Jacó: Two Nights of Sunsets, Rum, and Slowing Down
A relaxing two-night escape in Jacó filled with sunsets, local craft beer, and a chance to slow down.
From La Fortuna to Costa Rica’s Pacific Coast
After a few incredible days exploring La Fortuna, it was time to leave the mountains behind and continue south to Costa Rica's Pacific coast.
Unlike some of my previous travel days, getting to Jacó meant taking two local buses. The first bus took me from La Fortuna to the Puntarenas bus terminal, where I transferred to another bus heading for Jacó. Thankfully, I wasn’t the only backpacker making the journey.
As soon as we stepped off the first bus, several of us began looking around for where to go next. Nobody really said much, but we all instinctively followed one another through the terminal. When you're travelling solo, there's something reassuring about spotting other backpackers wearing the same confused expression. Sometimes the best travel strategy is simply safety in numbers.
After changing buses, a few hours later I arrived in Jacó.
If you’re planning the same journey today, double-check the latest transportation information before leaving. The terminal I used has reportedly closed, and more recent information suggests that buses now depart a couple of streets away. Bus stops, routes, and schedules can change, and Costa Rica’s online transportation information isn’t always accurate or up to date.
As always, I’d booked my accommodation before arriving, so once I stepped off the bus, it was an easy walk to La Hacienda Rooms & Food, where I would be spending the next two nights. After checking in and dropping off my backpack, I didn’t waste much time unpacking.
The beach was calling.
Before heading to the water, I made one quick stop at a nearby convenience store and picked up a couple of ready-to-drink rum and cokes. It had become one of my favourite budget travel traditions: grab a drink from the store instead of paying beach-bar prices and enjoy the same sunset for a fraction of the cost.
Drinks in hand, I made my way to the closest stretch of sand.
The first thing I noticed was how different Jacó felt from the places I’d visited earlier in Costa Rica. Instead of cloud forests, volcanoes, and jungle trails, I was back on the Pacific coast. It was hot, the ocean breeze was a welcome relief, and before long, I found myself walking into the water just to cool off.
I hadn’t come to Jacó with a long list of attractions to check off. For the first time in weeks, I was happy to let the destination set the pace.
Sitting on the beach with a cold drink and watching the sun begin its slow descent towards the Pacific, I knew I had chosen the right place for the kind of break I needed.
Watching the sunset with a ready-to-drink rum and coke on my first evening in Jacó.
Sunset, Craft Beer, and Changing Plans
There wasn’t much on my agenda that evening, and that was exactly how I wanted it. After so many busy days and early departures, it felt strange—in the best possible way—to simply sit still and watch the waves roll in.
As the sky shifted from blue to shades of orange and pink, the beach remained surprisingly quiet. A few locals wandered along the shoreline, but for the most part, I had the stretch of sand almost to myself. It wasn't the busy, tourist-filled beach that many people picture when they think of Jacó, and I actually appreciated that. Sitting there with a couple of rum and cokes, listening to the waves and watching the sun disappear into the Pacific, it felt like the perfect way to end my first evening.
Once the sun had disappeared below the horizon, I wandered back into town and stopped at The Beer House to sample a local Costa Rican craft beer.
Whenever I travel, I try to support a local brewery if I can. It's one of my favourite ways to experience a destination beyond the major attractions, and Costa Rica has a growing craft beer scene that's well worth trying. Sitting there with a local beer after a peaceful evening on the beach felt like the perfect end to my first day in Jacó.
Back in my room, the evening took a surprisingly productive turn.
With Netflix playing quietly in the background, I opened my laptop and started planning the rest of my Costa Rica adventure. I already knew my next stop would be Manuel Antonio, but after that, I wasn’t sure where I wanted to go.
Originally, I’d hoped to visit Tortuguero on the Caribbean coast. It had been on my list before arriving in Costa Rica, but the more I researched it, the more complicated it seemed. Getting there required several transportation connections, including a boat, and more travel time than I realistically had left. Once I considered the added cost, I had to admit that it simply wasn’t going to fit into this trip.
Costa Rica was incredible, but it was also beginning to stretch my budget more than I had expected. Every bus ticket, room, activity, and meal added up, and I found myself making decisions based not only on what I wanted to see but also on what made sense financially.
