ShSue

We just returned from our fabulous trip to Costa Rica. This forum helped me so much with the planning, so I thought I'd return the favor by posting about our trip. My husband and I and our two kids, aged 4 and 8, all had a great time.

Day 1 - We arrived in Costa Rica on a Thursday afternoon, around 2:45. Tricolor Rental Car was waiting for us outside with my name on a board and whisked us away to their office. We rented a Suzuki Grand Vitara 4 x 4. They give it to us on empty, so we had to go fill up right away. Then we headed out to the Peace Lodge. They met us in the parking lot with umbrellas (it was pouring). The room was incredible, and we only had a standard room. We had dinner in the restaurant (way overpriced....I saw later that we would have been better off with room service) and went to bed early because we'd been travelling since midnight.

Day 2 - We spent the morning touring the Waterfall gardens. The kids absolutely loved holding butterflies, frogs, snakes, and feeding the hummingbirds. This was a highlight of the trip for them. I know it's not the most "natural" way to experience wildlife, but it was perfect for us.

We spent the afternoon driving to the Arenal area. The Peace Lodge gave me excellent directions to follow.

We arrived at the Arenal Springs Resort. As I said on an earlier post, this hotel was fine, but not quite complete. The pool was filled, but cold and not covered. The restaurant wasn't done, but we had a nice breakfast the following morning on the terrace. The room was clean and new, and if the volcano was showing, it would have been a great view. There were a few other guests there, but it was pretty quiet. We went to La Fortuna for dinner and a little walking around.

Day 3 - After breakfast, we decided to try to find a different hotel that had more for the kids to do. We tried Arenal Paraiso but they were full. We ended up at Los Lagos. Although the rooms and the pool area are a little run-down, the kids loved this hotel. They have a hot pool, a jacuzzi, water slides, and beautiful gardens with crocodiles, butterflies, and frogs.

After switching hotels, we spent the afternoon at the Arenal Hanging Bridges. It's about a 2 mile hike and it was just enough for us with the kids. We had rain the whole day.

Day 4 - We did a boat tour with Sunset Tours to Cano Negro Wildlife Refuge. Saw lots of wildlife and had a great time. On the way back, we saw that it was clearer, and we got a glimpse of the Arenal volcano, although not all the way to the top. After dinner we drove around to the back of the volcano just in time to see a few burning rocks rolling down before the clouds came in again. We were lucky to see anything, because we talked to other people who left a day earlier and never saw it.

Day 5 - Spent the morning in the pool and the gardens at Los Lagos. Drove all afternoon (4 1/2 hours) to La Finca Que Ama. Had a fabulous dinner with Arbel and the other guests. Got all our laundry done.

Day 6 - Spent the morning wandering the trails at La Finca. Spent the afternoon driving to Manuel Antonio (3 1/2 hours). I was so glad that we had split the trip up into two parts... that was a long time to be in the car! Stopped at Rio Tarcoles to see the crocodiles on the way.

Checked into Costa Verde. We had a studio-plus room and the view was incredible. I took a ton of pictures from our balcony. We headed into Quepos to a supermarket and bought supplies since breakfast wasn't included here and we had a small kitchenette.

Day 7 - Went to Manuel Antonio National Park in the morning. Headed straight to Playa Manuel Antonio because the ranger told us that was best for the kids. Decided not to get a guide and just see how we did, maybe get one later. (Guide was $40 per person from the hotel, $20 per adult and $10 per kid at the park entrance). We spent the morning beachcombing in the rain. We saw other groups with guides and often saw what they were looking at. That's how we found out first monkeys. After getting soaked, we headed back to the hotel for lunch.

We spent the afternoon at the beach just outside the park. It was sunny, there were lots of people and monkeys. Dinner that night at La Cantina - delicious!

Day 8 - I thought we were going to do a horseback ride, or a mangrove tour, but the kids wanted to go back to the beach. It was a sunny day, so we headed back over to MA Park. We went on a longer hike (some parts were steep and slippery) to two farther beaches, then spent time at the beach. Back to the hotel for swimming at the pool. We went to Anaconda for dinner, hoping to see the monkeys which are supposed to show up every night between 4 and 6. They didn't show.

Day 9 - Checked out of Costa Verde and headed back towards San Jose. Stopped off in Jaco to sightsee and do some souvenir shopping. Arrived at Orquideas Inn in early afternoon. Arranged to have rental car picked up and for ride to the zoo the following morning. Had some fun in the pool and dinner there, which was good.

Day 10 - Got a driver to take us to Zoo Ave and pick us up. Then checked out of the hotel at 12:00 and had the driver take us to the airport for our 2:45 flight.

I planned everything over the internet. Neta, from La Finca Que Ama, referred me to some of the hotels and I got a discount. She was extremely helpful. I was so pleasantly surprised that everything went according to plan. All of our reservations were ready, the directions I got were accurate, we had no trouble with the car. It was a very smooth trip! And even though we don't like to go to the same place twice, we're considering a return trip to see what we missed, like Monteverde and the Caribbean side. I'd highly recommend a Costa Rican vacation to anyone.

doreenwol

I'm doing a similar trip in April with kids 9,11,14 in 8 days (3 nts Arenal, 3 nts Manuel Antonio & 2 nights in San Jose) Just a few questions. Is there anything you would have deleted or added? To many nights in each destination? Long drive to Cano Negro refuge, was it worth it? How was the hotel in San Jose? I was going to do the highlight tour with our extra day in San Jose. We have 9 of us, so we were going to get a driver for 4 days and stuck without a car in Manuel Antonio (cost is less than renting 2 cars)
Any other comments?
Thanks - Doreen

shillmac

ShShu, so glad to hear you had a good time! I was wondering, as I read, if you were doing Neta's Heart of Costa Rica tour package, but I see you weren't. She does offer invaluable help doesn't she?

