Costa Rica Vacation suggestions
 

I will be traveling to Costa Rica the End of this October and leaving November 11th. I have 2 weeks to see the sites. I have rented a car 4x4 and will be traveling with 2 elderly ladies.
We arrive in San Jose at noon and I am thinking we would stay around that area for 2 nights.

I will want to do to adventure days for myself and will need to be in a town where the ladies can take a taxi to do some shopping or eating lunch. My 2 trips would be white water rafting and ziplining, unless some one has another suggestion. I would like to make it to the following areas and am looking for suggestions, amount of time in each area to spend and which is the best direction to go.

I would like to make to the following areas: Manual Antonio NP, Arenal, Monteverde, Cartago, Poas, Playa de Coco, Sarchi, Tamarindo.

I would like to find a Cocoa plantation and take a tour.
Coffee plantation for the ladies, nice riverboat tour maybe, cooking class, the basilica, the volcanoes, the rain forest, the cloud forest, the beach... and

I would love some suggestions? I am thinking that to get some good hotel rates we may need to book these in advance? I have found a few places that I read about on this forum that are not that expensive. What I see is that all of these places want my credit card information and some additional information that I am not quite so comfortable giving out. Is this standard? How can I be assured that the hotel is trustworthy?
These are some of the places I have found that sound like they may fit the bill.
Cabinas Coco Azul
Rustic Lodge
Ripp Jack Inn
Hotel Le Bergerac
Quality Hotel Real San Jose
Hotel Vagabondo
Hotel Arco Iris
Gaudy’s backpackers Hostel
Boquete Garden Inn

Since there are 3 of us we will need a room that has 2 beds (or 3 works). I am thinking if we find a place that has a kitchen then we would be able to do some cooking of our own while we are there.
Looking forward to suggestions or comments.

You may not get a better rate by booking in advance. Paying in advance or giving a credit card account number is common and typical. You can get some idea of whether people have trouble by reading TripAdvisor reviews. Most of the hotels you have found have pretty good reviews. You need to start by finding a few locations fairly close to the kinds of things you want to do, and then pick the hotels that suit you and your budget. Something close to town in the Arenal area and something in Manuel Antonio, for instance. You are wise to look at smaller hotels that cater equally to Costa Ricans as well as visitors, since these may have available more beds in a room and cooking facilities. Shopping and snorkeling are two things that I would not rate highly in Costa Rica. I think a guidebook would help you. Don't underestimate the amount of travel time needed to get around.

Many of the hotels in Costa Rica and Panama come standard with two beds.

I've stayed at Gaudy's and if you like to party with lots of people this is a good choice. I was given a room downstairs and found that the noise from my fellow travelers was overwhelming. I much prefer Mi Casa Hostel, not much farther from Gaudy's and IMHO much more tranquilo.

Boquete Garden Inn is very nice, I have never stayed there myself, but have been on the grounds. Boquete is a sweet place.

Enjoy your trip.
Ballardo Diaz,
Jungle Guide - Osa, Corcovado & So. Costa Rica

The Doka Coffee Estate offers a very nice tour. They also have a bed and breakfast called Siempreverde that gets good reviews.

Ziplining is good in either Arenal or Monteverde, so I'd pick one of those two places to zipline. Sky Trek is very popular. We did the Original Canopy tour in Monteverde. Rios Tropicales is nice for rafting.

We've given our credit card info. via fax; it's pretty common in CR.

Is it worth the trip to do both Arenal and Monteverde? I have been also looking at short term condo rentals as I am trying to keep my room budget down so I can spend the money on the tours and sports.

We liked Monteverde; we adore Arenal. The volcano and all the adventure activities make it numero uno in my book. Monteverde is nice if you want to see the cloud forest and get the chance to maybe see a quetzal. It's popular for birding and hiking. The road to get there is long and bumpy though. If you feel pressed for time, it's okay to skip it. If you go Fonda Vela is a nice spot, and our room had two big beds.

I second volcanogirl's suggestion for Doka Coffee Plantation, and we really enjoyed Siempre Verde--we had a room with 3 twins. Beautiful area, close to a lot of the things you are interested in. . .especially Poas.

I think you should start off in Puerto Viejo. Best bet for great weather that time if year and great budget lodging plus lots to do around there including side trip to Bocas del Toro if you want or a couple nights in Tortuguero.