As I continued researching, Puerto Viejo kept catching my attention. It appeared to be a better fit for the time and money I had left, while still giving me the chance to experience Costa Rica’s Caribbean coast before leaving the country.
By the time I closed my laptop that night, my itinerary looked different from the one I had imagined a few weeks earlier. That’s one of the realities of longer trips: no matter how much planning you do beforehand, you often have to adapt once you’re actually there.
Sampling a flight of local craft beers at The Beer House after my first sunset in Jacó.
A Day of Slowing Down
For the first time in what felt like weeks, I didn’t set an alarm.
There wasn’t a shuttle to catch, a tour guide waiting, or a hiking trail I needed to reach before the crowds arrived. My only plan for the day was to enjoy Jacó at whatever pace felt right.
After a slow morning, I wandered back down to the beach.
Unlike the quieter stretch near my accommodation, this part of Jacó was much livelier. The beach was filled with locals and tourists enjoying the sunshine. Some people were swimming, while others were learning to surf, relaxing with friends, or simply walking along the shoreline. The atmosphere was exactly what you might expect from one of Costa Rica’s most popular beach towns: laid-back, social, and centred around the ocean.
I spent some time walking along the beach before deciding to cool off somewhere a little different.
One place I’d come across while researching Jacó was Blu, which offered day access to its swimming pool. For an additional fee, you could rent one of the cabanas, but while travelling on a backpacker’s budget, I was more than happy with a regular lounge chair.
I found a chair in the sun, ordered myself a Caesar—Canada’s answer to a Bloody Mary—and settled in for an afternoon of doing absolutely nothing.
No itinerary.
No schedule.
No pressure to squeeze another attraction into the day.
Just a cold drink, a swimming pool, and a chance to relax without getting covered in sand.
When you’re travelling, it’s easy to convince yourself that every day has to be packed with activities because you don’t want to miss anything. But constantly carrying a backpack, navigating bus routes, moving between accommodations, and deciding where you’re going next can be exhausting, even when you’re having an incredible time.
That afternoon by the pool gave me a chance to stop thinking about where I had to be and enjoy where I already was.
As the day faded into evening, I returned to a convenience store for another couple of rum and cokes before heading back to the beach.
Just like the night before, I found a spot in the sand and watched the sky slowly change colours over the Pacific Ocean. It wasn’t a dramatic ending to the day, and honestly, it didn’t need to be.
That day didn’t include a tour guide, a national park, or a long hike, yet it remains one of the memories I associate most with Jacó. It was proof that a destination doesn’t have to be action-packed to earn a place in your travel story.
Enjoying a Bloody Mary by the pool at Blu—still wishing it was a Canadian Caesar!
Sometimes the Best Plans Are No Plans
Looking back, Jacó was unlike anywhere else I visited in Costa Rica.
It wasn’t the place where I hiked to a waterfall, spotted incredible wildlife, or checked another attraction off my list. Instead, it became a brief pause between two busier parts of my journey.
My memories of Jacó are simple: Pacific sunsets, drinks from the convenience store, a locally brewed beer, a walk along the beach, and an afternoon beside the pool. None of those experiences would normally be considered major Costa Rican attractions, but together, they captured exactly what those two days were about.
Jacó also became the place where the rest of my route began to take shape.
My evening of researching buses, budgets, and destinations forced me to look realistically at the time and money I had left. Tortuguero would have to wait for another trip, but removing it from my plans created space for Puerto Viejo. It wasn’t the itinerary I had originally imagined, but it was one that made more sense for the journey I was actually taking.
That is part of travelling for an extended period: plans evolve. A destination costs more than expected, transportation turns out to be complicated, or another place suddenly catches your attention. Changing direction isn’t necessarily a sign that the original plan failed. Sometimes, it simply means you’re responding to what the trip has become.
The next morning, I packed my backpack and returned to the bus stop, ready to continue south along Costa Rica’s Pacific coast.
This time, I was heading to one of the country’s most famous destinations—a place known for its beaches, wildlife, and spectacular national park.
Next up: Manuel Antonio.
A few of my favourite moments from two relaxing days in Jacó before continuing my Costa Rica adventure.
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