pchen

Hello Fodorites!

Please give feedback on my Costa Rica itinerary! My friend and I are first timers to Costa Rica this August. We're females in our mid-20s, and are relatively adventurous. Is what we plan to do feasible and the maximal way to enjoy our time? We don't want to waste a moment! What are we missing from each place?

Also, since we're in grad school, we want the most bang for are buck and are on a budget. We are booking hostels online. Still, we're willing to spend money where experiences are extraordinary and unique. Please suggest money-saving alternatives that won't cost us significant amounts of extra time or trouble. Please let us know what's cheaper to book when we're in Costa Rica. Thank you!

San Jose (1 night)
Arenal/La Fortuna (2 nights)
Monteverde Cloud Forest (2 nights)
Quepos/Manual Antonio (2 nights)
San Jose (1 night)

Day 1 - San Jose (rest from plane)
Day 2 - Rafting/Arenal: White water rafting on Rio Pacuare (Exploradores Outdoors), transfer to La Fortuna. Hike to see Arenal Volcano (need a tour for that?)
Day 3 - Arenal: Cano Negro Boat Tour (Sunset Tours), Eco Termales Hot Springs at night
Day 4 - Arenal: Canyoning (Pure Trek), Hanging Bridges. Travel to Monteverde via Desafio's horseback ride. Settle in and night tour of Monteverde
Day 5 - Monteverde: Canopy tour, explore Monteverde (how? anything else?)
Day 6 - Bus to Quepos (Interbus), hang out.
Day 7 - MA Park: hike, enjoy beaches (Playa Manuel Antonio)
Day 8 - MA: kayak, surfing lessons (worth it?), snorkeling, I have no idea? Bus to San Jose ($4 bus)
Day 9 - Fly home

A few additional questions:
1. Is the Cano Negro boat tour good? Or, should we do the much more expensive canoe tour?

2. Do we need to go along tours for max enjoyment of Arenal at night, Monteverde at night, Arenal Hanging Bridges, Manual Antonio hiking? Will the tour guides really offer enough to make the $$ worth it?

3. What is there to do in the Quepos/MA area? All I've heard about is hiking and hanging out at the beaches. Any suggestions?

4. Anything else we're missing or other thoughts? Also, what are good websites or books? I've been using Lonely Planet, TripAdvisor, this website/board, and the Frommers website.

THANKS!

pchen

Also, will rain affect us much?

tully

Just me, but I'd cut one location out, probably Monteverde, too much traveling imho. Not sure how the logistics of your rafting/transfer to Arenal/hike to Arenal would all fit in one day. I know it's tempting to try and cram in as much as possible but travel in CR eats up a lot of time. I'd add a day to Arenal and one to MA.

volcanogirl

The Sunset Tours Cano Negro Tour is excellent - I'd definitely do that. Also, personally I'd skip snorkelling in Manuel Antonio; we did it, and the visibility was pretty poor due to all the sediment in the water.

I agree with Tully about skipping Monteverde this trip so you don't have to move around quite so much. Have a great time!

Pat_Hewitt

I agree with Tully about cutting a location.

Although, I am more a fan of Monteverde than Arenal. So that is where I would cut. But to be fair, I have been to both many times. If you have never been, then the volcano and hot springs are impressive and fun! So you can't go wrong either way.

I too am curious about how you can accomplish getting to Arenal the same day. Normally, you ride back to your San Jose, and get back to your hotel between 6:00 and 7:00 PM. We have arranged for customers to be picked up at Rios Tropicales' operation center to go to Arenal. But it will be a long day, without time for a hike.

You only have eight nights. If you are going to cut Monteverde, I would recommend the following:

San Jose
Arenal
Arenal
Manuel Antonio
Manuel Antonio
Manuel Antonio
San Jose
Rafting, San Jose

If you get in early enough to travel the first day, you could head right for Arenal. Then pick up another night at one of the other locations, or make the rafting trip an overnighter.

Either way, I recommend that you put the rafting at the end. This is purely for psychological reasons. We are all always a little sad when our vacation ends. So this leaves you one big experience to close the trip with a bang.

Hope this helps! Let me know if I can offer more advice.

Warm Regards,
Pat Hewitt
(Travel professional)

Pat_Hewitt

I forgot about the restaurants!

There are several great restaurants in the Quepos area. My favorite is Salsipuedas. This tapas bar is a great place for the sunset, and has very fresh fish. Very reasonable prices too.

Another favorite is the restaurant at Hotel Plinio. Everything from steaks to pizza, and typical Costa Rican to italian.

Hope this helps! Let me know if I can offer more advice.

Warm Regards,
Pat Hewitt
(Travel professional)

volcanogirl

Ah, yes, restaurants. In MA, we liked Ronnie's Place/Mi Lugar, also Salsipuedes, Barba Roja, and Cafe Agua Azul; Cafe Milagro for espresso milkshakes!

In La Fortuna/Arenal, El Novillo has really good steaks - also had a good meal at La Choza de Laurel.