Yet Another Trip Report!

Old Jul 23rd, 2004, 03:47 AM
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jeg
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Yet Another Trip Report!

We just got back from our two week trip to CR and, like so many others in this forum, wanted to "pay back" for all the help I received in planning. We stayed at a couple of places that don't seem to be mentioned very often here, so I'm hoping the info. will be helpful to someone.
We're a family of four, with two daughters. We've traveled quite a bit, but I usually spend my time worrying about what will go wrong. Everyone else in the family is optimistic and adventurous!
We were driven straight from the airport to Arenal Paraiso (Costa Rica Transfers). I was interested in reading some recent negative reports about A.R. We loved it! Maybe we're used to more basic lodging, but we didn't find it rustic at all. It easily had the best breakfast on our whole trip, the grounds were gorgeous, and we were able to spend two nights watching the volcano. The front desk people were incredibly friendly and helpful. There was a lot of construction, right near our cabin (#265). I thought of having our cabin changed, but we were one of the few cabins with a porch that faced into the forest. We'd sit on the porch and watch toucans and other birds fly from tree to tree.
We did the canopy tour there (well, three of us did!).They loved it. One negative -- we paid $30.00 for a CD with photos from the tour and when we got home, the photos weren't on the CD. I'm going to contact them. I'm hoping it was an honest mistake and not a rip-off.
All of us did the horseback ride near the volcano. I'd have to say that was one of the most terrifying experiences of my life. It felt very treacherous. Of course, it was a highlight for everyone else in my family.
From A.R. we went to Manuel Antonio, where we stayed at Mono Azul. I didn't love this hotel, thought I really wanted to! It's hard to put my finger on why. I know it's very popular; it was totally booked while we were there. We took several fantastic tours, including a guided tour of the national park and a mangrove tour.
Then we went to Hacienda Baru, near Dominical. What a drive that was! The approx. 20 miles took 2 hours to drive (private driver again). It was worth it, though. Hacienda Baru was clearly the highlight of our trip. It's definitely more rustic -- not for those who prefer resorts. It felt much more authentic than some of the places we stayed, including A.R. We did some great tours, including the Night in the Jungle tour. (Again, terrifying for me but incredible for the other three!) It was a several hour hike through the rainforest and then camping in a tent in the middle of the jungle and taking a "night hike" where we saw tarantulas and other scary things. I spent most of the night imagining them crawling into the tent! The guides at Hacienda Baru were wonderful -- friendly, attentive, and informative. The restaurant there was very good.
Next we spent one night at Orquideas. We enjoyed it very much. We had to leave very early the next morning for our tour to Tortuguero with Fran and Modesto Watson.
We stayed two nights at the Laguna Lodge with the Watsons. The wildlife viewing was great, but we'd already seen an incredible number of animals at Manuel Antonio and Hacienda Baru. A real highlight was watching the turtles nest on the beach at night. It was amazing!
From Tortuguero we went to the Sarapiquis region for two nights. We stayed at Centro Neotropico Sarapiquis, one of the hotels that doesn't seem to be mentioned here very often. I was skeptical (of course) at first, but this turned out to be one of our favoite places. Again, the front desk people were fabulous. The hotel is next to the Tirimbina Reserve. (You walk to it over a very long suspension bridge.) We had a terrific tour of the reserve. We also did a night hike at the Selva Biological Station.
From Sarapiquis, we went for our last night at Orquideas. We flew out the next day.
You can probably tell that we're not the one week at one place type of family. We like to move around and see things. That worked very well for us. In general, the tours we took were unforgettable and the people we met were some of the most friendly we've met in all our travels (I think having two daughters helped!). It was a great vacation and it will hopefully be a learning experience for me -- relax and get over those sleepless nights! (I do still have nightmares about that horseback ride, though!)
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Old Jul 23rd, 2004, 05:00 AM
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Jeg,
Glad you had a great vacation and thanks for the trip report!
A question.....what was so terrifying about the horseback tour? Sorry to ask because I don't want to bring more trama into your life with nightmares and such , but I'd really like to know!
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Old Jul 23rd, 2004, 05:15 AM
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I was actually really scared of the horsebackriding with Arenal Paraiso too - to the volcano. The day we went it was pouring so hard & the guides really didn't speak any English. The horses would kick each other (& sometimes kick people - me included) when they got too close which they tend to do. They were slipping & falling all over the place because of the rain, mud & rocks. Some of them liked to run - fast. Others - like mine - seemed to take his time, but would walk so close to the trees, barbed wire fences, etc that my legs would constantly get dragged through those things. I don't think the conditions could be good on the horses. Of all the activity we did in CR, this was the scariest - and I've been riding before, so I didn't expect to feel nervous with it. Not sure if jeg's experience was the same....but that was mine for what it's worth!
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Old Jul 23rd, 2004, 05:18 AM
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Jeg: thanks for the terrific report. I'd be interested in hearing more abt La Selva. We're thinking of taking a tour there-- not the night one though. How does it comparer/contrast to Tirimbina? Which is better? Also: did you have many biting bugs on your trip? I'm particulalrly worried about fire ants because I've been bitten before (in Florida) and they were pretty serious stuff. Thanks-- and glad you had a good trip!
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Old Jul 23rd, 2004, 05:23 AM
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Jeg: I forgot to ask: Did you do the Rainmaker tour near MA? Or the Tarcoles river tour? I'd be interested in hearing feed-back on those. Also the Hanging Bridges tour in Arenal. Thank you!!
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Old Jul 23rd, 2004, 06:15 AM
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Jeg,

