gailching

I read somewhere that someone who is going to CR over Christam/06 should be booking hotels immediately, and that was in MARCH!!

I am going to CR the 2nd and 3rd week of January/07 - I hope it is not too late to book hotels already!

I don't even know how to book the hotels - do I email them or phone them or do I do this through a travel agent??

I am thinking of the following hotels - (please also recommend the best rooms for each location which I should be asking for:

1) Hotel Arenal Paraiso or Montana Del Fuego (which is better, which room to book, any other suggestions for Arenal?)

2)El Sapo Dorado or Arco Iris Lodge (which is better, which room to book, any other suggestions for Monte Verde?)

3) Costa Verde or Villas Nicolas (same as above re: Manuel Antonio)

Any suggestions for accomodations around San Jose?

Any experience with Poas Volcano Lodge?

Please help - THANKS IN ADVANCE!

adamfam

Hi Gail,
There are many others on this site who have much more experience than I do, but I will tell you what my wife and I did last year for a 2 week visit and for this years 1 month visit in June/July. We booked all of our lodgings on the internet mostly on the webpage of the hotel. We didn't have any problems last year and don't expect any this year. Sometimes response time to your e-mails are a bit slow, but eventually they will respond. Be patient.
As for vehicles, we chose to drive last year and are doing it again this year. It gave us much more freedom and for a reasonable price. The rental with taxes and insurances for 1 month this year is $1168. Since we went in the green season, I don't know how the prices for January will compare. Good luck and enjoy the great experience.
Bill

Cvechko

Can't help you with these hotels but in our experience - the travel agents usually direct us to larger hotels & we like the smaller unique ones. So I always buy a Fodors Guide and check out the Fodors website to decide the "where" & "which hotel".

I contact the hotel directly via their website/email. I ask specific questions then book directly with them.

My philosophy is the sooner you can book the better. You should be in great shape to book in January of 07 - it is usually Christmas week that is booked quick. Last month I checked a couple places in Aruba & Cabo and they were already sold out for Christmas 06.

Good luck - hope someone can help you with your hotel questions.

gailching

great, thanks! Who did you book your vehicle through?

Any opinions on the hotels - especially Monteverde Hotels...top choices for Arenal, Monteverde and Manual Antonio please.

theapollomacs

We booked through this site for arenal:
http://arenal.net/arenal-costa-rica-map.htm

and Monteverde/Santa Elena (believe they are same ownership):
http://www.monteverdeinfo.com/maps/monteverde.htm

Someone also shared this one:
http://www.cupotico.com/maps/Arenal%20maps.html

sandyc

One tip if you go with a travel agent is to use an agent inside Costa Rica. The agents in the US mostly know of large properties like the resorts in Guanacaste because they are buying wholesale packages. Agents in Costa Rica know all the properties and can direct you to those charming, smaller places. I highly recommend Swiss Travel for this. They ask you what you like and find the right places.

The upside to going this way is that they can fix things quick if something goes wrong -- you're not on your own.

If you're a bed and breakfast person, there are lots of B&Bs in CR too, and people rent their houses or just rooms in their homes as well. Takes a little more work to find them but it's another way to go. I just found a great house in Puerto Viejo that I'm going to use in August. I'll let you know how it goes.

Sandy

coolbluewater

I just started booking for our honeymoon, starting January 29th--so far, there haven't been issues with availability, though I did notice some nights becoming unavaiable over the last few weeks.

I am not using a travel agent--I've been emailing directly from the websites. I've been getting responses very quickly (1-2 days, not hours).

Hope this helps. I haven't gotten around to truly investigating M.A. yet--so I am behind as well!

gailching

Does any one have contact info for Swiss Travel?

Swiss Travel obvious charges a fee for their service - how does this work? Do they tack on a commission per hotel booking or is it a flat fee?

sandyc

Gailching,

Swiss Travel sets up a whole itinerary for you. They book the hotels, tours, transporation if you want it, guide if you want one etc. They get a commission, but they also can get good deals on the hotels because they do so much business. They make all the arrangements for you, so it's very easy. They'll give you a price for the whole entire package, you wire the money down or pay by credit card as it gets closer, and they meet you at the airport w/ your vouchers, etc. All your hotels and tours and transportation are paid for and you don't have to worry about carrying that money. For individuals and families, you can write to Jennifer Aguero, [email protected] or call her at 011+506-282-4898

If you have any trouble, let me know. I have a lot of contacts there. They are very professional and the drivers are courteous, vans very clean and in good condition, etc. They've helped me out of jams when I lost my passport, etc.

Sandy

sandyc

p.s. To answer your question about commission, the hotels pay them.

Sandy