Updated August 2026 with the latest information for planning Christmas and New Year’s at Peninsula Papagayo.
There is something wonderfully unexpected about celebrating Christmas in Costa Rica. Instead of snow, there are warm Pacific waters, sunny days and golden sunsets. Christmas morning might begin with coffee overlooking the ocean, followed by a swim, a boat trip or a few hours at the beach. New Year’s Eve might end barefoot under the stars.
At Peninsula Papagayo, the weeks surrounding Christmas and New Year’s are known as Festive Season, and they are among the most special — and most sought-after — weeks of the year. For families staying in a private villa, the holidays combine the space and privacy of a home with the restaurants, beach clubs, activities and resort experiences that make Peninsula Papagayo such an extraordinary destination.
For large and multigenerational families in particular, there is another advantage: everyone can spend the holidays together without having to spend every minute together. If you’re considering spending Christmas or New Year’s in Costa Rica, here’s what makes Festive Season at Peninsula Papagayo so special.
Why Spend Christmas and New Year’s at Peninsula Papagayo?
December is one of the most beautiful times of year in Guanacaste. The rainy season has ended, the landscape is still green and the dry season is beginning. Days are generally warm and sunny, evenings are comfortable, and sunset arrives early enough to become part of the evening’s plans.
During Festive Season, Peninsula Papagayo also takes on an energy of its own. Families return year after year, restaurants create special menus and celebrations, beach clubs become gathering places, and the resorts traditionally offer expanded dining, entertainment, children’s activities, wellness experiences and holiday events. At the same time, you are still surrounded by everything that makes Papagayo special throughout the year: beautiful beaches, wildlife, boating, golf, tennis, pickleball, hiking and some of Costa Rica’s most spectacular scenery.
Christmas here can be as active or as relaxed as you want it to be. Some families begin Christmas morning at the beach, while others have breakfast together at their villa, spend the afternoon beside the pool and dress for a special dinner that evening. The resorts and clubs throughout Peninsula Papagayo traditionally embrace the season with holiday dining, family activities, entertainment and celebrations, although the specific offerings change from year to year.
You don’t need an itinerary filled with organized events to make Christmas here special. Some of the moments families remember most are remarkably simple: Christmas morning coffee on the terrace, cousins in the pool, an afternoon at the beach, cocktails at sunset or having everyone gathered around the dinner table. For families accustomed to spending the weeks leading up to Christmas cooking, shopping, entertaining and preparing the house for guests, there is something particularly appealing about arriving somewhere where most of those responsibilities can simply disappear.
Christmas Dinner: Go Out or Stay Home?
Peninsula Papagayo offers exceptional dining throughout the year, and the holidays bring additional opportunities for special meals and celebrations. Guests can explore restaurants at Four Seasons Resort Costa Rica, Andaz Peninsula Papagayo and Nekajui, a Ritz-Carlton Reserve, along with other dining options throughout the Peninsula.
Part of the appeal is that each resort offers a distinctly different experience. Four Seasons has long been known for embracing Festive Season with holiday dining, entertainment and family celebrations in addition to its restaurants, beaches and golf. Andaz brings a more relaxed, contemporary atmosphere, while Nekajui adds another exceptional collection of restaurants and bars, including refined dining, beachfront options and spectacular sunset settings.
Holiday programs, restaurant availability and access vary, particularly during the busiest weeks of the year. Rather than planning a vacation around a particular annual event schedule, we encourage our guests to think about what their family actually enjoys and then help them navigate the options available during their stay.
→ Explore our Peninsula Papagayo Restaurant Guide
Of course, one of the biggest advantages of renting a private home for Christmas is that you don’t have to go anywhere at all. A private chef can prepare a special Christmas Eve or Christmas Day meal at your villa, allowing everyone to celebrate together without coordinating transportation, reservations or getting younger children through a long restaurant dinner. Depending on the chef and menu selected, dinner might incorporate traditional holiday favorites, Costa Rican flavors, fresh local seafood or an entirely customized menu.
For a multigenerational family, this can be one of the best evenings of the trip. Younger children can eat earlier if needed, dinner lasts as long as you want it to, and nobody has to leave when someone gets tired. Papagayo Luxury can assist our villa guests with private chef arrangements, grocery pre-stocking and other details before arrival, allowing Christmas to actually feel like a vacation for everyone.
Beach Clubs, Boat Days and What to Do During Christmas Week
One of the pleasures of staying in a private villa at Peninsula Papagayo is that the experience doesn’t have to be limited to your home. Depending on the residence, membership privileges and current access policies, villa guests may have opportunities to enjoy Peninsula Papagayo’s private beach clubs and resort experiences.
Prieta Beach Club is especially popular with families, with a beautiful beach, pools and dining that make it easy to spend an entire day there. Other beach and resort experiences may be available at Four Seasons, Andaz and Nekajui, subject to applicable access policies and availability. Festive Season is the busiest period of the year, so access can be more limited than at other times, and we help our confirmed guests understand the options associated with their particular villa and travel dates.
→ Read our Beach Clubs & Resort Access Guide
One reason Peninsula Papagayo works so well for an extended family holiday is that everyone doesn’t have to do the same thing. One morning might mean golf for part of the family while everyone else heads to the beach. Another day could be devoted to exploring the Gulf of Papagayo by boat, swimming and snorkeling in secluded coves. There are also opportunities for tennis, pickleball and padel, fishing, hiking, spa treatments, surfing excursions and time at Papagayo Park.
A week might include a private boat day, a round on the Arnold Palmer-designed Ocean Course, a beach club afternoon, a private chef dinner and sunset cocktails at one of the Peninsula’s restaurants. But there should also be days when you schedule absolutely nothing. Some of the best holiday memories happen when everyone is simply together at the villa — swimming, reading, playing games, watching the sunset and deciding that nobody really needs to leave for dinner.
