Costa Rica Trip Report
Oct 6th, 2008, 11:27 AM
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Costa Rica Trip Report
A trip report from our vacation last week. We really enjoyed Costa Rica.
We used Adventures Naturales to book this, and while they were very difficult to pin down on details and itinerary, the trip itself was perfect. Got in on Friday and were met at the airport by the company, and all the vouchers and itinerary were handed over. We spent the afternoon wandering around San Jose. A little rain, but not too much. San Jose has some pretty buildings, and the central market was interesting, but all in all pretty much just a place to fly in and out of for me, although we didn’t have time to do the museums, I hear they’re nice. The Hotel Grano de Oro was a small lovely oasis though, with a great restaurant, so we ate dinner there.
Had a 6 am pickup for rafting into the Pacuare Lodge the next morning. The way in is only 5 miles and Class III rapids, although they seemed like big ones to me. Very fun. It rained a little bit on the drive and the beginning of the trip, but had stopped by the time we got to the lodge. We got soaked anyway in the river, so it didn't matter. Got to our incredibly cute little cabin and changed, then had lunch. We opted to have a quiet relaxing afternoon. Happy Hour started at 5:30, then dinner at 7. The food was excellent at the lodge. Since there's only a hydroelectric generator, there’s no power in the rooms and they turn the outside lights off at 9:30. Candlelight everywhere, it was lovely. The next day we did the zip line in the morning, and an afternoon hike with our guide Cholo (who was fabulous all around). Great day, and it didn't rain until about 5. Saw a Howler Monkey, a couple of Toucans, and multiple birds. It rained hard all night, which made the river high for the next day. That day is the harder one, 13 miles and about 8 Class IV rapids. It was the most fun I've had of the 4 rafting trips we've done. Beautiful scenary, great rapids, just a great (if tiring) day. The best decision we made was having transfers between the areas, someone picked us up in a minivan and drove us the 3.5 hours to Arenal. We usually drive ourselves everywhere, but it does seem a little more difficult down there, with the lack of signage and the general craziness. We got to the Lost Iguana resort about 7 that evening.
We had a huge room facing the volcano, with a spa tub on the balcony. We went to the restaurant for dinner that night, I think we were the only people there! The whole place probably had maybe 10-15 people staying there max, in fact it was like that everywhere. I love off-season traveling. We again were lucky with the weather and had great volcano views almost the entire time. The next day we had decided to take off. Our bodies were sore from rafting, and we wanted to relax, so we didn't make the Cano Negro tour. We took a cab into town (about 20 minutes from our resort), and wandered around a bit. Had a nice big lunch at La Choza de Laurel , and bought stuff for a light dinner in the room. Watched the volcano again that night, there was a spectacular lightening storm out. The next morning we got up and hiked at the Hanging Bridges. We saw howler monkeys and some birds, even though we didn’t use a guide. This trip was quite a challenge for my heights neuroses, with this and the zip lines, but I was fine! Anyway, it was a nice morning, about 2 hours of hiking. Both days in Arenal it was beautiful in the morning and started pouring about noon. But it let up in the afternoons, and didn't rain much after that, so the weather didn’t ruin anything for us. Ate lunch at the restaurant, although the Lost Iguana had the most mediocre food of all the places we stayed. That afternoon we did a volcano hike with a guide from Sunset Tours. We saw a lot of birds and some spider monkeys. Hiked for an hour or two, then went for a more close up view of the volcano. We went to Eco Termenales after that (one of the issues I had with AN is that at first I thought we were booking Eco Termenales, then when we finally got the faxed itinerary at the last minute it said Tabacon. But in the end, we were actually at Eco Termanales, and we loved it!) Again, there were maybe 10-15 other people there tops, the water was amazing, and the dinner was good. Next morning was an 8 am pickup for a 4 hour transfer to the Manuel Antonio area on the Pacific coast.
It rained just a tad on this long drive, and it was interesting to see the scenery. We arrived at the Hotel Si Como No about lunch time, and ate there. The weather was lovely here, and the view from the hotel can’t be beat. We again had a relaxing afternoon, and ate at the seafood restaurant there for dinner, Claro Que Si which was really nice.
