Playa Grande, while petite in size and despite the name (large beach), is home to an eclectic amalgam of full-time and seasonal residents. Costa Rica has gained a reputation of being a North American haven and an expat magnetic, but it is anything but homogenous.
What’s unique about Costa Rica and Playa Grande in particular is that in such a small perimeter, a globally diverse community exists and thrives in a way that the rest of the world can learn from. Race, ethnicity, socio-economic status, educational background, religion, and sexual orientation don’t seem to influence where someone fits in the community and social construct in Playa Grande.
Kindness, compassion, good humor, warmth, shared interests, lifestyle, and a common moral code tend to be more of what matters than anything else.
FRIENDLY FACES IN PLAYA GRANDE, COSTA RICA
Playa Grande is a beautiful and charming beach town where you can truly be yourself and not fear that you won’t fit in, that you will be harshly judged, or that your unique weirdness won’t be understood. If everyone was the same, the world would be so boring. It is for this reason that Playa Grande is such an interesting place to live or spend a significant amount of time in. It is diversity that connects people here.
This community is home to people from Costa Rica, Argentina, Chile, Australia, Canada, the United States, Germany, and England, just to name a few home countries. There is a mix of business owners, entrepreneurs, yoga instructors, teachers, baristas, bartenders, restaurant servers, surf guides, writers, photographers, artists, musicians, architects, and other types of doers, creators, and fixers.
FRIENDS EQUAL FAMILY
Playa Grande is also composed of the full spectrum of ages and life-stages, which includes quite a lot of families with children. With so many great schools in the area, it’s no wonder families from Costa Rica and abroad flock to Guanacaste to provide their children with exceptional education opportunities.
Between the beaches, the surf, the paved roads that are perfect for biking and skateboarding, and the impressive collection of after school activities, sports, and clubs, Playa Grande and the surrounding towns offer a truly incredible environment to be a kid.
The small beach town of Playa Grande is a place where everyone knows their neighbors and where neighbors are actually friends and help each other in times of need. It a place where everyone looks out for everyone else. It is a place where people gather daily to watch the sunset and cheers to the setting day, wave to one another in passing whether they know each other or not, support each other’s businesses and trades, and connect with one another on a deeper level because life isn’t superficial here.
FRIENDS THAT SAIL TOGETHER STAY TOGETHER IN COSTA RICA
Playa Grande isn’t for everyone, but for those whom it is for, it is everything and more.