The two of us are travelling along the pacific coast starting in Montezuma and we are wondering if any of you can provide us with useful info re. touring the area on a budget and any other info that may be helpful to "ENJOYING...." our trip. What sights and destinations could you recommend? Any cheap beach cabins to rent? Are there any people who live in Montezuma who could help us out with info upon arrival???

How hard is it to get to Montezuma from the airport in Tambor?

Post 1: Plug 'Montezuma' into the search window, above, and you'll get tons of recent info, which then will help you ask more specific questions.

Don't expect too much in the way of cheap. Montezuma seems to be getting more popular, and therefor more expensive. Great spot, though.



Post 2: Tambor is a landing strip, not an airport, just fyi, so there are no services, etc. Typically, taxis are waiting to pick up those in need of a ride, and if they're not the guard in the booth at the resort entrance there will call one for you. The ride to Montezuma is about 20 minutes & US$25.

What is Montezuma like???

Montezuma is affectionately referred to as "Woodstock on the Gulf" , like an everlasting Grateful Dead Concert !!! I have heard people who were amazed at the fact that it was very american , in fact it WAS developed basically by "hippies" about 25 yrs. ago , supposedly it has a great vibe , and even though not a typical Costa Rican beach town , it is a place worth seeing ....Hopefully u will get a lot more responses . Faith ( looks VERY beautiful which is a big plus )

Faithie...you are a wealth of info...hats off to you!!!

Montezuma is beautiful but pretty small. There is a little kiosk in the center of town where you can book trips and get info. There are only two bars to speak of, Chico's and Hotel Montezuma. The best food I had in Costa Rica was in Montezuma. The chicken curry at Hotel Montezuma and the quesadillas at el Sano Banano were to die for. Hike up to the waterfall. We also went horseback riding on the beach but the next day I felt like I had carried the horse. We stayed at Amor de Mar for $50/night. The hotel is gorgeous, lots of dark wood, breakfast was delicious and served on their terrace. There are cheaper places, too, but nothing as pretty and peaceful as Amor de Mar.

Montezuma is pretty small, but not the smallest.

It pretty much is 2 main streets that intersect, Lined with shops, 2 grocery stores, a few restaurants, plus the 2 bars already mentioned.

As for cheap bungalows, I don't recall any. But we were going to the El Sano Banano Bungalows, so really didn't look at other places.

There is an internet cafe next to El Sano Restaurant and a tour office called Cocozuma Tours. The Tortuga Snorkeling day was a good value. All day, small groups, lunch which was fresh grilled tuna and veggies, soft drinks, juices and beer - $40 pp.

El Sano is also the movie house. Which was fun for a change. We had dinner, then they pull down a big projection screen and show some pretty good movies. It was always packed for the movie.

Hotel Montezuma has some pretty good food and we found their prices to be very low.

Another restaurant across the way, can't recall the name. Anyway standing at the Hotel Montezuma Cafe facing the water, look down the beach to your right, they always had the beach lit with candles, good, inexpensive food.

Have you found the following website?
http://www.nicoyapeninsula.com/montezuma/index.html

Dfamer...thanks for more info, sounds cool. But what was the el sano bungalows like?

The bungalows are small dome structures, quite unusual. All but 2 are set right on the beach with lovely views. The other 2 are set further up the hill in lush vegetation.

The bungalows and suites are approx a 10 - 20 minute walk from town. The beach in front is pretty much unoccupied, except for people walking to the beaches further east and people actually staying here.

Here is the website for El Sano, which will give you lots of pictures, so that you can get an idea.

http://www.elbanano.com/pages/578968/index.htm

If you have additional questions, just ask. Also, you may want to type in El Sano Banano in the search area at the top of this page, El Sano seems to be a favorite of those on this board that have visited Montezuma.

Thanks again dfamer! Sounds peaceful. I had a look

Thanks again dfamer! Sounds peaceful. I had a

Thanks again dfamer! Sounds peaceful. I had a look at the website ...could you tell me though, are their any bathrooms in the domes themselves?...for 130USD i hope they have private baths!

whoa...not sure why it posted three times.

Well I had to laugh! You are welcome 3 times!! Fodors can sometimes act a little crazy!

Ok, Yes the domes do have a bathroom. Inside the room is an area that has a sink, counter, mirror and small fridge, then behind a door is the toilet area. The shower is outside, behind a privacy wall connected to the dome. Each has a balcony or terrace. They are pretty small.

Actually you may even want to look at the suites. There is a building on the beach, with I believe 6 suites, 3 up and 3 down. The upstairs suites sleep 6, I am not sure about the downstairs. We spent a couple nights in one of the upstairs suites, since the domes were all booked we had to change rooms once. I can't remember but these may be a bit less expensive.

Also El Sano has rooms in town at their restaurant. Can't tell you a thing about them.

I vote for Amor de Mar. Stunning location. Can walk to any part of town from the hotel. Very peaceful. Our favorite hotel of the trip.
Webpage is http://www.amordemar.com/index.htm

Wow...nice place! Amor De Mar that is...did you stay in the Casa 1? Thanks for your input Mat629.

dfarmer...do you know of any good restaurants to eat at in Montezuma?

Oh yeah, and i hear that there are some waterfalls somewhere along the beach that you can walk to...what are they like and how far is it?

Greetings, I just had to reply to this post as we were in Montezuma last week! I must say that although we are not "hippies" we completely enjoyed our time there. We stayed in a dome at the El Sano Banano on the beach and felt like we were on our own private island. The food and staff are fantastic. Also memorable meals were had at Cocolores and Playa de Arteses (fish banana curry was amazing!). We also went on the popular 4 hr horseback ride to the waterfall north of Montezuma (not the same waterfall you hike to from town). This ride was amazing - one deserted beach after another and a ton of howler monkeys! Have fun.

Glad to hear you liked it , I am sending my sister and new boyfriend there after 4 nights in M.A. !!!