Your budget is generous for Costa Rica and you should have no trouble finding accommodations in that price range. In terms of when to go, we went in late November and were glad we did. It is still technically the "Green Season" rather than the high tourist season, so crowds are down and you get lower rates on hotels than you do in December-May, but it is the end of the rainy season so the weather is good. <BR> <BR>I would highly recommend the following places to stay in your price range. Website addresses are included and they all have e-mail addresses on the websites, which you can use to make further inquiries or reservations (this was how we made most of our arrangements). <BR> <BR>Villa Caletas, on the Pacific Coast near Carara Biological Reserve (where you can see scarlet macaws). We were there for three nights in November 1999 and highly recommend this incredible hotel, which is part of the "Small Distinctive Hotels of Costa Rica" group. It is small and intimate -- very private, with the most beautiful pool I've ever seen and excellent food. It is perched about 350 feet above the ocean. They will shuttle you down to their private beach for free or you can walk -- if you walk you will see tons of birds and other wildlife. We got a special green season rate of $85 per night plus tax for our own private villa with a balcony and a gorgeous ocean view, which definitely fits into your price range. I would particularly recommend villas 12 or 14 if you can get them. Five minutes after checking into our room we saw a toucan on the tree off of our balcony, and we saw lots of hummingbirds and other birds there too. I think you'd love it. This was the first place we stayed in Costa Rica, and the hotel sent a very nice driver, Victor Hugo, to pick us up at the airport and transport us to the hotel, which took just under 2 hours. He did not speak English but I'm sure they would send an English-speaking one if you asked them to. Hotel website:
http://www.distinctivehotels.com/hot...etas/index.htm <BR> <BR>Vista del Valle outside of San Jose, in Alajuela, about 20 minutes from the international airport. This is a great place to stay upon arrival or prior to leaving the country as it is convenient to the airport and is incredibly beautiful and comfortable. It is also convenient for lots of daytrips to other things nearby. It overlooks a gorgeous canyon preserve. Very good food and friendly hosts who will help you make other travel arrangements, tours, car rental, provide transporation to/from the airport, etc. Rates range from $85-140 plus tax including breakfast, depending on what you want, so it is definitely in your price range. We stayed in one of the "Exotic Wood Suites" called Ceibo which we loved. The website is
www.vistadelvalle.com <BR> <BR>Si Como No in Manuel Antonio. This hotel is slightly larger and more touristy than the other two mentioned above, and a little more pricey, but it still has a lot to recommend it. For one, it is very convenient to Manuel Antonio National Park. Two, it has rooms with balconies and nice ocean views. Three, you can see lots of wildlife right from your room. We saw trees full of parakeets, lots of hummingbirds, and a tree sloth from our balcony, and saw a whole troop of squirrel monkeys from the hotel's open-air restaurant. Plus lots more wildlife in the National Park which is a very short ($5) ride away. The hotel also arranges excellent guided tours of the park, plus canopy tours and lots of other excursions. There are two very good restaurants at the hotel and a nice pool. Like Villa Caletas, Si Como No is part of the "Small Distinctive Hotels of Costa Rica" group. Our Superior" room (5B) was $145 per night including breakfast, but "Standard" rooms are less -- around $130 I think, and they may run specials too. Website:
www.sicomono.com <BR> <BR>If you have any interest in going up around Arenal Volcano/La Fortuna/Tabacon Hot Springs area, the hotel I would recommend there is Arenal Lodge. It is not as luxurious as the other properties I've mentioned here, but seems to be one of the nicer places to stay in this particular area. Rooms have volcano views, and there is a nice garden which attracts lots of species of birds. The restaurant is pretty good too. We had a Junior Suite with balcony and volcano view at $103 per night plus tax, including breakfast. If you want a Junior Suite with kitchenette you should specify that and it's a little more. Lower room categories don't have views. They also have more expensive chalets and suites. Website:
www.arenallodge.com You might also want to consider Arenal Observatory Lodge, which is closer to the volcano. Again, not luxurious (we went there for lunch one day), and difficult to get to since it's on a long bumpy dirt road, but still a better option than staying at Tabacon Resort (we stayed there and didn't care for it). <BR> <BR>Finally, since you're going to be there for two weeks, you should think about flying down to the Osa Peninsula, which is one of the most biologically diverse places in this hemisphere and has glorious bird life. We stayed at Lapa Rios (
www.laparios.com) which was incredible but it is out of the price range that you specified. However, there are other places to stay in that area so I would look into it if I were you. We saw lots of scarlet macaws, toucans, fiery-billed arcaris, and other gorgeous exotic things. Many of the accommodations in the area are tented ecolodges and sounded nice. Pick up a guidebook and see what it says about accommodations near Corcovado National Park or elsewhere on the Osa Peninsula -- you should be able to find something. It is worth the trouble of getting there. <BR> <BR>Also, since you are birders you should think about going to Monteverde to try and see the resplendent quetzal. We did not get to go there (too much to do in two weeks!), but if you do, the two places in that area that were highly recommended to us were El Sapo Dorado (
http://www.cool.co.cr/usr/sapodorado/) and Hotel Fonda Vela (
http://www.centralamerica.com/cr/hotel/fondavel). Both of these had rooms for under $100 per night if I recall. <BR> <BR>If you are thinking about renting a car in Costa Rica, the one we used was Dollar, and we had no problem. It was $53 per day for a 4x4. We made the reservation by e-mail through their website:
http://www.costarica.tourism.co.cr/rentacar/dollar.html <BR> <BR>Good luck!