Celebrating Christmas with a Large or Multigenerational Family
One of the things we’ve learned from helping large families spend the holidays at Peninsula Papagayo is that the best trips aren’t necessarily the ones where everyone does everything together. A family might include grandparents, adult children, college-age cousins, teenagers and very young children. They have different interests, different schedules and sometimes very different ideas about what constitutes a perfect vacation day.
A villa gives everyone room to find their own rhythm. Some might head to golf in the morning while others go to the beach. Grandparents might spend the afternoon relaxing by the pool while teenagers head out for an activity. Younger children can have dinner earlier while the adults enjoy a longer evening. Then there are the times when everyone wants to be together: Christmas morning, a boat day, an afternoon by the pool or a special dinner.
This is also one of the times when having more house than you think you need can be a very good thing. Many families begin looking for a four-bedroom villa because they have six or eight people traveling. There are relatively few four-bedroom private homes within Peninsula Papagayo, however, and during the holidays the advantages of a larger home become especially apparent.
With a five-, six- or seven-bedroom villa, grandparents can have a comfortable private suite, adult children and couples don’t have to compromise on bedrooms, and teenagers and younger children can have their own spaces. An extra bedroom might accommodate a nanny or another family member who decides to join the trip, or simply give everyone more privacy. Larger villas also tend to offer the living, dining and outdoor spaces that make a family holiday particularly enjoyable, with pools, terraces, media rooms and outdoor living areas giving different generations room to spread out.
For particularly large extended families, two nearby villas can sometimes be an even better solution. We’ve seen families use two homes very naturally throughout the week. Private chefs might prepare an earlier dinner for the youngest children at one villa while adults dine separately later. On another evening, cousins might eat together at one home while teenagers and grandparents have dinner at the other. The arrangements can change from night to night depending on what works best for the family.
Each villa does remain its own private residence, and maximum occupancy and visitor policies apply to each home. Renting two villas does not necessarily mean that the combined group can gather at one house. Instead, the advantage is the flexibility to divide naturally into smaller groups while still vacationing close to one another. We can help larger families choose homes and plan meals and activities with the particular occupancy and guest requirements of each residence in mind.
The result can be surprisingly seamless. Cousins get time together, grandparents can enjoy a quieter evening, younger children stay on their own schedule, and different generations have room to find their own rhythm. The goal isn’t to spend every minute together. It’s to have the freedom to come together when it matters.
New Year’s Eve: One Family, Different Celebrations
New Year’s Eve is one of the biggest nights of the year at Peninsula Papagayo. Resorts and restaurants traditionally celebrate with special dinners, entertainment and events, giving guests a variety of ways to welcome the New Year. But one of the things we’ve learned from families spending New Year’s here is that not everyone necessarily wants the same New Year’s Eve.
We’ve had young adults excited to dress up and head to the New Year’s celebration at Four Seasons while their parents are perfectly happy staying behind for a quieter dinner and midnight toast at the villa. Other families begin the evening together and then go their separate ways later. For a multigenerational group, that flexibility can be far more enjoyable than trying to find one celebration that appeals equally to everyone.
That’s one of the understated advantages of having a villa as your home base. The entire family can spend the holiday together without requiring three generations to celebrate it in exactly the same way. Younger children can go to bed, grandparents can enjoy a relaxed evening at home, and older teens and young adults can make a night of it. Everyone gets their own New Year’s Eve — and comes back together the next morning.
How Early Should You Book Christmas or New Year’s at Peninsula Papagayo?
Christmas and New Year’s are among the most requested weeks of the year, and the number of private homes within Peninsula Papagayo is limited. The most desirable villas can book well in advance, particularly for larger families that need a specific bedroom configuration, location or set of amenities.
Accommodations are only the beginning. Private chefs, boat charters, restaurant reservations and other popular experiences can also become limited during Festive Season, so once our guests have confirmed their villa, we recommend beginning the concierge planning process well before arrival. That doesn’t mean you need to schedule every day. In fact, some of our favorite Festive vacations combine a few exceptional planned experiences with plenty of time to simply enjoy the villa, beach and Peninsula.
For multigenerational families, that’s part of what makes Peninsula Papagayo work so well. Grandparents can enjoy the pool, beach clubs, restaurants and beautiful surroundings without needing to participate in every adventure. Teenagers and young adults have golf, watersports, boating and other activities, while younger children have beaches, pools, nature and family-friendly experiences. At the end of the day, everyone has a beautiful place to come back to.
Find a Villa for Christmas & New Year’s at Peninsula Papagayo
If you’re considering spending Christmas or New Year’s at Peninsula Papagayo, we can help you find the right home for your family. Tell us who is traveling, how many bedrooms you need and what matters most to your group, and we can help you choose the villa that best fits the way your family actually vacations.
Once your stay is confirmed, we can also assist with the details that turn a villa rental into a vacation — from airport transfers and golf carts to private chefs, grocery pre-stocking, boat days, restaurant reservations and activities.
I’ve been helping families plan vacations at Peninsula Papagayo for years, and Festive Season remains one of the most memorable times to experience it. There is something special about having grandparents, parents, children and cousins all in the same place for the holidays, even if they aren’t all doing the same thing every minute.
Come for Christmas. Bring the family. Give everyone enough space to enjoy the holiday their own way — and let someone else worry about the details.
Ready to Spend Christmas or New Year’s at Peninsula Papagayo?
Festive programs, resort access, restaurant availability, villa occupancy requirements and policies vary and are subject to change. Papagayo Luxury provides confirmed guests with the most current information applicable to their particular villa and stay.
