Costa Rica with Kids
 

We would love to travel to CR with our 6-9 year old next February. Would you advise we wait until the six year old is a little older? Any advice would be appreciated.
Thanks

I think your 6-year-old would get a real kick out of all the wildlife there is to see. You can do a tour of Cano Negro -- you just sit in a boat and you'll see monkeys, lizards, bats, lots of birds, sloths, etc., all in their natural habitat. I think Tortuguero is a good place for a little one -- most hotels have swimming pools and there's lots of wildlife. You'll have to watch those kids like a hawk in the ocean -- most of the beaches have very strong currents, but the ones on the Guanacaste side tend to be calmer. Playa Panama was like bathwater when we were there last July. The Ticos are very friendly to little kids too. There are lots of easy trails through the rainforest where he won't have any problems.

Sandy

Costa Rica is ideal for kids I would definitely not wait! They'll love it. There's zip rides and butterfly gardens, gondolas in the canopy, sloths and anteaters, monkeys everywhere. Do take them!

As Sandy points out, there is no reason to wait, kids can have a great time in CR. Ticos love children and we felt that if anything, we were treated better at hotels and restaurants as a family. It is helpful if they both know how to swim, of course. Also, if you are driving, think about breaking up long trips with stops for sodas or whatever. Good luck and have fun!

We travelled there with 2 6 yo boys and 2 9 yo girls. They all loved it. Monteverde and a boat trip on the river near Palo Verde were the highlights for them.

I second the caution about strong currents. We were swept out to sea in a riptide near Manual Antonio. It was on a later trip and there was no harm done but it would have been a disaster on the trip when they were younger.

Thanks everyone. Any suggestions for family friendly places to stay. If we stay in Guanacaste...should we also plan on staying somewhere close to the Volcano to see that or is a day trip? As you can see I am just beginning my research.

if you´re flying into liberia stay at playa ocotal or playa hermosa, unfortunately my favorite hotel in hermosa- el velero- doesn´t accept kids in high season.
you should go to bagaces waterfall in guanacaste, it´s free:

http://costa.rica.typepad.com/photos...aterfalls.html


and i´d skip palo verde as you can get bee swarms at that time of year, go to cano negra one of THE best wildlife day trips in costa rica, it´s about USD45 per person for thje trip from la fortuna.
also, when in la Fortuna take the kids to cocodrilus valle- the crocodile farm:

http://costa.rica.typepad.com/photos.../dscn0305.html

it´s only a 2 mins walk from choz de laurel where you can get a great breakfast!

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

If you're going to Guanacaste and you want to see the volcano at Arenal, you'll have to stay in Arenal -- it's at least a 4-hour drive one way. I love Arenal Lodge the best -- they'll be great w/ your kids and they'll see a lot of wildlife just sitting at the breakfast table.

Sandy

Sandy