Went out to the pacific coast for a surf trip. Drove a 4runner from Liberia to Mal Pais. Somebody earlier asked about Spanish. If you are going to drive through areas like I did that may or may not be mapped with roads that may or may not be there one day, you're going to want to at least be able to communicate somewhat.
Mal Pais/Santa Teresa/Montezuma is pretty amazing, but I wouldn't recommend it for a honeymoon, unless you are both really into surfing.
Stayed here and it was pretty awesome. Open air.http://www.mymalpais.com/sub_hillTop.html

9/4/2009 8:50:29 AM

This thread is relevant to my interests. Starting to plan a trip there for November or December...

10/9/2009 7:35:20 AM

so I still don't have any concrete plans for dec 27 - jan 4 even tho I've had the plane tickets for months and months. Been frustrated trying to get stuff organized down there. I'd prefer not to drive, but I know the true public transportation is a little sketchy. The few tourist type companies I've called down there have been very hard to communicate with as well (ie didnt answer hardly any of my questions).

We have a friend who lives there who will be out of the country during that time period so we can stay at their house for some of it. But they just told us today they don't want taxis coming to their home address because they don't even trust the taxi services there and they live there. So now I have no idea what we are doing, put a huge kink in any plans I had of using their house as a home base and getting taxis to hotels or bus stops that had pickups for day trips to canopy tours, volcanoes etc.

What have been people's transportation experiences down there? booking hotels isnt hard but getting in between the cities w/o driving myself seems to be my biggest roadblock atm. Might just end up renting a car tho.

[Edited on November 14, 2009 at 3:40 PM. Reason : ]

11/14/2009 3:13:54 PM

you might as well. it cost me 18 dollars a day... not exactly a backbreaking expense.

11/14/2009 4:53:13 PM

$18 a day for the car? dang, where did you rent? the 3 places I had seriously looked at were ~$40-45 a day.

11/14/2009 5:15:45 PM

i waited until i got down there and rented from a smaller local company rather than the stander Avis/Enterprise or whatnot.

11/14/2009 6:50:49 PM

gotcha. I'll keep that in mind.

11/14/2009 8:08:04 PM

I rented a Jeep Compass from Thrifty and paid way too much per day. That said, the expensive insurance I paid for came in handy when I left the lights on and came to a dead car on the morning of my departure flight. Dudes where at my hotel in 15 mins and let me drive a RAV4 back to the airport to get back home.

Rent the car, it's worth it. It's vacation man, Costa Rica is a blast to explore by car.

One tip: don't book anything ahead of time. This is exactly opposite of what you should do when vacationing in America, but once you get to Costa Rica, you'll find bookees galore looking to get your dough for tours and what not. Just pit a few against each other and get a deal. We booked like 4 excursions there in like an hour and got great deals.

2 must-dos: the all-day adventure tour to Rincon de la Vieja is AMAZING. It was like $99 per person, included transportation to/from Tamarindo, an AMAZING buffet, ziplines, horsebacks, a wild rafting tour (like 1.5 hours), an a mud springs / spa thing. Insane fun.

The other was an all-day tour from Tamarindo to Nicaragua through Macuá Tours. This was AMAZING. They transported us from our hotel to the border, we got our passports stamped, hopped in a Nicaraguan bus with our guides and had a day full of awesome sight seeing + all meals & tranportation back. It was like $300/person but was easily one of the most incredibly vacation days ever. Nicaragua is so worth a visit, longer than a day if you have it. Enjoy Central America!

11/15/2009 1:37:53 AM

cool, thanks for the tips. and yea I think one thing that was making it hard on my was feeling like I had to plan most things ahead of time (ie how most things are done if youre traveling in the US).

Also, did anyone get any vaccine updates or anything before going?

11/16/2009 1:41:57 PM

Nope, no shots at all. We went in June '09 btw, so I highly doubt things have changed since then (except for swine flu, possibly).

11/17/2009 1:45:11 AM

I'd love to go, they seem like the only latin country north of argentina that really has their shit together

[Edited on November 17, 2009 at 2:41 AM. Reason : belize ain't bad either]

11/17/2009 2:40:52 AM

just got back a few weeks ago. we stayed at the lost iguana in arenal and couldn't have been more impressed. we didn't plan anything ahead of time aside from our hotel and transportation to it. the skytram/skytrek ziplines in arenal were absolutely amazing. if you have any questions about arenal shoot me a PM.

view from our room

11/17/2009 2:56:04 PM

awesome! right now we are planning on staying in san jose some (since we have a free place to stay heh), with a couple night stay down in manuel antonio (hotel booked there). Along with that I was considering spending a night or two up around Arenal for sure, so i'll certainly look into that hotel.