I enjoyed especially hearing how much your children enjoyed their time at La Paz and Los Lagos--memories like that last a lifetime! Welcome home, and you can be sure you'll enjoy the next time in Costa Rica as much or more! The Caribbean side is pretty interesting--well, gee, EVERYTHING is interesting! Thanks for posting!

triscar

So good to read an account of someone with small children. I'm planning to go with my husband and 3 year old and 18 month old and was hoping to go to the hanging bridges. Do you think it's feasible with the little ones (3 yr old walks far regularly)? I can't find any info about minimum ages.

Also, our route is pretty similar to yours, any other good recommendations for the kids?

Thanks so much!

ShSue

Doreenwol... I thought Cano Negro was totally worth it. They picked us up around 7:30 and I think we got back around 4:00. Lunch was included. The kids slept in the bus on the way home.
We had a car, but we met people who didn't have one in MA and they said the bus was only 25 cents to get around back and forth to the beach, so that should work out fine for you. The Orquideas Inn isn't actually in San Jose, but in Alejuela. We never went to SJ. It was a fine place to stay... not too special, but perfect for our last night.

ShSue

triscar.... I think you would probably do fine at the Hanging Bridges. Will you have your little one in a backpack? It was 1.9 miles. Most of it was gradually uphill or down, with one pretty good climb in the middle. You might need to carry your 3-year old for part of that one, but the rest would be okay. We just went slowly! By the way, kids under 12 are free there.

If you can swing by the La Paz Waterfall Gardens (or stay at Peace Lodge), the butterflies, frogs, snakes and hummingbirds amazed my kids. They get to touch everything. The actual hike to the waterfalls was a little tough... lots of stairs and it was pouring rain. We didn't make it to the last waterfall, but it might be different if it weren't so wet and slippery.

triscar

Thanks, good to know there's something we can do! We'll carry the baby, but the 3 yr old can walk.

I really wanted to stay at the Peace Lodge, but it's fully booked when we are there. Do you think it's worth a detour to see? How long did it take you to drive from Arenal?

Was Manuel Antonio worth the drive, or was it similar to other places near Arenal?

ShSue

For us, it was definitely worth it. I think the admissions to the gardens are $20 per adult and $10 per kid, but ours was included with the room rate. There are other butterfly gardens and snake places around... maybe they would be fine. But these were way better than the ones we saw at Los Lagos. Peace Lodge is about an hour from the airport. It was another 2 1/2 - 3 hours to Arenal.
Manuel Antonio was totally different than Arenal. We spent a lot of time just hanging around at the beach... collecting shells, watching monkeys, splashing in the warm water. Perfect for kids. We stayed at Costa Verde which had a little kitchenette, so we could get food the kids liked for breakfast and lunch.

doreenwol

ShSue - I finally figured out my itinerary. Both the Paraiso and Los Lagos is available for my dates. Which would have chosen with the kids if you had a choice?
Costa Verde would be OK without a car?
Doreen

stevejk

Thanks for the report. We are going to CR, for the first time, for 2.5 weeks (12/19-1/6) with our two kids (10 and 5) to Tambor (Barcelo all inclusive), Monteverde (Finca Terra Viva - farm), back to Alajuela to meet some more family members and then onto Puerto Viejo (Casa Verde and Villas Del Caribe).

Any suggestions you have on the trip - travelling with the kids, excursions, etc. would be most appreciated. Thanks.

ShSue

Doreen,
I didn't actually go in Arenal Paraiso, so I can't really comment on that, although it looked really nice. The room we had at Los Lagos was a little run-down, but it would have fit your group. It had two little bedrooms, one with a queen bed, and one with a bunk bed and a trundle. There was also a tiny kitchenette and a bathroom. The pools and water slides were fun for the kids. I think Arenal Paraiso also has hot springs.
I think Costa Verde would be fine without a car. The bus runs frequently and cheaply from what I heard.

shillmac

stevejk,
While you are in Puerto Viejo, try contacting Abel Bustamante down in Manzanillo. You can drive down there and someone will tell you where to find him, or you can do a search on Google and turn up his phone number. He speaks excellent English and can show you guys around the area in ways that would be fun and exciting for your kids. I always go birding with him, but he owns a little property with a small pond with caimans in it--the kids would love that. He can take you through the Gandoca-Manzanillo Reserve.

Also you would enjoy bike riding. Be sure to take a hike through Cahuita Parque Nacional while there was well. You can do that on your way back to the airport, on your way in, or just during one of the days you are there. Really cool--beautiful park on the beach with wildlife (monkeys, sloths, etc).

Abel Bustamante, Manzanillo Costa Rica

Try that on Google and see what it turns up. Good luck!

faithie

Costa Verde is definitely ok without a car .... Public bus runs every 15 minutes and at about .23 cents !! A bargain . We did it with 2 kids no prob. "Flagging" down a cab from beach to Costa Verde would be about $2.00 US .

stevejk

Thanks for the additional information Shillmac and fathie. I will look for Able Bustamante. Will report back after the trip.

jamaus

I was wondering how the driving was going from Monteverde to Manuel Antonio. I have read some horrible experiences that tourists had in Costa Rica due to the road conditions.

Also, do you have the email address or the website for the company you used to help with the hotel arrangements?

ShSue

Neta, at La Finca Que Ama, was the one who helped me through e-mail with tons of advice and got me some discounts. She is a wonderful resource! You can contact her at [email protected].