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9 Days in Costa Rica // Itinerary Help // Travel agency?

9 Days in Costa Rica // Itinerary Help // Travel agency?

Old Jul 30th, 2013, 05:22 PM
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9 Days in Costa Rica // Itinerary Help // Travel agency?

Hello!

My best friend is turning 30 and we are hoping to head to Costa Rica over Thanksgiving.

Last year for my birthday, we took a 15 day trip to Great Britain over Thanksgiving - and it was a whirlwind with lots of train hopping and adventures. This time around we want to do a few days of exploring, and end our trip with a lot of beach relaxing.

We did all of the planning ourselves for our last trip, which we enjoyed - but are considering looking into a travel agent for our Costa Rica trip. Does anyone have any recommendations for companies to use? We have seen Gate 1 travel's packages, which seem to have good options - but I'd love to know of some other reliable, more customized (but still affordable on educators' budgets) options!

I'd also love to hear thoughts on our very rough draft of an itinerary below. We know we want to see the volcano, the cloud forest area, and have the relaxation of the beach. I personally can't sit still all day on the beach, so I thought of all the beach areas Manuel Antonio seemed to have the most to see in the surrounding areas. Is this a reasonable timeline?

If your advice is to plan without an agency, I would love suggestions. Is a rental car a must for the entire trip? Can't miss sites? Restaurants you like in the area? Suggestions for hotels? Ultimately, it seems like a package with an agency might save money - but the lack of choices for hotels isn't all that appealing.

Thanks very much - Natalie


Proposed Itinerary

November 21: Travel SAN JOSE, sleep SAN JOSE

November 22: Travel ARENAL, sleep ARENAL

November 23: Travel MONTEVERDE, sleep MONTEVERDE

November 24: MONTEVERDE

November 25: Travel MANUEL ANTONIO, sleep MANUEL ANTONIO

November 26: MANUEL ANTONIO

November 27: MANUEL ANTONIO

November 28: MANUEL ANTONIO

November 29: Travel SAN JOSE, Travel COLUMBUS, OH
NatKP is offline  
Old Jul 30th, 2013, 05:59 PM
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Well, the first part of your trip is a whirlwind. You can't really do Arenal in one night. Since it is not active now, no lava, why not base yourself in San Jose (Alajuela actually) and do tours of the closer volcanos, then go up to Monteverde. Two nights in Monteverde is also a bit short.

You should plan the trip yourself. Spend a couple of days reading old posts here. You will get a feel of whether you want to rent a car, what beaches appeal to you, etc. Then ask more specific questions.
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Old Jul 30th, 2013, 06:39 PM
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You're doing too much moving around and won't have enough time to enjoy each spot. We did the Arenal area combined with Manuel Antonio for our first trip, and it was great. Tons to see and do in both areas, lots of hotel and restaurant choices. I'd leave Monteverde for another trip when you have more time. Most people spend at least three nights in the Arenal area; we stay four when we go there. You might like Silencio del Campo; it's a popular place to stay. Have been to Arenal several times and still haven't seen or done it all. You can visit the natural hot springs like Tabacon or Eco Termales, hike the waterfall, hike the Hanging Bridges, zipline at Sky Trek, do the Cano Negro tour and Penas Blancas river float, visit Proyecto Asis animal rescue center, go waterfall rappelling, go tubing at The Springs; the list goes on and on. Check out the websites for Desafio and Sunset Tours. Manuel Antonio is also good for about three or four nights. The national park is beautiful and full of fairly tame wildlife. Great beach there. The damas mangrove tour is also fun; we had monkeys climb aboard our boat. Also enjoyed the Villa Vanilla spice tour. Tulemar Bungalows is a great place to stay with its own beach. If you do decide to go to Monteverde, you can do it in two days if you want to rush or three if you want to relax a bit. We liked Fonda Vela there. If you want to do all of those places, I'd look at expanding your time frame. It takes a while to get from place to place, and you don't want to spend all your time on the roads.
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Old Jul 30th, 2013, 06:43 PM
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I forgot to mention that we do all of our planning ourselves and like the freedom that allows. Most people on these boards do not do organized tours. We did use Costa Rica Expeditions to go to Tortuguero and loved them, but they can be pricey. We usually do not rent a car; we use private drivers to go between cities and then use taxis once we're in town. Arenal is more spread out than Manuel Antonio, so if you opt for a car, I'd do it there. There's also a shuttle service called Interbus that goes between cities. Desafio has a Jeep Boat Jeep service that runs between Arenal and Monteverde.
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Old Jul 30th, 2013, 06:48 PM
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With the amount of time you have, I would do only two locations. Arenal and Manuel Antonio.
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Old Jul 31st, 2013, 03:47 AM
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Agree with all of the above, only do 2 locations. Too much traveling in a car otherwise. You don't need an agency to book hotels in those areas and you can travel in between them using Interbus, a shuttle that will take you from hotel to hotel for $30-$40 per person. Very reliable.
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Old Jul 31st, 2013, 05:01 AM
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I really like Manuel Antonio and yes, there are beautiful beaches but not only that. You can see nice boutiques, in the Park, you can hike and see animals like monkeys.

My best restaurant is El Avion. BUT go like at 5.15 pm.Too see sunset. Amazing view. Don't miss it!

There are many good hotels there. You have plenty of choice.
If you need a price comparator, see this Manuel Antonio hotels: http://www.southerncostarica.biz/Man...io/cat-hotels/

Have a good trip!
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Old Jul 31st, 2013, 06:11 AM
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Do you know your flight times yet?

I would not use a travel agency. Part of the fun of Costa Rica is picking out the little boutique hotels yourself.

The idea of doing the central Valley with its two major volcanoes and then Monteverde is a good one. Actually, you could check off both boxes with a single visit to Volcan Poas.

Or, you could head to Savegre Lodge in the San Gerardo de Dota area for a less touristy cloud forest experience and a more direct route to Manuel Antonio from the San Jose/Central Valley area
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Old Jul 31st, 2013, 06:16 AM
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Forgot to mention retaurants - In Manuel Antonio, we really like Barba Roja and Cafe Agua Azul, Ronny's is good, and if you want fancy Kapi Kapi - that one is pricey though. In La Fortuna, Don Ruffino is good and La Choza de Laurel. A lot of restaurants are just open air without walls. The ones in Manuel Antonio have nice sunset views.

If you did decide you want help planning, Pat Hewitt on these boards is a travel agent that gets good reviews.
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Old Aug 2nd, 2013, 06:13 PM
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I agree DO NOT USE A TRAVEL AGENT

I am presently in COSTA RICA now - and that is my biggest regret -- my travel agent booked us in an all inclusive -- I wish I would have come to these boards before going to a travel agent -- unfortunately by the time I came here my trip was planned and paid for..........

I am in the Guanacaste ARea -- and it is beautiful......pics do not do it justice -- I would have liked to stay in the ARENAL AREA had I come here first so I Do agree with VolcanoGirl.......on my next trip back (WHICH THERE WILL BE MANY)......I plan on staying in that area. Although I am going to ARENAL and Nicaragua on Excursions....

I agree with the suggestion to come here and read all posts and ask questions............

Best wishes PURA VIDA!!
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