Puerto Jiménez Osa Peninsula.

Puerto Jiménez, Osa Peninsula, is one of the gateways to Corcovado National Park, located beside Golfo Dulce, and known for wildlife, beaches, and access to local tours.

Youtube. Driving through Puerto Jimenez, Osa Peninsula .https://youtu.be/Q-fU39K8yY8

Puerto Jiménez, Osa Peninsula.

Puerto Jiménez. Osa Peninsula is the major town on the Osa Peninsula. Unlike Drake Bay, Puerto Jiménez has banks and grocery stores, which might not seem like much but can be a much-needed necessity. It also has public transportation. Puerto Jiménez is a small town at the end of Highway 245. Around 3,000 people live in Puerto Jiménez.

A lot of the people living in Puerto Jimenez have their income come from tourism, in one way or another. During the slow or rainy season, many local people have a hard time earning enough to cover their basic needs. This brings up the point that there are a lot of nonprofit organizations that help our community cover their basic needs. One such organization is https://www.higueronescoop.org/; they have donations of boxes of food and help wherever they can.

Walking around Puerto Jiménez. Osa Peninsula

Walking around Puerto Jimenez is pretty easy. The only hill you will encounter is a small 40-foot grade going to the beach road. This makes walking very easy. The main town is not large, and you can walk down Main Street, go to the beach, and come back to the beginning of the town by the soccer field in under an hr. All the roads are flat and easy to walk on. The best time for a morning walk is at sunrise.

Start at the soccer field and go down the beach road. The beach road goes all the way down the beach. When you come to Delfine Restaurant, the road will turn to the right. Keep walking, and you will come to the end of the airport runway. Follow the road, and it will curve in front of the airport. Stay on the road, and you will come to a bridge. After the bridge, you can pick any road, and you will end up in town on the main road.

Make sure you bring your camera. You will come across all sorts of wildlife.

Restaurants

Restaurants in Puerto Jiménez range from family restaurants called sodas to full-course meals. Of course, being a coastal town, seafood dishes are fresh and simply delicious. There are a few steak restaurants, along with a Chinese restaurant. Your options are plentiful. restaurant’s

Hotels

Puerto Jiménez. Osa Peninsula has a lot of hotels. From hostels to the Hilton. Most hotels will have wifi, hot showers. Some are right on the beach, and others are tucked in the mangroves. Tip: there are more beds than visitors. Do not be afraid to ask for discounts

Puerto Jiménez. The vibe.

Puerto Jimenez is a laid-back beach town. The feeling is a relaxing atmosphere. People move slowly, and there is always tomorrow to get something done. The mornings are the busiest part of the day. By 6 am everyone is starting to work to beat the afternoon heat. Everyone is friendly and says good morning as you walk by.

Mother Nature will wake you up at dawn. Embrace the mornings; have a cup of Costa Rican coffee, go to the bakery for some pastries, or go to a soda for a Costa Rican Gallo Pinto for breakfast. For me, there is magic in Puerto Jimenez. Having breakfast at a soda, and in the tree are 4 pairs of scarlet macaws.

Scarlet Macaws were everywhere.

I first visited Puerto Jiménez over 16 years ago when I was leading a photography tour. As we drove into town, the roads were gravel; it reminded me of Mexico 50 years ago. Yes, I have some years on me. We parked on Main Street and went into a small Soda, a local family restaurant. I asked the owner where we could see Scarlet Macaws. Her response was Everywhere. We had a typical breakfast of Gallo Pinto along with a rich cup of Costa Rican coffee. After a Costa Rican breakfast, we started walking around town. We walked behind the soccer field. We heard the Scarlet Macaws before we saw them. There, in the trees, were at least 6 Scarlet Macaws.

Of course, we all were like children in a candy store. The scarlet macaws were eating beach almonds; they looked at us with curious head tilts, and they did not seem threatened by us being so close. The Scarlet Macaws were only twenty feet away.

The sweet gulf, Golfo Dulce

In the back of my mind, I was thinking I might have found my paradise. After taking 1000s of photos, we kept walking and found the beach road. The Golfo Dulce was flat and calm; it looked like glass. Further out were 20 Costa Rican boats, called pangas, anchored up in the turquoise waters.

