Hey guys, My husband and I are still trying to figure out our trip to Costa Rica!

We are so torn because of the short amount of time we are able to stay! I want to experience the rain forest and monkeys(&other wildlife) do zip lining, maybe hiking, see some of the town(s) and culture and also have some time to relax.. Perhaps at the beach... And then I am reading about the hot springs and the waterfalls! Ah! Too many wonderful things!

We are going dec 11-16 or 17. I realize time is creeping up on us, please offer any advice you can!

Thanks!
From an obviously desperate amateur..

.... Sorry or Guanacaste.. Where we thought originally?

We love the Arenal area, so I'd lean towards that unless you really, really want beach time. Lots to do there including the Cano Negro tour to see wildlife, Eco Termales and Tabacon hot springs, zipline at Sky Trek, hike at the Hanging Bridges, do a volcano hike, hike the waterfall and swim at the base, and rafting with Rios Tropicales. We like Manuel Antonio - it has easy access to fairly tame wildlife and a beautiful beach inside the park.

tabacon.com 2 nights

issimosuites.com 2 nights

hotelvillacaletas.com or other nice hotel

within an hour of the airport on flight night.

skytrek.com best zip servicecarental.com or interbusonline.com

You can do both easily I have...

Both areas are great and offer all the things you want. However, in my view Arenal is better for hiking (its a bit cooler), waterfall rappeling, rafting and ziplines. Manuel Antonio is better for wildlife and relaxation. Both areas are about 3 hours away from San Jose and Liberia and 3 hours from each other (come to think of it, everything in Costa Rica seems to be 3 hours away). If you don't mind the drive, and depending on the times of your flights, you could do two nights at one and three nights at the other.

jdp...except OSA LOL

mpoppins,
We didn't visit any beaches on our trip to CR because we figured there are many other places to visit the beach, but not so many places to see volcanoes, hot springs, wildlife, etc. We did stay on the water in OSA, but not for the beach.

I feel kind of the same way Deb does. If we want the beach, snorkeling etc. we go to Hawaii, Belize, or the Caribbean.

Great thanks!!! We've decided on Arenal! Now just choosing the place to stay

Don't know your budget, but the Lost Iguana and Arenal Nayara are nice places to stay. Silencio del Campo is popular too. And if you want to be right up on the volcano, the Arenal Observatory Lodge. The Springs if you want really fancy and pricey. There's not really much to the town itself, basically one main road with the restaurants and things scattered along it. Things are kind of spread out.

Loved Silencio del Campo and not as pricey.