OVERWHELMED PLANNING COSTA RICA TRIP, PLEASE HELP!
 

Hi There,
I am trying to best plan a trip to Costa Rica and find myself completely overwhelmed!
Help, please!
We only have 6 nights/7 days in the country, in late June. Wed-Wed.
Anyway, we are flying in and have to stay in San Jose for Thurs-Fri-Sat, and then Saturday afternoon are hoping to head to Monteverde for 2 nights--doing a zipline, horseback tour. Then head to Guanacaste to a beach hotel for the next two days. Then back on day 3 to airport....
Now then, my questions are many.
First of all, I assume our only means of transport will be to rent a car? I'm alarmed, since I've read of the dangers of car-rental there, but I'm not sure anything else would be practical, especially with us lugging luggage all over.
Next, while we're in San Jose, our son will be tied up with some school responsbilites, but the rest of us would like to do a day trip on Friday. Any suggestions?
Now then, on to Guanacaste. Can you recommend a hotel on the beach?
Also, how long should it take us to drive from SJose to Monteverde; and then Monteverde to Guanacaste?
I'm sorry I have so many questions. I love planning our travel, but feel highly underqualified for this one!
Thanks so much,
Tammy

Renting a car is not the only option. It is possible to be picked up and dropped off anywhere in the country by a professional driver who knows the way. We have done this on our two visits to CR. In our experience the drivers are quite willing to make stops along the to do some birding, shop, eat, go to a bank or just stretch legs. I can't tell you the cost because we have had the total price quoted by the local agency made all of our bookings but it could not have been crazy expensive. I can't comment on your other questions.

You don't necessarily have to rent a car, but if you do I wouldn't over worry...in my experience the roads in CR aren't as bad as they are made out to be.

As far as driving times, from San Jose to Monteverde it should take about 4 - 4.5 hours.

From Monteverde to the Guanacaste beaches, plan on 3-4 hours depending on where you go.

From the Guanacaste beaches back to San Jose, plan on about 5.5 hours or so.

Thanks for your help! So, if you hire a driver, would we hire him for the week? Or just do everything from San Jose?
Is there a closer beach (from San Jose) than the Guanacaste area?
I just started reading a Costa Rica travel guide, so hopefully I'm sure I'll be gaining a lot of knowledge.
Thanks so much,
tammy

If you hire a driver, you usually just do it to get you from point to point..

From San Jose, the central Pacific Beaches are closer than those of Guanacaste. The closest beach is Jaco - about 2 hours. Some like it, many hate it... (I can't comment since it has been many many years since I've been. Manuel Antonio - another popular beach is a bit over 3 hours from San Jose

If you really want to go to Guanacaste, maybe look into getting an airline ticket where you arrive at SJO and depart from Liberia(LIR)the other International airport in CR which is in Guanacaste.

Good luck

raquel

You really have to decide what you are wanting to see ... I would not personally have choose Guanacaste.
From San Jose, Manual Antonio gives you beaches, perhaps a river raft or ziplining. Jaco with a little precaution gives you some restaurants, nightlife, surfing etc. and is only 1.5 hrs from SJ. Or great surfing try Hermosa (5 miles south of Jaco with black beaches). Or go to Puntarenas .. take the ferry to Nicoya Penisula and see Montezuma (laid back) or a touch further Mal Pais (which you will continue to hear about) a great remote surf area with pretty beaches. Lots of ideas .. you will fall in love with whatever.

We always enjoy driving ourselves and having the freedom of a rental car to go and do as we please. If you hire a driver, you won't need one while in San Jose.

Another option is to use a small shuttle van called Interbus. It has a transportation system that covers the entire country. It costs about $30 per person per transfer.

A driver will cost you about $150 per transfer, and a rental car will run you about $45-60 per day, depending on size. By all means, you should rent a 4X4 for the drive to Monteverde.

