Puntarenas has been a popular place for Ticos to spend a day by the seaside since the Pacific railway trains started delivering city-weary josefinos (San José residents) directly to the beach in 1910.
What other port city boasts a beach with an ecological thumbs up and awarded the Ecological Blue Flag; guarantees spectacular sunsets; has some of the best seafood restaurants in the country; is home to a beautiful old cathedral and a marine museum with a tank full of sharks; and has inspired three musical odes to its charms? Throw in the Churchill, a uniquely Puntarenas ice-cream concoction, and you have a town worth a visit.
On Friday, there has been added the new artisan market of Puntarenas which opened to help serve the cruise passengers that arrive into port here as well as locals and tourists that visit the area. This modern market area will be comprised of not only artisans from Costa Rica but will also have folkloric activities to promote the culture of Costa Rica.
The market has been built next to the Plaza del Pacifico and just in front of the old Puntarenas Puerto de Muelle
This new market was only made possible with the assitance of the the Costa Rican Institute of Pacific Ports (INCOP) and the fees that were collected by the concession given at Port Caldera.
Juan Ramón Rivera, executive president of INCOP, said that “with this project we seek to support the artisans of Puntarenas in the sale of their products, in a place that was under utulized without any type of commercial activity, but that now will attract more visitors and jump start the sales of artisans.”
The total cost of the project was 270 million colones and provides 60 modern individual stalls for local artisans from around Puntarenas to sell their products to both tourists and locals alike.
