Costa Rica Travel Forum

[everyann]

Costa Rica is rich with beautiful landscapes and considered by many to be a paradise. If you've been to Costa Rica, share some of your travel tips here! If you've got questions, our team has answers!

I have traveled to Costa Rica and absolutely fell in love with the country. I spent most of my time on the coast, although I also traveled into the rainforest and Monteverde. Perhaps the most impressive experience on my Costa Rica trip was taking a canopy tour of the rainforest. Although there was a fee, it was reasonable and well worth it. The canopy tour is basically a set of trails that cut through the forest both on the ground and, with the help of bridges suspened between trees, along the actual top of the rainforest. The views are stunning and the wildlife is plentiful. We had an armidillo cross our path more then once, and also saw a number of incredible tropical birds.

Of course; this is only one of many neat things to do in Costa Rica. I was there for about three months and grew to love the warmth of the people and the consistantly great weather. There are many places to stay besides Costa Rica luxury resorts I recommend the smaller villas or family owned hotels. For anyone who speaks little or no Spanish, this is a great country. Locals are thrilled if you try to speak Spanish and don't punish you for having less-then-perfect grammar.

Can someone give me tips on how to go about traveling around CR? must-see places, nightlife areas, etc?? thanks.

Hey Tengoodo-

So, of course it all depends on your style of travel, but I can tell you about a few things that were "must sees" when I was there. Costa Rica is well known for the great surf and incredible beaches, but not all beaches are equal. I would head for Quepos. It is located on the southwest coast and has a lot. It is just about 2 hours south of San Jose, which is where you will likely land if you fly. You can make Quepos a sort of headquarters to explore the towns up and down if you like, or just stay there. You will meet tons of locals and usually some fellow travelers and it is just really beautiful. Quepos is also only about an hour away (by Costa Rican bus) from Puntarenas, which has a great nightlife scene, in my opinion one of the best in the country. Local surfers and travelers are happy to teach folks a traditional salsa and there is plenty of modern music too. The downtown area is happening pretty much all week. Hanging out in the Puntarenas/Quepos areas is definitely a must see. Side note: my friends and I rented motor bikes and went adventuring out onto the trails on our own and found some incredible swimming holes, met some of the best people, and took pictures of gorgeous waterfalls. If you have the time, I would recommend a little off-road adventuring.

The other "must see" area I would recommend is the Monteverde Rainforest. You will not be dissapointed! You can take a zip-line tour (grab on to a zip line and fly above the rainforest- way cool) or a canopy tour (see my other post) or just hike on your own through some set trails. There are butterfly farms and, best of all (in my opinion), natural spas! For what will seem like an incredibly small amount of money, you can spend time in Monteverde getting a massage, taking a mud bath or hanging out in natural mineral water. It is the perfect place to spend a day or two if you've been playing hard during your travels and want to relax. Or, if you've been relaxing during your travels and want to relax more. :)

One other side note- I think you will of course want to spend time in San Jose just to check it out, but personally it was not my favorite city. Its worth seeing just to learn more about the country, and of course you will likely be landing in the San Jose airport. All this talk about Costa Rica is making me jealous- have a great time and happy travels!!

I am traveling to Costa Rica in May '07. I have been told that visiting Monte Verde Cloud Forest is a MUST! If anyone has any suggestions where to stay and what kind of tour for the volcano, that would be much appreciated. We are planning to do the Sky Trek combo tour w/ zipline & bridges.

[d360]

Yes Monteverde is a must and the place I'd highly recommend El Sol if you want wonderful accomodations with friendly knowledgable hosts. We have some virtual tours of their place on the Monteverde Hotels page. A Zip line tour and hike around Arenal Volcano would be a great one. If you like Hot Springs I'd highly recommend that you also visit Tabacon Hot Springs this place is most amazing, a bit on the touristy side but all in all an amazing place to visit. Are you planning on visiting the coast too?

Thank you for the response. Yes we will be staying in Playa Hermosa, Guanacaste most of the trip. If you have any further suggestions, I would love to hear them.

psychowmn

[StacyG]

Monteverde is a MUST.. that is correct and doing the Zip line tour is perfect... We stayed at the El Establo Hotel in Monteverde last Feb and are returning there this Feb. The place is wonderful and owned by quakers.. Nice, clean and the rooms are high up in the mountains so that the views of the lake and mountains are priceless.
Hope you enjoy... This is our 2nd time Feb 2006 and now Feb 2007.

[d360]

Stacy do you have any photos of El Establo Hotel? It sure would be nice to show everyone what this place looks like.

February is a great time of the year to travel enjoy your trip!

[d360]

Hi Stacy,

Nice Rainbow and View from the room. For everyone else here's there website:
http://www.hotelelestablo.com/