The Marino Ballena National Park was established on 06.02.1989 as the first marine national park of Costa Rica. Gradually, the boundaries of the national park have been expanded, now the Park Marino Ballena includes 5,300 hectares of marine- side and 115 hectares of the country.
The entire south in Costa Rica is relatively undeveloped. No industries, little infrastructure, villages and lots of nature and jungle. Located on the Osa Peninsula is the largest contiguous rainforest in Central America and most of the Corcovado National Park.
We recommend you to plan the visit in advance when visiting this region. The good hotels and posadas have only minor capacities and the access to the national parks is often limited.
There are regular bus services from Palmar Sur to Puerto Jimenez. You will not need a Jeep to get to Puerto Jimenez. The road that continues from Puerto Jimenez through the Osa Peninsula to Carate though, is only accessible by a good Jeep and a lot of courage.
The only well-known place here is Drake's Bay, named after the famous pirate "Sir Francis Drake", who buried here (supposedly) several of his treasure chests. In Drakes Bay there is no real local center, the houses and Posadas are spread along the beach and inland.