Flying overhead were several seabirds. They were diving into the water for small fish. Right on the water’s edge were several benches. We all sat down and became hypnotized by the calmness of the moment.

The Pier

There was a tropical wind that swayed the palms on the palm trees. I closed my eyes; yes, this might be the place I was homesick for. We kept walking and walked over a small bridge that looked like it had seen better days. Below in the water, we could see schools of fish all different colors. We heard the screeching of the Macaws again; right above us were more Red and blue Scarlet Macaws. As we walked around a corner, we could see a pier; it was 300 feet from the shore with a gravel road that conected it to the beach.

As we walked out to the pier, more wildlife became just another magical moment. We have not been into town for less than an hr and, well, dumbstruck with this little beach town at the end of the road. Fishermen were hand-lining on the Pier. A teenage boy had a fish on and was bringing it in, smiling and, at the same time, concentrating on not losing the fish, as the fish jumped out of the water, shaking its head to try to release the hook.

When the fish jumped, I could see it was some sort of snapper. The teenage boy brought it up to the pier; it looked to be around 3 lbs with stripes of red and gray. Pura Vida came out of the teenage boy. I smiled, now knowing that Pura Vida had many meanings.

The ferry

Off in the distance, I could see a large covered boat with windows on the side all the way down the boat. It was heading right for the pier. It slowed down and tied up to the pier. People started to get off the boat; it was a ferry, Costa Rica style.

As we walked back to the beach from the pier, we walked on the beach road. There were a couple of restaurants: one was an Italian restaurant, right next door was a seafood restaurant, and further down the beach road was another seafood restaurant. All of them were right on the beach.

The airport

We kept walking down the beach road, and it curved to the left. Another 30 feet, and we were at the end of the runway of some sort. Just then, a small plane flew over our heads, with 40 feet to clear. I looked at one of my guests and said. That is what you are flying out on in a couple of days.

Her response was Get the hell out of here. Oh yeah, this must be the airport. The road was right next to the runway, so we kept waking looking for the airport or something like an airport. We came across a building that had an open gate and could see people with luggage. A sign said Sansa Air. My quest was not smiling .

She had never been on what I call a puddle jumper. Or a small prop plane. Hey, you wanted an adventure. No guts, no glory. She gave me the finger. I laughed.

The bridge in the Mangroves

We kept walking and turned another corner, and there were mangroves and a bridge that had seen better days. What got our attention was the monkeys. In the mangroves was a family of white face capuchins monkeys. Ok, so we had been on our walkabout for a little over an hr.

All of us were simply amazed at all the wildlife in Puerto Jimenez, Osa Peninsula. Corcovado National Park must be right out of Jurask park, I said. If we see all of this in town. David, thank you for showing us Puerto Jimenez, Osa Peninsula, one of my guests said. I looked at her and could see she had teary eyes. We are just getting started; we have 3 more days to explore.

Puerto Jiménez. Osa Peninsula. 2026

Today, Puerto Jiménez. Osa Peninsula is still a small Beach Town at the end of the road. The wildlife is still here; scarlet macaws still fly over Puerto Jimenez, including the green Amazon parrots. At certain times of the year, there will be toucans.

The roads are paved now in Puerto Jimenez. Osa Peninsula. There is a new pier, and some of the bridges have been replaced with new ones. The Gulf of Dulce is still flat and calm. There are more tour companies and hotels. Every year, someone opens a new restaurant hoping that it will be successful. Some are, and some only last a season. Puerto Jimenez has not lost its small beach town charm.

One thing that is on the plus side. There are more beds that vistors. Also, there are more options for tours and restaurants.

Puerto Jimenez, on the Osa Peninsula, is a town where everyone says hello, buneos Dias. I think that what makes this town special is the people. As I write this post in my house right outside of Puerto Jimenez, yes, I have lived here for over 14 years now. My thoughts this morning were about the people, nature, and how the howler monkeys were loud this morning. The Amazon parrots were flying overhead.

The sun was coming up, and the light was shining through a palm leaf. I smiled and thought to myself. You’re not in Kansas anymore. Pura Vida!