Costa Rica: 5 Costa Rican Festivals to Celebrate and Party In
Costa Rican fiestas are often religious and cultural affairs. But they also happen to be some of the biggest parties in Costa Rica. Here are five of them. YURI CORTEZ/AFP via Getty Images

Costa Rica is a tourist-friendly country, best known for cloud forests, jungle tours, and beaches. With the country already open to tourists after closing up due to COVID-19, visitors are expected to flock to this Central American tropical paradise.

But while the country is best known for its natural beauty, it's also a great place to party. According to Leisure and Travel, many Costa Ricans celebrate fiestas all over the country.

Many celebrate religious feasts as a great excuse to party it up. From dancing and music to bullfighting and even to what is Costa Rica's equivalent of Germany's Oktoberfest, Costa Rica surely knows how to celebrate.

Costa Rica: 5 Costa Rican Festivals to Celebrate In

Costa Rican fiestas are often religious and cultural affairs. But they also happen to be some of the biggest parties in the country. Here are five of them.

Fiestas de Palmares (Palmares Festival)

Fiestas de Palmares is the country's largest cowboy party. It lasts two whole weeks as it celebrates Costa Rica's cowboy culture with rodeos, carnival rides, parades, and lots of booze.

In fact, According to Maximo Nivel, there is so much booze that it is second only to Oktoberfest. It usually kicks off on the second Thursday of January and is considered the largest and most anticipated festival in Costa Rica.

Its highlight is the "Tope" or Horse Parade, where horse riders and cowboys from all over the country gather and show off their riding skills and the beauty of their horses.

Fiesta de los Diablitos (Diablitos Festival)

This feast literally means the "Festival of the Little Devils," with two of the country's indigenous communities, the Boruca and the Rey Curré, celebrating it every December. The feast is highlighted with villagers donning costumes and masks to represent ancestral spirits and reenact their ancestors' victory over Spanish conquistadors.

And yes, there will still be lots of drinking, with the drink of choice being a fermented corn beverage known as chicha. The Boruca community celebrates the festival every December, while the Rey Curré celebrates it every February.

Limón Carnival

Taking inspiration from Brazil's Carnival, the Limón Carnival is one huge party highlighted by parades, food, and drinks. But unlike Brazil's Carnival, this one showcases more of Costa Rica's own diverse culture. It happens every October as a celebration of Costa Rican culture and beauty.

Festival de la Luz (Festival of Lights)

Like most Latin American countries, Costa Rica is deeply Catholic. And as December arrives, this means one thing: Christmas.

In the municipality of San Jose, the lead-up to Christmas involves one of Costa Rica's most beautiful festivals, the Festival de la Luz, also known as the Light Festival. It boasts an extravagant parade, as well as performances by the top bands in the country.

According to Costa Rican Vacations, it first started in 1996 and has since grown to be the kick-off event for the Christmas season in the country. From fireworks to bands playing Christmas carols and the huge parade, the festival has also grown in international recognition.

Envision Festival

While the other four on this list celebrate Costa Rican culture and traditions, the Envision Festival is more dedicated to trustafarians and psychedelia enthusiasts.

It boasts plenty of art, food, and music, as well as yoga. Visitors from all over the world flock to the beach forest of Uvita, Costa Rica every February to participate in the celebration.

This article is owned by Latin Post.

Written by: Rick Martin

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