11/17/2009 3:05:29 PM

Just got back from Costa Rica last night...absolutely awesome experience !

It was my wife and I's honeymoon and the first trip out of the country for both of us. I'll post a few pictures and give some more details sometime in the coming weeks when I get caught up on other stuff back at home and work. Overall though it was fantastic and we both absolutely hated waking up at home this morning

1/5/2010 2:00:07 PM

where did yall go in costa rica and how long were you there?

1/5/2010 2:15:04 PM

Jealous. My good buddy is there now on a surfing trip. His aunt/uncle rented a condo which they've been doing for years.

He's also traveling to some permaculture farm that his friend works on down there. Sounds like so much fun.

1/5/2010 2:16:54 PM

^awesome

^^
10 days 9 nights. We stayed in Turrucares, a suburb of San Jose, at a house for 4 nights which was cool because it was a non touristy area where most people spoke very little if any English at all. We kinda used that as a base between smaller trips we took.

We spent 3 days, 2 nights on the pacific coast near Quepos/Manuel Antonio and while there spent a lot of time in and around the beach and Manuel Antonio National Park (which was absolutely awesome). We spent another day and night in the Arenal Volcano area to see the volcano and the La Fortuna waterfall. We took some time to travel to the Poas Volcano and do one of the zipline/canopy tours up there. During the time we were back in around San Jose we made it out to visit a lot of historical areas in the city as well as visit the Cafe Britt coffee plantation.

Tried to do a lot and see many sides of the country while still finding time to relax and do nothing at all and just enjoy the outstanding views and serenity offered.

[Edited on January 5, 2010 at 2:48 PM. Reason : ]

1/5/2010 2:46:24 PM

My gf and I went back in November, it was awesome.

Flew into San Jose and took a private car to Manuel Antonio. Great place, up on a cliff but very close to the beach and national park. Weather was great while we were there, rained about an hour during the day and an hour at night, but not horrible. Roads are horrible everywhere in Costa Rica, so if you get motion sickness plan to take something for it ahead of time.

Went from Manuel Antonio to Arenal/La Fortuna. La Fortuna is the town near Arenal volcano and we liked being close to the town because there were a lot of good restaurants there. If you are too close to Arenal, you'll end up just staying at your hotel (lame).

While near Arenal, we went to Eco Termales hot springs and it was great. Around $45/person with dinner included which was much cheaper than most of the others.

1/5/2010 2:59:05 PM

A few pictures from the trip:

The view from our friends' house outside of San Jose:


On the hike to La Fortuna waterfall:


The volcano from outside La Fortuna:


One of the beaches inside Manuel Antonio National Park:


I've only gone through some of my photos so far, once I get more up I'll post a link or something. Nothing special, all just done with a little Coolpix camera. I only wish the pictures did the trip better justice!

[Edited on January 5, 2010 at 10:22 PM. Reason : ]

1/5/2010 10:08:29 PM

Ha! Looks like we went to the same places, beautiful pictures.

Where did you stay in La Fortuna? We stayed at Casa Luna.







did you go ziplining?



[Edited on January 5, 2010 at 11:29 PM. Reason : .]

1/5/2010 11:26:03 PM

ziplining in costa rica is nuts/full of win.

1/5/2010 11:53:56 PM

yeah, we went ziplining near Manual Antonio and the guides were a couple of local brothers. They were nuts. The tourists had to stay tied up to something at all times, and when we hooked onto a new line we stepped on a stool with one of the brothers holding us up. But the guides were literally jumping off the edges of the platforms and hooking their carabiners into the roller while in mid-air, off the side of the platform. one slip and they would have been screwed

1/6/2010 12:02:04 AM

We went waterfall rappelling and the guides were doing some pretty sick shit as well. Ziplining was fun too.

We also went ATVing in the fucking mud. Guy lost his wedding band in it, he got married the day before, Neon was there and I think he popped his tire so we had to leave it to get back to base before dark. Was a tad scary with those howler monkeys screaming in the forest.

A++ trip, would do it again.

