Questions re: Costa Rica Trip

Old Oct 23rd, 2007, 08:32 PM
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Questions re: Costa Rica Trip

My husband and 2 adult children (23 & 26)are traveling this holiday season on our first trip to Costa Rica as follows;
Dec. 27-29-Arenal,Los Lagos Hotel
Dec. 30-Jan. 4, Manuel Antonio, Bueno Vista Villas

From reading these terrific message board we have decided that in Arenal we will do the Sky Trek Canopy Zip Line Tour, the Hanging Bridges and the Tabacon Hot Springs probably with dinner. Cane Negro River Trip seems well liked, but I wonder if we aren't going to see a lot of wildlife in MA? Maybe we don't really need to do it? And it takes a whole day?
I'm wondering if we need restaurant reservations in La Fortuna or MA. I know that this time of year is going to be very crowded with tourists. What would be the best way to make a reservation if needed? I'd love to hear about your favorite restaurants, especially ones that have a nice view for watching the sunset too.

In MA we'll definitely spend time at the beach. What time do we have to line up to make sure we can get into the park? I undersand that there will be guides available for hire as we enter the park?? My family wants to go white water rafting but I think I'll opt for a spa day myself. We thought about doing the horseback ride with Flamy----but 4 hours is a long time to sit on a horse. I was hoping to find somewhere we could ride horses on the beach. Fishing would be fun but sounds incredibly expensive.

Since we will be there for New Year's Eve we'd like to find something special to do that night as a family. Any suggestions? We won't be getting into town until the 30th so we won't have much time to check things out.

Do you have any suggestions regarding the trip from Arenal to MA? Would you recommend flying over driving? Not so sure of the prices, but I know it would save time. Would it be worth it?

Well, based on my kids ages perhaps you might have some other suggestions to offer as far as activities...

Thanks so much for your help!
bkcangel is offline  
Old Oct 24th, 2007, 04:06 AM
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Hi, bkcangel - regarding the wildlife in Cano Negro vs. Manuel Antonio, Cano Negro is a boat ride on a river, and it's a really wonderful experience. Manuel Antonio is a walk through a park that can at times get crowded. On our Cano Negro trip, we didn't see any other people for hours, but in MA, we saw crowds of people surrounding one little monkey and trying to get pictures. The wildlife you see will probably be pretty similar - monkeys, sloths, bats, etc. I think you'd have time to do Cano Negro if you do the hot springs in the evening, but if it doesn't interest you that much, it's okay to skip it.

As far as restaurants, in La Fortuna, we liked El Novillo for steaks and La Choza de Laurel - known for their rotisserie chicken. In MA, we loved Ronnie's Place/Mi Lugar. Barba Roja, Cafe Agua Azul, and Salsipuedes were also good. Almost any place you go in MA will be good for watching the sunset. Most everything is clustered on the hill and overlooking the water. Ronnie's is known for lobster and really good sangria. We didn't make reservations anywhere, but we were there in green season. MA has lots of wonderful, fresh seafood.

I would get to MA park as soon as it opens in the morning. We hired a guide through our hotel, but there were guides lingering outside the park that you could hire. We were really glad we had ours because he spotted a lot of things we wouldn't have and also carried a nice scope for us to look through. Wildlife is abundant in the park. If you watch other groups, it makes the spotting pretty easy because a big group will all be pointing in the same direction. The Finca Valmy tour gets really good reviews, but we haven't done it personally. Have you thought about the mangrove tour? That gets good reviews as well. We went sailing, which was fun and snorkeling which wasn't too great because of poor visibility in the water.

We hired a driver to go from Arenal to MA and enjoyed the ride. We have flown Sansa before to the Osa, but for this trip, I think you'd be fine to just drive/ride. Sansa limits you to 22 pounds of luggage and doesn't always run on time, so that's something to consider, but if you feel like you're running short of time, you could consider flying.

We didn't find a lot of nightlife in CR, so not sure what to recommend for a New Year's Eve - I'd do a nice dinner at Ronnie's and then maybe go somewhere to listen to live music. Have a wonderful trip.
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Old Oct 24th, 2007, 05:27 AM
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There are companies in MA that do horseback rides on the beach. I have seen them. Google brings up Equus Stables as being the recommended one. I have no personal experience. I have done the ride to the waterfall twice over the years and enjoyed it. It didn't really seem that long

Asfor nightlife - as Volcanogirl says - places to listen to music - Dos Locos in Quepos on Wednesdays and Fridays, Gato Negro (we enjoy Mondays - Fuzzy Rojas and Leo) Si Como No. There are others. Ask around and you'll find out. The place that really gets crowded and lively is Bambu Jam on Fridays.

Some places will probably have special New Years activities. Pick up a free copy of Quepolandia - the local monthly magazine available at most bars, restaurants and tourist shops. There is a lot of info there and may tell you whats special is on for the period you are there.

