Cacao, Bribri culture
and Afro-Caribbean flavour

How to use this guide

This selection is for travellers drawn to the south Caribbean more by chocolate, Bribri culture and Afro-Caribbean cooking than by the beach. The places fall into three distances. Close to Puerto Viejo are the Caribeans chocolate forest tour (Cocles), 2 km away, and the Finca La Isla botanical garden at Playa Negra, 1 km from the centre. At Hone Creek, between Cahuita and Puerto Viejo, you have Cacao Trails and the Kéköldi indigenous territory. Further out, towards the border, are the cacao tour with Bribri families and Yorkín, the Bribri women's community tourism project run by Stibrawpa.

With a single day, do Caribeans in the morning, on the 10:00 a.m. tour, and Finca La Isla in the afternoon; in between, eat rice and beans, rondón or a patty at a soda. With two or three days, add a trip into Bribri territory: the cacao tour with Bribri families takes half a day, while Yorkín, with an hour by canoe up the river, needs the whole day. Both show how cacao is processed, so one is enough. On another day, stop at Hone Creek on your way south and end in Cahuita town, where you can ask about live calypso nights.

If money is tight, the trips into Bribri territory, from about $75 to $125 per person depending on the operator, are the first thing to drop: the Puerto Viejo farmers' and artisans' market, the sodas and a walk round Cahuita give you Afro-Caribbean culture without paying for a tour. If time is tight, Caribeans covers cacao in about 2 hours and saves you the journey towards the border.

Tips

• Caribeans runs no tours on Sundays. The walk is under 1.5 km but has slopes, so wear comfortable shoes.
• Yorkín works by advance booking, through the association or Puerto Viejo operators, so arrange it before setting off towards Bribri.
• Kéköldi is visited with a community guide. To see migrating birds of prey from the tower, go between September and December or February and May.
• The Puerto Viejo market, behind the Casa de la Cultura, runs on Saturdays from 6:00 a.m. to 12:00 noon; the craft market opens in the afternoons from Thursday to Sunday.
• Sunday is a good day to order rice and beans, a traditional Sunday dish in many homes; patties are also sold on the street.