1/6/2010 2:19:41 AM

i stayed in guanacaste when i went. Playa conchal to be exact, it was near brasilito. One of the best times of my life.

1/6/2010 2:53:58 AM

Quote :

"Ha! Looks like we went to the same places, beautiful pictures. Where did you stay in La Fortuna? We stayed at Casa Luna. did you go ziplining?"

thanks . Wish I could see the other pictures in this thread at work, all those kinds of sites are blocked. Oh well.

We actually stayed at Casa Luna Lodge as well and really liked it. The waterfall was very close (we hiked straight from the hotel grounds), so I hope you went to see that! We did go ziplining, but we did that near the Poas volcano area. If/when we go back I'll want to try doing it at a different location, but I enjoyed the one we went to a lot.

1/6/2010 8:07:48 AM

That's crazy, Casa Luna was pretty awesome wasn't it? Your picture of the volcano looked exactly like what we saw off our porch (albeit, we had more clouds during the end of the rainy season).

We were staying at a different hotel and hated it because it was so far away and secluded from everything. Casa Luna was great because, like you said, you can hike to the waterfall (those hills getting up there were tough though) and it's a cheap cab ride into town.

1/6/2010 9:19:50 AM

yea Casa Luna really was great. Perfect location and nice hotel grounds at a great price. We thought the restaurant was good too.

1/6/2010 10:10:21 AM

Only had breakfast there, actually. Breakfast was definitely good - I got the omelets but my gf was more adventurous with the typical breakfast. The plantains were pretty delicious, as was the hot chocolate. My gf especially liked the frothed milk they bring out with coffee, enough so that I was directed to get a milk frother for her for Christmas.

Did you go into La Fortuna? We found some cool restaurants in there and outstanding nachos.

1/6/2010 10:33:37 AM

we did go in there some. The place we ended up eating at around La Fortuna was kind of outside the main "downtown" area. It was near Hotel Arenal Rossi. Just a little open air road-side restaurant that was great. And yea, I agree about the hike to the waterfall. I was surprised at how steep some of the road was up to it. We enjoyed getting the exercise, but didn't realize it was going to be like that.

Also, the tortilla chips in Costa Rica were awesome everywhere, as well as the popular plantains dessert.


[Edited on January 6, 2010 at 10:40 AM. Reason : ]

1/6/2010 10:38:14 AM

Did you try any of the fried yucca? It's a root but it tastes basically like a denser potato. We had it at a place called "Lava Lounge" in La Fortuna, it came with a spicy/mayo type sauce to dip it in.

1/6/2010 10:51:01 AM

just got to see the pics you posted now that I'm home, awesome

and yea I did try it at some point. I forget where though; it came with something my wife got. pretty good.

[Edited on January 6, 2010 at 6:42 PM. Reason : ]

1/6/2010 6:42:18 PM

My gf called me last night to see if I wanted to do an all-girl getaway with her and two of our gfs to Costa Rica. Free airfare and lodging, thanks to frequent traveler points/miles.

I'm psyched!

However, I thought she knew exactly where she wanted to go. When I asked where we were staying, she goes, "San Jose."

ICK! She obviously doesn't know her Costa Rica geography. I explained to her why we should not spend the entire trip in San Jose, but now I have to find alternate solutions.

Unfortunately, it appears that the only Marriotts (where her points apply) are in San Jose, with exception to Los Suenos Marriott Ocean & Golf Resort in Playa Herradura. http://www.marriott.com/hotels/travel/sjols-los-suenos-marriott-ocean-and-golf-resort/

Has anyone here stayed in Playa Herradura? If so, would you recommend?

Since we'll be there a week, I'm also toying with the idea of spending a couple of nights in Costa Rica and then heading to my aunt and uncle's beach house in Nicaragua. Unfortunately, I'm not sure how long it will take to get from San Jose, Costa Rica to a little town near Masachapa, Nicaragua.

[Edited on January 28, 2010 at 8:47 AM. Reason : .]

1/28/2010 8:44:30 AM

Check out http://www.costaricavillas.com/

We stayed at villa mariposa back in october. It would be a great place for a group of friends go to. You stay in a house with a staff of at least three dedicated to you. A cook, bartender, and maid, and it's included in the price. We went during their slow season, so it was only ~$150 per night per person for us. Even their peak season rates aren't bad for what you're getting, especially if you're drinking a lot.

