Our original plan for a 2-week CR vacation in Feb 2009 is (was): 4 nights in Arenal, 4 nights Manuel Antonio, 4 nights Osa (Bosque del Cabo) and 2 nights Peace Lodge.

Our main interests are wildlife, nature, bird photography, exploring a new area and its people (this would be our first trip to Central America), relaxation. We are not interested in zip lines, waterfall rappelling, white-water rafting, etc. But we definitely enjoy nature walks and beautiful vistas. Did I mention bird photography?

But now, the more I read about how crowded and overpopulated MA is, the more I doubt our decision to go there. The things that we would like to do there: visit the park and its wildlife, maybe spend some time on the beach, horse riding with Finca Valmy, the mangrove tour, the Rainmaker park.

What do you all think? How bad are the crowds? Are they really that bad that we should consider replacing the 4 nights at MA with something else? And if so, what other CR area offers similar things, but without the crowds? We are more into wildlife than plants, so I don’t think Monteverde attracts us. The beach is not absolutely necessary, but would be nice. We don’t intend to spend a lot of time on the beach, but we love seeing it.

Any ideas or suggestions would be appreciated, thanks.

I have a really hard time thinking MA would not be worth your while with all the wonderful things said about it. I think your itinerary also offers a nice variety, not all of the same thing.

Last year we visited Puerto Viejo, Arenal, Osa and Vara Blanca (Peace Lodge) after deciding not to go to MA.

After our trip I continued to research and decided I still wanted to visit MA and included in our trip this month. It should be very busy so I'll be sure to post back how the crowds were and if I thought it was worth the visit!

It's so hard to say, everyone has such different experiences & expections. Just personal experience - my fitst trip to CR, I went to MA and had an excellent time. The 2nd time I went to CR, I went to the Osa (stayed at BdC) and then went to MA and knew then I'd probably not need to come back to MA again. My 2nd time there wasn't as enjoyable as the first just because I'd fallen in love with the isolation & quiet of the Osa and it was such a big slap in the face going there right after BdC! The a/c annoyed me, the crowds, the noises etc. So while I won't be going back I did enjoy the first time there - I would defintely do MA before the Osa if possible!

hipvirgo,
Thanks for the re-assurance. We were drawn to MA because of the wildlife, its abundance and proximity. And the views
Looking forward for your trip report – and pictures. Have a great trip!

Tully,
That’s so funny – actually, based on all the great reviews here, we saved BdC for last. Well, last before La Paz, but SJO airport location dictated that

So we’ll do MA first, then Bdc. Hope this way we’ll enjoy both, for different reasons.

Good plan! Make sure to come back & let us know how you felt about the trip and the Osa vs MA part especially, it gets asked here a lot.

Crowds?

We were in MA two weeks ago and I don't recall any crowds!

We went to the National Park at 10:00 am on a Sunday am and didn't feel it was crowded at all, then spent the rest of our time on tours or at Tulemar, which has it's own private beach and we never saw more than 10 people on the beach!

Honestly, I didn't think it was crowded at all.

Maybe it's the main beach, Espadilla that's supposedly crowded? I don't know, we never went there.

Actually, if you Click on my name you can see photos of MA beach...those were taken at around 11:00 am on a Sunday, if you notice, there isn't a soul on the beaches.

There were a lot of people in the park when we went, but I wouldn't say it was crowded, not to the point of being uncomfortable or anything, just groups of 10 looking through a telescope here or hiking with a guide there. People tend to cluster around the wildlife and then move on. I think as long as you do MA first and the Osa second you'll be fine. In the Osa, we hiked for hours and never saw another soul; that was pretty cool, but MA will give you lots of options in terms of restaurants and things like that.