Need help planning activities in manuel antonio/arenal areas
 

We are traveling to Costa Rica in April with our 3 teenage boys. We are looking to do the typical Costa Rican "adventures" while we are there (i.e.raft, rappel, zipline, surf, see wildlife, etc.). We are staying 1 night at the Peace Lodge, 4 nights at The Spring Resort in Arenal and 3 nights at Buena Vista in Manuel Antonio. Do we need to book excursions ahead of time or wait until we get there. Are there specific tours, activities, companies, etc. that people would recommend?

www.tripadvisor.com/members/natureguide

best guide/tours at MA

In the Arenal area, Sunset Tours and Desafio are good companies to book with. We like the Cano Negro tour to see wildlife, hiking the waterfall, the Hanging Bridges (hire a guide if you want to increase your chances of seeing wildlife), and rafting with Rios Tropicales. You can also visit the natural hot springs like Eco Termales and Tabacon and zipline at Sky Trek. In MA, take a guided tour of the park (closed Mondays), sail, horseback ride, or do a mangrove tour.

I also highly recommend Desafio - we used them for WW Rafting. They offer everything! You can wait to book once you are there (unless you are traveling during a holiday break). If you pay there and pay cash they will lower the price for you- just ask!

If there's something you have your heart set on, I'd book it ahead. Eco Termales limits the number of people they let in, and we've met people who didn't book it ahead and had to go elsewhere. Other tours like rafting won't go out unless they have enough people, so booking ahead may be a good idea in that case too. For the most part, I think you're safe to book tours once you get there.