Weather concern for May wedding in Manuel Antonio
 

I really want to get married in MA because of the wildlife and hills overlooking the ocean. My main concerns are bugs and rain. Should I consider getting married somewhere more dry like Tamarindo to decrease chances of rain and bugs? I plan on having about 15 guests and am considering the following: Tulemar (MA) and Cala Luna (Tamarindo). Any other hotel suggestions would be great. Thanks.

Yes, May is the very beginning of green season and Guanacaste is drier typically, but you'll be safer planning a mid-morning wedding if you want the best chance to absolutely avoid rain.
In the afternoon, the odds will be more in your favor up north. That said, I've been to Tamarindo in mid-March when it came the darndest rain I've ever seen anywhere, anytime. Nothing is foolproof! Again, morning either place will always deliver better odds! I'd vote for MA!

This is a tough one :-) We go to Costa Rica in August which is in the middle of the rainy season and had really good luck with the weather in both places (we had some rain in both locations and some totally dry sunny days as well). You just never know what will happen at the exact hour of your wedding.

I thought that Manuel Antonio was actually less buggy than Tamarindo, even though Tamarindo was drier. Manuel Antonio has more beatiful views than Tamarindo and the hotels are usually located to take advantage of those. Tamarindo has stunning sunsets so a sunset wedding on the beach would be fitting.
I think out of the 2 I would pick Manuel Antonio. Tulemar is probably a good choice. Makanda is expensive but everyone raves about it. Hotel Parador may be another option. I would also consider La Mariposa for the wedding itself, although probably would stay at another place.

If you decide on Tamarindo, I think you should pick a place that is either on Playa Langosta or otherwise up in the hills, away from the beach. Cala Luna is nice and gets good reviews but it is not directly on the beach and does not have views either.

Also, check and make sure that the greenery is back in May already in Tamarindo. In August, Tamarindo is lush and green but I heard that in the dry season it is really parched, brown and dusty. Manuel Antonio is green all year round.

Have you considered other locations? Villa Caletas would be a great option, as would be Florblanca in Malpais.

Thank you for your suggestions. They were very helpful. I had considered Villas Caletas at first, but I wanted my guests to have nearby activities. I think that the bug situation will be fine. We are in the jungle, after all! And having a morning ceremony is an excellent idea to avoid the rain. Does the rain in the afternoons come out from nowhere? Or do you have a couple hours advance warning?

It is typical in the rainy season for the clouds to begin to gather about noon. Definitely not out of nowhere. I hadn't considered that Tamarindo would still be brown in May, but I'll bet it would. It surely takes a few weeks for the rain to work its magic! But if you are doing a sunset wedding on the beach, that wouldn't be much of a factor!

You will have warning about the rain. You can usually see it coming. We've been in MA a couple different times. Even one trip in mid Sept. (height of the rainy season) we didn't have rain until about 3:00 and knew it was coming because it started getting a little cloudy by 1:00. For the 4 days we were there, it rained a couple hours every afternoon but cleared up in time to go out for dinner. Then a couple nights it rained at night but was always beautiful and sunny in the mornings. Of course your experience could be different...who can predict the weather? But MA will be much prettier in May than Tamarindo and I would go MA over Tamarindo anytime!