, 2014Horses, riders and beasts of burden will parade down the streets of Playas del Coco, province of Guanacaste, this Saturday afternoon. “Topes” are festive events in Costa Rica that signal the beginning of even more joyous and fun-filled family activities such as carnival rides, live music, dancing, delicious food, beer, and more. Fo...

On Friday, January 24, the Samara Organic Market will offer more than healthy food during the third annual art fair, “Que Lindo” (How Lovely). Local artists and artisans will be exhibiting and selling their creations, including paintings and watercolors, mixed media, masks, clothing, jewelry, and fused glass, from 2 to 6 p.m. at the Natural Center Gym and Spa in downtown Samara, next to the sch...

Source: Ballena Beer Fest Facebook As the microbrewery and craft beer scene in Costa Rica expands to the country’s coastal areas, new festivals and special events are being planned. The next major craft beer event will take place in the Osa Peninsula in February, and organizers are excited to showcase a range of fine brews and malt beverages. The First Annual Costa Ballena Beer Festival wil...

During the new year, the fiestas season continues in Nosara from January 22 to 27, then in Nicoya from February 4 to 10, transmitting live on Channel 7 on February 8. Garza also plans to host fiestas in February, although the exact dates have yet to be defined. The Nosara Integral Development Association has scheduled a lineup of all the traditional activities, starting on Wednesday, January 22...

Sean Paul to perform at the 2014 Palmares festival in Alajuela, Costa RicaRevelers in Costa Rica are counting down the days to the Palmares Festival, a cantonal celebration in the province of Alajuela that has become one of the hottest tickets in the busy January season of festivities. As usual, the iconic Cerveza Imperial is the main corporate sponsor of the Palmares Festival, and they recently ...

The 32nd edition of the annual Culture Week event is taking place now in Santa Cruz, province of Guanacaste. The event started on January 4th at the Carlos Rodriguez amphitheater, located in the Bernabela Ramos Park. This week-long celebration of local culture and tradition is believed to be the oldest continuous cultural event in Costa Rica. Culture Week in Santa Cruz is made possible by the C...