Part Uno

Our family (kids 9 & 14) just got back from 11 wonderful days in CR. We flew into into San Jose, breezed through customs, and then met our driver (Pat Hewitt arranged) who took us straight to Arenal.

We spent 3 nts at Lost Iguana Lodge and really enjoyed the property. While the staff seems to get a lot of bad press on various travel boards, we found them very accommodating. Two nights we saw spectacular volcano eruptions from our balcony. Later on our trip we learned there was a semi-major eruption a day or two after we left Arenal and at least one hotel / property was put on evacuation alert.

Here were our Arenal activities (we enjoyed and would highly recommend them all):
1. Sky Tram / Trek: A highlight of our trip -FYI-other than my wife we’re afraid of heights)
2. Hanging Bridges: Very cool / beautiful (now wish we’d hired a guide)
3. Horseback ride to La Fortuna waterfall: Only negative, too short of a time at the waterfall (approx 70 minutes to hike down, hike up, and swim)
4. Eco Thermales: We did the dinner shift and nearly had the place to ourselves. Food was better than we expected

Other than lunch at the hanging bridges cafe, which was very good, and dinner at Eco Thermales, we ate at Lost Iguana. All-in-all we found their food to be pretty good (not great) but a bit over priced. The property itself is very lovely and well maintained.

Part dos (Manuel Antonio / Buena Vista Villas) coming soon……

Glad you had a great trip! Looking forward to hearing more about it. Pat Hewitt does a good job, doesn't he?

I'm glad you guys had fun, SiteCer! We love the Lost Iguana too - but not their food - lol. We're off again in July - hope we get a great show from the volcano like you did.

Sounds like a great start, looking forward to the rest.

Part dos (Manuel Antonio / Buena Vista Villas)

Our driver, again arranged by Pat Hewitt, picked us up exactly on time. The 4-5 drive to Quepos / Manuel Antonio / Buena Vista Villas, though a bit long for the kids, was very scenic and enjoyable. As with most people, we stopped at the bridge (name escapes me) and viewed the crocodiles. We found the gift shop / restaurant next to the bridge to have a good selection of merchandise and reasonable prices (we bought a hammock for $10 less than we found at most every place else).

Buena Vista Villas (BVV), as advertised, is extremely beautiful and hilly. Our concierge, Jorge, escorted us to our one bedroom villa. Upon entering the villa, we noticed a welcoming committee of squirrel monkeys on our balcony! Nearly every morning we woke up to the tune of squirrel and/or capuchin monkeys on our balcony. At times we had 6 or more monkeys on our balcony!

The only time we ate at BVV was for breakfast (included in rate). Breakfast was more than adequate but got old after a 3-4 days. As a result, we walked across the street to Café Milagro twice for breakfast (very yummy) Thanks CMerrell for mentioning the delicious banana pancakes. Since we hung out at the BVV private beach a lot and our villa had a kitchen, we bought food at a near by store and ate lunch in our villa. The rest of our meals were at different restaurants (most mentioned on this forum) El Avion, Café Milagro, Grande Escape, etc.


Here were our activities at Manuel Antonio (again we would recommend all):
1. Guided tour of Manuel Antonio Park (definitely recommend getting a guide)
2. White Water rafting the Naranjo River (very fun…due to recent storms- water was on the swift / high side
3. Self guided ocean kayak tour (kayaks are free at BVV)

We spent our final night at Orquedeas Inn (sp?), San Jose. Again, our driver arranged by Pat Hewitt, was spot on time and provided a wealth of knowledge of the country. Though we only spent ½ day in San Jose, I almost feel that was too long. While I’m sure there are nice excursions outside the city, San Jose had no appeal (IMHO).

All-in-all we loved Costa Rica and can see why most everyone gives it two thumbs up. For such a small country it has a tremendous amount of diversity (active volcano’s rain- forest, beach, etc.) We also loved the fact you can drink the tap water (none of us got sick). Though this is the green season, the weather was beautiful (rained at night and sunny every day) and there were absolutely no crowds. Numerous locals told us that this time of year, weather permitting, is truly one of the best times of the year (cheaper rooms, no crowds, merchandise bargains).

While we would highly recommend CR and could see ourselves going back, we are now searching for our next place to explore. Suggestions???

Pura Vida!

ttt

SiteC_er - Sounds like you were there around the same time as us - you wouldn't happen to be from Texas, would you? Or interested in orthopedics?

Flapenny, I am not from TX but isn't everyone interested in orthopedics

Lol, about the orthopedics comment, SiteC_er (and no disrespect meant to flapenny)!

I'm glad you had a great time in CR, but I have a hard time imagining that anyone <i>wouldn't</i> have a great time. It's just simply one of my top choices these days.

As to suggestions for where to go next; there's a whole great big world out there! I'm off to Trinidad and Tobago next weekend (of all places) for just a quick getaway, and will do a trip report on the Caribbean forum when I get back...

We've had our eye on Belize for some time, but we keep getting sucked back to CR. Seems like they both offer a lot of the things we enjoy - beautiful scenery, wildlife, adventurous activities, etc.

Thanks for a great trip report SiteC_er. Pat H. also arranged our upcoming trip. We'll be at both Lost Iguana and at BVV in July, so I really appreciate your comments on the accommodations, list of activites you enjoyed, and other detailed information. You and your family definitely had a wonderful time.

You seem like a pretty active and adventurous family, so I'd suggest you look into some of the places I've been considering for future trips for myself.
I haven't traveled to any of these places, but based on a fair amount of reading, they all look like great destinations for those who enjoy the outdoors and different cultures:
-Galapagos Islands
-Machu Picchu
-Amazon
-Pantanal
-Patagonia

Also, since Pat H. planned your trip, and since he is currently planning a trip to Argentina for himself and friends, he might have some ideas for you. I'm sure he settled on Argentina for a reason.

Again, thanks for the great trip report.

Volcano Girl,

We went to Belize 2 years ago and had a wonderful time. However, Belize &amp; CR are very different. In my opinion, CR is a prettier country and offers greater diversity. However, Belize offers things not found in CR...i.e. some of the finest snorkeling / diving in this hemisphere, Mayan ruins, and a Mayan / native culture feel.

Thanks, SiteCer - it's nice to hear an opinion from someone who has visited them both. We love snorkeling, and feel like that's the only thing we haven't really found in CR.