Suscribe to our weekly newsletter
SYNDICATIONLos Santos rural properties for Sale
AE affiliate member available for Los Santos:
Tony Warren, contact Tony or see Tony's real estate listings
View Los Santos in a larger map
Los Santos: a lot of different variety in just a small area
Los Santos is just a bit south and west of San Jose and geographically belongs to the privince of San Jose. The area is known as Los Santos because of its many towns that are named after saints such as Santa Maria, San Marcos, San Pablo, San Lorenzo and San Gerardo, just to name a few. Most of the properties we have for sale in Los Santos are farm houses.
It offers a lot of different variety in just a small area. Being just a little over an hour away from San Jose and less than 45 minutes to Cartago, you can easily make it to the big city if you miss the malls, traffic jams and crowds, but you won't find these here. The area is in the Talamanca Mountains that reach up to almost 10,000 feet overlooking fertile valleys below. In the higher mountains temperatures can get down to the high 40's at night and be in the high 60's to low 70's in the day, all year around. Warmer weather is found in the valleys where the range is between the 60's at night and the 80's during the day. Microclimates abound, on one 10-mile walk through the Quetzals National Park we walked through 5 distinct types of forests and climates.
Some of the areas are affected by the Caribbean weather patterns and tend to be wet and foggy, other areas are affected by the pacific weather are similar to San Jose. The area is very agricultural and most live on farms. San Gerardo and Copey are known for the apple, peach, plum and avocado orchards. Tarrazu has won many international rewards for it's coffee, and if you are ever in Santa Maria, I suggest you stop by the Coopesantos Coffee Shop right past the bridge entering into town for one of the best cups in the country.
La Cima is known for it's strawberries, but other crops such as potatoes, lettuce, carrots, cabbage, broccolis, cauliflower and many more grow abundantly. Golden berries, black berries and blue berries all grow in the area. Dairies abound in the area, and the area is known for it's fresh cheeses. Some areas of Los Santos can be quite remote. Providencia is one of these remote towns but full of beauty and tradition. 
Whether you enter Providencia at Ojo de Agua on the Inter-American Highway or Copey, you are in for one of the most beautiful drives in all of Costa Rica. Providencia is known for it world class bouldering. Some of the kids from this town have won international bouldering competitions. San Gerardo the next valley over from Providencia is know internationally for it's bird watching, there are a number of hotels, bed and breakfasts and all types of restaurants. Trout fishing is also common there.
Santa Maria, San Marcos and San Pablo are larger towns in the area. Here you can find great doctors, dentists, pharmacies, hardware stores, mechanic shops, groceries and just about anything else you could need or want, yet they have that small town feel. People still greet each other on the street and neighbors lend a helping hand when needed. I love the annual fairs in the towns, and especially the Topes where horses are paraded through the town. Last year in the Tope in Santa Maria there were several hundred horses, dancing, galloping and just showing off. Pirrís Hydroelectric project is located just below San Marcos and will soon be completed. The large lake will open up new activities to the area. And just another hour drive (on a not so good road) takes you to the pacific coast and to nearby Manuel Antonio. The area is known for its traditional values, crime rates are some of the lowest in Costa Rica. People are friendly, well educated and open. Some compare the area to Atenas or Grecia, though usually home and land prices are lower.
If you are thinking or moving to Costa Rica for itss peaceful, traditional and agricultural aspects then you surely want to check out the area of Los Santos.
Tony Warren came to Costa Rica in 1984 to do some volunteer work for a few weeks, two years later he was still here, that's when he met and married his wife and made Costa Rica his permanent home and are very happy people.
Now semi-retired, when not working with real-estate he works on his small farm, takes care of his bees, and stays busy with different community projects.
On his own a home on a small farm and in the community he works towards sustainability. When buying real estate in Costa Rica, you should definitely talk to Tony who is located on In the Valle de Los Santos.
Los Santos is on the Pacific side of the Talamanca Mountain Range, and Dota rises up to over 9000 feet, giving it a wide range of micro-climates. In the upper ranges an occasional frost during the cooler months is not uncommon, yet in the lower ranges tropical fruits such as pineapple flourish.
The Los Santos Valley enjoys a near perfect comfort range hovering within a few degrees above and below 70F (20C) with no need for air conditioning. Lovely cool nights and crisp, clean air is taken for granted.
The majority of the people here live from agriculture. Small farms dot the mountainsides growing all sorts of crops from lettuce, potatoes, broccoli, mustard, tomatoes, cucumbers, peppers and much more.