Costa Rica versus St. Martin/Maarten
Jun 10th, 2009, 07:33 PM
#1
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Costa Rica versus St. Martin/Maarten
Hello my boyfriend and I are trying to book a summer vacation sometime at the end of this month and are debating between Costa Rica and St. Martin. Has anyone been to either place that could offer either positive or negative feedback? I am looking for nice beaches with some fun activities (wanted to go to St. Lucia originally but couldn't afford it.) I know Costa Rica is all about nature and has a lot of physical activities such as the zip lines, white water rafting, the volcanoes which sounds fun but how are their beaches? I liked St. Martin because I thought it was interesting that half the island is French, half the island is Dutch. Plus the pretty beaches, shopping, and description of French cafes and bakeries sounded pretty good! Everyone I have talked to though does recommend Costa Rica though and said they loved it. Please help me make up my mind!
Jun 11th, 2009, 03:06 AM
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I've been to both. You are contemplating visiting two VERY DIFFERENT countries.
Costa Rico is an eco-tourist's delight. While the country does have beaches on both the Atlantic and Caribbean (Caribbean side beaches are better) the majority of the activities you'll find are land bassed.
St. Martin, on the other hand is a Caribbean island where the focus is on beaches, watersports, shopping and restaurants. By the way, the island does have a zipline.
You decision should be based on whether you want to spend the bulk of your time hiking throuh rainforests in which case choose Costa Rica or having a typical "island beach" vacation in which case go to St. Martin.
While each destination has it's merits they are quite different so you'll have to make up your own mind.
Costa Rico is an eco-tourist's delight. While the country does have beaches on both the Atlantic and Caribbean (Caribbean side beaches are better) the majority of the activities you'll find are land bassed.
St. Martin, on the other hand is a Caribbean island where the focus is on beaches, watersports, shopping and restaurants. By the way, the island does have a zipline.
You decision should be based on whether you want to spend the bulk of your time hiking throuh rainforests in which case choose Costa Rica or having a typical "island beach" vacation in which case go to St. Martin.
While each destination has it's merits they are quite different so you'll have to make up your own mind.
Jun 11th, 2009, 04:23 AM
#3
I've been to both.
People rave about the beaches in Costa Rica, I personally am so spoiled by the Caribbean that for me they were below average. I'm a beach girl, so my pick would be St. Martin. From St. Martin you can also day trip to Anguilla, which beaches will blow you away with how stunning they are. St. Martin is fun and active, you can still zip-line, shop, and nightlife and casinos.
CR is more about nature--jungle, cloud forest, zipline (which was my favorite part of CR). Accomodations are more "rustic" in general. You search for animals such as sloths, tucans and stop at aligator bridge. There are volcanos to explore.
I'm generally a beach vacation girl, to put my tastes in perspective--so my choice would be St. Martin for that.
As RoamsAround said, they are really 2 different types of vacations.
People rave about the beaches in Costa Rica, I personally am so spoiled by the Caribbean that for me they were below average. I'm a beach girl, so my pick would be St. Martin. From St. Martin you can also day trip to Anguilla, which beaches will blow you away with how stunning they are. St. Martin is fun and active, you can still zip-line, shop, and nightlife and casinos.
CR is more about nature--jungle, cloud forest, zipline (which was my favorite part of CR). Accomodations are more "rustic" in general. You search for animals such as sloths, tucans and stop at aligator bridge. There are volcanos to explore.
I'm generally a beach vacation girl, to put my tastes in perspective--so my choice would be St. Martin for that.
As RoamsAround said, they are really 2 different types of vacations.
