Trip Report Part 1
 

So many have helped me on this website that maybe I can be of a little help to other by sharing my trip to Costa Rica.
Just got back today,November 6th.
I stayed in Vista del Valle near Alajuela and hired a private tour guide (Oscar).See my other posting,"Just back from Costa Rica."

The best move I made was to have Oscar take me to places.
I never had to wait for a tour bus, no big groups , no waiting for late people and it was much more pleasant.
The first day we went to Arenal(Air- ren - all) Volcano and Tabacon Hot Springs. We took Highway 15 passing through and stopping to see places along the way, such as Sarchi and Naranjo, Zarcero, San Carlos and La Foruna.
I took pictures of school kids in Fortuna and they thought that was pretty cool, but the girls were bashful and some tried to cover their faces as they giggled.
Their school uniforms were neat and I wanted to show the school kids back home how others dress for school.!!!

We arrived at Arenal Lake and walked around for a while because the Volcano top was cloudy..so we drove around the Lake for while and saw two Koromoondies ( spelling)
crossing the road..they stopped in the middle of the road , so we took pictures.
We got out of the vehicle and waited for the clouds to move away...but they were in no hurry to do this... another 10 minutes and the top was clear..what a nice site, volcanic dust was spewing off the conical top, but no fireworks.!!
We spent about 3 hours at the Hot Springs, Oscar came in the pool with us and the three of us had a great time.
The cost is $19.00/per person, then a refundable $5.00 for the towel and $10.00for the locker key.
The hot waterfalls and pools are just great as is the grounds in general.
Do not miss this place, it is a treat.!
Oscar and I were sitting on a stool in the swim up bar sipping on a drink , then I turned to Oscar and siad, " your are so lucky to be living in such a nice warm country, look at that beatiful Volcano". We were both loking at the top of Arenal when all of a sudden, BOOM!!!!, the volcano erupted about 2000 meters into the air.(Oscars estimate was 2000 meters). I thought how luck I was to see it all.
On the way back we took a scenic drive from Fortuna to the L.A. Cloud Forest, this is owned by a prevous President of Costa Rica.
It was cloudy and misty and lovley.
From here we went to San Ramon , to try to see if we can spot some quetzal..yeah sure, no luck at all, this is not their mating season and you REALLY have to be lucky to see one.
So we went into the town of San Ramon and toured around and visted the nice church and town square and shops,before we went back onto the Inter Anerican Highway and headed for Alajuela(pronounced Ala- who-way-A, now say it fast).
I took pictures of all the interesting sites along the way.
Oscar explained everything as we drove. Also we talked about his family, life in Costa Rica and Politics and everything in general.
I saw very few signs directing you to places and I kept asking Oscar, "How would I have found this place and that place on my own"??

I found out that to rent a 4x4 is between $400 to $650 per week depending on the season and the type and model , then gas is 75 cents litre , then there is insurance.
But the big problem to me was getting from place A to place B, oh I would have got there eventually.
My hat is off to those that drive and find their way, getting through San Jose is a experience in itself..but that is another story.!!!
The next day I wanted to go to the Aerial Tram in Braulio Carrillo Park but Oscar said there is a better on at Orotina.
This is a new place and just opened May 2003.
It is called Tram BA-RI and the Tram rides over the Tarcoles River.
So off we going,but on our way we stop off at the town of Atenas, which is supposed to have the "nicest" climate in the world. That is quite a title.!! The place is quaint and lovely with nice little shopsand eating places.
Then on to San Mateo..the place of the original Canopy Tour , but I was too chicken to do this one. Oscar agreed.!!This made me feel better.
As you approach TARA BA-RI, there is nice Mango orchards on both sides of the valley as you get nearer the ticket stand.
A guard is at the entrance and take down your licence number.
The tram is a cable car that rides high over the valley and the Tarcoles River.
Our guide Rebecca gretted us at the other end and tookus for a tour of:
A Butterfly Farm
A Bamboo Forest area
An Orchid Gardens
Bromelaide Gardens.
Saw the large Quanacaste Tree there( huge !!)
A Farm with birds and animals
They also have a canopy tour , it is like a little Costa Rican Disneyland!
The cost is $55.00/person.
At the end fo the tour we had a very nice Costa Rican style lunch.
It was ala carte , BUT you could have anything you wanted and as much as you wanted.
They served it to you.
There were about 16 differnt item, and we sampled a spoonful of each.
Then 3 desserts..Rice Pudding, Costa Rica style, a sweet cocnut treat, and a sweet Papaya treat.
Rebecca brought us all 3!!..yum yum. They were nothing short of delicious.
Then it was off to Carara Park to see if we can see any Scarlet Mawcaws.
The entrance fee is $6.00/person.
We toured around before heading for the jungle cruise on the Tarcole River .
Then finally at last Oscar spotted 2 Scarlet Mawcaws....how beautiful this bird is
Wow.
Oscar said if we had not seen any Mawcaws he would have taken us to his brother cabin which is 20 minutes from Jaco on the way to Quepos, he said there are quite a few there.
The Jungle cruise was about 2 1/2 hours( maybe longer) we got extra time, (this is not peak season), plus Oscar came in the boat with us and knew the fellows.
You see many birds along the river cruise.
It was getting a little dark now, there is no twilight here, when 5:30 PM rolls around it is like someone pulls a blind down over the sun.
Driving back to Alajuela,I am gald Oscar was doing the driving, he missed 90 % of the potholes and knew exactly where to turn off even when at times some road looked like a back alley.
Whew ...part two a little later
Percy

