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| Liberia, North Guanacaste Vacations and Luxury Travel Packages |
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Liberia, the capital of the Guanacaste province, is located further north than any other Costa Rican city of any size. It is situated 140 meters above sea level and is surrounded by farms. Most of its 30,000 inhabitants make their living from agriculture. For nature lovers, Liberia is the gateway to the Santa Rosa, Guanacaste and Palo Verde National Parks, as well as to the Lomas Barbudal Nature Preserve.
Liberia was founded in 1769 as Pueblo de Cuanacaste and renamed Liberia in 1854 because of its location near the Rio Liberia. Ticos also call Liberia "White City" (Ciudad Blanca). The reason for this appellation is instantly apparent to every visitor. The brilliant white coral limestone, of which much of the city is built, contains quartzite which makes it sparkle in the sunshine. The walls of all the older buildings are made of this material, especially those neighboring the Casa de Cultura. Many of the residential structures are made of adobe, sundried mud bricks. The spacious houses, with their high rooms, stucco decoration and elegant furnishings, are delightful. Often they are built around a flowerfilled inner courtyard, completing the colonial atmosphere.
Many of the old corner houses have unusual double doors placed at the corner of the building. In the winter they can be opened on both sides to let in the morning as well as the evening sunlight. In the summer one side can be closed to avoid the heat, while the other remains open, letting in the light. Ticos call this sophisticated innovation, puertas del sot (sun doors).
The small Museo de Sabanero (Cowboy Museum) in the Casa de Cultura exhibits the agricultural implements and tools typical of the area. Ox yokes, milking stools, scythes, wagon wheels, handmade saddles, spurs and riding whips now seem romantic reminders of the past. They show how important animal breeding and ranching has always been in this remote region.
In another fitting tribute to the province's cowboys, the inhabitants have erected a statue of a sabanero to commemorate the city's 200th anniversary. The monument occupies a place of honor between Caller 10 and 12.
Costa Rican towns and cities all possess a Parque Central, which is to this country what the Zocalo is to Mexico and the Plaza de Armas to Peru. It is a carefully-groomed city park with benches, flower beds and the inevitable music pavilion for marimba band concerts. The park is especially popular on Saturday evenings and Sunday afternoons, when it becomes the meeting point for the city's young singles and attracts cliques of giggling school girls and maids looking for prospective mates.
About six blocks northeast of the park, on Avenida Central, is Liberia's oldest church, the Iglesia de la Ermita de la Resureccion (Church of the Hermit of the Resurrection), a mouthful usually shortened by parishioners simply to La Agonfa (The Throes of Death). It remains to the visitor's imagination to decide if the popular name questions the miracle of the resurrection as it seems to imply. The church is made of adobe with a simple exterior, and an interior artfully decorated with stucco. Its style seems far more colonial than the date of its founding in 1852 would allow.
Liberia's long hot evenings are chiefly spent at the Cine Olimpia movie house watching U.S. action thrillers or Latin American romantic comedies. More interesting is a dance encounter with young Ticos and Ticas at the Discotheque Kurd on Avenida Central next to the Pokopi restaurant.
Liberia holds a festival each year on July 25. The important celebration commemorates a plebiscite held in 1812 that decided the fate of the province and separated it from Nicaragua. During the city fiesta, strutting cowboys demonstrate their courage in countless rodeos and bloodless bull fights. The spectators are endlessly entertained and only take a break from the action to stroll among the stands serving typical local foods. There are parades, animal auctions, fireworks and mariachi bands playing heartrending music while marimba concerts get the ecstatic audiences moving. In short, there is something for everyone.
The first week of September is set aside as the Semana Cultural. It is a repetition of the city festival on a smaller scale, but lasts a full week. A recently added attraction is called Fiesta Brava. It takes place daily on the Hacienda La Cueva, a 3,000-hectare cattle ranch whose main building dates back to 1824. Visitors have an opportunity to mingle with traditionally-dressed sabaneros and attractive sabaneras (cowgirls), can taste the delicious foods of Guanacaste and try their hand (or other parts of their anatomy) at the wild local sport of riding on the back of a bucking steer (admission is charged).
The airport is 13 kilometers west of the city. Since the end of 1996, the Tomas Guardia Airport is also open to international flights. So far only a few North American charter flights have taken advantage of the opportunity. |
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| Full Service Liberia, North Guanacaste Vacation Planner |
| Click here to start planning a great Central American vacation, tour or cruise with our Virtuoso Travel Advisors. You may call us too, but we'd really appreciate it if you complete a vacation planner first so we can determine which destination specialist to introduce you to. Thank you very much! Call 1 800 330 8820 or 415 446 5252 to book your Liberia, North Guanacaste vacation. | |
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