Costa Rica Itinerary Suggestions
 

Hello, plane tickets bouth and now looking into getting itinerary and hotel worked out. Our family, kids 4 and 6 will be there 12/8-12/23, flying in San Jose and out Liberia. Currently thinking, first night SJ, 3 in Manuel Antonio, 3 Arenal, 3 Monteverde and 5 beach in Guanacaste. Are we missing anything amazing? Spending too much time or too little time any place? Any hotel suggestions? We're looking for the moderate price range, although considering a splurge for Tabacon. Worth it? Other thoughts? Thank you so much.

Sounds like a pretty good itineraru to me. In Arenal, you may want to consider Los Lagos hotel. Not nearly as luxurious as Tabacon, but your kids will probably have more fun at the pools and waterslides for about half the price.

Your itinerary sounds excellent. You might find that three nights each in Arenal and Monteverde may be a little too much, but it depends. If Arenal is cloud covered (as it often is), three nights may seem a bit too long. But, with three night s you are increasing your chances of seeing the volcano (especially at night.) If you get to see a lava flow on your first or second day, you might want to move on. I agree with msteacher that your kids will probably enjoy Los Lagos a lot more (with its view of the volcano, naturally heated polls and water slides.) They would also have a better chance of encountering Tico families who frequently come to Los Lagos on the weekends.
In Guanacaste, may I suggest that you look at Playa Samara or Playa Carrillo, rather than Tamarindo (which is too often recommended on this forum), as a beach destination. Also, while in Guanacaste, take a day trip to Rincon de la Viejo, which has wonderful hiking trails, volcanitos, waterfalls and wildlife.

I don't think three nights in Arenal is too much. There is so much to do there -- lots of fun to be had. I could stay much longer.

Sandy

Just be sure to check which side of the volcano the lava is flowing on--you want to be able to see it from your hotel at night.

We had no trouble filling 3 days in each Monteverde and Arenal.

My kids loved Los Lagos. It was full of Tico families enjoying the weekend. We found lots to do for 3 days in Arenal.

We especially liked Monteverde and the frog pond, the butterfly gardens, and the hiking. We stayed at Los Pinos in a 3 bedroom cabin with a full kitchen which was nice for the kids.

Thank you all so much for the great advice. I was getting nervous because I'd read a post saying that was pretty negative about Monteverde. Glad that others seem to like it better as it looks really cool. Los Lagos looks very fun, and I think will probably suit us better than Tabacon. Now, I'll have to e-mail and hope that they're available. Los Pinos also looks cool. Heather, did you use the kitchenette in the cabins or did you find it easy to get to restaurants? We're not planning to rent a car (we're city people and don't drive much in daily life so don't want to hassle with it on vacation) Thank you all again.

check out my la fortuna travelblog for more info:

http://costa.rica.typepad.com/la_for...ome/index.html

We were travelling with 4 kids - 2 7 yos and 2 9 yos. We always used the kitchen for breakfast, to have lunches to pack, and for snacks. We ate out a couple of nights but found it easier to eat in on other nights. It was easy to get groceries at the local store but it was a bit of a hike. The other mom and I considered it our time off so it worked for us. Taxis are easy to get as well.

Tortuguero was the highlight of my CR trip. Boat wildlife tours and jungle. Bring bug repellant. There are several lodges that do three or less nights for all-inclusive price for everything, including transportation.

I loved the Arenal Observatory Lodge, we had a view of the volcano and could see the lava flowing at night. It was spectactular. I also highly recommend spending time at the Baldi Hot Springs