Liberia is located in the northwest of Costa Rica, in the province of Guanacaste, and has all the ingredients of a very popular tourist spot: a modern international airport, beautiful churches, an authentic colonial atmosphere, a rich history and a central park.
While Liberia is primarily used as a way station to explore Guanacaste’s more touristic neighboring sites including its white sand beaches, the capital is not a bad place to enjoy a short stay.
The province of Guanacaste offers visitors some of the most incredible beaches in the country, jungles, volcanoes, and much more.
More than 55,000 Costa Ricans call the town of Liberia home, and over time, the airport located very close, is it much more popular than before, carrying out prompt renovations, roads and even a great mall.
For both residents and visitors, there is a great variety of gastronomic offer as well as services to make life much more interesting.
History of Liberia.
Liberia was founded as a hamlet without any legal or formal act of foundation, on September 4, 1769. It was located in a strategic place where the well-known roads of the municipalities of Rivas, Bagaces and Nicoya intersect. It was used mainly as a resting place for travelers. The gigantic trees in the area, popularly called “guanacastes” (Enterolobium cyclocarpum), provided shade for travelers and overtime and the area’s livestock, that over time came to be known as Guanacaste to said town.
It shares a common history between Nicaragua and Costa Rica. In 1812 the Cortes of Cádiz created the provinces of Nicaragua and Costa Rica. Both countries gained their independence from Spain on September 15, 1821 with the Spanish defeat in the Mexican War of Independence.
After the brief duration of the First Mexican Empire (1821-1823), Costa Rica (which was considered a minor provincial post at the time) became part of the newly created Federal Republic of Central America in 1823.
The Nicoya Party served as an administrative unit for the Federal Republic of Central America. It made up most of the territory that today is the province of Guanacaste, Costa Rica. Most of the area, such as the settlements of Nicoya and Santa Cruz, celebrated economic ties to Costa Rican territory, as well as the growing port of Puntarenas. Meanwhile, the Guanacaste settlement (modern-day Liberia), held closer economic ties to Nicaraguan territories, such as the town of Rivas.
Under the leadership of the towns of Nicoya and Santa Cruz, the Party of Nicoya voted annexing to Costa Rica on July 25, 1824.2 The people of Guanacaste chose to remain part of Nicaragua in 1824. In 1826, after years of conflict , the Congress of the Federal Republic of Central America added Guanacaste (now Liberia) to Costa Rica.
The town of Guanacaste grew in importance and little by little surpassed the town of Nicoya as the most important settlement in the area. On July 23, 1831, the Guanacaste settlement was given the title of Villa de Guanacaste. Only a few years later on September 3, 1836 it was given the name of Ciudad de Guanacaste.
In 1838, after the Federal Republic of Central America began to dissolve, Costa Rica formally withdrew and a sovereign state was proclaimed. On December 7, 1848. Costa Rica divided its national territory into provinces, cantons, and districts. The territory that included Nicoya, Bagaces, Santa Cruz, Guanacaste (Liberia), and Cañas became part of the newly formed province of Guanacaste.
