We are thinking to spend a month of January in a warmer climate. We want to stay at the same time zone as Calgary +/- 1 hour, so we narrowed our choices down to Mexico and Costa Rica. We are 2 adults, no kids. We will rent airbnb. Our main requirement is reliable internet connection that will support video calls during workdays. We plan to travel over weekends and explore; rent a car or by public transit. Short distance to any large body of water is a big plus, but not mandatory. We were thinking about Cancun, Puerto Vallarta or San Jose. Which city is better and why? Any other cities/areas we should consider? Thanks!

Maybe consider Tamarindo in Costa Rica or Manuel Antonio or Dominical. All close to water and not as busy as San Jose. San Jose is an interesting place but also not the safest

I’m seconding Sarah - CR is a beautiful place but please do not stay in SJ. Nice for a day trip and to see the old buildings and such, but not a place to stay.

Dominical is where I would want to be too. Felt very safe, great food, nice beaches, good point to visit other areas of CR too

Sarah looooove Tamarindo!

Krystle I third all the above. My wife and me just returned from Costa Rica two weeks ago. We stayed in Tamarindo, Montezuma, Manuel Antonia National and Dominical. We used public transit and private shuttles between places. Just a heads up, Dominical was our last place we went but they don’t have Covid Testing so we travelled to town of Uvita for test. Tourist info at Dominical arranged appointment. Her name is Nancy and very good

Costa Rica is amazing, cheaper to live on the east side (Puerto Viejo area) calm warm waters and beautiful beaches within a 5 minute walk. The west side being ocean is a little cooler and rougher but beautiful as well and is busier more touristy.
I can't speak much of Mexico since I've only been once to LA Paz in the Baja region.

I agree with Sarah that San Jose, Costa Rica is not a place I would choose to stay. I have heard it is not very safe. There are some expats who have places in villages north of there, but I’m not familiar with those areas.
In south Costa Rica, Jaco or a place north or south of it, like Herradura or Playa Hermosa are right on the water and 2 hours from San Jose. Jaco and Herradura have grocery stores, etc.
Also check out Playas del Coco or Tamarindo area or Samara in the Northern part of Costa Rica. You can fly direct to Liberia from Calgary, so those locations are
1/2 hour to 2 hours from Liberia airport.
Your biggest challenge will be to find a place that is available for the whole month of January on short notice.

Lise Thank you for the tip on direct flights to Liberia airport from Calgary. 6 hours layover for the flights to San Jose was a little bit discouraging.

Nadiya, I hear you. We are flying into Liberia at the end of December and staying in that area for a week before travelling south to Jaco. We fly home from San Jose as it’s close to Jaco, but have to go via Toronto to get home. Never happy to have a layover, but coming home is better than going there.

I don't say this often because I like to keep it hidden but Zihuatanejo and Ixtapa are amazing! Easy to travel to different places, friendly and safe....lots of Canadians down there. My favorite place in the world!

Krista where do you stay?

Donna I've stayed at Club med, Azul Grande, Pacifica In Ixtapa, Aura del Mar in Zihuatanejo and rented at Bay View Grand in Ixtapa....

We stay at Pacifica In Ixtapa now all the time. I did love Aura Del Mar but it is very authentic and lots of stairs but a fantastic location and great pool and beach access. It's in walking distance to all the great restaurants....

Krista Absolutely heading there in 3 weeks Then back again in March

Ken I'm so jealous!! We usually go in November and March as well but our kids hockey schedule has us missing November and I'm very sad!

I’ve only been to Cancun, was there this past August. We booked an airbnb, and had generally a lovely experience, but what I struggled with was the tourist industry. Everyone was SO pushy in Cancun. I’ve been to Tepoztlán and Mexico City and both had a very different vibe than Cancun. Cancun was also really dirty. Garbage everywhere. I honestly wouldn’t go back again. Beaches were nice, though

Brenna And that's exactly my reservations about Cancun. I don't have anything about tourists and pushy sales people; I'm a tourist myself after all. Hustle and bustel of Cancun is good for week, but I'm not sure if I'll be able to tolerate it for the whole month.

Definitely! I’ve experienced the hustle before in other places, but was another level here. We found ourselves cornered by salespeople several times a day. We ended up completely avoiding the main tourist area and spent more time on Isla Mujeres. It was fine for a week, I’d definitely go a little wild after a month. My aunt had a timeshare in a Puerto Morelos outside of Cancun and says it’s incredible, and all still within driving distance of all the fun activities in the area.

I like Mayan Riviera more than Cancun.

Costa Rica . I worked from there last winter . I stayed in Playas del Coco, Guanacaste. Lots of airbnb’s in Las Palmas area . 90% foreigners renting for the winter .

Huge difference in climate. The two beach choices have beach weather while San Jose at altitude has temperatures in the low to mid 20s. If you do pick San Jose consider some of the nicer neighourhoods like Santa Ana which also are only an hour drive from the beaches. More of a suburban cleaner lifestyle than the more urban areas with excellent services. But it is very much a choice between beach or city. There are some other choices splitting the difference like Atenas in CR but like all compromises it is a compromise of the two lifestyles.

Kayla Eresman
We were going to spend 5 weeks in playa del Carmen but ended up booking in Mérida Yucatán instead. Our place is 20 minutes from the beach and 20 minutes from central Mérida. There's lots of culture and it's way less touristy.

We LOVED Guatemala. Started on the west coast and drove around a lot. So cheap and the people are amazing. Volcanos to hike and the food was fabulous.

Manzanillo, Colima MX beautiful ocean easy to get around to explore, beautiful towns and cities for day trips, on the ocean, safe, amazing climate, lots of amazing places to rent often ocean front. Check out Candy King Real Estate Manzanillo for rentals. They have awesome restaurants, beautiful beaches