Nacascolo

About Nacascolo:

Nacascolo is the fourth district of Liberia canton, carved out of the central district on 26 November 1971 and covering 327 square kilometres. It stretches from the lowlands of the Tempisque river west to the Gulf of Papagayo and takes in Guardia, Bejuco, Nacascolo, Oratorio, Triunfo and Puerto Culebra. Route 21, the road that joins Liberia to its airport and to the Guanacaste beaches, crosses the Tempisque at Guardia. A paved road leaves Route 21 for Bahía Culebra and the peninsula, about half an hour’s drive from the airport. Buses run out to Puerto Culebra, the village beside the marina.

Guardia began as a handful of families from Sardinal, Paso Tempisque and Los Jocotes de Filadelfia who farmed and worked the big cattle haciendas, Hacienda El Tempisque among them. The place was called Buenos Aires until it took the surname of Tomás Guardia, the Bagaces-born president of the 1870s and early 1880s. Descendants of the first families, the Viales, Castañedas, Piñas and Gutiérrez, still live here, and Barrio Los Piña keeps one of those names on the map. Today it is a working town of barrios such as Las Brisas and Barrio Chino, with Liberia’s shops, banks and hospital a short drive east. Some barrios have gone through spells without piped water, and that is worth knowing before you buy.

The coast runs on different rules. In the 1970s a Central American tourism plan picked Bahía Culebra as Costa Rica’s first-order resort zone, and laws passed in 1979 and 1982 put around 1,658 hectares in the name of the State under the Costa Rican Tourism Institute (ICT), outside the municipality’s control. Peninsula Papagayo covers 866 hectares of dry tropical forest between Punta Cabuyal and Punta Manzanillo, home to Four Seasons, Andaz and Nekajui, which opened in 2025 as the first Ritz-Carlton Reserve in Central and South America. An Arnold Palmer course opened in 2004, and Marina Papagayo has 180 berths for yachts up to 250 feet. Prieta, Nacascolo, Virador, Blanca and Huevos are calm, sheltered beaches, and Huevos is easiest to reach by boat.

The district counted about 2,250 residents at the 2011 census and close to 3,900 by 2022, most of them inland. Guardia is home to Guanacastecan families, and its spot on Route 21, between Liberia, the airport and the beach hotels, suits anyone who works along that road. On the peninsula, buyers are mostly international and part-time, after a home that is run, secured and serviced while they are away. A master association handles security, water, waste collection and beach access, and club membership is open only to property owners. In July 2026 Mohari Hospitality became sole owner of the master developer.

Houses in Nacascolo:

Houses in Guardia are family homes on their own lots in the town’s barrios, and a three-bedroom, two-bathroom house five minutes from the airport is a fair picture of what comes up for sale. Buyers are local families and people who want to live close to work in Liberia or on the coast. On the peninsula, a house means a custom oceanfront estate inside a gated enclave such as Bahías, built to the master plan. Many of those estates change hands privately, and every one of them stands on concession land. The two ends of the market share a district and little else, so look for houses for sale in Nacascolo village by village.

Branded Residences in Nacascolo:

Much of the peninsula’s housing is tied to a hotel brand. Four Seasons, Andaz and Nekajui each sell residences beside their resorts, with hotel service, restaurants, the beach clubs and the golf course on hand. The Andaz residences are in a second phase of sales, managed by Hyatt with an optional rental programme. Owners get the resort without having to run a house themselves. Like everything else on the peninsula, these luxury residences in Papagayo are held under concession, so the contract matters as much as the view.

Land and Lots in Nacascolo:

Land for sale sits on the inland side. Lot projects along Route 21 in Guardia offer parcels of 500 square metres off a private access easement, and larger roadside properties are marketed for commercial use. Bigger tracts around Guardia are offered for mixed-use development rather than a single house. Frontage on Route 21 will count for more as the bridges at Guardia are rebuilt ahead of a four-lane road. On the peninsula you never buy a bare lot outright; you buy into a concession and a master plan.

Rentals in Nacascolo:

Long-term rentals are concentrated in Guardia, where houses and small apartments come up in Barrio Las Brisas and the streets around it. Expect two-bedroom apartments with air conditioning, a kitchen with a breakfast bar and a laundry area. For tenants the draw is simple: Liberia, the airport and the coast are all one short drive away. On the peninsula, renting means holiday villas and residences let by the week, often through the resort that manages them. If you are buying there with rental income in mind, ask how the programme splits revenue and which weeks you keep for yourself.

New Developments in Nacascolo:

The newest homes on the peninsula are The Enclaves at Nacascolo Bay, five-bedroom estate houses grouped into small enclaves, each one an independent horizontal condominium designed by architect Ronald Zürcher. They sit alongside the second phase of the Andaz residences and the residences at Nekajui. Inland, new lot subdivisions on Route 21 are the main source of new supply around Guardia. The road itself is changing: a 121-metre, two-lane bridge over the Tempisque is due in 2027, and a second will replace the old crossing in 2028. Once both are open, the Guardia crossing will be ready for the planned widening of Route 21 to four lanes.

FAQ:

• Can I own a home on the Papagayo Peninsula outright?

  No. The land is registered to the State and administered by the ICT, so homes are sold as concessions rather than titled property. A concession runs for up to 50 years and can be extended as long as the holder keeps the property in good order and meets its obligations, and it can be sold on or mortgaged. Concessions are recorded in the ICT’s own register, so have your lawyer pull that entry, the years left on the term and the master association’s rules before you sign.

• What should I check before buying a lot in Guardia?

  Start with water. Some barrios in Guardia have had supply cuts, so ask for a written water availability letter for that exact parcel. Many of the new lots front a private easement rather than a public street, so confirm the easement is registered and that the Municipality of Liberia approved the subdivision. Then check the parcel and its survey plan at the Registro Nacional, and ask whether the future widening of Route 21 touches the frontage.

• How far is Nacascolo from the airport and Liberia?

  Guardia is about five minutes from the international airport, with the centre of Liberia further east along Route 21. The peninsula is around half an hour from the airport by a paved road off Route 21. Expect works at the Tempisque bridge in Guardia until 2028, when the second of the two new crossings is due to open.

• Can I use the peninsula’s beaches if I buy inland?

  Yes. The beaches are public: you leave the car at the beach car park on the peninsula and a free minibus takes you down. Playa Nacascolo is the easy one at about 100 steps, while Virador takes more than 700 and Prieta about 600. The beach clubs, the golf course and the owners’ club stay private.

• Can I rent out a branded residence when I am not there?

  Often, yes, but on the brand’s terms. The Andaz residences come with an optional rental programme run by Hyatt, and the other residences have arrangements of their own. Read that agreement next to the concession contract, because the concession also binds you to the master plan.