Ohsuzanna

Hi everyone! Advice for our June 2006 honeymoon please:

Makanda by the Sea: is Villa 1 much better than say #10 or #5? We like that the others have AC. Are the bugs really bad in the open air room? I know there is a mosquito net, but still, I don't want to have to be under it the whole time we're in the room.
Is transportation a problem if you stay at Makanda to go to restaurants and attractions? Are most places in walking distance or can you get a cab easily?

We will also be staying in the Arenal area, possibly at The Lost Iguana. What is the proximity/transportation situation there for going to attractions and restanrants?

We really want to avoid renting a car. We are planning to hire private drivers to get between regions. Will we feel stuck at our hotels once we get there or are cabs cheap and easy to get?

Thanks so much for any advice!

bigjoe8

Ohsuzanna,

I will try to answer the second part of your question about Lost Iguana.

Lost Iguana is about a 20-30 minute drive outside of town, it is a plesant drive and very pretty. There are a few resorts along the way with restaurants such as Tabacon but they are all a good distance away.

I had a car when we were there and we did not get food in town other than wine from the grocery store. This is not like america, there were a few places in Arenal but not nothing that stood out to me as a must eat there kinda deal. Now I did find more places in Manuel Antonio.

I did see Taxi's come to Lost Iguana but it took a good while and I know it cost a decent bit each time.

I don't know much about you so I can not say if a car would be right for you. Personally we have a great time driving, figuring out where to go, crossing scary looking bridges or low water crossings and having the freedom to run somewhere the minute I want to.

However, I know a lot of people who just want to relax and be catered to, nothing wrong with that at all, it would just drive me nuts.

Oh and the road to Arenal from San Jose was just fine, a bit serpentine in the mountains with no guard rails, (seen plenty of people drive right through em in the states anyway) but not too many potholes, no more than here in Texas and a few nice towns and shops along the way.

Now the road to Monteverde is a different story

Hope this helps, I am glad to offer more info if needed.

Joe

kpd6305

I never been to Makanda, but I would like to suggest Buena Vista Villas (at Tulemar) as another great choice. We spent our honeymoon there in June and the villa was gorgeous. There was a big wrap around porch that we spent a lot of time on. And the most comfortable bed ever.

poss

Very easy to get a cab from Makanda. We stayed there last January. I wish I could remember which room. We chose one that was one of the largest and most private. The room was quite nice (very few bugs)--BUT: Our stay there was much diminished because of all the construction going on, both at the property and up and down the road (our room was somewhat near the road, which is a quite busy one). If you're noise-sensitive, try to make absolutely sure that you'll be given a room that's most likely to be quiet. Of course the nature sounds were wonderful, but trucks, construction, blah...
Have a great honeymoon!

faithie

In the past the big "charm " and a lot of the draw to Makanda was the fact that all the rooms were open .... I have heard people who complained that they actually closed some up and now have air co.( like they caved into pressure so to speak ) Anyway , each to their own , right !! I stayed in the big villa ( 1 ) and it was entirely open , no screens , no wall , a huge mousquito net around the bed , and I found it amazing . Of course a few giant moths came for a visit , the odd ant , and the cathredal ceiling was a fave spot for toads ........ lots of 'em !!!! Again , it was what I expected in the jungle of Costa Rica , so it was not a negative at all . ( the fans were sufficient ) This villa is away from the road , which is not a main road but the road that takes you to Parador , La Mariposa , Mango Moon , La Mansion Inn , Issimo suites etc. It was very beautiful , great views , the infinity pool is amazing . If you want it a little more closed up , the rooms directly beneath the big villa are very nice . You will see which ones on the site .

faithie

Oh ! We were only under the net to sleep . Bugs are much , much , more of a problem here in Canada !!! lol .

poss

The rooms directly beneath the big villa were right in the area where there was construction (more villas I think)

Ohsuzanna

Thanks for all of the replies! I'm used to the bugs in Massachusetts near the water where you can't sit out on your porch at certain times of the summer without getting eaten alive and I just don't want that for my honeymoon. Faithie, you said you were only under the net to sleep. Does that mean you could hang around in the room in the evening with no special protection or did you have to load on the bug spray? How hot does it tend to be at night in June?

It sounds like we won't need a car in Makanda, but for Arenal probably. Has anyone spent time at the Lost Iguana without at car?

What was your sense of the staff there? If I request a quiet room, will I actually get one?

Thanks again!

Ohsuzanna

Whoops, "there" meaning Makanda.

poss

Some of the staff are good, some not (and they may be all different now). Just emphasize that you're aware of the fact that some folks have been bothered by vehicle noise, construction noise,etc-- and that you insist that they pay attention to your request.

Try to do the hanging bridges walk at Arenal. We thought it was great. Actually, I think Iguana is very near it. (We stayed in the best "suite" at Observatory Lodge; liked it very much.)

faithie

The construction was going on when we walked through the property in November of last year , so 1 yr. ago . The big villa is as far away from the road as you can get I believe , and perhaps the other units Poss is referring to have since been completed ...? You could simply ask . We found the staff fine in the past , but I can not give an honest opinion of the situation now . We had no problem sitting around , none at all , and I do not believe we even brought bug juice and it was the rainy season . I get eaten alive here at home , I can barely go outside in June , I do not have any problems in Costa Rica .

Melissa5

We loved the Lost Iguana resort in June 2005. We visited Arenal, Monteverde, and Manuel Antonio for 2 weeks, and I only got 1 mosquito bite! But I purposely chose places that seem to have fewer bug problems. Also very very important is when it's dark, you should turn off your room lights if possible. If you leave your room for dinner, leave the lights off. We thought it was very romantic, and also a good way to discourage the bugs from entering your room, to turn off all the lights at night in our room, then open the doors to the private patio and sit outside in the moonlight watching the volcano (we were lucky and had lava flow view). There's also a private jacuzzi out there in the luxury room. I also had 2 tiny flashlights for moving about the room instead of turning on the big overhead lights. Sounds extreme but honestly it was kinda romantic!

There are bugs everywhere in Costa Rica, but most of the ones we saw just stay put where you see them, they don't try to come after you. I don't like bugs but when I returned home I actually missed the beautiful bugs we saw there. Plus I was grateful they were so kind to me and didn't bite me!!!

Also since mosquitoes tend to come out in the evening, I wore long sleeves when we went out to dinner. This probably helped.

My kids got a few bites, maybe they weren't as careful as me. But not a whole lot. We had DEET but since we werent' having big bug problems we didn't even use it. Honestly being careful with your room light makes a big difference. When we returned to our room we didn't stand with the door flung open and the inside lights on inviting all the bugs in...they are attracted to the light.

Also for early morning hiking I started out with my arms and legs covered in case of mosquitoes. As the day heated up there weren't any mosquitoes in sight.

For some reason, I have no idea why, I find our "city" insects here in San diego to be far more aggressive than the "country" bugs we came across in Costa Rica. Maybe the Costa Rican bugs have so much biodiversity they have plenty to eat and it makes them less aggressive?!

Lost Iguana is convenient for visiting the Hanging Bridges, and the Sky Trek/Sky Tram zip-lines. It's maybe a 20-minute drive into town. The food is okay at the Lost Iguana, and we were so busy with our activities we didn't want to bother to go into town just to find food anyway. So we ate at the Lost Iguana and at one small hotel restaurant near the Sky Trek/Sky tram. Yes, it would be convenient to have a car at Arenal. We had one. I think you can even rent a car in Arenal, find out about that.

Food is better at Monteverde.