jldc03

My girlfriend and I are trying to plan out our 1st trip to Cost Rica. We will be traveling around mid November, is this an ok time to go? We wanted to go then because it is right before the high season which we wanted to avoid because of crowds but we are a little worried about the rain. We will have 6 days to do activities and relax ect... We are pretty adventurous and athletic couple who want to see all that Costa Rica has to offer and do activities such as rafting, ATV tours, zip lining, waterfall repelling ect... . We were thinking about staying in Arenal area at the Arenal Nayara Resort for the whole trip so we don't waste time and money traveling from one area to another. Is this too long to stay at this same area or is there enough to keep up busy for 6 days while were there?

volcanogirl

People usually stay in two different locations, but there's definitely enough to keep you busy for that long, and you may need to spend a first or last night near the airport depending on your flight times. Xandari is a good place to do that if you need to. For rafting, check out Rios Tropicales, for zipline Sky Trek, and for other tours check out Sunset Tours, Desafio, and Pure Trek. There's also a nice waterfall hike, volcano hike, Hanging Bridges hike, and natural hot springs like Eco Termales or Tabacon. If you wanted to, you could raft the Pacuare at the beginning of your trip and then head to Arenal - the Pacuare is supposed to be amazing, but we couldn't fit it into our trip, so we rafted out of Arenal, and it was still great. We've traveled during rainy season. Mid-November would be the end of rainy season so I'd expect you would get some rain.

jldc03

Thank you for your information. Do you think it will still me a good idea to travel at that time or would the rain potentially ruin the trip?

Enchanting_girl

I think six days in Arenal would be good enough to practice all the activities you want to do, as Volcanogirl said you can also get a rafting tour in Pacuare on a one day tour and then head Arenal for the rest of the trip. Rafting in Pacuare is the best in Costa Rica, this river is excellent to white water raft. I´ve used Explornatura for this tour, and I think they also have tours in Arenal (www.explornatura.com)
Regarding weather conditions you could expect some rain in the afternoons and sunny mornings, it might not be that bad since by November the rainy season would be ending. I think you could enjoy your trip, the weather will not ruin it.
Hope this helps!!

qwovadis

weather2travel.com CR climate guides

floods bad enough to get a disaster declaration

every other year in late Oct/Nov worst time to go

I love CR but wait till winter if you can...

Kohala Coast konaweb.com less than 1 inch per month in fall

similar vibe www.stayhawaii.com always go there in the fall.

Volcanoes NP is a do not miss there... many adventure options

priceline.com direct flights to Kona from LAX

packages from $1k all in...

mlgb

I went mid November last year, it was a bad one maybe this will be the better one. I was lucky to be able to get to San Gerardo de Dota with only a day's delay. People were basically stuck where they were for nearly a week.

volcanogirl

http://costa-rica-guide.com/Weather/WeatherMap.html shows a good weather map that you can mouse over to get an idea of rainfalls. It varies year to year so can't really predict what will happen. Personally I would still go, but with the anticipation that you could encounter rain.

jldc03

Alright, thanks for all your guys help. We just booked out trip!!

steviegene

We stayed at the Nayara last March and thought it was wonderful... we were in a cabana room which is its own free-standing structure. Very nice room with indoor/outdoor shower.
We split our time between Arenal and Manuel Antonio, but the Arenal area was very beautiful and I think it would keep you busy for a 5 days. We were limited to what we could do because I was pregnant, but we did do a low-key raft float and my husband went ziplining. The hotel has a large list of activites and tours available through them. I thinSee my trip report for more info.

http://www.fodors.com/community/mexi...costa-rica.cfm

Hasebaer

We're just planning our trip for the same time, but instead of staying at the Nayara the whole time, we're thinking about going to Manuel Antonio for the second half of the trip. I just read steviegene's trip report and it seems to be a great thing to do.
Btw.. we will be there Nov 20-24 (and then 24-28 at Manual Antonio). Let's hope the weather is great!

volcanogirl

stevie, how were the balconies at Nayara - do they feel private?

steviegene

It was - we were in one of the "Nayara Suites" which is its own round-shaped building. Although its not so much a balcony as a deck, (ie at ground level). They have it all planted out so that you can basically only see the volcano. It was really spacious (even had a jacuzzi tub in it, but we didn't use it).

volcanogirl

Ooh, sounds nice.