tiffpolm

We will be in Costa Rica at the end of May, staying at the Marriott San Jose for a conference. We have one full free day, with no conference meetings or activities scheduled. What is the best day trip or tour from San Jose? Not sure if we will have a car. Have looked at tours to Tortugeuro but didn't know if this is too much travel time, although we are young and adventurous travelers. Thanks in advance.

volcanogirl

I wouldn't go to Tortuguero for the day. There's a lot of travel time to get there. For me, that's better for a two night stay. I'd go to the Doka Coffee Estate and do their tour, go to Poas volcano, and go to the La Paz Waterfall Gardens. La Paz has handfeeding of hummingbirds twice a day that's really amazing.

sylvia3

I'd definately include Volcan Poas National Park; Great scenery on the way, beautiful active caldera, hiking in the park.
http://costa-rica-guide.com/parks/poas.htm
However, that would be the first thing in the day to do, because the clouds start to obscure the caldera pretty early. You can take the bus ("Daily departures from Avenida2, Calles 12/14 in San José at 8:30 a.m. make one stop in Alajuela's central plaza at 9:00 a.m. on the two hour journey to the park. There is only one return bus, don't miss it at 2:30 p.m. (Tuasa company, $US 3, bus 1241, phone 233-7477)."

La Paz is also very pretty, if a bit pricey. (They'll pick you up in San Jose, lunch included, for $75 pp;http://www.waterfallgardens.com/la_p...ll_gardens.php)
If you wanted to do all 3 mentioned by volcanogirl, I'd do Poas, then La Paz, and then throw in the coffee if you had time and energy and a rental car for the day.
If you won't have a car, the bus will limit you to Poas only; the tour to La Paz is 10:30 a.m. to 5 or 6 p.m.; OR you could hire a private driver for a combination.
Also, Doka offers tour and Poas, but again, you probably want to control the timing of when you get to the National Park. http://www.dokaestate.com/coffee_tour/schedule.html

brmsimmons

Since you are adventurous I would look into one of the 1 day white water rafting trips along the Pacuare. Costa Rica Expeditions and Aventuras Naturales both offer tours with hotel pick up.

tiffpolm

Thanks for all the suggestions. Now to decide. Although I think my husband is sold on rafting the Pacuare!

volcanogirl

That is a great suggestion. We haven't done it yet, but it gets rave reviews.

tiffpolm

Which river is better for scenery- Pacuare or Sarapiqui? I know the Pacuare is more exciting for the rapids and rafting, but to see the rain forest, wild life and nature, which is recommended?
Tiffany

volcanogirl

We've done the Sarapiqui and loved it. It's a pretty area; we did not see a lot of wildlife though. The Sarapiqui had some white water on it. We got tossed out of boat twice; the water was running pretty high when we did it. I think it was a class III. We had some class II areas where we could catch our breath a little which I liked. The Pacuare is the biggie though, the most popular place to raft.