Time For Winter Vacations In Costa Rica

Winter has begun across most of the United States, Canada and northern Europe. As chilly winter weather freezes the north heading into Christmas, you are not alone if you have started dreaming about a sunny tropical holiday.

Escape this winter to the land of summer in Costa Rica – the “happiest country in the world”. It’s hard not to be happy with blue skies, warm sunshine, tropical breezes, rainforest, warm surf and soft sand. Sounds pretty good if you are looking out the window at freezing rain, ice, snow and a dark gray sky, doesn’t it?

Costa Rica was named “Best Destination in Central/South America” this year in the Readers’ Choice Awards by Travel Weekly magazine. U.S. News & World Report called Costa Rica “the ultimate destination to enjoy a family holiday.” And British newspaper The Guardian named Costa Rica “one of the destinations to visit in 2015”. Costa Rica’s famous stunning landscapes of rainforest and gorgeous tropical beaches, along with the country’s culture and relaxed enjoyment of life, feature prominently in the romantic feature film “After Words,” released in the U.S. in August 2015 and starring Academy Award Winner, Marcia Gay Harden, and Goya Award Winner, Oscar Jaenada.

Costa Rica’s Central Pacific Coast is one popular area to visit. Stretching from the port town of Puntarenas to the surf town of Dominical, the area is known for long sunny beaches, colorful sunsets, national parks, great surf, and excellent tourism services. The Central Pacific also has some of the best beaches in Costa Rica. Manuel Antonio Beach was listed No. 2 of the Top 10 Beaches in Central America, and No. 17 of the 25 Top Beaches in the World in the 2015 TripAdvisor Traveler’s Choice Awards. Costa Rica eco-development Portasol Rainforest & Ocean View Living is exactly where you want to be in Costa Rica’s Central Pacific region – right between the busy Manuel Antonio National Park and beaches, and the popular surf town of Dominical. Enjoying these attractions is easy from Portasol, and you can retreat back to your private paradise at the end of the day. Three miles away are the beautiful uncrowded beaches of Playa Linda and Playa Matapalo.

Luxury Costa Rica vacation rentals in the exclusive 1,335-acre eco-development are comfortable and affordable – ideal for families, groups of friends and couples. The private community is crisscrossed by rivers, streams, waterfalls, and lush rainforest abundant with a wide variety of wildlife. You can enjoy unique wildlife tours, mountain biking, hiking and waterfall swimming at Portasol.

There are dozens of daily flights to Costa Rica from the USA and Europe, making Costa Rica a top vacation destination. Contact Portasol Rainforest & Ocean View Living eco-community for an unforgettable vacation in one of their Costa Rica vacation rentals. Don’t let the winter blues get you down. Flee the cold this winter to summertime in Costa Rica.

Getting to Portasol Rainforest & Ocean View Living From San José to Portasol, the driving distance is 131 miles (211 kilometers) via Jaco and Quepos (approximately 2.5 hours). You can fly from San José to Quepos (20-minute flight) on either Nature Air or Sansa Airlines; from there, it is 18 miles (29 kilometers) to Portasol. Dominical is only 11 miles (18 kilometers) from Portasol. Article by Shannon Farley

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Will rains increase as global air pollution reduces?

A new research from the United Kingdom's National Weather Service, the Met Office investigates why there has been no increase in global average rainfall over land during the last century despite a 0.8°C rise in average temperatures on the planet.

As they explain, the hydrological cycle is a key component of the Earth's climate system. Changes in this cycle have a direct impact on droughts, floods, water resources and ecosystems. Increasing levels of greenhouse gases, contributing to the warming of the planet, would be expected to increase the hydrological cycle, but that isn't what was observed.

In their studies, Met Office scientists found evidence that man-made industrial air pollutants had a significant impact on rain patterns. The sun heats the Earth, causing warm air to rise through cooler air above, which condenses the moisture in the air and produces rain. Greenhouse gases increase temperatures at the planet's surface and higher up in the atmosphere, which leads logically to thinking that rainfall would increase due to the extra heat in the system. However, researchers have found that industrial pollutants make clouds brighter, causing them to reflect more energy from the sun back into space, which in turn means less heat is getting to the Earth's surface. This affects the hydrological cycle with evaporation and therefore means less rain, the Met Office report shows.

In tropical Costa Rica, residents are grateful that seasonal rains started in May – even if it is raining sporadically and not regularly every afternoon uniformly across the country. It may seem impossible that a tropical country covered in rainforest can experience drought, but it can. An unusually dry rainy season in 2012 left the country's aquifers dry, affecting some 20,000 residents along with plants and animals with drastic water rationing. The areas of Heredia and Cartago in the Central Valley, and most of Guanacaste in the Northern Pacific were most affected.

If you are planning or thinking to travel to Costa Rica, you'll be happy to know that there has been enough rain to transform the landscape into lush greenness with bursts of bright flowers everywhere. And at the same time, there is still plenty of sunshine to let you enjoy all of your adventures. Costa Rica travel agency Team CRT creates unforgettable Costa Rica vacation itineraries and packages. Team CRT arranges nature tours, beach vacations, adventure tours, family vacations, relaxation vacations, honeymoons and golf vacations.

By Shannon Farley