Costa Rica wants travellers to experience the Nicoya Peninsula's famous longevity for themselves — and it's putting a formal plan, and eventually an official Blue Zone seal, behind that idea.
The strategy, part of a wider programme called Costa Rica Centenaria announced by President Laura Fernández Delgado in July during a Guanacaste tour, pairs tourism development with expanded care for the very people who gave the region its reputation: residents living into their 90s and beyond 100.
Nicoya is one of only a handful of certified Blue Zones worldwide, regions where an unusually high share of people reach extreme old age. Researchers have wondered for years whether that advantage will hold among younger Nicoyans, and the government says the plan is designed to help preserve it.
On the visitor side, the Costa Rican Tourism Institute has set out a clear timeline. This year and next, the focus is groundwork: forming an interinstitutional team and running a carrying-capacity study to figure out how many tourists the peninsula can absorb without degrading it. A national promotion campaign follows in 2027, alongside an inventory of existing wellness offerings, then an international campaign and three new tourism products — built around wellness, nature, culture and local traditions — in 2028. No budget figures have been published yet.
What's notable is that the tourism push comes with real community investment. Two rural Guanacaste projects are included: an agritourism and agroecology initiative in Pozo de Agua de Nicoya built around 22 women livestock producers and 16 women running traditional cooking businesses, and a fishing and community development project in Pochote de Quebrada Honda supporting 36 organised fishers and shellfish harvesters.
There's a care dimension too. CONAPAM will build a National Registry of Centenarians by 2030, the national care network aims to reach every centenarian in the country, and the social security fund plans individual geriatric assessments and care plans for each person over 100. Municipalities in the high-longevity zone are being pulled into an age-friendly communities programme, with full participation targeted for 2028.
Why should this matter to travellers? Because Nicoya's appeal has always been its authenticity — the plant-based diets, the daily physical work, the strong community ties that researchers credit for the longevity. A government-backed seal and curated wellness products could make those experiences much easier to book, while the carrying-capacity study suggests officials want growth without turning quiet peninsula towns into resort strips. If you like the idea of a beach-and-culture trip with genuine substance behind it, keep Nicoya on your radar for 2027-28. — The Tico Times
