Where we work(South Pacific)
Architects in Puerto Jiménez
(Studio CAVA)
Houses, villas and boutique hotels in Puerto Jiménez, designed for its sun, wind and rain.
An architecture and interior design studio working across Costa Rica: the study of the lot before you buy, the design and the interiors, the permits with the Municipalidad de Puerto Jiménez and the works, with an early cost range.
Puerto Jiménez is the seat of the canton of the same name, in Puntarenas, 8 m above sea level. A year here brings 4,041 mm of rain, spread over every month. Permits for a lot go through the Municipalidad de Puerto Jiménez.
As architects in Puerto Jiménez, we start every project with a site visit: we walk the lot in the morning and again in the afternoon, note where the sun lands and where the breeze comes from, and only then start drawing.
(Our services in Puerto Jiménez)
One studio, from the lot to the keys.
A project usually takes them in this order, and each one can also be hired on its own.
All services →-
(01)
Lot study
Before you buy in Puerto Jiménez: what the rules, the water and the slope let you build on a lot, and roughly what it costs.
2 to 4 weeks · Fixed fee
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(02)
Master planning
For land that will hold more than one house: where the road, the lots, the houses and the shared buildings go, decided after reading the land.
6 to 12 weeks · Fixed fee
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(03)
Architecture
Houses, rental villas and small hotels, from the first sketch on the lot to the drawings the permit and the builder need.
About 5 months for 250 m² · CFIA: from 6% of the works
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(04)
Permits
We file the project with the CFIA and the Municipalidad de Puerto Jiménez, and answer every observation until the licence is issued.
About 3 months · Included when we design
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(05)
Interiors
Kitchens, bathrooms, built-in furniture, lighting and finishes, designed with the house or for a remodel.
With the architecture, or 2 to 4 months · Agreed fee
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(06)
Construction supervision
Weekly site visits, the site logbook, payments checked against work done, and a report with photos after every visit.
The length of the works · CFIA: 3% or 5% of the works
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(07)
Sustainable design
Houses and hotels designed to a sustainability standard, with RESET or LEED® certification if you want the label.
Alongside the design and the build · Separate, agreed up front
(Puerto Jiménez at a glance)
- Canton
- Puerto Jiménez, Puntarenas
- Permits
- Municipalidad de Puerto Jiménez
- Elevation
- 8 m
- Rain
- 4,041 mm a year
- Dry season
- None, it rains every month
- Liberia airport
- 8 h 5 min by road, 470 km
- San José airport
- 6 h 15 min by road, 358 km
- Sunlight
- 1,841 kWh/m² a year
- Solar power
- 1,491 kWh a year per kW of panels
(The year in Puerto Jiménez)
There is no dry season here: every month gets at least 80 mm of rain. The least rainy months are January and February, and the wettest is October, with 654 mm.
Afternoons are hottest in May, at 29 °C on average, and coolest in October, at 27 °C. Nights stay between 21 and 22 °C.
Best time to start*
The best time to start building here is from January to February, the driest stretch of the year. Those 2 months bring 174 mm of rain in total; the other 10 bring 3,867 mm, 22 times as much.
Earthworks, foundations and concrete pours need dry ground, and many roads to the lots only stay passable without rain. On a day with 10 mm of rain or more, that work usually stops.
A 4-month phase of earthworks, foundations and structure that starts in January meets about 6 such days here; the same phase started in March meets about 21. Starting in January saves about 15 days of stopped work: some 2 weeks of crew and machinery paid to wait, and the pumping and drainage that wet excavations need. So the permit should be ready by December. Still, it is a recommendation, not a rule: building goes on through the rains, more slowly, and no project should sit for months waiting for the dry season.
(The wind in Puerto Jiménez)
Up to 7 km/h7 to 1414 to 2222 to 29Over 29
The afternoon wind at Palmar Sur airport comes from the southwest most of the year.
Rooms that open to the wind on one side and away from it on the other cool themselves, and a roof that sheds the rain lets them stay open in the wet months too.
(Wind and sun around Puerto Jiménez)
(The sun in Puerto Jiménez)
Each dot is the sun at a whole hour, every three days: each figure-eight is one hour across the year, and the lines are the 21st of each month. Orange and red dots are the hours when the sun should stay off the glass.
The sun here is never far from overhead. At noon it stands 81° high in March and September and 58° in December, and from April 13 to September 1 it passes north of overhead, so walls and glass that face north take sun as well.
