Costa Rica National Tree
On the plains you will see the silhouette of the national tree for which the province is named, spreading its shade over the cattle that graze underneath. The horizon is lined with mountains and volcanoes, and just beyond them you glimpse the blue of the sea and some of the best beaches in the country, with white sand and beautiful sunsets.
The trees change throughout the year. The colorful flowers come in the dry season, when the malinche and the corteza amarilla bloom and then lose their leaves, uncovering all the life that takes refuge in their branches.
It's the best season to see the monkeys, sloths, birds and deer that live in the dry tropical forest ecosystem, the best examples of which are Santa Rosa National Park and Lomas Barbuda) Wildlife Refuge.
Turtle lovers won't want to miss the beaches of Ostional, Playa Grande and Santa Rosa National Park, where each year the turtles repeat their ritual of life. And the depths of the ocean await scuba divers, with world class destinations like the Murci�lago or Catalina Islands.
Volcano Rinc�n de la Vieja
There are also volcanoes, like the imposing Rinc�n de la Vieja, with its nine craters, its lakes and its "cauldrons" of boiling mud. A network of trails allows you to explore this park and even to reach one of the craters. In the same vicinity, several haciendas, transformed into inns, await the tired visitor with delicious food and guitar serenades under a starry sky.
The cultural patrimony is also within reach in this region in cities like Liberia, Nicoya and Santa Cruz. The Casona in Santa Rosa National Park, now a museum, was the scene of one of the most famous events in Costa Rican history, the rout of William Walker.
The pottery of Guaitil and San Vicente de Nicoya is one of the best ways to remember the region, because these villages have inherited the Chorotega tradition transmitted from generation to generation. Food perpetuates ancestral flavors like that of the tamal, which was prepared in pre-Columbian times, along with many other corn based dishes which are served in the sodas of Guanacaste.
Ecotourism and Nature 