The next day we got up and took the hotel shuttle to the park. We hiked around without a guide for a couple of hours, we saw three toed sloths and all of the monkeys, but not too many birds. After that we went to the beach for a few hours. The weather this day was amazing, blue skies and gorgeous. Later on that day we hung out at the hotel pool. For dinner we tried to go to Kapi Kapi, but it was closed for some reason, so we ended up having a good dinner at the Café Aqua Azul (I think that was the name). Very nice.
The next morning we went back to MA park and did use a guide this time. We saw different things, a Caiman, some Agouti (I think that’s right, little mammal), and things like insects and land crabs that we missed the first time. And we saw a two toed sloth too! But fewer monkeys this day. We spent the morning there, and had a 2 pm transfer back to San Jose. Spent our last evening at the restaurant in the Hotel Grano do Oro again, a great way to end the trip.
I had questions about tipping and how easy it was to get cash, plus whether places really do accept US dollars. I can now say that I think everyone accepts US dollars. We found ATMs easily too. On tipping, I was concerned about how much to tip our river guide and the transfer drivers. After getting feedback on these boards, we decided to give $60 to our guide Cholo, and $10 per transfer as a tip (I feel like that last was not enough, but it’s too late now).
I would recommend any of the places we stayed at, and all the restaurants except the one at the Lost Iguana. It wasn’t really bad, just not great – but they did have a great Chicken Poblano soup. And at the Hotel Si Como No our room was almost right over the one restaurant, so the balcony didn’t feel that quiet. But the property itself is lovely and that didn’t bother us in the end, it just wasn’t as quiet as the Lost Iguana or the Lodge. The entire trip was really wonderful, so don’t let the rainy season scare you away!
We used Adventures Naturales to book this, and while they were very difficult to pin down on details and itinerary, the trip itself was perfect. Got in on Friday and were met at the airport by the company, and all the vouchers and itinerary were handed over. We spent the afternoon wandering around San Jose. A little rain, but not too much. San Jose has some pretty buildings, and the central market was interesting, but all in all pretty much just a place to fly in and out of for me, although we didn’t have time to do the museums, I hear they’re nice. The Hotel Grano de Oro was a small lovely oasis though, with a great restaurant, so we ate dinner there.
Had a 6 am pickup for rafting into the Pacuare Lodge the next morning. The way in is only 5 miles and Class III rapids, although they seemed like big ones to me. Very fun. It rained a little bit on the drive and the beginning of the trip, but had stopped by the time we got to the lodge. We got soaked anyway in the river, so it didn't matter. Got to our incredibly cute little cabin and changed, then had lunch. We opted to have a quiet relaxing afternoon. Happy Hour started at 5:30, then dinner at 7. The food was excellent at the lodge. Since there's only a hydroelectric generator, there’s no power in the rooms and they turn the outside lights off at 9:30. Candlelight everywhere, it was lovely. The next day we did the zip line in the morning, and an afternoon hike with our guide Cholo (who was fabulous all around). Great day, and it didn't rain until about 5. Saw a Howler Monkey, a couple of Toucans, and multiple birds. It rained hard all night, which made the river high for the next day. That day is the harder one, 13 miles and about 8 Class IV rapids. It was the most fun I've had of the 4 rafting trips we've done. Beautiful scenary, great rapids, just a great (if tiring) day. The best decision we made was having transfers between the areas, someone picked us up in a minivan and drove us the 3.5 hours to Arenal. We usually drive ourselves everywhere, but it does seem a little more difficult down there, with the lack of signage and the general craziness. We got to the Lost Iguana resort about 7 that evening.
We had a huge room facing the volcano, with a spa tub on the balcony. We went to the restaurant for dinner that night, I think we were the only people there! The whole place probably had maybe 10-15 people staying there max, in fact it was like that everywhere. I love off-season traveling. We again were lucky with the weather and had great volcano views almost the entire time. The next day we had decided to take off. Our bodies were sore from rafting, and we wanted to relax, so we didn't make the Cano Negro tour. We took a cab into town (about 20 minutes from our resort), and wandered around a bit. Had a nice big lunch at La Choza de Laurel , and bought stuff for a light dinner in the room. Watched the volcano again that night, there was a spectacular lightening storm out. The next morning we got up and hiked at the Hanging Bridges. We saw howler monkeys and some birds, even though we didn’t use a guide. This trip was quite a challenge for my heights neuroses, with this and the zip lines, but I was fine! Anyway, it was a nice morning, about 2 hours of hiking. Both days in Arenal it was beautiful in the morning and started pouring about noon. But it let up in the afternoons, and didn't rain much after that, so the weather didn’t ruin anything for us. Ate lunch at the restaurant, although the Lost Iguana had the most mediocre food of all the places we stayed. That afternoon we did a volcano hike with a guide from Sunset Tours. We saw a lot of birds and some spider monkeys. Hiked for an hour or two, then went for a more close up view of the volcano. We went to Eco Termenales after that (one of the issues I had with AN is that at first I thought we were booking Eco Termenales, then when we finally got the faxed itinerary at the last minute it said Tabacon. But in the end, we were actually at Eco Termanales, and we loved it!) Again, there were maybe 10-15 other people there tops, the water was amazing, and the dinner was good. Next morning was an 8 am pickup for a 4 hour transfer to the Manuel Antonio area on the Pacific coast.
