We are traveling to CR end of December for our 25th anniversay. We are thinking of spending 3 days at Peace Lodge and 5 at Bosque Del Cabo...which one would be best to do first? Also..any suggestions with our days spent at each place?
Thanks!

I would do the Peace Lodge last because you'll be really active at BdC and get sweaty and dirty - it's nice to do the Peace Lodge at the end because it's an indulgent spot where you can recover before going back to the real world.

At BdC, we did an early morning birding hike with Carlos, did the Primary Forest Tour with Phillip, and took a boat out to see dolphins and go to the nature sanctuary. We really liked all of them. Friends we met there went horseback riding, surfing, and waterfall repelling and enjoyed those too. You could probably spend days just hiking all the trails there too.

At Peace Lodge, you can hike to the 5 waterfalls, tour the aviary, serpentarium, ranarium, and butterfly house and don't forget to do the nocturnal frog tour - it's really neat to see them up close and get to hold them. The Trout Bar there is a great spot to get a casual meal and sit outside. If you'd like, Poas Volcano is not far away - get there early a.m. for the best chance to see the volcano before the misty fog swirls in.

Thanks for the insight..makes loads of sense! Do you have any thoughts as to whether 5 days at BLC and 3 at PL are too much or too little?

5 nights at BDC is perfect, but I wouldn't do more than 2 nights at PL.

Thanks..would there be any other easy to do place for a day or two at the beginning or end of the trip?

I agree - we only did one night at Peace Lodge, but wished we had had two; I think three would be too long for me.

If you decide to do two days at Peace Lodge, you might want to consider adding the extra day to a place in Puerto Jimenez before or after you Bosque days. I'd heard people talking about doing that when I planned a trip to Bosque last March, and in the end I wish I had! We were there for four nights, and it felt like the perfect time on the property. But I was left wishing we could have gone to the animal sanctuary or gone kayaking or done other activities that are off the Bosque premises. They were too expensive for us to do while we were at BdC because you have to arrange for/pay for transportation to town and back.

Just something to think about if you rearrange your plans.

Bosque is wonderful; I'm sure you'll love it! And I didn't stay a peace lodge but visited the grounds and it was quite lovely. Enjoy!
melissa

As mmb23 says, to combine the BDC trip with a stay at somewhere like Iguana Lodge works well for many people because several of the tours (wildlife sanctuary, sunset kayak, etc.) orginate from Puerto Jimenez which not only creates extra cost, but time away from BDC. A couple of recommended places are Iguana Lodge or Black Turtle Lodge, which also give you some beach time. If you do find yourself at BDC wanting to do some cost prohibitive tours, don't be shy about making new friends to share the cost. That's what it's all about and that's what we did so instead of a $120 boat ride (or something like that) we split the cost as well as the ride into town (and just opted to have lunch in town in between two tours).

Just my personal opinion, but I wouldn't add another location and another hotel change if you can help it. To me it's more of a hassle to keep changing hotels than it's worth and you have two great properties. Also, keep in mind that just because you are staying at Peace Lodge doesn't mean you have to stay on their property the whole time. There are other things to do from that area. There are the Doka Coffee Estates, Poas Volcano, you can go White Water rafting etc....I would go with your 5 days at BDC and 3 days at Peace Lodge for sure. And I agree with doing Peace Lodge last. Also, it will depend on your fliht times as far as how many full days you have at each location.

We've been to both and you'll have a great time!

cyto, I've always wanted to go white water rafting, but we haven't had time on our trip. I was going to recommend the same thing Shell did. Friends of ours did a white water rafting trip from the Peace Lodge; I think it was combined with horseback riding, so maybe check with them if it interests you.

I tend to agree with Shell D. Peace Lodge is a beautiful and relaxing hotel. Go ahead and stay 3 nights there, but feel free to get out and explore that last day (or as much as you want). I'd not select another location and go through the hassle of moving around.

We stayed at Peace Lodge 2 nights and I certainly could have gone for 3--just for the pure lavishness! Certainly would stay there an extra night if we hadn't ever seen the surrounding area like Poas, Doka, etc.--even points to the east would be great to explore--toward the Caribbean side. You will have a whole to day to get all around the area--should be lots of fun!

