Second trip to CR - advice on Pacific coast
 

We have previously been to CR (two weeks) , and spent time at Drake Bay,Arenal, Monte Verde, and went rafted the Pacuare.

We are planning a trip in February/March 2017 with another couple who have not been to CR before.

Time frame for them is.about a week to ten days and would like to go to Arenal and one other destination.

The husband is an avid fly fisherman, so we would like to find a place where we can fish with a guide (either fly fish or deep sea fishing) and maybe do some fishing on our own. So we are looking for a place on the Pacific side that has access to fishing yet has some other outdoor activities that our spouses can do while we fish.

Looking around the Quepos / Manual Antonio for starters but would like to get some inout on this area or other possible areas to chake out.

Thanks !

We like Tulemar Bungalows in the Manuel Antonio area. They have their own beach and lots of wildlife like monkeys and sloths on site. Lots of adventure activities in the area, the Damas mangrove tour, a beautiful beach inside the national park, many good open air restaurants you can walk to, spice tour, etc. Manuel Antonio Expeditions is a great tour company if you need a guide. Fishing is supposed to be very good, but we haven't tried it. I know they have tournaments there.

We stayed at Costa Verde and they hooked my husband up with a local boat. He had a great fishing day and they cooked our fish for dinner. Years ago, my boss was an avid fly fisherman and went to Costa Rica bone fishing. Not sure where, but I think it was on the Carribean side.

I think you have a great plan of Arenal and Quepos. You will be there for the height of the blue water fishing season.

Be very careful when choosing your captain there. We recently caught a captain running a scam. This guy's boat sank a year ago, and it is in drydock at the marina. But he still offers it online. When the clients show up, he has a story about how his boat had a huge mechanical problem the day before. He then puts them in any boat that happens to be available. He pulled this on us twice before we caught on. The first time, the boat was a huge upgrade, and our guest was thrilled. The second time, it was the opposite. I settled on a refund that made my customers happy. Then had to go toe to toe with this guy for two months to get reimbursed.

You might also think about going to the northeastern part of the country. Rio Colorado is well known for snook and tarpon. The best complaint that I ever received from a fisherman client was that they didn't want to fish a third day. This was because their arms were sore from all the tarpon they had hauled in during the two previous days! The lodges up there can get pretty pricey, but the fishing is pretty terrific.

A cheaper way to do it is to take a package to Tortugero. You can check out the nature for a day, and then book a couple of mornings fishing.

There is some pretty good fly fishing in Lake Arenal too. This is a stocked lake.

I hope this helps. Let me know if I can offer any further advice.

Warm Regards,

Pat Hewitt
Travel Professional

Thanks everyone for the info. Will double check on the guides and may wait until we get to CR before signing up.

My son and father just had a great day fishing on Lake Arenal. I booked it through the website Anywhere Costa Rica. They had a few different options.