There are a couple of things you should think about. You are planning a bit too much for the amount of time that you have. You will not have enough time at Monteverde to thoroughly enjoy it OR the beach you choose in Guanacaste. Personally, I'd settle on San Jose and the beach (unless Monteverde is more important to you than beach time). 2 nights in San Jose, 2 nights in Monteverde, 2 nights in Guanacaste is a total of 6 nights. I don't know what time your departure flight will be, but you will need to drive back from Guanacaste day before your flight. This gives you almost NO beach time--one afternoon and one morning.

That said, there is a beach area that is closer to San Jose and a little closer also to Monteverde. It is the Manuel Antonio area on the central Pacific. It will take you about 3 hours to get there from Monteverde and another 3 hours to return to San Jose. You COULD return on the same day as your flight if you have a midafternoon departure time.

Should you decide to stay with your original plan and finish up your time at one of the beaches in Guanacaste (Playa Hermosa, Playa Ocotal, etc), then you should look into flying out of Liberia, the capital of Guanacaste province. It is 30 minutes from Playa Hermosa. Many people fly into SJO and out of LIR or vice versa to better accomodate their itinerary.

While in San Jose, there are many things you can do to occupy your time. One of them should be a morning walking tour of downtown to include the Teatro Nacional, Plaza de la Cultura, Mercado Central, Avenida Central, Gold Museum, Jade Museum, etc. All within a few blocks of each other.

For your Friday daytrip, consider booking the Highlights of Costa Rica tour. It will take you on a big loop up north of San Jose and will include breakfast at a coffee plantation, Poas Volcano, one of the waterfalls at La Paz Waterfalls Garden, a stop at a hummingbird gallery, lunch at Selva Verde in the Caribbean lowlands, and a river cruise to see wildlife on the Rio Sarapiqui. Then back to SJO through Braulio Carillo Parque Nacional. Full day, but lots to see. I did this tour with Ecoscape Tours, my hotel booked it, the guide was excellent, and it was time well spent in seeing a big section of the country.

www.ecoscapetours.com

There are any number of other "out to the country" tours to take as well and you can decide on this once you get there. Do you know which hotel you will be using in town?

Your guide book will be helpful and you have plenty of time for planning. It's all beautiful, and you can't go wrong in your choices. The only thing that might hamper a good time is too much transferring around. You can save yourselves about 7 hours of tranfer time (translate that into vacation time) by going to the Manuel Antonio area from San Jose and skipping Monteverde. There is a lot to do in Manuel Antonio (horseback, beach, national park, mangrove tours, kayaking).

Good luck, hope this helps a bit.

Forgot to post the Interbus website:

If you go to Manuel Antonio, you really won't need a car; I'd take the shuttle.

www.interbusonline.com

Oh you all are SO helpful! I'm not really set on Guanacaste, my son (18) has been studying in Costa Rica and that's the beach they had been to.
So, dive in, my friends--and help me plan! We do want to do ziplining,etc. If I switch to the Manuel Antonio beach area, should I go there on Saturday, and then schedule the zipline,etc for later in the week. Also, should we do a hotel in Manuel Antonio?
Thank you all for your patience.
IF IT WERE YOU, what would you do, where would you go, with the limits we have?
Thanks!
Tammy

You are welcome. All first timers find themselves with an itinerary that is too ambitious for the roads and the time it takes to get from point A to point B. Even short distances translate into longer hours than you'd ever imagine. And I'm one who thinks that most of the roads are pretty decent in Costa Rica. Nothing goes quickly there. It's always best to plan a slower, more relaxed schedule for maximum enjoyment. I'd head straight to Manuel Antonio for my beach time, if I were you. There is everything to do there, including zip lines. And the wildlife is excellent in the park. Keep in mind the park is closed on Mondays.

