nycsarah

Hi everyone,
This seems to be a very useful message board! I'm planning my honeymoon for this coming november in Costa Rica. We have 12 nights (yippee!) and will probably split the time between Arenal/Monteverde, Peninsula Nicoya, and Manuel Antonio. We would like to have a lot of beach time but also adventure. On the peninsula, I'm kind of confused about where to go. We would probably spend 4 nights in one place. We would like nice accomodations - somewhat luxurious and romantic but DEFinitely closer to the $100 per night maximum price. What are the most breathtaking beach towns to stay at in your opinions? So many places seem wonderful. It sounds like some areas have more nightlife? I don't want to be anywhere that feels like Miami but it might be nice to have a few restaurant choices. Most important, though, is a beautiful beach!

dncee11

Sarah, I would check out some of the nicer places in Tamarindo to see if they suit you; after that you can look at a few of the "all-inclusive" hotels/resorts in that area. Tam is nice since it has so many restaurant choices and other things going on. You may just stay a few days there to get your bearings then move on to something else you have discovered. Congratulations, good luck and have fun!

Dyer

Hotel Capitan Suizo is paradise - RIGHT on the beach but with tax, it is $200.00 a night for a bungalow. There is another price range though, go to www.visittamarindo.com and hit on lodging and there is a wealth of info. Capitan is quite and only an 8 minute walk by beach to the town. If you do get to Tam. and choose not to stay here, please go visit the bar/restaraunt/pool area right off the beach and look around the grounds and the lobby. Across the road from the lobby are horses that the hotel owns, I was told.

faithie

In the Nicoya Pen. the Malpais or Montezuma areas are very popular... Lots of lodging options , from luxe to budget .

nycsarah

Thanks for your input. If we go to Tamarindo, I will definitely try to stay at the Capitan. It also seems that Hotel Bula Bula in Playa Grande is a great option but maybe too remote? I guess it depends what we want to do. I mean, what is the reality in Tamarindo? Is it quaint or is it Miami Beach? It doesn't seem too bad.
However, is this the top area to visit on the Peninsula? What is the most breathtaking? The southern area or Tamarindo area? Would you ever break it up and spend 2 nights in each instead of 4 in one place? I was also interested in checking out Isla Tortuga. Is this a "must see"? If so, maybe it would be better to stay in the southern area or a town that runs boats out there. Thanks!

Dyer

I wouldn't consider Tamarindo quaint or anything at all like Maimi Beach. There are no high rises, you just see lush foliage when on the beach. Yet there are restaraunts and a couple hotels on the beach and near Hotel Capitan Suizo, several B&B's. The town's several streets are mostly dirt with ruts as the curb and gutter were not planned well in the past. The shops and eating establishments are here and there (it's the surprise that is fun! Right downtown there is more semblance of a small neighborhood shopping area! We were there for 6 days but were more on the beach than in town and we didn't see some of the hotels that I looked up on the internet because again, they are covered with foliage. The fauna was not present too much as we were there only three weeks after rainy season started so the flowers weren't all in bloom yet. At Capitan Suizo, there were several types of flower blossoms. Tam is a surfing town and I enjoyed seeing the youth walking around feeling free as a bird, no worries, enjoying the beauty of the country, the sand and the surf and the slow pace of the life in rural Costa Rica. I also felt this way, but I envied the young (including my children) as they didn't have to check the time on their watches, didn't have to dress up for an event, enjoyed the warmth of the sun, and the ocean. RELAXIMG.

nycsarah

Thanks for the details Dyer. That sounds about the pace I would love to find in Costa Rica! I worried that it was too "touristy" and was afraid of seeing things like sprawling resorts - glad this is not the case!

faithie

Is it true there is now a Burger King in Tamarindo ???

nycsarah

uh oh! are you serious? i hope there's no starbucks....

faithie

Yup , serious ..... It's become a very popular spot , they say the building is as fast as Manuel Antonio ... I seriously heard there was a Burger King !!

faithie

I'd do Montezuma or Malpais for " romance " !!

Dyer

I know that I'd like to visit Mal Pais and Montezuma like faithie suggests - our next trip possibly. There was a Burger King truck that parked in a lot and served through a window while we were there in May. We just ignored it, like the posters on the www.visittamarindo.com website suggested as they don't want their community to become commercialized either. Let us know when you get back how much fun you had in Costa Rica -nycsarah.

nycsarah

thanks! i know we'll have a great time no matter what! I just don't want to overlook anything that is "not to be missed"!

starsgoblue

Okay, if you are staying in Tamarindo you HAVE to go to Playa Conchal for the day...it is one of the nicest beaches in the country. Its about a 20-30 min drive from Tamarindo. You will arrive at Brasilito, and from there drive onto the beach before following a track that runs behind the beach. There is an expensive resort there, but it is set back from the beach so doesnīt have too bad an impact. Maybe its somewhere you might want to stay? Anyway, we always go right to the far end of the beach and we are often the only ones there. (Canīt believe Iīm sharing our secret, but it is your honeymoon)!
I just posted on another thread about trying the Happy Snapper in Brasilito...good place.
And you wonīt find anything like Miami Beach anywhere in CR. "Touristy" places may come as a surprise if you expect that means it will be like Cancun!
Oh, if you want a really nice treat for your honeymoon try and stay a few nights at Hotel Punta Islita - its amazing!