You'd fly into Liberia, and the area is about a 45 minute drive away. Ocotal beach is not a huge party area, but Hermosa beach is a short ride away (the staff will drive you around too) and is supposedly more happening, although we didn't go.


This area is pretty close to nicaragua, as well, i believe an hour or less. San Jose was a 7 hour drive, so you're looking at a REALLY long drive from SJ to nicaragua, but either way, it all depends on where in nicaragua you're going.



[Edited on January 28, 2010 at 9:07 AM. Reason : unstrike!]

1/28/2010 8:52:35 AM

It really doesn't hinge on my friend's frequent traveler points. A couple of the girls don't want to spend too much, but there are really affordable options for really cute accommodations. I'm open to ideas, regardless of price. We'll probably only need to pay for 3 or 4 nights out-of-pocket if we don't stay at a Marriott, which isn't bad at all, especially when split between 4 girls.

1/28/2010 9:04:36 AM

Heard bad things about San Jose, only time we spent there was at the airport.

1/28/2010 9:06:02 AM

I've been in San Jose for a few hours and HATED it. That's why I refuse to stay there, save the nights where we need to be close to the airport.

Bobby, I love the link you posted. The villas look amazing. However, the frequent flier miles are via Jet Blue, so we would have to fly into San Jose instead of Liberia. Therefore, I'm thinking Manuel Antonia and Dominical are our best options for beach towns. Those towns are fairly close to Alajuela, so we wouldn't waste too much time in the car.

1/28/2010 9:13:14 AM

Manuel Antonio!

Go to Agua Azul restaurant, it's awesome. The beach is really good as well (seen in pictures above)

1/28/2010 9:14:23 AM

^ Where did you stay in Manuel Antonia? Just checked out the Fodor's review for Agua Azul. Sounds like a winner! I really miss the food in Costa Rica. So cheap. So tasty.

I like your suggestions for La Fortuna. We may spend a day there. Casa Luna looks really cute!

1/28/2010 9:18:37 AM

well to be fair, San Jose is a great starting/central location. It is right smack in the middle of the country, and even with poor roads is only a few hours drive max to anything cool in the entire country. I'd say you have a great setup if you can get airfare and some time in San Jose totally paid for! (as the airfare was the most expensive part of our entire trip).

Now, I know you've been there before so you do know some of that, but I can give you an example of how it could still be a great economical trip.

Do what we did. Fly into San Jose and kind of use it as a base. Stay there the first day or two (there are some nice places to eat and hang out in the city if you haven't been before). Even if you have been there, if your friends haven't, you should allow them to see the city and the surrounding area for a day or two. Go see Cafe Britt or something if you haven't been before.

From there plan a day canopy tour or something. Round trip to pick you up and drop you back off in San Jose, but you can spend the whole day somewhere else.

After that, tack on a few days some other places. Paying for transportation and splitting the cost of some other hotel rooms is totally worth it if you are already there on free airfare imo. If you haven't been to Manuel Antonio before, it is a must! Our favorite part of everything we saw in Costa Rica. We spent 3 days/2 nights there and wanted more haha. (^, Totally agree about eating at Agua Azul too!).

I also recommend La Fortuna and seeing Arenal. Wadhead1 and I stayed at the same hotel(Casa Luna) we found out later and I think we both thought it was great. The hike to the La Fortuna waterfall straight from the hotel was totally worth it.

[Edited on January 28, 2010 at 9:23 AM. Reason : ]

1/28/2010 9:21:04 AM

Quote :

"Now, I know you've been there before so you do know some of that, but I can give you an example of how it could still be a great economical trip."

Luckily, I went to the Caribbean side (Puerto Viejo de la Talamanca) for my other trip, so I'm pretty excited to see the Pacific side.

The Pacific side is definitely a little pricier than the Caribbean side, but I also hear that it's nicer. In Puerto Viejo, accommodations ranged from $4 a night at Rocking J's http://www.rockingjs.com/, an awesome hammock/treehouse hostel, to $50 per night for a 2-bedroom beach house http://www.magicmooncr.com/ (low price due to a reservation error at Hotel Banana Azul http://www.bananaazul.com/). The house was amazing and had hammocks and a dog and it also included complimentary breakfast and dinner.









Anyway, I definitely recommend the Caribbean side, but now I could use a lot of suggestions for things to do/places to stay on the Pacific side. I'm thinking Manuel Antonia definitely sounds like a winner.

