At 51,060 square kilometers (19,714 square miles), Costa Rica is the second smallest Central American nation after El Salvador, barely bigger than the state of New Hampshire. At its narrowest point, in the south, only 119 kilometers (74 miles) separate the Caribbean from the Pacific. Even in the north one can savor a leisurely breakfast on the Caribbean and take an ambling 5-hour drive to the Pacific for dinner. At its broadest point, Costa Rica is a mere 280 kilometers (175 miles) wide. On the ruler-straight eastern seaboard, barely 160 kilometers (100 miles) separate the Nicaraguan and Panamanian borders. And while the Pacific coast is longer, it is still only 480 kilometers (300 miles) from the northernmost tip to the Panamanian border as the quetzal flies.

Lying between 8° and 11° north of the equator, Costa Rica is located wholly within the tropics (a fact quickly confirmed in the middle of a rainy afternoon in the middle of the rainy season in the middle of the wet Caribbean lowlands). Elevation and extremes of relief, however, temper the stereotypical tropical climate. In fact, the nation has more than a dozen distinct climatic zones. Even ice and snow aren't unknown in cooler months atop the highest mountains.

Costa Rica sits astride a jagged backbone of volcanoes and mountain chains-part of the great Andean-Sierra Madre chain, which runs the length of the western littoral of the Americas. From the Pacific coast of Costa Rica, great cones and domes dominate the landscape, and in the north one is almost always in sight of volcanoes.

All roads radiate from the Meseta Central, the heart of the nation. The lowland is divided into two separate valleys by the low-lying crests of the Cerros de la Carpintera, which rise a few miles east of San José. Beyond lies the somewhat smaller Cartago Valley, at a slightly higher elevation. The Carpinteras mark the continental divide. To the east the turbulent Reventazón-a favorite of whitewater enthusiasts-slices through the truncated eastern extreme of the Cordillera Central and tumbles helter-skelter to the Caribbean lowlands. The Río Virilla exits in a more leisurely manner, draining the San José valley to the west.

Beaches are a major attraction of the Pacific coast. Unlike the homogeneous Caribbean seaboard, it's deeply indented with multiple bays and inlets and two large gulfs: the Gulf of Nicoya (in the north) and Golfo Dulce (in the south), enfolded by the hilly, hook-nosed peninsulas of Nicoya and Osa, respectively. The interior mountains tilt precipitously toward the Pacific, coming closer to the ocean than on the Caribbean side, and the slender coastal plain is nowhere more than a few kilometers wide. Two broad fertile valleys break this rule, separating the Nicoya and Osa peninsulas from the mainland. North of the Gulf of Nicoya, the coastal strip widens to form a broad lowland belt of savanna-the Tempisque Basin-which is drained, appropriately, by the Río Tempisque and narrows northward until hemmed in near the Nicaraguan border by the juncture of the Cordillera de Guanacaste and the rolling, often-steep coastal hills that follow the arc of the Nicoya Peninsula.

Solar gear
Going to the beach is a must when traveling to Costa Rica and a nice suntan is always possible. It is pointless, however, to try to bronze yourself in just one day because it takes 24 to 48 hours for the skin to produce melanin, a dark skin pigment that reduces the ageing process caused by sunburns. The healthier option is to prepare yourself with a PABA-free suntan or sun blocking lotion containing a high level of melanin. There are even products that contain pure melanin to diminish premature wrinkles.

Sun protection factor
Light skin, light colored eyes, and blonde or red hair indicate the use of an SPF-25. For those with light skin and brown hair an SPF from 8 to 15 is recommended. Olive colored skin that rarely sunburns needs an SPF from 4 to 8. Keep in mind that every time the sun's rays make the color of your skin change to red or bronze, you are running the risk of getting skin cancer. So, after exposing your skin for any unusual pigmentation. Don't hesitate to seek medical advice if you find something out of the ordinary.

Temperatures
Costa Rica's climactic conditions vary greatly depending on the region, however, the country has two seasons - the rainy season, often referred  to as "Green Season," which lasts from mid-May through November, and the dry season, Costa Rica's summer, that spans December through mid-May. 

Temperatures vary more by region and elevation  than by season.  The average temperature on the Caribbean coast is 83°F, and the Pacific coast is only slightly warmer, whereas the temperature in San José is usually in the mid-seventies. Temperatures on Avg. will range from 70f to 88f.