OK, I'm looking toward Manuel Antonio now. So maybe just doing the time in San JOse, and then over to Manuel Antonio? Can the shuttle bus or whatever it's called accomodate our luggage,etc? if we go that route? Also, is there enough to do there to occupy us for 4 days?
Also, any recommendations for our stay in San Jose? Someone had suggested the Hotel Barcelo? Any feedback?
Thank you all so much, forgive my many questions!
Tammy

In San Jose, I'd recommend the Hotel Don Carlos for its reasonable prices and accessibility to the areas I mentioned earlier. They have a very attentive staff and a great tour desk to help you with excursions. Another excellent hotel is the Grano de Oro, more expensive, but has a great reputation. You could easily taxi to the touristy areas from there.

These are both smaller, boutique hotels, which many people tend to enjoy more than the larger chains like Barcelo, Hampton, etc.

There is, indeed, plenty to keep you busy in Manuel Antonio for 4 days, provided you'll want to spend some of that time relaxing on the beach.

And yes, the Interbus shuttle can accomodate your luggage. Speaking of that, do plan to pack lightly. You won't need much in the way of clothes, Costa Rica is very casual. You can have your laundry done when you arrive in Manuel Antonio, so that helps even further!

Hotels you may want to look into: Costa Verde, Villas Nicolas, Si Como No, Tulemar Bungalows, Mango Moon, Hotel California. All in all, Costa Verde offers one of the better values with the studio-plus rooms. Great views.

Agree with shillmac that Don Carlos is a good choice for staying in the city. Although ask for a room away from the street if you can. Didn't bother me, it wasn't too noisy, but it might some. For that many days you shouldn't need more than a carry-on size bag, no problem with Interbus. With Interbus you might either get a smaller passenger type van, or a tourist type bus, but both comfortable and with A/C. They pick up at Don Carlos and I believe have 2 x-fers a day.

Hi tamtot,

You've already gotten some great advice here. I will add another vote for dividing your time between San Jose and Manuel Antonio.

Between a daytrip from San Jose (such as the one recommended by shillmac), a little bit of time to see the city (which is not the main highlight for most people), and 3 or 4 days to enjoy the beach and national park at MA, I think you'll have a really nice mix that will give you a decent taste of what Costa Rica is all about!

We liked the Hotel California in MA, but the others mentioned by shillmac get consistently good reviews as well. We haven't stayed in San Jose yet, so can't give you any info there...

We liked Tulemar Bungalows in MA both times we stayed there...the little private beach on the property w/ kayaks, etc. was really nice.

However, I don't know what your budget is so it may or may not be in your range.

airwayz -- Did you stay in the bungalows or one of the villas? We have res'v for the downstairs unit of the Mot-Mot, and don't see many reviews on that particular unit, but that's already a bite on the budget so not willing to go with one of the higher range accomodations.

Hi All,
I wanted to say thank you so much for all the info. Shillmac, your advice has been so helpful! We've completely rearranged our trip at this point, and I'm very excited about how much we'll get to do!
You guys are awesome!
Tammy

It's something we all deal with when first planning trips to Costa Rica--getting our itinerary just right. It's part of the fun: thinking, rethinking, planning, plotting times, distances, days, nights, rethinking, revising, and then finally--voila! --something emerges that is perfect for each of us, what we want to do, and the time we have in which to do it! And when it clicks, it clicks.

Have a great trip and good luck! :)

"It's something we all deal with when first planning trips to Costa Rica--getting our itinerary just right."

lol shillmac...and 2nd trip, and 4th et al

Yeah, I know. That's why I made "trips" plural! And 13th, and 14th. . . . .we still do it too, everytime. But it's fun, isn't it? All the possibilities, never enough time! No matter how much time. . . .it's always too short!

My latest thing is wanting to spend a couple of weeks (or a month!) down on the Osa (might need to win the lottery first), then head south of Golfito to Zancudo, Pavones, etc. And we can't seem to quit returning to favorites: Savegre, for example. I'd love to revisit Selva Verde area, and we can't seem to stay out of Guanacaste, although the time may come when it makes us too sick to see how it's been changed and developed.

And there are so many hotels I'd like to try! Like Playa Nicuesa. Well, heck, there are dozens I could name.