hi all.
so i've been reading all the info on cr and there is so much. i'm having difficulty filtering it all.
so here's the deal. myself and 3 girlfriends are heading out to cr for part of the winter holiday. we'll be arriving sjo on 16dec ~2pm and leaving 21dec ~9am.
1) is that enough time to go to two different areas w/o losing too much time travelling? we won't be renting a car, so it'll have to be either air or bus...
2) we want to do both coastal and arenal...would it be best to do guanacaste w/ arenal? again, is travelling simple between?
3) if staying in one area, we were considering a surf camp w/ a day trip out to the rainforest. which surf camps would you recommend that also have lodging? (we're surfing newbies)

anything else we should know before we go?

thanks for your help and responses!

Traveling is not simple in Costa Rica. The road conditions make traveling very slow. There are potholes everywhere on most roads. You wind up driving 20 mph on winding roads a lot of the time. The San Jose Airport to Arenal is about 3 1/2 hours (and that road is pretty good) then Arenal to say Tamarindo is about 4 hours driving. About the same to Manuel Antonio...I believe. So if you got in at 2 you could get up to Arenal by night fall..hopefully. Spend one day there and two nights then leave for Jaco (not that its that nice there - but its a great surf area although crowded - and closer to SJO) Get to Jaco at lunch time on the 18th. Spend the 18th, 19th, and 1/2 day on the 20th there and drive back to SJO since you are leaving early in the morning.

If you can change your flight to leave out of Liberia that would be better I think. You could go to Tamarindo for a few days then leave early to catch a flight on the 21st. Liberia is only 1-2 hours from Tamarindo. But really - you should stay there one extra day or just go to one place IMO.

i agree with naplo999, go to tamarindo, it's an easy surf, good restaurants and plenty of nice beaches in drive range!

http://costa.rica.typepad.com/tamarindo/home/index.html

thanks for all the good info. any recommended surf camps for beginners in tamarindo?

This is your mother speaking. . .

There are 4 of you girls? Or are you a guy taking 3 girlfriends????

Either way, do be cautious, keep your wits about you, etc. especially in Tamarindo. Lots of people there make it their life work to prey on tourists, particularly those who are young and in the party mood. Just be careful, please! I'm sure most beach towns in any country are similar, but in my opinion, Tamarindo is a little more risky than perhaps it used to be.

I wouldn't try to do Manuel Antonio unless you want to go there for the entire time. Now that is a thought, but the surfing isn't so great. It's actually about 6 hours from Arenal.

If you are already ticketed into SJO, then you'll need to spend the night of December 20 near the airport. That means you'll need to get to Arenal on the 16th, stay there the 17th, head to whichever Guanacaste beach you choose on the 18th, stay there the nights of the 18th and 19th, then head back to the airport area on the 20th.

You'd have one full day at Arenal (the 17th) and one full day at the beach (the 19th). Traveling on the 16th, 18th, and 20th. Two of those drives (Arenal to beach and beach back to SJO) will be about 5 hours each.

Your best bet would be to rent a car, because if you don't, you'll need to rely on public bus transportation which will eat up a lot more of your time and restrict your schedule. You might even have to spend the first night near the airport. If you do, you MIGHT be able to arrive in the Arenal area by 6:00 before it is totally dark. Chances are you'd have to drive the last little bit after daylight hours--not ideal, but doable with care. It isn't a particularly difficult road.

Another option would be to use a transfer service such as Interbus. www.interbusonline.com

The drawback is that Interbus travel usually requires an early a.m. departure, but you'd have to check the schedule to be sure.

You could hire a driver, several have been recommended on this board; expensive, but oh so much simpler than any other method of travel. You could also hire a taxi to take you here and there. Also expensive. Plan on $100-$150 or more per transfer. Actually not so bad by the time you split it up, I guess.

These are just a few things for you to think about. If I were you, I'd fly down to Manuel Antonio where you won't need a vehicle and enjoy the beach and the rainforest and all the many activities available there. You could fly out first thing on the 17th, and return in the afternoon on the 20th. Good luck!

Just for clarification (because it was clear as mud), the paragraph about renting a car. . .I meant to say "if you DO rent a car, you might be able to get to Arenal by 6:00"

thanks "mom" *nudge-nudge-wink-wink* yes we're 4 girls travelling together, might separate into 2 and 2...
so any recommendations for surf camps anyone??! we'll be careful, i promise.

You don't need a surf camp to get a surf lesson. Generally surf camps are cheap places for surfers to stay and they offer boat rides and other transportation out to some of the hard to get to and bigger breaks. It's not really like "summer camp" for beginning surfers. There might be camps for beginning surfers - not sure. But, there are definately loads of people that give surf lessons whether you stay at a camp or not. I would stay at a nice hotel and take surf lessons - then you can rent boards from a shop after you learn or just take more lessons.

yes listen to mom!!
and this is your father talking!

you'll be fine in tamarindo if you don't do anything 'stupid', the latino romeo who gives u a load of chat is almost certainly going to rob you to pay for crack and <b>don't walk on the beach at night</b>, seems like pretty obvious advice but this board had a girl posting a few days ago complaining that she had gone back to a locals house, and surprise, surpise got robbed.
and i don't know how many tourists i've net here whose cars were robbed cos they left cameras etc in
&quot;but we locked the car doors!!&quot;
you can't do these things back home and you can't do them here!!!!!!!!
be a tourist it's what you're here and it's a great country to be a tourist in for but remember to pack your brains!!

oh and villas macondo has 'apartments' that are cool, quiet location but a few mins walk to the center.
but, they'll almost certainly be full now, worth checking!

thank you &quot;dad&quot; . wow i can really feel the familial love! so i'm starting to rethink the surf camp thing... i spoke to the other girls and it turns out we'll all be staying together on the beach somewhere (save arenal for next time )
any suggestions for nice hotels?
are all-inclusives worth looking at?
if so, heard of any good ones?
and recommended surf shops or people to teach us? (preferably not scary creepy &quot;latino romeos&quot; who're gonna rob us blind...)
what about good companies for day trips?

well mal pais is pretty 'funky'- a couple of the red hot chilli peppers have a place there.
the surf is a little bit strong but i don't know if you're complete beginners or like me u 'can stand up' my problem is staying up!

http://costa.rica.typepad.com/costa_...ome/index.html


jaco sucks, instead of 'lationo romeos' you'll have america college kids who still live at home down here 'partying'
there is a surf at manuel antonio, but hotels there are expensive and will be almost full now.
samara has a surf but at the moment the sea there is full of s**t, due to property developers screwing up the local water table.
i'd go for mal pais and then maybe go to montezuma, beautiful waterfall and a good 'party' scene, but mellow- 'montefuma' we call it down here
but of course being ur father, i better not here about u smoking any of those 'funny cigarettes', me and ur mother qwill be keeping an eye on u!!

I recommend the Best Surf Camp in Costa Rica for beginners to advanced Surfrers
Witch’s Rock Costa Rica Surf Camp

Am I reading this wrong, or is this post 18 years old?