It rained just a tad on this long drive, and it was interesting to see the scenery. We arrived at the Hotel Si Como No about lunch time, and ate there. The weather was lovely here, and the view from the hotel can’t be beat. We again had a relaxing afternoon, and ate at the seafood restaurant there for dinner, Claro Que Si which was really nice.
The next day we got up and took the hotel shuttle to the park. We hiked around without a guide for a couple of hours, we saw three toed sloths and all of the monkeys, but not too many birds. After that we went to the beach for a few hours. The weather this day was amazing, blue skies and gorgeous. Later on that day we hung out at the hotel pool. For dinner we tried to go to Kapi Kapi, but it was closed for some reason, so we ended up having a good dinner at the Café Aqua Azul (I think that was the name). Very nice.
The next morning we went back to MA park and did use a guide this time. We saw different things, a Caiman, some Agouti (I think that’s right, little mammal), and things like insects and land crabs that we missed the first time. And we saw a two toed sloth too! But fewer monkeys this day. We spent the morning there, and had a 2 pm transfer back to San Jose. Spent our last evening at the restaurant in the Hotel Grano do Oro again, a great way to end the trip.
I had questions about tipping and how easy it was to get cash, plus whether places really do accept US dollars. I can now say that I think everyone accepts US dollars. We found ATMs easily too. On tipping, I was concerned about how much to tip our river guide and the transfer drivers. After getting feedback on these boards, we decided to give $60 to our guide Cholo, and $10 per transfer as a tip (I feel like that last was not enough, but it’s too late now).
I would recommend any of the places we stayed at, and all the restaurants except the one at the Lost Iguana. It wasn’t really bad, just not great – but they did have a great Chicken Poblano soup. And at the Hotel Si Como No our room was almost right over the one restaurant, so the balcony didn’t feel that quiet. But the property itself is lovely and that didn’t bother us in the end, it just wasn’t as quiet as the Lost Iguana or the Lodge. The entire trip was really wonderful, so don’t let the rainy season scare you away!
Oct 6th, 2008, 01:03 PM
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Welcome back, sealstep! You stayed at all my favorite spots - we love the Grano de Oro and Lost Iguana too, also huge fans of Eco Termales.
I love hearing the information about the rafting; we haven't had a chance to do that yet, but I would love to. Does it involve very much hiking? Or do you just take the van down to the river? The Lodge sounds wonderful.
Totally agree with you on the dinner at Lost Iguana; although we love the hotel, and think breakfast is good, and they make a darn good guacaole, the dinner we had was very bland. The funny thing is we thought the same thing last time, but our driver told us they had just hired a new chef - lol. We will continue to stay there and eat elsewhere. Glad you had fun!
I love hearing the information about the rafting; we haven't had a chance to do that yet, but I would love to. Does it involve very much hiking? Or do you just take the van down to the river? The Lodge sounds wonderful.
Totally agree with you on the dinner at Lost Iguana; although we love the hotel, and think breakfast is good, and they make a darn good guacaole, the dinner we had was very bland. The funny thing is we thought the same thing last time, but our driver told us they had just hired a new chef - lol. We will continue to stay there and eat elsewhere. Glad you had fun!
Oct 6th, 2008, 02:00 PM
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I would highly recommend the Pacuare Lodge and rafting. The van takes you relatively close to the river, you do have to walk down for a bit, but it's all downhill, and it only took us maybe 10 minutes at the most - they actually could probably drive you all the way down if there's enough room in the trucks. They raft all the provisions in and out as well, so we were taking food and that sort of thing along with us, and they drove that all the way down.
