Where to Stay In Puerto Viejo, Part 1

An aerial view of the town of Puerto Viejo, Costa Rica

When deciding on where to stay in Puerto Viejo--an Airbnb, a hotel, a hostel, or a B&B--you'll first need to back it up and ask the question about where to stay in Puerto Viejo.

Puerto Viejo is the town that many people talk about when they refer to the Southern Caribbean region, which can actually include Playa Negra, Puerto Viejo, Cocles, Playa Chiquita, Punta Uva and Arrecife, Playa Grande, and Manzanillo. This area runs about 16 kilometers along the coast, even more depending on how deep into Playa Negra you go. And outside of this main area, the area of Hone Creek and beyond, heading towards Cahuita, which used to be only residential neighborhoods, has now joined the tourism caravan and you can find Airbnbs and hotels all throughout that area as well. 

So, when booking a place to stay in Puerto Viejo, you must first decide if you actually want to stay in Puerto Viejo!

This quick guide will give an overview of what each of the main communities is like and will hopefully help you plan your Costa Rican vacation to the Southern Caribbean. 

Puerto Viejo de Talamanca

Puerto Viejo may be the main attraction for some visitors but it's not everyone's shot of guaro. This small and packed town was once a quiet fishing village with a few brave surfers, the early hippies, and those looking to disappear into the jungle. Now though, this town is an international and national destination. Ticos, who for many, many years wouldn't dare make the drive to the Limon province when the beaches of the Pacific were just a few hours away now flock here on weekends and for holidays. Add national tourism to the international tourists, who come to surf, become yoga teachers, see monkeys, volunteer with sloths, and learn to make chocolate, and this small town of just three blocks by three blocks has quite literally blown up. 

The town, for its small frame, is chock-full of places to stay, with most housing options having been converted into vacation rentals during the Covid years. You can have your pick of just about anything in this town, from $10 hostel bunks to luxury villas and everything in between. But know this: no matter how much you paid to stay, if you don't like a party, you might want to get out of town. 

This place is bumping every weekend and some weeknights, with live music, DJs, car parties (yes, that's what I said), drumming marching bands, special events, and more. There is action here and as for a sound ordinance? Don't count on it. But just because the DJ kept the party going till 3 AM does not mean your neighbor won't be up at 6 AM with a weed whacker. 

It's all action in this town so if you're looking for nothing but the sound of songbirds in the morning and jungle ASRM at night, Puerto Viejo Centro is probably not the place for you.

Playa Negra

On the way into town, before you reach Puerto Viejo, a newly paved road turns off to the left into the rapidly growing and expanding community of Playa Negra. Historically this area was swamp and marshland, and not many people lived out in the dense jungle. In recent years though, cheap land turned into the fastest-growing development this side of Panama, and Playa Negra is now a full-on scene. Though despite the newly paved entrance which runs just past the long-standing Hotel Banana Azul, most of the roads in this neighborhood are not paved, not well marked, and it can be a bit confusing to navigate this area. There also isn't great beach access for many of these houses and without a rental car, you might feel you're really out in the boons, though if that's what you want, then this may be the spot for you. 

While the area features some hotels, a handful of hostels, and a plethora of luxury villas that sleep up to 16 people, there isn't much more in the area. A small market, Super Banana, run by the same proprietors of Hotel Banana Azul, is the only place to buy essentials without going back out to the main road, and it's stocked and priced with tourism in mind. Hotel Banana Azul also features a restaurant for guests and non-guests alike, but other than this Banana Center you won't find much infrastructure in this area. And depending on how deep into the ever-expanding Playa Negra neighborhood you book, you may still be a kilometer or two from Banana Town. 

On your way from Playa Negra into Puerto Viejo, you'll pass the other part of Black Beach, the Pan Dulce area. This name refers to one road, Pan Dulce, that the whole area takes its name from. You may not be in town yet, but you're not deep into Playa Negra, you're on the little stretch of land known as Pan Dulce. More of a residential neighborhood, you could still certainly end up renting something here, with Black Beach just across the road and a couple of restaurants in the area. This is a nice in between for folks who don't want the deep jungle but can't fully commit to the mayhem that is town.

Playa Cocles

Playa Cocles, or simply Cocles, is another very large area that can refer to Cocles Beach itself or the more than four kilometers of beachfront properties and restaurants, and the properties that go into the mountains along this stretch of land. Most visitors to the entire Southern Caribbean will most likely be somewhere somewhat off the main road, Route 36, unless you have a car with 4x4 and are really looking for a deeper jungle immersive experience. There are plenty of options to take you into the jungle and give you that, just make sure when you're booking something further back into the mountains that you ask if 4x4 is necessary, as this will increase your car rental costs and during the rainy season may impact the kind of trip that you have. 

For more information on Playa Cocles, or Cocles Beach, see my other blog post The Best Beaches of Puerto Viejo. For booking a vacation rental or a hotel in Cocles, that probably means anything south of Selina Hostel until you hit Playa Chiquita (see part 2 of this guide). Cocles is home to some tried and true hotels like Caribeblue Beach and Jungle Resort, just across from the famous surf spot, Beach Break, and Le Cameleon Boutique Hotel, one of the first luxury hotels in the area. The accommodation options here are staggering and if you want it, you can probably find it, if you book far enough in advance. This area is popular, for the beaches and the activities, like The Jaguar Rescue Center, Caribbeans Chocolate Tour, surf lessons with Lewis Brothers Surfing, and much more. This is also the beach that hosts national and international surfing competitions so of course, it's a popular spot to be. 

If you book a vacation rental, hostel, or hotel in this area you may never leave, with three huge grocery stores all side by side, amazing restaurants like Beach Break, Tasty Waves, Sol del Caribe, and El Rincon Porteno, a pharmacy, so much to do, there's little reason to go elsewhere, other than into town to hit the only ATMs in the entire area. Here you can easily rent bikes to explore this strip of land and unless something calls you away from the Cocles crawl don't be surprised if this is all you see during your Southern Caribbean getaway.

To be continued in Part 2 with a look at Playa Chiquita, Punta Uva/Arrecife, Playa Grande, and Manzanillo...

If you're looking to book a vacation rental in Puerto Viejo Centro, look no further than our Airbnbs, Casa Bachata, Casa Cumbia, Casa Rumba, and Casa Merengue. Perfect for travelers who love to be where the action is, these 4 houses can be booked separately for one or two people or all together for groups of 12, 13, or in total 25. Contact us for more information!