I'm reposting - this may be a better heading.
We (kids & adults) will be in Arenal next week and weather is high 70, low 53 and suppose to be cloudy all 3 days. Any recommendation on jeans or shorts (not sure on the humidity)? Will the water be to cold to repell?
Thanks....

Hi,

We were there 2 weeks ago, we wore shorts during the day and pants at night. It was cloudy when we were there too.

We didn't repel, but we went in the water at the bottom of the waterfalls. It was...refreshing. (i.e. pretty cold, but swimmable).

I would not recommend jeans for CR. They tend to feel damp which is very uncomfortable. We did however wear them once on the coast when horseback riding.

I would recommend a lightweight quick dry fabric or even a light weight chinos or khakis over jeans.

I agree with dfarmer. No jeans for Costa Rica. Whether pants or shorts, only include lightweight, quick-drying clothing in your suitcase. Even those things don't always dry properly at Arenal. This is why you must also pack a small spray bottle of "Febreze". Smelly, damp clothes are no fun.

I agree w/ the quick-dry comments. Think about bringing layers so you can add on and take off as the weather changes. You can be sweating one minute, then there's a sudden shower. I tend to get very cold there at night. Bring a backpack to stuff a rainjacket in, and those zip-off pants/shorts are handy.

Sandy

We were in Arenal and other areas of CR recently and I agree with what everyone suggested about quick-dry clothing. We went rapelling on a cool rainy day and found the water to not be frigid (usually the case), but not warm either. The Pure Trek people suggested I wear the long-sleeved caprilene top I brought, though the waterproof jackets they give you do a good job of keeping you relatively comforable. I wore quick-dry shorts over a swimsuit bottom, water shoes made for sports (like a tennis shoe - you need the traction so flimsy water shoes aren't a good choice) while my husband wore tennis shoes and others wore Tevas, and we were just fine. The canyoning was a lot of fun.

Check the weather from wherever you're staying before you leave for Arenal and reconsider going if it is truly going to be clouded over the entire time. It is nice there, but if you can't see the volcano there are better places in CR to visit.

I would not necessarily agree with the last poster. We did a week all over CR (Pacuare rafting, Monteverde, Rincon de la Vieja, Sugar Beach), then spent 2 nights in Arenal. Though we didn't see the volcano (we heard it though), we loved the lushness of the area and the tons of activities. We're planning to go back to Arenal next year.

I too respectfully disagree with RM.

I do agree that it is a bit disappointing if you are unable to see the volcano. But there is so much else to do and see. And quite frankly the volcano show is seen during the dark hours, so if you only go to see the volcano show what are you going to do all day!?.

I wouldn't worry too much about the weather reports that you are looking at from home. Weather in the tropics changes very quickly. Actually so quickly that you may be literally walking in sunshine one minute and in the rain the next. After all you are going to a RAIN forest.

Have fun!

Please don't skip Arenal if you hear that it's cloudy! As the others said, there's so much to do and it's a beautiful area, rain or shine. Besides, on cloudy days, the volcano can suddenly appear or disappear and it's like magic! There's usually a break in the clouds in the wee hours too.

Sandy