TravelingWith4Kids

We have thoroughly enjoyed time spent reading all of the excellent post on this site. We have 4 kids (2, 5, 7, and 8 – all girls. ) and 14-16 days in Costa Rica end of June 2010. The rest is open, and since reading we have decided that we want to spend at least 5 days in Arenal. We are debating internally on a rental house on the lake, the AOL, or Los Lagos. This is not the real question but open to suggestions and I think a combination will work there.
We want to stay on the Pacific coast for the other part of the time and at first thought MA was the area. We need calm beaches, beautiful water, less rain than more, and the possibility for a snorkeling adventure either from the beach or on a short boat trip. What areas should we focus on for this leg of the journey? We prefer renting a house/villa to a hotel and plan to rent a car for the duration. I doubt the roads can be much worse than St. John in the US VI.
Our kids love to swim, hike, snorkel, be outdoors but packing up to go to the beach where they can swim can be quite a task. We found a place in Playa Flamingo that looks like an excellent beach house. We are not sure of the area and also see mention of Samara/Carrilo, Playa Conchal, Playa Grande and others. We are having trouble finding a place that looks as appealing and is walking distance to the beach like the one in Flamingo. Are there things we should know that would make another place a better bet still for the kids?
Thanks,
Curt

TravelingWith4Kids

My question is really if the Playa Flamingo beach area is a good choice, especially with kids. The Lonely Planet Costa Rica book had many unflattering things to say about it, but everyone else seems to like it.

Are there other areas on the Pacific coast other than MA that would get us close to beach calm enough for kids and semi-clear water?

Thankss

volcanogirl

If you decide to reconsider MA, check out Buena Vista Villas and Tulemar Bungalows.

SteveH5863

We just came back from Samara and it seems to meet a lot of your requirements.

hipvirgochick

Playa Flamingo and Samara seem to have better access to swimmable beaches, so I think you're headed in the right direction. Manuel Antonio a little more difficult unless you're inside the park or staying at Tulemar or Buena Vista Villas with their private beach (which is very nice, but fairly spendy). Arenal is a great area and I'm sure the kids would LOVE Los Lagos. I know my daughter did!

plumboy

Playa Grande is really beautiful. It's known more for it's surfing and waves, so you might want to investigate the swimming safety for children (and adults) first.

If Playa Flamingo ends up not being it for you, there's a small town a few miles north of Flamingo called Potrero. A beach there called Playa Penca is one of the nicest beaches we've been to in CR. Crescent shaped, calm, clear waters -- very safe for swimming. It's got a perfect slope into the water, and there are some areas at either end that might be good for snorkeling.

I don't think there are too many (if any) rentals ON Playa Penca (one of its attributes), but if you do a search for Potrero, there are a few house rentals there. I would seriously consider doing this myself if we ever go back to that area. Playa Penca was just so quiet and relaxing.

plumboy

There's this rental, claiming to be a 3 minute walk from Playa Penca: http://www.homeaway.com/vacation-rental/p209962

MichelleY

With kids that young, I would pick a place with a pool in addition to access to the beach. Pacific coast is not that warm and snorkling not as great as in the Carribean or Hawaii. Beaches are not Carribean white.

Nords95

We stayed at Los Lagos with 4 kids last summer and they had a blast. They were ages 14, 11, 6 and 2. We also stayed at Tulemar because the private beach is in a cove and it seemed like the water would be a little calmer. That was the case on most days but we did have a few rough days where I made the kids wear life jackets.

shillmac

You are right--there are some lovely beach houses at Playa Flamingo, and it is one of our favorite locations. You can get to a lot of places from there, explore lots of other beaches, etc. But Playa Flamingo is gorgeous. Playa Conchal (10 min from Flamingo) is a fabulous shell beach. All the water is fairly calm, more so at Conchal. Flamingo can have some large waves.

We stay at Flamingo Beach Resort while there simply because they have a huge and fabulous pool that our granddaughter just loves. We don't eat there, too many other places to choose from in the area, but it's great for kids.