Geographic Information
| A pond in Costa RicaCosta Rica is located on the Central American isthmus, 10° North of the equator and 84° West of the Prime Meridian. It borders both the Caribbean Sea (to the east) and the North Pacific Ocean (to the west), with a total of 1,290km of coastline (212km on the Caribbean coast and 1016km on the Pacific).Costa Rica also borders Nicaragua to the north (309km of border) and Panama to the south-southeast (639km of border). In total, Costa Rica comprises 51,100 km,² of which 50,660 km² is land and 440 km² is water, making it slightly smaller than the U.S. state of West Virginia and about half the size of Ireland.
The largest lake in Costa Rica is Lake Arenal. |
Map
Location Central America bordering both the Caribbean Sea and the North Pacific Ocean between Nicaragua and Panama
Total borders
Central America bordering both the Caribbean Sea and the North Pacific Ocean between Nicaragua and Panama
Border countries
Nicaragua 309 km
Panama 330 km
Coastline
Central America bordering both the Caribbean Sea and the North Pacific Ocean between Nicaragua and Panama
Terrain
coastal plains separated by rugged mountains including over 100 volcanic cones
of which several are major volcanoes
Elevation extremes lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m highest point: Cerro Chirripo 3,810 m
Climate: tropical and subtropical; dry season
Tourist season: year-round
Natural hazards
occasional earthquakes hurricanes along Atlantic coast frequent flooding of lowlands at onset of rainy season and landslides active volcanoes