The lodge is just so peaceful and beautiful, and you can choose to do hiking there or not. As long as you're not looking for any sort of nightlife it's wonderful, lovely cabins, good food (breakfasts were amazing), and a beautiful spot.
The lodge is just so peaceful and beautiful, and you can choose to do hiking there or not. As long as you're not looking for any sort of nightlife it's wonderful, lovely cabins, good food (breakfasts were amazing), and a beautiful spot.
Oct 6th, 2008, 02:26 PM
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Oh, that sounds perfect. I'm definitely going to put it on my to do list. I've read that some of the repel tours involve hours of pretty rough hiking, but your river trip sounds like exactly what I'm looking for; thanks for the great info.
Oct 10th, 2008, 06:59 AM
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Great report, sealstep!
I'm a few days late in reading your report, so hopefully you're still perusing the Costa Rica forum.
I'm glad all the details worked out for you. I think I remember you posting some frustration about presumably having Eco Thermales switched out for Tabacon. Sounds like it all worked out admirably.
So would you book another trip through Adventures Naturales? Was it their guides who accompanied you on the Pacuare, or do they subcontract out to a different outfitter? I'm trying to plan for a June trip and a friend who would like to join me is very interested in the Pacuare.
I'm a few days late in reading your report, so hopefully you're still perusing the Costa Rica forum.
I'm glad all the details worked out for you. I think I remember you posting some frustration about presumably having Eco Thermales switched out for Tabacon. Sounds like it all worked out admirably.
So would you book another trip through Adventures Naturales? Was it their guides who accompanied you on the Pacuare, or do they subcontract out to a different outfitter? I'm trying to plan for a June trip and a friend who would like to join me is very interested in the Pacuare.
Oct 10th, 2008, 01:10 PM
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Hi there, yes, still lurking! I'm sad to be back from vacation I guess 
The Pacuare Lodge is fabulous. As to whether to use Adventures Naturales, I think it depends on how laid back you might be about the planning stages. I was lucky because I had actually put my travel agent on them, so he was the one who had to deal with the frustration of their not getting back to him, and trying to pin down details. I think it took until a day or two before we left the get the final itinerary, and this was not planned at the last minute! But as I said, the trip itself was flawless, and they really did plan just about everything. I had vouchers for the hotels and tranfers and the pre-planned activities (Zip Line at Pacuare, and Sunset Tours Volcano Hike and Hot Springs). I switched out the hotel in Arenal, I think they started with Arenal Springs Resort maybe, and I wanted the Lost Iguana. I would probably use them again, just knowing that they're a tad hard to deal with.
They do use their employees for the Lodge portion, we were picked up at the airport by them, and picked up the next day for the rafting. The river guides worked for them as well, and it looked like all the Lodge employees were working for them (I think they are the same company at least.) And everyone was really great. My agent did say that they had good prices too. Also, the Lodge itself is an all-inclusive, except for alcohol and some activities.
I booked this trip based on finding the Lodge first and their website, www.junglelodgecostarica.com, had this trip as a combo package. I just told my travel agent - book me that! And I'm happy I did.
The Pacuare Lodge is fabulous. As to whether to use Adventures Naturales, I think it depends on how laid back you might be about the planning stages. I was lucky because I had actually put my travel agent on them, so he was the one who had to deal with the frustration of their not getting back to him, and trying to pin down details. I think it took until a day or two before we left the get the final itinerary, and this was not planned at the last minute! But as I said, the trip itself was flawless, and they really did plan just about everything. I had vouchers for the hotels and tranfers and the pre-planned activities (Zip Line at Pacuare, and Sunset Tours Volcano Hike and Hot Springs). I switched out the hotel in Arenal, I think they started with Arenal Springs Resort maybe, and I wanted the Lost Iguana. I would probably use them again, just knowing that they're a tad hard to deal with.
They do use their employees for the Lodge portion, we were picked up at the airport by them, and picked up the next day for the rafting. The river guides worked for them as well, and it looked like all the Lodge employees were working for them (I think they are the same company at least.) And everyone was really great. My agent did say that they had good prices too. Also, the Lodge itself is an all-inclusive, except for alcohol and some activities.
I booked this trip based on finding the Lodge first and their website, www.junglelodgecostarica.com, had this trip as a combo package. I just told my travel agent - book me that! And I'm happy I did.