Persy,
I am planning to visit Costa Rica in early december. Could you provide me more infromation about your guide Oscar. Did he travel with all the time (how many days)? What was the cost of his services?
Thank you,

I stayed at Vista del Valle in Alajuela .
This was a very nice place with full breakfast included.
Oscar sort of works out of Vista del Valle but is also a private guide.

I hired him for everyday I was there. ( 9 days)
He took us to Tabacon Hot Sprins and Arenal etc.
He came in the pool with us or just sat by the bar.
He gets in free to almost all places because he is bringing business to them.
At Poas he just wait at the gate for us and talked in Spanish to his friends.
I remember him saying .."take your time I will be here."
All I can say is that my cost for my duration was about $ 475.00 US and he drive us everywhere we wanted to go.
From Cartago to Orosi Valley and then to Sarchi and Grecia and Zarcero etc etc.

I could have rented a car...it would have cost more to rent the vehicle and then I would not have known where I was going or at least never in the time it took Oscar to get there.
Let me just give you a few example:

The common tour bus tour of Poas was $34.00.
Oscar drive us there and I paid $9.00 each at the gate( my wife and I)
La Paz Waterfall tour by bus was $45.00, I paid $18.00 each at the gate.
Tabcon Hot Springs tour was $83.00 per person from San Jose...Oscar drove us there and we also toured the lake and other places on the way there and back and the price at the Tabacon Hot Springs ticket office was $18.00 per person.
No matter where we went we came back to Vista del Valle for the night...next day we were off to someplace else.
In reality , Oscar actually save me money!!!!
It is as if his services were free..because the cost of the tours were so much cheaper.
There is nothing wrong in driving yourself...but I saw more with Oscar driving us around.
Also I think of the numerous times Oscar would say, "just want to turn off here and show you this ."

Percy

What do meals cost at Vista del Valle?

thanks

Just FYI, the cost for Tabacon Springs is now $29. Percy got in for a steal at $19 just a few short months ago. I don't know if some his other activities have also increased in price.

Meals at Vista del Valle, if I remember from our stay a few years ago may have run 20 to 30 per person or so (dinner with wine/beer). But the food was very good and the open air dining room looking out over the valley -- absolutely wonderful. We loved this place.

Hi
I stayed at Vista del Valle, and a full Breakfast came with the price of the room.
The breakfast was great and by the time you finished you only needed a snack in the late afternoon.
If you wanted to dine at about6- 7 Pm then you had to let them know before 10 inthe morning , so they would know how many to prepare dinner for.
All the meals were just great...you sit outside under a sor of glass roof with tree branches hanging over ...and in the distance you see the lights of Alajuela and San Jose.

Yes . my price in early November at the Tabacon Hot Springs was $18.00,but All says it is now $29.00.. that is over a 50% rise and is really not required , I think.
Raising the price by $5.00 would be more than reasonable...like they say , nothing is cheap in Costa Rica anymore.
Meals at Vista del Valle were between $18.00 to $20.00.I think I paid $18.00 always.
I had an Imperial beer all the time and my wife had wine.
Many times Oscar sat and had a beer with us before dinner. In fact on some occasions he served us!!
If you decide to stay there a few days, then ask for the Exotic Woods Suite..this has the best view by far.
Hummingbirds will come right to your front door.
If you want to move further away from Alajulea toward Manuel Antonio and Quepos area, remember that Neta has a nice place not far from Orotino.
She also has a great web site.
I am sure you have read message posted by Neta.
Percy

ttt

TTT

I was wondering if you could tell me about the availablity of restrooms in Costa Rica...I know it's a funny request but I have some medical problems and I can't find out any information about this anywhere...thanks

Dear JazzyJ10,
There are a lot of restrooms in CR, and you will find most of them very clean. When you are on the road, if you have a car, and can stop anywhere you want, just look for a Soda (it is a type of cheap restaurant), and they will gladly allow you to use their restrooms. Also in gas stations.
Hope it helps,
Pura Vida,
Neta Talmor