Tenni

I have been doing a lot of research about CR and I have come up with the following:

3 nights Peace Lodge in Heredia
3 nights Tabacon Hot Springs Resort in La Fortuna
3 nights Buena Vista Villas at Tulemar in Manuel Antonio

I was in contact with a TA and they tried to get me to do 2 nights in one and 1 night in another location, but I don't want to move around that much. There are so many places to stay and things to see, it has been hard to make any firm decisions. So any input on these places would be great. Also is there a better place to stay in the Manuel Antonio area? I have had a hard time finding nice hotels in this area. Thanks.

donsspot

Tenni

Just got back from CR yesterday, and you're in for a real treat. The La Paz waterfall park and the Poas Volcano are great trips in Heredia. The Fortuna portion will show you an active volcano, since Arenal was erupting daily (and nightly). Both of those areas are beautiful weather (70's in the daytime, and cool at night).

Tulemar will be hotter since it's nearer the coast.

We stayed in San Jose at the Melia Cariari, and made day trips to Poas and La Paz waterfall using a driver. Then we stayed in Fortuna at the Los Lagos and loved it. Tabacon is very popular so even in the low season, it was full of tour buses. We visited a "private" hot springs in fortuna called Ecotermales Fortuna (506-479-8484)and for about an hour, we were alone! It was unbelievable.

Also, the highlight for me in Fortuna was the "Safari tour" which is an easy rubber raft ride on a flat river, just to see nature. We saw crocodiles, monkeys, and tons of birds. Another great time was the Arenal forest hike.

Both of these tours are offered by the hotels and easy to find.

You really can't go wrong with your itineary, you'll run out of time before you'll run out of things to do.

Have a great time, and enjoy the warm, friendly, wonderful people in CR. They're really special.

Email me if you have any questions.

Don

Suzie2

Don't know what you are looking to get out of your trip but those are great places. All three are very different from each other. There are also day trips from each one that will be different from what the others offer so you will be able to get a good rounded look at the country from many different aspects at a relaxing pace.

Costa Rica is an amazing place. Hard to make a totally wrong decision. It is your vacation. If you want to slow down and smell the roses....go for it.

We have had lively "discussions" with ta's over the years but we usually win. When all is said and done, you are the customer and it is what you want that counts. We have custom designed our trips for many many years now. Some are better than others but they are never totally bad. Some we book ourselves and some I just don't feel like dealing with and have someone down there deal with it.

ekellyga

personally, I think 3 nights at P. Lodge are too many

dcsam

We're getting ready to go to CR next week. But I've done a lot of research, and have to agree that 3 nights at Peace Lode is too many. One or two would do. Perhaps add the extra day to Manuel Antonio. We'll be there for 4 nights, and we'll have something planned for every day. Only wish we had one more day at Manuel Antonio.
Carrie

Suzie2

I guess we all move at our own pace. We spent 2 nights at Peace Lodge and could have easily spent another if we had wanted to do any tours from there. We were just using it as a place to unwind after 2 weeks of running around the country and were perfectly happy to just play around in the jaccuzis, read in front of the fireplace with a bottle of wine, and soak up our last Pura Vida together before my husband left the country and I continued traveling alone down there for another 10 days. We have been bouncing around the country from place to place for many years now and we do enjoy just kicking back and relaxing once in awhile. Peace lodge is a nice place to do that. We loved walking around before and after the tourists were there.

allison04

in MA, I like Si Como No.

guanacaste

i stay at costa verde hotel in manuel antonio, great views fropm the pool!!

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