The Osa Peninsula and the South Pacific

We’ve compiled the best of the best in The Osa Peninsula and the South Pacific - browse our top choices for the top things to see or do during your stay.

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  • 1. Coopedota Santa Maria

    The best place to buy local coffee is where 800 farmers bring their raw coffee beans to be roasted and packed into jute bags at the first carbon-neutral coffee producer in the world. You can buy three dozen different coffee beverages and export-quality coffee at the café shop for about $10 per pound (about half the price you'll pay at the airport). Choose between light or dark roast and en grano (whole bean) or molido (ground). A variety of tours are offered (from $35), covering everything from processing to tasting to the cooperative's innovative recycling. Check out the website for details of tours or email to make reservations.

    C. Ctl., Santa María de Dota, San José, 11701, Costa Rica
    2541–2827-for coffee tour
  • 2. Mama Toucan's Natural & Organic Foods

    Colorful and comfortably air-conditioned, this whole-foods store is a treat to browse in. Along with the fresh organic vegetables, there is a wide selection of gluten-free foods, including bagels and breads, and a deli with ready-to-eat vegan and gluten-free snacks and sandwiches. The ice cream, sorbet, and gelato made with coconut milk are delicious whether you are a vegan or an omnivore. The shop also carries hard-to-find, imported specialty foods, spices, and excellent local chocolates. It's open from 7 to 8 daily.

    Main St., Dominical, Puntarenas, 11909, Costa Rica
    8872–5445
  • 3. Jagua Arts & Crafts

    Closed Permanently

    The area's finest arts and crafts are displayed in this impressive shop, including exquisitely detailed bird carvings made by a local family; mirrors and trivets made by a San José mosaic artist; and indigenous crafts, including mola appliqué work, Boruca carved masks, and real bows and arrows. A gallery features mixed-media nature paintings. The shop is famous for local artisan Karen Herrera's exquisite glass-bead jewelry and miniature glass animals. There's an excellent selection of natural-history field guides and books here, too. For a sweet treat, there's locally made organic chocolate, and Luna Jade ice cream and sorbet at the store's chic, new open-air lounge with pleasant bathrooms and free water. The shop opens daily at 6:30 am and stays open until 5:30 pm December through May and until 2:30 pm June through September and in November; it's closed in October.

    Road beside airport, Puerto Jiménez, Puntarenas, 60702, Costa Rica
    2735–5267
  • 4. Samaritan Xocolata

    Closed Permanently

    The sign says "Fine, Organic Artisan Chocolate," but all you need to know is that this chocolate is delicious. You can buy chocolate to-go, including turtle-shape chocolates filled with caramel and nuts, bonbons filled with ginger citrus or pistachio with Himalayan pink salt, beautifully gift-wrapped 70% dark chocolate, or truffles (including vegan-friendly rosemary-walnut and nondairy mixed-berry, so no one has any dietary excuse to resist). Sit down in the patio chocolate lounge and sip thick hot chocolate or devour a frozen banana encased in thick dark chocolate. If you're in the area for a while, you can book a 2½-hour chocolate workshop to learn how it's all made ($25, minimum of two people; two days’ notice required).

    San Gerardo, Cartago, Costa Rica
    8820–7095
  • 5. Finca Cántaros

    Closed Permanently

    In a vintage farmhouse between San Vito and Wilson Botanical Garden, Finca Cántaros sells crafts by indigenous artisans from near and far, including charming calabash gourds painted by Maleku artists, and colorful molas (appliqué work) made by Kuna women from the San Blas Islands in Panama. The owner's own mixed-media prints celebrate tropical nature with watercolor, colored pencil, and hand-carved rubber blocks used as printing stamps. You can also find a great selection of colorful, high-glaze ceramics from San José artists, as well as Sibú artisanal chocolates. Profits help support the adjacent free lending library. Behind the shop lies a 17.3-acre private nature reserve ($6), where you can walk the bird-filled forest trails around a lake, explore an indigenous archaeological site, or park a camper van overnight ($10).

    Road to Ciudad Neily, 3 km (2 miles) south of San Vito, San Vito, Puntarenas, 60801, Costa Rica
    8951–8590

    Shop Details

    Rate Includes: weekdays by reservation only.
  • Recommended Fodor’s Video

  • 6. Green Leaf Arts & Artesania

    Closed Permanently

    This small shop has a great selection of high-quality local art, indigenous crafts and souvenirs, eclectic home accessories, and interesting jewelry. Next door at the Super Feliz you can pick up snacks, imported cheeses (including Brie and Gorgonzola), and treats for a beach picnic, as well as imported beer and wine. Both stores are open daily from 9 to 6. Need some beach reading? Check out the store's used-book exchange, the Rainforest Book Trader, open daily from 9 to 6.

    west side of Costanera Hwy.,, Ojochal, Puntarenas, 60504, Costa Rica
    2786–5221-Green Leaf
  • 7. Tierra Mar

    Closed Permanently

    This shop has a small but excellent selection of painted wood masks made by the Boruca indigenous group. It also has one-of-a-kind local crafts made by the Guaymí indigenous group, such as woven straw hats, cloth dolls, cotton purses, painted gourds, and local paintings. In high season, head to the front of the building; in low season, the dock side is open.

    Main street, Golfito, Puntarenas, 60701, Costa Rica
    2775–1614
  • 8. Tucan Souvenir & Gifts

    Closed Permanently

    The most upscale souvenir shop in town has an interesting assortment of local, handmade crafts made of exotic woods, plus jewelry, hammocks, T-shirts, and unusual painted wooden wall plaques. The merchandise is artistically presented in a pleasant, air-conditioned shop by owner Mafi, who is also a talented painter.

    Costanera Hwy., Dominical, Puntarenas, Costa Rica
    2787–0020
  • 9. Boruca Gallery Gift Shop

    Under Renovation

    Whether you have time to visit the southern Boruca indigenous settlement inland, you can find a huge selection of the carved and painted wooden masks Borucan artisans are famous for, here in the showroom at Pacific Edge. Susie Atkinson has championed and supported the Boruca artists for more than a decade. She has a huge inventory of masks, from small to big, priced at $10 to $120, along with hundreds of woven bags, purses, and belts, colored with traditional, natural dyes. The bulk of the shop proceeds goes to the Borucan artists and artisans. The gallery is open Monday to Saturday, from 10 to 4.

    Dominical, Puntarenas, 11909, Costa Rica
    2200–5428

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