What heats a house is the low afternoon sun. It sets at 294°, west-northwest, in June and at 246°, west-southwest, in December. That side needs the deepest roof.
Sunrise falls between 5:13 and 5:54 all year, and sunset between 17:10 and 17:56.
The ground here gets 1,841 kWh of sunlight per m² a year, and solar panels make about 1,491 kWh a year for each kW installed.
(Building in Puerto Jiménez)
Which permits you need to build in Puerto Jiménez, and in what order
The building permit in Puerto Jiménez comes from the Municipalidad de Puerto Jiménez. These are the four steps every project takes; for the whole route of yours, with SETENA, Health and the Fire Department, use the permit route tool.
- (01)
Land use certificate
The uso de suelo, from the Municipalidad de Puerto Jiménez: what the zoning allows on the lot.
- (02)
Water availability letter
From the local ASADA or from AyA. Without it there is no building permit, so it is worth asking for before buying.
- (03)
Drawings at the CFIA
Filed through the CFIA's APC platform and signed by the architect in charge.
- (04)
Building permit
Issued by the Municipalidad de Puerto Jiménez.
Within 200 m of the ordinary high-tide line the maritime zone law (Ley 6043) applies: the first 50 m are public and cannot be built on, and the next 150 m are held under a concession from the municipality, not owned. Check where a lot sits before you buy.
Puerto Jiménez became Costa Rica's 84th canton in 2022, separate from Golfito; its municipality has issued its own permits since May 2024.
(Our work in Costa Rica)
(Questions about building in Puerto Jiménez)
Where is Studio CAVA based, and how do you work in Puerto Jiménez?
We work from San José and Guanacaste. We visit Puerto Jiménez for the analysis of the lot and, during construction, for the supervision visits; the rest happens by video and email, in English or Spanish.
Can you design my house in Puerto Jiménez if I live abroad?
Yes. The first call is free and by video, and each stage of the design ends with drawings you review and approve at a distance. We walk the lot in Puerto Jiménez ourselves, and during construction we send a report with photos after each visit.
How much does it cost to build a house in Puerto Jiménez?
A 250 m² house with a pool comes to about US$596,000 to US$921,000 in Puerto Jiménez, with a high finish, design, permits and VAT. Our cost estimator gives the range for your own size, finish and lot, with the schedule month by month.
What should I check before buying a lot in Puerto Jiménez?
The land use certificate from the Municipalidad de Puerto Jiménez, which sets the use, setbacks, coverage and height; water availability in writing from AyA, the local ASADA or a well; the setbacks from any river or spring; whether the lot is within 200 m of the high-tide line, where the maritime zone law applies; and the slope. Our lot study checks it in 2 to 4 weeks, before you sign.
When is the best time to start building in Puerto Jiménez?
Ideally from January to February, the driest stretch of the year. A 4-month phase of that work started in January loses about 6 days to heavy rain, against about 21 if it starts in March, about 15 days of crew and machinery. It is a recommendation, not a rule: building goes on through the rains, more slowly, and no project should sit for months waiting for the dry season. To start in that stretch, have the permit ready by December.
Who issues building permits in Puerto Jiménez?
The Municipalidad de Puerto Jiménez. The drawings are filed first with the CFIA, through its APC platform, and the permit comes after the land use certificate and the water availability letter.
Can I build near the beach in Puerto Jiménez?
Not in the first 50 m from the ordinary high-tide line, which are public. The next 150 m are held under a concession from the municipality rather than owned, with their own rules. Beyond 200 m, a titled lot follows the normal permit process.
How hot does it get in Puerto Jiménez?
Afternoons average 29 °C in May, the hottest month, and 27 °C in October. Nights stay between 21 and 22 °C. Shade on the west side and air moving through the rooms do more for comfort than anything else.
How far is Puerto Jiménez from the airports?
By road, without traffic, 8 h 5 min from Daniel Oduber airport in Liberia (470 km) and 6 h 15 min from Juan Santamaría airport in San José (358 km).
Rain: CHIRPS climatology (CHPclim v2, Climate Hazards Center, UC Santa Barbara). Temperature and wind: measured at Palmar Sur airport, 50 km away, typical year 2011 to 2025 (Climate.OneBuilding.org TMYx, from NOAA observations), temperatures adjusted for elevation. Heavy-rain days: NASA POWER (MERRA-2), 2001 to 2020. Sun: calculated for the town's coordinates. Elevation: SRTM. Roads and places: OpenStreetMap. Gathered October 2026.