FRIDAY June 27 10-11 PM -Monday AM Pura Vida Yoga Retreat
near San Jose
MONDAY AM fly to Pto Jimenez
and transfer to Laguna Lodge
THURSDAY AM fly to San Jose and land transfer to Arenal Observatory Lodge
SATURDAY AM land transfer to Monteverde
Hotel Sapo Dorado
MONDAY AM land transfer to near San Jose Hotel Marriott
TUESDAY AM Return flight U.S.

Any thoughts? Are we trying to pack to much in here? Perhaps add an extra day at end of trip given time / wear and tear of land transfers to Arenal /Monteverde/ San Jose perhaps totaling 12-15 hrs?

It is definitely ambitious but you will be able to get a feel for all of the places.
I believe the lodge you will be staying in near Pto Jimenez is Iguana Lodge (Laguna is in Tortuguero). Toby and Lauren are very good hosts. I have become a regular down there. You will be eating dinner by candle light everynight in the upstairs of the rancho. Jose is an excellent cook and I was able to talk him out of his stuffed avocado recipe this year after dreaming about it for the last year. Be very careful about going into the water during the tide change. There are very strong undertows at that time.
Arenal Observatory, great when the volcano eruptions are seen from that side. We had one of the observatory rooms and were woken up by the volcano and all we had to do to see it was open our eyes and look out the picture window. They have a lovely set up up there and even if you don't see the actual lava it is a nice place. As of this Jan-Feb the better viewing was on another side between Arenal Paraiso and Tabacon. There are 3 very nice places to stay right there. The two I mentioned and Montana del Fuego.We stayed at Arenal Paraiso this year and ate at a place just up the street called El Novillo and watched the lava from there.
El Sapo Dorado is a nice place. The restaurant is variable but there are other places to eat if you don't like it. Be sure to go into Monteverde as early as possible and go with a guide. They can help you see so much more.

Thanks Susie!

You are very welcome. Have a good trip!
Pura Vida

Forgot to mention. Toby and Lauren were involved in building a library in Pto Jimenez and are asking people to bring childrens books in spanish when they come. If you are interested Barnes and Noble carries quite a few.

I think I would change
MONDAY AM land transfer to near San Jose Hotel Marriott
to Monday noon or afternoon. Wouldn't you rather spend time in Monteverde area than in Marriott hotel?
Are you planning on visiting Mariposa farm, take night and early morning walk in Monteverde Rainforest? Many people enjoy visit to Santa Elena (?)

Susie-- My Wife is a little worried about the heat and humidity in Osa early July. Iguana Lodge comes highly recommended by friends and by you. Any further thought? Are the bungalows extremely rustic?

I didn't find them terribly rustic but you won't find hair driers or coffee machines. I thought they were quite nice. The bedroom area is large and there is a double or queen sized bed and a single bed. The larger bed is surrounded by a mosquito net, you can see one on their web site. The walls surrounding the bedroom are half walls topped with screen windows all around. There are bamboo shades you can drop down for privacy although I don't recommend you put down any more than absolutely necessary or you will loose the breeze. The bathrooms run the whole back width of the bedroom with a private stall for the toilet and a large shower area with hot water. There is a small fan above the bed on the wall that you can run all night if you haven't used too much power during the evening. I have never been uncomfortably hot at night there. All of your power is solar. If you request a second story room you will have a better breeze from the ocean. There is a lovely covered porch with very comfortable rattan furniture and an open deck with a hammock. You will be maneuvering by candlelight a good bit but it is fun. This past Feb they had the guests eating lunch at their place next door (Pearl of the Osa). The food there is good and plentiful.
Regarding the heat and humidity. The Osa is hot just about anytime. It will be more humid but it will also be prettier thanks to the rains. Toby and Lauren were telling me how much better they like it there at that time of year because it is so pretty then. When down there I get up early and do my hiking or touring and then veg out and enjoy the beach or a good book. It is definitely a place to go and relax. A wonderful place for long quiet walks on the beach. I was thinking of going down in July myself but I have a lot of other trips planned already this year so will probably wait until next year.

Don't know if you are still planning on Arenal Observatory. It is a nice place and hiking on the old lava bed was neat. It is more isolated so getting out for tours to the other sights in the area will be a bit more expensive.
If you need some info on the Santa Elena/Monteverde area also, let me know. It could be quite wet up there in the reserves. It is a funny area. It could be pouring in the reserves but sunny in Santa Elena. It can also get pretty cool and windy.

Susie-- Thanks again Susie for your kindness! We will request a second story room from Toby and Lauren. Yes we would like to get some more info on St Elena / Monteverde. We are trying to decide whether to go first to Arenal or Monteverde (see initial itinerary at beginning of thread.) We are checking the flights back from Osa to see if we could avoid leaving at crack of dawn from Osa since we will only have 2.5 days at Iguana.

P.S. Susie we are in CT! (just saw you grew up here reading another of your posts re: birding) I am a novice and just love feeding birds here in CT.

I will be in CT (New Haven area)in July to visit family. That is why I won't be at Iguana Lodge at that time!
Feed them and they will come. Lots of great birds there in CT.
Whether you go to Arenal or Monteverde first depends on when you get back into San Jose. It is a 4 hr trip to Monteverde vs a 3 1/2 to Arenal. The roads to Arenal aren't too bad but you don't want to be on the road to Monteverde in the dark. I would stick to your plan to go to Arenal first. I hope you don't get too much rain up in Santa Elena/Monteverde. Take a look at Jacques web site at Monteverdeinfo.com. Under maps and facts you will find a rain chart. June can be rainy. It can also be cold and windy. He may also own Sapo Dorado. He can help with your transportation up to Santa Elena. He also has the jeep/boat/jeep trip and horseback trip up to Monteverde from Arenal. Weather may not be the best for those tho. I would do the Monteverde Reserve in the early morning with a guide. If you are planning on doing Sky Trek or any other canopy tour you can do those in the afternoon because you won't really see much wildlife from them. Sky Trek is right by Santa Elena Reserve.
If you have time, other interesting things to see...the butterfly farm, Finca Ecologica, Stellas bakery is great for coffee and a bite to eat and there are some art galleries along the way. Casem is the womens coop. It is a place for the local Costa Rican women to sell their handcrafts. If you hire a taxi to and from Monteverde Reserve you could have the driver stop at a few of those places on the way back to your hotel. The Butterfly farm and Finca Ecologica are closer to your hotel and you could walk to them. The butterfly farm is a little bit of a hike. You will be right by town and there is a bakery, grocery store, a couple of small restaurants, internet cafes, post office. This is the only part of the trip that I am worried about because of the potential for rain and cold. Another option would be to stay one more day in the Arenal area closer to town and then head back to San jose a day earlier and take a day tour from there to Carara Reserve/Jaco or Sarchi to shop till you drop or to Cartago to see the Bascillica or Lankester Gardens or Irazu Volcano or Cafe Britt, etc. Only you can make that decision. Monteverde/Santa Elena is a great place but I have been there when it was rainy and cold and windy and it wasn't much fun. The rain isn't so bad but add the cold and wind and it can be uncomfortable. On the other hand you might get lucky and have good weather. No telling that time of year.
Pura Vida
Sue