Costa Rica vs Curaçao

Illuminated beachfront dining pavilion with white railings and thatched-roof bungalows reflected in the pool at dusk.

Striped lounge chairs line the pool deck at Sandals Royal Curaçao, a white colonial-style building with manicured grounds under clear blue sky.

Costa Rica and Curaçao, side by side: live travel advisories, our resort catalog's real guest data, and each destination's honest weather picture. Everything you need to break the tie.

Costa Rica guide · Curaçao guide · How we score

By the numbers

Costa Rica compared with Curaçao
Costa Rica	Measure	Curaçao
Level 2: Exercise Increased Caution	U.S. travel advisory	Level 1: Exercise Normal Precautions
7	Resorts in our catalog	5
★ 4.4 (better)	Average guest rating	★ 4.4
$119–$289/night pp	Nightly rates	$1089–$1142/night pp
1 of 7	Adults-only resorts	2 of 5
Low hurricane risk	Hurricane exposure	Outside the hurricane belt
May–November ('green season'), with September–October seriously wet	Rainy season	October–December, still modest by Caribbean standards
December–April, bone-dry in Guanacaste	Sweet spot	Year-round; May–November is the value window
Spanish (English common in tourist areas)	Language	Dutch & Papiamento (English & Spanish widely spoken)
Costa Rican colón – USD widely accepted	Currency	Caribbean guilder – USD widely accepted
120V, Type A/B plugs (same as the US)	Power	127V, Type A/B plugs (US-style; some 220V)
On the right	Driving	On the right
Liberia – Daniel Oduber (LIR)	Main airport	Curaçao International, Willemstad (CUR)
~3.5–5.5h from the US (nonstops to Liberia)	Flight time	~4h from Miami; ~5–6h from the US Northeast

Advisory levels sync from travel.state.gov; catalog figures reflect the resorts we've researched, not every hotel in the country.

On the map

Costa Rica

Curaçao

Weather, month by month

Month-by-month average high temperature and rainfall for Costa Rica and Curaçao
Measure	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec
Costa Rica · high °F	91	92	93	93	91	88	88	88	87	86	87	89
Curaçao · high °F	85	85	86	87	88	89	89	90	90	89	87	85
Costa Rica · rain (in)	0.1	0.1	0.2	0.7	7.7	9.0	5.9	7.9	13.0	12.2	4.3	0.5
Curaçao · rain (in)	1.9	1.1	0.6	0.6	0.7	0.8	1.4	1.3	1.7	3.0	3.9	3.7

Approximate climate normals for Guanacaste / Papagayo and West-coast beaches: planning guidance, not a forecast. Deeper gold = hotter; deeper teal = wetter.

Where you'd actually stay

Best of Costa Rica

Full Costa Rica guide

Chains here: RIU Hotels & Resorts · Westin · Margaritaville

Best of Curaçao

Full Curaçao guide

Chains here: Sandals · Curio Collection by Hilton · Sunscape Resorts & Spas / Hyatt Inclusive Collection