[Edited on January 28, 2010 at 9:38 AM. Reason : .]

1/28/2010 9:36:12 AM

You'll really like Manuel Antonio

The beach area is a very surf feel to it. Lots of little shops and things like that. If you stay at a hotel up on the hill you've got a nice (STEEP) walk there and back, I ran it one day and only made it halfway up going back, very steep).

We did a Mangrove tour while in Manuel Antonio and walked the National Park. Don't get a tour guide, just linger around the other tour groups and save yourself $25/person.

Go to Agua Azul, delicious food.

1/28/2010 11:21:59 AM

^ I was wondering about running on the Pacific side. The town we stayed in two years ago didn't feel particularly safe--so I didn't run for the two weeks when we were there.

This time, however, I can't afford to skip a run due to my training regimen. Not a prob when at hotels thanks to the hotel gym, but I'm wondering about the safety of running alone in Manuel Antonia.

1/29/2010 10:53:44 AM

The roads are crap, just know that in advance. Most people walk on the roads so cars are pretty used to people being there. I think you'd be fine during the middle of the day, but it wouldn't hurt to have more than one person.

1/29/2010 10:58:08 AM

I want to go back and do more exploring

1/29/2010 11:57:40 AM

If you smoke, go to Montezuma and stay at Hotel Lys. Everyone smokes all day, there's a waterfall jumping area nearby (up to 55 ft), and every night they serve a DELICIOUS family dinner for around $5. It's run by a bunch of stoner italians. Pothead paradise.

1/30/2010 1:27:31 PM

I love Costa Rica. I spent 3 months there studying snakes in a rainforest in 2004, and went back in 2007 and backpacked around for 9 days. There really is something for everyone there.

If you had to ask me what was the one thing that stood out in my mind above everything else, it was the trip to Tortuguero and getting sand flipped on me by the sea turtle that was digging her nest and laying her eggs (no worries, it's eco-friendly).

I'm a fan of the Lonely Planet books and have used LP to navigate around South America and Africa. But for the Costa Rica trip, I used Let's Go Costa Rica on a Budget and everything was great.

There's nothing wrong with San Jose, don't let people tell you otherwise. It's not any more dangerous then any other large city, and there is lots to do. Downtown is pretty nice (careful on the sidewalks), it's not terribly overcrowded, Mercado Central is one of the best markets I've ever been to abroad, and you can get by on minimal knowledge of Spanish. I landed myself in a hospital there one time and was blown away by the quality of the care, not to mention how insanely cheap it was without any insurance ($110 got me looked at by three english-speaking doctors, x-rays, and an ultrasound on my leg). The not-talked-about-enough bus system in Costa Rica is EXCELLENT, and you can easily, cheaply, safely, and reliably get to almost anywhere in the country from San Jose in a matter of hours.

Roads in Costa Rica, except the one to Monte Verde (unless they paved it by now), are also very good.

Anyone with questions or inquiries for recommendations are always welcome to PM me.

1/30/2010 4:08:55 PM

Another pro tip: If you go to the Arenal Volcano don't bother going to the La Fortuna Falls. It's a ripoff, $10 to get in. If you walk 100m past the entrance down the road, you'll come to a bridge. Off to the left there are a few small waterfalls to jump off (10-15 ft) and a huge rope swing. We went there two days in a row, lots of fun.

1/31/2010 1:04:38 PM

Wish I had known that^

We still enjoyed the falls at La Fortuna so I'm not complaining too much.

There are some good restaurants in the town so I would take a cab and venture out.

1/31/2010 5:42:18 PM

^^ definitely did not think La Fortuna was a rip off. Then again, we hiked all the way from the hotel up to the top of the hill where the entrance of the waterfall was, so that was fun in and of itself. Then the short hike in to the waterfall was great and the waterfall itself was absolutely gorgeous. I absolutely loved it and had no problem paying the small entrance fee for my wife and I. I saw the other falls, but didn't swing or anything. Cool, in and of itself for sure but I still highly recommend the La Fortuna waterfall unless $10 while you're visiting another country breaks the bank.

1/31/2010 5:48:42 PM

If you go to Arenal do visit the hot springs. It's part of a hotel that we stayed at for $texas but they do have a separate fee for those just visiting. These are natural waters warmed by the volcano and the minerals in the rock have many benefits, also it's relaxing as hell. They also have a pool with a swim up bar for fun time.

1/31/2010 6:44:42 PM