Christmas and New Years in Costa Rica: A Festive Time

Each year we get many questions about what it is like during Christmas and New Years in Costa Rica. People want to know about the weather, local traditions, and which businesses will be open during the holidays. This time of the year is one of our favorites. In this post, we’ll let you know what to expect during these festive times.    

Christmas and New Years in Costa Rica

Preparing for the Holidays in Costa Rica

Decorations

In Costa Rica, the first signs of Christmas begin to appear in early November. At that time, you’ll find a few Christmas trees shining brightly in people’s homes and on outdoor porches. By early December, most locals have their homes and businesses modestly decorated.

Christmas trees are mostly artificial in Costa Rica. In the mountains though, where it is cooler, you can find real trees. These look something like an arborvitae, with fine fluffy needles. They are usually about three or four feet tall. Occasionally, real trees are sold near the beaches, but they tend to dry out quickly from the heat. 

Along with Christmas trees, there are lights, ornaments, nativity scenes, and even the occasional reindeer or Santa Claus statue. The big shopping malls in and around the capital of San Jose have giant artificial trees decorated, garland hanging, and Santa’s Workshop setup. One year there was even a snow machine and ice rink in the mall. It was melting fast but still fun!

The local municipalities also decorate for Christmas since the Catholic religion dominates in Costa Rica. Lights and nativity scenes are placed in each town’s central square or park.

Parades and Activities

Though this year (2020) was different, bigger towns usually have a Christmas parade as well. These are usually held in early December.

One of the most famous is the Festival de la Luz (Festival of Light). This nighttime parade has lots of bright floats and marching bands playing holiday tunes. It also has traditional dancers and mascaradas (life-size masks) and is a big cultural event. The Festival of Light brings together tens of thousands of families along Second Avenue and Paseo Colon in downtown San Jose.

Festival of Lights Parade Costa Rica
Float from the 2019 Festival of Lights. Photo Credit: Festival de la Luz

Another tradition is El Tope Nacional in San Jose, right after Christmas on December 26. Hundreds of horses and their riders prance a high-step trot through the city streets.  

For New Years, many municipalities have a fireworks display. Locals set off smaller ones too in their communities and on the beach.

Costa Rica’s Weather in December and January

December is the beginning of the dry season for most parts of Costa Rica. By Christmas and New Years, rainfall is very infrequent in most places. Temperatures range from the mid-70s (low or mid-20s °C) in the mountains to high 80s or even low 90s (30s °C) at the beach. Read our post Weather in Costa Rica: What You Need to Know for a more detailed breakdown.

One fun thing about the weather for January is a local belief, called La Pinta. According to some Ticos (Costa Ricans), the first 12 days of the year will predict the weather for each month. For example, if it rains on January 6, then June (the sixth month) will experience higher than normal rainfall. We have actually found this to be mostly true!

Peak Season for Costa Rica

Along with the warm weather in December and January comes the peak tourist season. Many foreigners travel to Costa Rica during Christmas and New Years, as they have time off from work and school.

Crowds are then compounded by local tourists as well. Costa Rica’s school year ends in early/mid-December, so the kids are released for summer break. Locals also get their yearly bonus (aguinaldo) and many have vacation time in late December/early January.

Since the majority of Costa Rica’s population lives inland around the Central Valley, it is a big tradition to head to the beach. Large groups of family and friends normally meet up at the country’s various beaches. They fill hotels, resorts, and even camp out in tents right along the sand.

Traditional foods are shared like ceviche made from fresh fish or olla de carne, a traditional beef stew. While it changed a bit this year with Covid, we still have seen many families camping out and picnicking.

Beach During Christmas Costa Rica
Families gathering on the beach for the holidays

What is Open During Christmas and New Years in Costa Rica?

If you are traveling during Christmas and New Years in Costa Rica, expect most things to be open for you. Tour operators, attractions, national parks, restaurants, shops, and other businesses related to tourism are busiest during these dates and remain open. Restaurants often will have special menus for Christmas and New Years.  

Grocery stores, mini-markets, and large retail stores will be open too but may have different hours. For example, they may close early on Christmas Eve or open late on Christmas Day/New Years Day.

On the other hand, things like banks, government offices, supply stores, and anything else non-tourism related likely will have different hours or be closed. We once waited about four weeks for a car part when we tried to order it right before Christmas.

Our Favorite Things About Christmas and New Years in Costa Rica

Having spent six of the last seven years in Costa Rica for Christmas and New Years, we have begun to develop some traditions of our own. Some of these are borrowed from back home in the United States, and others we have picked up from Costa Rica.