Stay with your plan!

I did 2 nights at PL last year and easily could've done 3 nights. I wouldn't of done much, and I always feel like I must be "doing something" but after 2 nights I easily could've slept late, cranked the fireplace & cd player, decided where I would shower/bath next, wandered down to the marmosets etc. I think a 5/3 split would be excellent. For the end of December I can only say for both places - book now!

Thanks everyone for the input! I think we will stay with the 5/3 combo...we were planning to do the volcano and coffee tour and one other tour(I can't think of off the top of my head). We also were hoping to be there New Year's Eve and figure they will have something going on for that.

Cytomom,

We have been to the Osa 3 times now and are going to Bosque del Cabo for the third time this summer. I personally hate to spend my time going back/forth to Pt. Jimenzez for tours. The first year at Bosque we went to town, did the dolphin tour (there was not an animal sanctuary tour then) and then returned to Bosque that afternoon.

The last time we were at Bosque we booked out the last flight of the day from Pt. Jimenzez. We went to town after packing up at Bosque, and BDC put our luggage at their office in town. We then went on the animal sanctuary tour and ate in town and went to look around Jose, the bartender's, store. We then hired a taxi to take us to get our lugguage at the Bosque office and to the "airstrip" for our departure back to San Jose. The taxi was only a few bucks. Nothing is very far in Pt. Jimenzez.

Anyway, our flight left at 2:20 pm so that worked out perfectly for us. We didn't even have to pay to go to town because it was included in our transfer cost of $25 that Bosque charges everyone to pick them up upon arrival and take them back for their flight. We just used our "transfer back" to be our way to go on the tour. I also did not feel like we lost time at Bosque - which is precious to us!

As far as tours at Bosque, I personally feel you lose part of the relaxation that is so much a part of Bosque if you try to cram in too many tours. However, I do think (and we are going with our son's best friend's family this summer that have never been before) that I would recommend the following for first time visitors to Bosque:

Primary Forest Tour with Phillip - you will want to do this early in your stay as you will find out so much info that you will use and enjoy knowing when you venture out on the trails by yourself.

Night Hike with Phillip - he did this when we were there in 2004 (it was the longer one after dinner) but in 2006 he was only doing the shorter one before dinner. Either way it is very good.

If you are fit enough (which you don't have to workout as I do not) then for sure go down the Pacific Trail and along the beach to find the waterfall. We never found it in 2004 but we did in 2006 and it was worth it. You have to plan to do that when the tide is out.

The trail to the Pan Dulce beach is a great trail if you want to go to the calmer beach. We always arranged for Bosque to come get us after we had spent some time (kids surfing) at Pan Dulce beach. We passed some guests that were hiking both ways but they looked beat. You can ride share from their too to split the cost.

In addition to the tours recommended by Fae, I suggest the morning birding walk with Carlos or Eduardo, and the horseback as it's only about 15 min away and it's a nice ride through the river bed, jungle and the beach.

and being your honeymoon, don't forget to get a massage! Out under the trees, it's beautiful! I had a troop of spider monkeys to my right and howlers to my left...then it started to rain but no biggie! Definitely nice to get after a couple days there when all your muscles hate you.

I definitely second the massages by Jutta. They are excellent. She came both times to Casa Blanca that we were in so I cannot speak to the massage in the rainforest but I can imagine that it was just as wonderful. Anniversary or not, everyone should get one!

You guys are fanatastic..thank you so much for all the tips...I can hardly wait! Because of all of you this is going to be a fantastic trip and worth waiting 25 years for a honeymoon! One other quick question...better to book this thru an agent or do it all on our own?

I'd do it yourself, just cause it's so easy. Email Bosque and Leonardo can not only book your stay but book your flights if needed. They can also arrange transfer between PL and the airport, probably with Alberto who works for them in the Sna Jose area (or you can just take a taxi, probably be about the same). Peace Lodge is also very easy & I found them quick to respond as well.

I totally agree with tully - we booked everything ourselves, and it was really easy. The hotels can arrange just about everything for you, and both PL and BdC have great service. Have fun!