Uvita

Long before the town existed, the southern Pacific coast was the land of the Diquís culture, to which the stone spheres found on the Térraba delta to the south-east are commonly attributed. In modern times Uvita and its neighbours, such as Dominical, which began as a small fishing village, grew up as small communities on a coast long considered remote.

Two things shaped the modern town. The government created the Ballena Marine National Park, protecting the bay and its shoreline as a safe area for migrating humpback whales and giving the town its best-known attraction. And the Costanera, the coastal highway, links Uvita with Quepos and the central Pacific to the north and with Ojochal and Coronado to the south, so that the coast route is now the quicker way from the capital.

Once considered remote, Uvita has since grown into the tourist and tour hub of the Costa Ballena. A large influx of foreigners has settled in the town and the hills around it, and grocery stores, banks, doctors and dentists have followed. Today it is the head town of Bahía Ballena district, which stretches along the coast from Dominical in the north.

The whales define Uvita's sense of itself. The park's name, Ballena, is Spanish for whale, and the bay itself is Bahía Ballena. Humpbacks from the north Pacific and from the far south reach the bay at different times of year, and whale watching is one of the town's main tours. The whale's-tail sandbar, visible from the hills above town, has become a well-known image of the coast.

The community is a mix of Costa Rican families and foreign settlers who arrived in large numbers in recent decades, and the town has a lively expatriate and local culture. Yoga, wellness retreats and eco-lodges are part of the scene in the hills, and as of 2019 the Envision festival took place in the area in February or March.

Evenings are low-key: a few beach and roadside bars hold karaoke nights, ladies' nights and screenings of football matches, and the beer is usually Imperial, a Costa Rican lager. Both Spanish and English are heard in the shops and restaurants, reflecting the mixed community.

Bahía Ballena district, of which Uvita is the head town, had an estimated population of about 4,400 in 2022. The district takes in Uvita and Bahía Ballena along with Dominical, Dominicalito, Playa Hermosa, San Josecito and smaller villages in the hills.

Tourism is the main business. Uvita is the hub for whale-watching trips, snorkelling and diving, horseback riding and other tours along the Costa Ballena, and the town is known for its many restaurants and places to stay. Services for the growing foreign community — grocery stores, banks, doctors and dentists — have followed, and the town is no longer considered remote.

Life is split between the two parts of town: the centre along the highway, with its supermarkets, banks and bus stops, and the quieter Bahía area by the beach and park. Buses into Bahía are less frequent than those on the highway, so many residents get about by bicycle, taxi or car. The tides set the rhythm at the beach, since the walk out along the sandbar is only possible at low water, and in the green season heavy rain falls most afternoons and nights.

Uvita eats from the sea. Fresh fish and seafood are on almost every menu, from ceviche, white fish cured in lime with onion and coriander, to whole fried fish served with rice, salad and patacones, flattened and twice-fried green plantain. Arroz con camarones, rice with prawns, is a coastal standard.

Sodas, the small traditional restaurants found all over Costa Rica, are scattered through town and serve the casado at lunch — rice, beans, salad, fried plantain and a piece of fish, chicken or beef — and gallo pinto, rice and black beans fried together, at breakfast. Pizza, Mexican food and barbecue chicken reflect the town's mixed population, and at least one lodge near the park cooks with produce from its own farm.

Fresh tropical fruit is blended into batidos with milk or frescos with water. At the bars, Imperial, a Costa Rican lager, and Cacique, a Costa Rican spirit, are the usual drinks.