Welcome To The Osa Peninsula

The Osa Peninsula is home to a rich array of fauna including jaguar, The Central American squirrel monkey, the Baird's tapir, and three species of sea turtles.

More than 375 bird species are found here including the country's largest population of the threatened scarlet macaw. The Osa also is home to the harpy eagle and the yellow-billed cotinga.

A fourth of Costa Rica's tree species are found on the Osa Peninsula. It supports more than 4000 vascular plant species, many of which are found no where else on Earth. The rainforest is made up of 700 tree species - the greatest tree species diversity in all of Central America.

The peninsula is bordered on the east by the pristine Golfo Dulce and on the west by the Pacific Ocean. It is more remote than other parts of Costa Rica and is accessible by road, an eight hour drive from San Jose along the Pan American (Interamerican) highway, or 50 minutes by one of the commuter flights. Once here you will find it is more lush and tropical than in northern Costa Rica with spectacular wildlife, deserted beaches, and virgin forests.

Much of the peninsula is still without electricity and four wheel drive is a necessity. The population is about 5,000 people with about 100 foreigners, mostly Americans. The Osa Peninsula is what Costa Rica is all about, not only in terms of landscape and outdoor adventure, but also the culture and the Costa Rican people.

Puerto Jimenez

The Gateway to the Osa. Originally, "PJ" was a frontier outpost for gold mining, logging, and cattle ranching, and used to be accessible only by boat. Ten years ago the road came in connecting PJ to the Pan American highway. Today, tourism and foreign investment are the main sources of income for this area.

Jimenez has a small hospital and a handful of businesses that sell groceries, hardware and building supplies, shops, and restaurants. Four wheel drive taxis can take you most anywhere in the peninsula and internet service, cellular phones, and even Direct TV are all available.

The Climate

Some Like It Hot After all, this is the tropics! Being a peninsula of land surrounded by water creates a more favorable climate, however. More so than Guanacaste and even south Florida in the summer for example. The land is green all year round with December through April being the "summer". Daytime temperatures are usually in the 90's with little or no rain. The rainy season starts around May in the form of afternoon showers or rain at night. This weather pattern continues until September and October when the heavy rains begin. Daytime temperatures during the rainy season are normally in the 70's and 80's but can dip into the "chilling" 60's at times. It is important to know that Costa Rica is NOT located in the hurricane belt.

Bugs And Critters

They're Here - But... All the hype about the bothersome types like mosquitoes is quite overrated. While there is an incredible variety of insects in Costa Rica (over 10,000 species in the Osa), it is surprising to most people that they don't encounter massive swarms of these insects like they do in many parts of the Midwestern United States. Snakes and lizards are also plentiful but you don't see the majority of them unless you are out in the habitat at night or disturbing their hiding places in the daytime.