Thanks for the trip report. I feel reassured about our stay at the AP next month. Thanks also to you and Sclubb about the info about the horseback ride as that is one of the tours we're considering. Now I'm not so sure it would be a good idea for my mother-in-law. The only other time she has been on a horse is short ride with us in Yosemite. Do you also ride horses to the zip line tour at AP? Or are they right on the property?

Thanks again for all the great info!
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Old Jul 23rd, 2004, 06:32 AM
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Jeg,
What was your overall experience with Costa Rica Transfer? Did you have the same guide/driver who transfer you from place to place? Did he speak English? Did Costa Rica Transfers arranged the lodging/tours for you?

Thank you,
Maria X.
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Old Jul 23rd, 2004, 07:25 AM
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jeg
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Hi Ally,
Sclubb described the horseback ride perfectly. There were some problems with my horse kicking and getting agitated when he was too close to the other horses. I experienced the same thing with getting too close to barbed wire, and a couple of the horses slipped in the mud. It just seemed very hard for the horses to find their footing on the areas that were very steep, muddy, and rocky. The rest of my family really did love it, but I would never do it again.
Poss -- La Selva seemed very interesting. Unfortunately, we only went there that one night, so we didn't get a good sense of the surroundings, but I was very interested in the research work being done there. Our guide did say that it's a great place for wildlife/bird viewing. Also -- we did get bit by ants several times, but it was probably our stupidity for standing in the middle of ants. They did hurt, but the pain went away quickly. Also, we didn't do the Hanging Bridges (wanted to, though) or Rainmaker. We did see the crocodiles at Tarcoles.
Ivk -- you walk to the canopy zipline tour at Arenal Paraiso. No horses are needed. It's close, but up a hill.
Maria X - We only used Costa Rica Transfers for that first drive. The other times we used drivers arranged by hotels and twice we used the famous Oscar. There wasn't really a reason for not going with CR Transfers the whole time, except that they seemed a little more expensive. The driver spoke very little English, but was very friendly and understood when we wanted to stop. He brought his girlfriend with him and she seemed to be a distraction for him, but otherwise it was ok. (My husband thought he drove like a maniac but I saw worse!)
Hope that helps.
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Old Jul 23rd, 2004, 10:46 AM
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jeg, what were the temps like when you were there? I just talked to someone who returned from CR the other day, and she said it was in the low 70's most of the time, which surprised me. They also had very little sun. We are going in August. What did you typically wear for clothes? I am planning on bringing mostly shorts & 1 or 2 pairs of long pants. How did you pay for your tours? I think the Hanging Bridges accepts credit cards but Cano Negro does not. Just want to make sure we are prepared. Did you have a hard time with ATM's? Glad you liked Arenal Paraiso. We will be staying there, also. And Orquideas. Did you happen to see La Colina at MA? Any other helpful hints? Your horseback ride sounds terrifying!

