7 fruits you must try before you fly home
The pineapple and banana you know are only the start. The fruit stands on this coast sell things most visitors have never seen.
Journal
Notes on staying, owning and looking after a home on this coast. Written from Uvita, by the team that does the work.
For guests
When to come, what to expect, and what the coast is like month by month.
Feeding that cute monkey is against the law
A monkey on the terrace rail, looking straight at your breakfast, is one of the great moments of a holiday here. What you do next matters.
Do you really need a 4x4 in Costa Rica?
It is the most expensive question in trip planning. The honest answer for this coast: it depends on the house, and on the month.
Is Uvita safe? What we tell every guest
Guests often ask, and it deserves a straight answer. The trouble that does happen here is nearly always the same kind, and nearly always avoidable.
The one thing never to leave in a rental car
It takes less than a minute, it happens at beach car parks in daylight, and it is almost entirely preventable. Leave the car empty.
Snakes, scorpions and crocs: should you worry?
Everyone wonders and few people ask. Here is what is actually out there, what the numbers say, and what to do about it.
9 Spanish words that make Ticos smile
You can get through a week here in English. But a handful of words, said badly and with a smile, changes how the whole trip feels.
The Costa Rica sunburn nobody warns you about
A happy first morning on the beach, then two days indoors. The sun here is not the sun you know from home, and cloud does not help.
The beach mistake that catches strong swimmers
The waves here are beautiful and stronger than they look. One habit keeps your holiday a holiday: swim where the lifeguards are.
Read this before you tip in Costa Rica
Some visitors tip twice without knowing it. Others wonder why the bill is higher than the menu. Two lines at the bottom explain both.
Green season on the South Pacific coast
The rain here has a shape. Knowing it is the difference between a house that holds its condition and one that quietly loses it.
Humpback whale season in Uvita
Most whale watching destinations get one season. Bahía Ballena gets two, and between them they give this coast one of the longest humpback seasons anywhere.
For homeowners
What it takes to run a house here well, written from doing it.
A year of house maintenance on this coast
The coast has two seasons and a house needs different things in each. This is the calendar we work to, and why each job sits where it does.
Humidity, airflow and mold in a tropical house
Mold is a moisture problem, not a cleaning problem. These are the numbers and the methods that hold up in a house that sits closed for weeks.
Managing water around a house in Costa Rica
Every house here has to move close to four metres of rain a year from the roof to somewhere harmless. Most water damage is a failure of that route.
Pool care in the rainy season in Costa Rica
Rain is the reason pools on this coast turn green. Here is what it does to the water, and what a proper service does about it.
Roof and gutter maintenance in Costa Rica
A roof on this coast takes close to four metres of rain a year, plus strong sun and salt. It rarely fails all at once. It fails one screw at a time.
Salt air, lightning and a house's electrics
Two things on this coast shorten the life of anything with a hinge or a wire: salt in the air and lightning in the sky. Both can be managed.
Termites and wood in a Costa Rica house
Three kinds of termite damage houses in Costa Rica, and each leaves a different sign. Knowing which you are looking at decides what to do next.
Trees near the house: risk, pruning and the law
The trees are why people buy here, and they are also the largest things that can fall on the house. Looking after both takes some knowledge.
Water filters for a house in Costa Rica
Most houses here have a row of filters somewhere near the meter. Each one does a different job, and a filter nobody changes is worse than none.
Choosing a property manager in Costa Ballena
Every management company on this coast says the same things. These are the questions that separate the ones who do them from the ones who say them.
What property management costs in Uvita
There is no standard price for managing a house on this coast. There is a standard set of parts, and knowing them is how you compare one quote with another.
Pricing a vacation rental in Uvita
The most common pricing mistake on this coast is not charging too much or too little. It is charging the same thing in January and October.
Setting up a house for guests
The setup is the part owners most want to skip and the part that most decides how the house performs. Here is what it actually involves.
What a weekly house check covers
Anyone can say they check the house. Here is what is actually being looked at, and why each thing is on the list.
What to check before buying here
Two houses with the same view and the same bedroom count can perform completely differently. Usually it comes down to things you can check before you buy.
Why houses here get bad reviews
Read enough reviews of homes on this coast and the same handful of complaints appear. Very few of them are about the house itself.
What a property manager does in Costa Rica
Most people who buy a home on the South Pacific coast do not plan to become hoteliers. Here is the honest version of what a manager does, and what it costs.