Oct 15th, 2008, 06:10 PM
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In August we took an 8 day trip to CR and it was wonderful. There is something for everyone. I travelled with my husband and 2 daughters ages 19 & 24. We flew into San Jose and a driver from Eclipse Tours met us and drove us to Arenal ( a 4 hour ride). We stayed at Arenal Manoa which was a very nice resort with a great view of the volcano, although we did not see the volcano at night due to rain/clouds.
We booked our excursions through the hotel. We packed a lot into one day. We started with being picked up at our hotel at 7:30 am by Jose and his driver Fernando. Jose toured us through the Hanging Bridges which was a 2 hour hike thru the rain forest. We spotted sloths, monkeys, blue jean dart frog and plants and flowers and so many things. You definitely need a guide for this tour.
Our next stop was La Fortuna waterfall. We climbed down many "stairs" to get to this awesome site. We were rewarded for this by swimming in the pool beneath the falls...priceless!
Our next stop was a terrific lunch at the Luna Grille.
After lunch we went to Arenal Park to hike for 2 hours around the volcano. A beautiful view of Arenal Lake and some wildlife was seen. By 3:30pm this place was way too crowded, so was not as enjoyable as our other 2 destinations.
We ended our day from 5:45-9:30pm at the Tabacon Springs to soothe our weary and achy bodies. We arrived at dusk, so we could not really appreciate the property and it was pretty crowded. We had a dinner reservation at 8:30pm at Tabacon Buffet and then our driver picked us up at 9:30pm. The total cost per person for this combination tour was $150. These were all areas we wanted to explore but we had a limited time in Arenal, so this suited our needs.
The following day we went to Sky Trek/Tram at 9:45 am for the 10:30 appointment which was an exhilarating experience. The rest of the day we relaxed poolside having seen everything we wanted before we moved on to Manuel Antonio.
In Manuel Antonio we stayed at the Parador Hotel which was beautiful. The view from the infinity pool, the food, the room and the terrific service and nice people are just a few things that made our stay special. It was very relaxing. It is quite a long and bumpy ride from the main road down to the resort...but, well worth it. They also have a complimentary van which takes you into town and to Manuel Antonio park where the beaches are spectacular. We also went white water rafting on the Naranjo River. It was a half day rafting trip which was just right for us.
Our last night we spent near the airport at the beautiful Marriott Hotel. They have a free shuttle to the airport
Have a great trip!
We booked our excursions through the hotel. We packed a lot into one day. We started with being picked up at our hotel at 7:30 am by Jose and his driver Fernando. Jose toured us through the Hanging Bridges which was a 2 hour hike thru the rain forest. We spotted sloths, monkeys, blue jean dart frog and plants and flowers and so many things. You definitely need a guide for this tour.
Our next stop was La Fortuna waterfall. We climbed down many "stairs" to get to this awesome site. We were rewarded for this by swimming in the pool beneath the falls...priceless!
Our next stop was a terrific lunch at the Luna Grille.
After lunch we went to Arenal Park to hike for 2 hours around the volcano. A beautiful view of Arenal Lake and some wildlife was seen. By 3:30pm this place was way too crowded, so was not as enjoyable as our other 2 destinations.
We ended our day from 5:45-9:30pm at the Tabacon Springs to soothe our weary and achy bodies. We arrived at dusk, so we could not really appreciate the property and it was pretty crowded. We had a dinner reservation at 8:30pm at Tabacon Buffet and then our driver picked us up at 9:30pm. The total cost per person for this combination tour was $150. These were all areas we wanted to explore but we had a limited time in Arenal, so this suited our needs.
The following day we went to Sky Trek/Tram at 9:45 am for the 10:30 appointment which was an exhilarating experience. The rest of the day we relaxed poolside having seen everything we wanted before we moved on to Manuel Antonio.
In Manuel Antonio we stayed at the Parador Hotel which was beautiful. The view from the infinity pool, the food, the room and the terrific service and nice people are just a few things that made our stay special. It was very relaxing. It is quite a long and bumpy ride from the main road down to the resort...but, well worth it. They also have a complimentary van which takes you into town and to Manuel Antonio park where the beaches are spectacular. We also went white water rafting on the Naranjo River. It was a half day rafting trip which was just right for us.
Our last night we spent near the airport at the beautiful Marriott Hotel. They have a free shuttle to the airport
Have a great trip!
