Puntarenas

Puntarenas is a city in the Puntarenas canton of Puntarenas Province, on the Pacific coast of Costa Rica. As the seat of the Municipality of Puntarenas canton, it is awarded the title of city, which is made from the Puntarenas, Chacarita and El Roble districts. And as the city of the first canton of the province, it is the capital city of the Puntarenas Province as well, according to the Administrative divisions of Costa Rica. Toponymy The Puntarenas name comes from the portmanteau of Punta and Arenas, which means Point and Sands, respectively. Therefore, in English the name would mean "Sand Point". The name is first referenced by the arrival in February 1720 of the pirate John Clipperton to the area, which recorded in his journals to have arrived to a "Punta de Arena", referring to the needle-like area on which the city stands today. The name is also given to the oddly shaped province of Puntarenas, which as the most extensive province in the country, has its largest section in the South, far from Puntarenas city. Overview There are some 100,000 inhabitants in the town and surrounding neighborhoods. Its Pacific Ocean beaches attract many tourists, especially surfers. It is also a possible stopover point for the tourist destination Monteverde, to the northwest.