Help with itinerary
 

Hi--My husband and I will be in Costa Rica for 11 days in April. We are trying to decide between the following 3 itineraries. What are your opinions? Any insight would be GREATLY appreciated! <BR><BR>#1— <BR><BR>4/26—San Jose (get in around 8:00 pm) <BR>4/27—San Jose (see the city) <BR>4/28—San Jose (day long rafting trip on the Pacuare) <BR>4/29—go to Tortuguero (either by bus/boat or plane) <BR>4/30—Tortuguero <BR>5/1— return to San Jose from Tortuguero (around 4:00 pm unless fly); go from San Jose to Arenal Volcano <BR>5/2—hang out in Arenal <BR>5/3—leave early in the morning to go from Arenal to Manuel Antonio <BR>5/4—Manuel Antonio (riosparaiso canopy/hot springs tour) <BR>5/5—Manuel Antonio (beach) <BR>5/6—leave Manuel Antonio early enough to catch 12:30 flight home out of San Jose <BR><BR>#2-- <BR><BR>4/26—San Jose (get in around 8:00 pm) <BR>4/27—San Jose (see the city) <BR>4/28—San Jose (day long rafting trip on the Pacuare) <BR>4/29—go to Monteverde (evening hike?) <BR>4/30—Monteverde (sky trek canopy tour) <BR>5/1—travel on horseback through the mountains to Arenal Volcano <BR>5/2—Arenal <BR>5/3—leave early in the morning to go from Arenal to Manuel Antonio <BR>5/4—Manuel Antonio (riosparaiso canopy/hot springs tour) <BR>5/5—Manuel Antonio (beach) <BR>5/6—leave Manuel Antonio early enough to catch 12:30 flight home out of San Jose <BR><BR>#3 <BR><BR>4/26—San Jose (get in around 8:00 pm) <BR>4/27—San Jose (see the city) <BR>4/28—San Jose (day long rafting trip on the Pacuare) <BR>4/29—go to Arenal <BR>4/30—Arenal <BR>5/1--leave early in the morning to go from Arenal to Manuel Antonio <BR>5/2—Manuel Antonio (beach) <BR>5/3—Manuel Antonio (riosparaiso canopy/hot springs tour) <BR>5/4—Manuel Antonio (kayak tour on island) <BR>5/5—drive back to San Jose <BR>5/6—catch flight at 12:30 <BR><BR>Thanks!<BR><BR>

I would have to go with #2 or #3 due to a few logistical problems with #1:<BR><BR>1. It gets dark at about 6:00 p.m. in Costa Rica. You do not want to drive to Arenal from San Jose after dark. (In fact, you do not want to drive anywhere in Costa Rica after dark.)<BR><BR>2. Unless you are flying from Quepos to San Jose, you would need to leave Manuel Antonio at about 6:30 a.m. in order to catch a 12:30 flight. (Would highly recommend taht you be at the airport no less than 3 hours before your flight home.)<BR><BR><BR>Whatever itinerary you choose, I would forego the day in San Jose and spend a day instead seeing sights in the Central Valley (La Paz Waterfall Gardens and Poas would be my first pick). In the alternative, you could do the highlights tour, such as www.ecospacetours.com. <BR><BR>You've come up with some great ideas and really can't go wrong no matter where you go. Have a wonderful trip!<BR><BR>

Regarding my post above - that should be www.ecoscapetours.com.

Thanks so much for your input. We have decided to go with number 3, and will consider your suggestions about San Jose.

Definitely the highlight tour for a full day. You see an amazing variety of places in just one day. San Jose really doesn't have much to offer except for a few museums. CR is more about nature.<BR>For dinner at night you could think about the Monastery.<BR>Regarding Tortuguero you could think about the bus/boat for one direction and a flight for the other. It is a long trip by bus/boat but much of that is on the boat and you will basically be siteseeing the canal while traveling. This would give you the extra time siteseeing on the way there rather than leaving late on the return day. You could fly out earlier on your return day thereby giving you time to get to Arenal before dark.<BR>Have done the Pacuare many times. It is beautiful.<BR>There is a big difference between the Monteverde Reserve and Tortuguero. They both have a lot to offer. For wildlife T has more but M cloud forest/Santa Elena has more options for things to do other than sit in a boat sight seeing.<BR>I have done the horse trip between M and A and it was beautiful.<BR>Definitely get to the airport 3hrs early as was mentioned. I found the new terminal to be a bit more time consuming. Of course that could be because there were several flights cancelled due to the Blizzard in the northeast. Be sure to pay your exit tax before checking into the airline.