Pura Vida,
raquel
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Old Oct 24th, 2007, 03:30 PM
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Personally liked Cano Negro alot also. Many great birds, monkeys etc...I would skip Hanging Bridges if you are going to MA. Agree with previous poster that evening visit to Tabacon would be sufficient...You could also try Ecotermales Hot Spring for dinner...more authentic experience...not quite as beautiful/lush as Tabacon however.
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Old Oct 25th, 2007, 07:58 AM
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We thoroughly enjoyed the Cano Negro tour and would definitely do it again. We spent time in the Osa as well and saw amazing wildlife, but still felt Cano Negro was a great trip.

We visited Eco-Thermales hot springs that same night. You are going during a really busy time so you might consider going there rather than Tabacon (which may be much more crowded). ET seems to have more natural rainforest surroundings than the manicured grounds Tabacon has (haven't been there, only seen pictures) and I've heard ET has pretty good food (whereas Tabacon gets terrible reviews) if you want to include the dinner option.
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Old Oct 25th, 2007, 09:21 AM
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I agree; if I had to skip something on your list, I'd skip the Hanging Bridges - it's not that easy to spot wildlife there (we didn't see any), and the volcano view was socked in by fog, so we didn't get that either - just turned out to be a nice hike, but no big wow moments there for us.
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Old Oct 25th, 2007, 12:50 PM
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I recommend Sky Trek. We had a great experience.

If you have time, Cano Negro was amazing.

I didn't enjoy the hanging bridges as much as I enjoyed Arenal National Park. It's just a few dollars and you get some great views of the volcano, plus there's tons of wildlife to see.

We did the dinner/evening at Tabacon deal and it worked out great. While we were there we got to see lava flow from the volcano too! Tabacon is very "resorty", I've heard Ecothermales is a much more "native" attraction.

Just a thought =)
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Old Oct 25th, 2007, 01:04 PM
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ET, what did you think of the dinner at Tabacon? We liked the springs, but we didn't do the dinner, and I've heard mixed reviews. Was it a buffet?
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Old Oct 25th, 2007, 03:12 PM
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Our favorite night in Arenal was when we went to Linda Vista. The lava flow was on that side of the volcano and Linda Vista is kind of out in the middle of nowhere so it's nice and dark. We ate outside looking directly at the volcano watching the lava flow. It was magical! We hired a taxi to take us there and I recommend that. The roads are very very dark and narrow and can be dangerous at night. We actually saw a car almost drive off the side of the road. It was a horrible scene.

As far as the tour of MA park. I would make a reservation. If you are going down the road into MA national park area there are a ton of outside vendors along the beach. On the other side are shops. On that side of the road (the shop side) there is a little stand in front of a convenient mart type store. They help set up various activities in the area. When we were there there was a blonde girl probably in her early 20's from Texas working the stand. They hav a few fabulous tour guides that they make reservations for. Otherwise, there are a bunch of tour guides walking around trying to get people to go with them and you never know the quality you will get.
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Old Oct 25th, 2007, 04:32 PM
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Tabacon is beautiful, so if you plan to do it, try to arrive before dark. If not, you might as well save some money and go to Eco Thermales for (probably) better food and for sure better prices. It also gets good reviews, as others have mentioned. To me, Tabacon is best experienced first thing in the morning (opens at 10:00) when there are fewer people and you can enjoy all the lush landscaping.
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Old Oct 25th, 2007, 06:38 PM
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Yes, it's a buffet. Dinner was OK. Of all the meals we ate in Costa Rica, I think that was my least favorite. Although, the desserts were good.
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Old Oct 25th, 2007, 06:43 PM
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Thanks, ET, that's similar to what I've heard.
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Old Oct 26th, 2007, 06:23 AM
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Old Oct 26th, 2007, 10:33 AM
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bookmarking too
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Old Oct 28th, 2007, 01:54 PM
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Thank you all so much for your insightful comments and suggestions. We're definitely caning the idea of flying--definitley won't work with the baggage limit and the way my daguhter packs. We'll have to hire a driver, my husband doesn't want to drive. Any recommendations? Should we build in any stops along the way? I'm now convinced we should do Cane Negro. Their web site is a bit confusing. What is the basic trip you all are talking about? Do we need to book that with Sunset Tours way ahead of time? If we do this trip would it still make sense to do the mangrove tour in MA? Are they similiar?

We've really had a hard time getting into Tabacon because they are so booked up. It seems there is just one night they can sqeeze us in for the dinner thing. But now I can see the advantage to going during the daylight hours and I'm going to push to go during the day. The fellow that works there told me I can always call and there would be cancellations that week??? There is something about that website that keeps calling to me...

Thanks for the great tips on restaurants and night life--they ae tops on our list! I appreicate the connection for riding on the beach. I hope the blonde girl in MA reserving the guides is still there--I'll keep my eye out for her.

Thanks again everybody. I'll write a report when I get back. In the meantime if you have any further suggestions, they would be greatly appreciated
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Old Oct 29th, 2007, 06:42 PM
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We'll be looking for your report in January! Have a great trip! The spa at Tabacon is excellent, and I THINK if you'll book a treatment or 2 with them, your admission to the hot springs won't be a problem. Morning is a good time to visit. The spa is right in the middle of the springs, but they are 2 separate entities. Do your spa booking first (on the Tabacon website), and do it quickly if it appeals to you. Then worry about the hot springs admission once you arrive. I think it will work out just fine for you. Enjoy!
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