Puntarenas
Central Pacific, Costa Rica
Puntarenas is the old port city on a long, narrow spit of land, and the place Ticos have gone to the beach for generations. Families stroll the Paseo de los Turistas with a churchill, shaved ice piled with toppings, and the ferry to the Nicoya Peninsula leaves from here. It's affordable and very Tico, but hot, and parts of the city feel tired.
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