Food for the Holidays

In our home, we traditionally bake Christmas cookies sometime in mid-December. We decorate them and give them to neighbors and friends. Ticos are lovers of sweets, but as far as we know, don’t make cookies for the holidays. They are always very well received!

Though we haven’t made them ourselves yet, one classic Costa Rican dish that we always enjoy around Christmas and New Years are tamales. They are often gifted to us or we buy them from a local family.

Tamales are made with corn flour, vegetables, rice, and usually chicken or pork. They are elegantly wrapped in a banana leaf and steamed to cook. We’ve tried many variations, and they are all delicious.

Traditional Tamales Costa Rica
Tamales, a traditional food for Christmas

For New Year’s Eve, we like to partake in a Costa Rican tradition of eating 12 grapes. Grapes are a luxury fruit in Costa Rica since they are imported and expensive. It is said that if you eat 12 grapes, one for each month, at midnight, your year ahead will be prosperous. Hey, it’s worth a try!

A Tasty (Spiked) Drink

Rompope is a traditional Costa Rican drink that we enjoy for the holidays. This one we had back in the United States as well, but it is called eggnog. You can purchase Rompope in stores and we even ordered some from a local dairy farm this year. Most Rompope already has rum added, but for the batches we make at home, we add our own.

A Festive Mood 

Probably the thing we love most about the holidays in Costa Rica are how festive it feels. Everyone seems to get into the holiday spirit. At stores and restaurants, people will say Feliz Navidad (Merry Christmas). Families will take pictures in front of a Christmas tree in the park. And there are lots of charity and toy drives to help those in need.

Like we mentioned above, the beach is one of the most festive environments. And while sometimes large groups at the beach can be a bit loud and obnoxious, for the most part everyone is cheerful and friendly.

We always seem to park ourselves next to some nice family, barbequing delicious food, sharing stories, and laughing. It’s even common to see rocking chairs set up for the elderly family members.

Conclusion

Christmas and New Years is definitely different in Costa Rica. But culturally, it is very similar to what many of us grew up with. It’s about giving, spending time with family, reflecting on the year gone by, and looking forward to the year ahead. If you are planning your travel during this time, we hope you take part in some of Costa Rica’s traditions and bring along your own as well.

Have a question about visiting Costa Rica during Christmas or New Years? Ask us below.

Looking for more information to plan your trip? Check out these posts:

Planning a Family Vacation to Costa Rica – Coming with the kids? Use this post to pick an airport, narrow your destinations, and get useful tips about traveling as a family.

Costa Rica Destination Guide – This post summarizes all of Costa Rica’s top destinations and some off-the-beaten-path ones as well. We also link to our full destination write ups so you can further plan.

Rental Car Discount – Rental car agencies often run out of inventory around Christmas and the New Year. Book early and save money with this discount.

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13 Comments

  1. Thanks for sharing this, you two! I am even more excited now about our plan to be in CR for Christmas in 2021!!!

    1. We are here at the beach in Tamarindo. It is nice but too noisy and crowded. Where is a quieter yet still walkable town near the Guanacaste Coast?

  2. What time on Dec 26 will I be able to see the El Tope . Nacional in San Hose. Will it be filmed and sent online I live in Australia

  3. Hi! We are planning to come in late December with our 2 kids (15 and 12). Are there things to do with kids for New years eve/New Years Day? Could we simply do tourist activities (ziplining, rafting, etc) on New years eve/day? Everything I’m finding so far seems adult oriented.

    1. Hi Charis, Just about everything will be open for New Years for tourism. Almost all tour operators are open so yes, you could do zip lining, rafting, etc. Be sure to book in advance because that’s a popular time to visit. There isn’t much New Years specific for kids here, unfortunately.

  4. I have a house in Puriscal, but I have 6 family members visiting January 3-9 and my house isn’t large enough, plus there are some mobility issues with the more elderly members of my group. So they’re staying in Escazu, where we all feel they’ll be safer.
    Question is, where are the closest wild monkeys to Escazu? Not a refuge or rescue…. Is there anywhere within a 90-minute drive? We’re hitting La Paz, although it’s not technically “wild,” I think it’s our best bet, but I’m open to other ideas. My mom can’t walk very far but is a huge “monkeyphile” 😂. Thanks for everything!

    1. Hi Bridget, You can see monkeys in Carara National Park near Jaco, but it’s harder to see them on the easy trail. We’ve only seen them on the harder trails that go deeper in the jungle. Your bet option is to go to Manuel Antonio since it’s easy to see them in the national park without walking too far. Another idea would be to do an Isla Damas mangrove boat tour. You pretty much always see monkeys on these. This is north of Manuel Antonio so would be a little closer. If you’d like any help arranging this, just let us know. We work with a great local company for that excurion.

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