Thanks for your helpful report.
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Old Jul 23rd, 2004, 11:34 AM
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jeg
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Kwoo,
The temperature was in the high 70's most days, except for one day when it reached in the 90's. We only used sunblock twice. The humidity was intense, though. We used air conditioning sometimes, but overhead fans were fine. We wore shorts or light, long pants most days, but we needed long sleeves in Alajuela and one night at Arenal. We each brought two pairs of pants for things like horseback riding and hiking.
The credit card/cash/traveler's checks aspect was tricky for us. We didn't have a car, so getting to an ATM was sometimes difficult. The ATH ATM's worked best for us; a few of the others didn't have an English option. Most of the hotels we stayed at were able to cash small amounts of traveler's checks (approx. $50.00). We were sometimes surprised by having to pay a large sum in cash (for example, the night hike at Selva Bio. Station required $140.00 in cash). There were several times when that kind of thing happened, but usually we were able to pay for tours by charging them to our hotel bills, which we paid with a credit card. We started out our trip with about $200.00 in cash and that turned out to be a good thing.
I saw the entrance to La Colina, but not the hotel itself.
Things we used a LOT: flashlights, lightweight raincoats, and hiking boots (sneakers would have gotten very wet).
Also, someone on this board suggested bringing a bottle of Febreeze. That was terrific advice. It was hard to wash out clothes, since they took so long to dry, but spraying them with Febreeze really helped!
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Old Jul 23rd, 2004, 12:05 PM
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Thanks jeg and schlubb for the info on the horses. That sounds awful..... like animal cruelty! I'll stay away!
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Old Jul 23rd, 2004, 12:15 PM
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Hey Ally - I just want to be make sure you know that I am in no way going as far to say that it was animal cruelty - that is a pretty strong statement & I don't want to be the one spreading that around. I was scared & I felt bad for the horses but like jeg said - the others in my party liked it & didn't feel the same way I did. Maybe it is animal cruelty - but I don't know. Not sure how much horses can handle!
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Old Jul 23rd, 2004, 10:44 PM
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Hi Jeg, thanks for your info-packed report. I'm going to Costa Rica next Wed, staying at Arenal Paraiso for 2 evenings and then go to Tortuguero with Fran and Modesto Watson. May I ask a few more questions:
1. How's the weather in Tortuguero and how bad was the mosquitoes? Do you need to put on insect repellent while sleeping at night? I'm staying at Laguna Hotel as well.
2. Is binoculars a must for wildlife viewing?
3. How much did you pay for the canopy tour at Arenal Paraiso?

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Old Jul 24th, 2004, 02:56 AM
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jeg
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Hi Lachat,
The mosquitoes were worse in Tortuguero than anywhere else, but really no worse than in the evenings where I live. We used insect repellent, but didn't apply new repellent before going to bed. (A side note: Our bags were checked before the flight home and an airline person came across our aerosol bug spray and confiscated it, saying it was flammable.) We were very careful about opening doors before putting on lights, etc.
One day in Tortuguero was very warm, the other day was more moderate, but with rain.
It was essential to have binoculars. Fran has a good pair that she offers around, but it needs to be shared with others. You'd do a lot of waiting around, not seeing anything without binoculars.
A tip about the turtle viewing at night: be sure to wear long pants and closed shoes. A few people got ant bites while watching the turtle and this really affected their enjoyment of an amazing sight. It works well if you tuck your pants into your socks while you're on the beach.
Also, be sure to have a sweatshirt or jacket for the boat ride. Modesto went at high speed at times and it got cold.
Last Tortuguero tip: have coins or small bills available if you want to use the bathrooms at the dock or midway through the trip (charge was 100 colones each).
The canopy tour at Arenal Paraiso was $65.00 each. I still haven't dealt with my bad photo CD yet, but that's $30.00 and if you're getting one, I'd check it there.
Have fun!
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Old Jul 24th, 2004, 03:27 AM
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jeg
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Sorry, lachat. I was wrong about the price of the Arenal Paraiso canopy tour. It was $45.00 each for adults and $35.00 for kids.
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Old Jul 24th, 2004, 05:33 AM
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I'd definitely contact them about the pic CD, sounds like a mistake, hopefully they will still have your pics loaded. Interesting about the bug spray, some gets theirs taken, some don't, guess there is no absolute standard. Thanks for the report!
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Old Jul 24th, 2004, 03:53 PM
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Jeg, thanks for the tips. Wish you luck with the CD
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Old Jul 25th, 2004, 05:18 AM
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Great trip report! Sounds like you had a blast! We leave for CR in a few days and will be visiting a few of the same places. When you didn't use a credit card for tours, did you pay in US$ or Colones? We will be staying at Mono Azul -- did they arrange your tours for you? Is the mangrove tour worthwhile in Manuel Antonio given that we'll be at Laguna Lodge first? (Never did get an answer back from the Watsons when I tried to contact them) Any other tips for Manuel Antonio? Finally, we'll be staying at Quinta de Sarapiqui and visiting La Selva. Did you visit Centro Neotropico's museum? It sounded fascinating!
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Old Jul 25th, 2004, 08:29 AM
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JajiP,
We sometimes used dollars and sometimes colones. We had taken both out of ATM's, so we just used whatever we had at the moment. Every person we dealt with made exchanges easily and honestly.
Yes, the people at Mono Azul arranged the tours for us. They arranged our tour of the national park with a man named Leo. I highly recommend him. They also arranged the mangrove tour. I have to say that the Tortuguero boat tours didn't seem quite as special as they may have if we hadn't already done a mangrove tour, so it's hard to answer your question about whether you should do both. I had never been in a mangrove forest, so I thought the scenery was amazing. There was also an area where there were tons of white-faced capuchins and they climbed on the boat. That was great! So, for those two reasons, I really loved the tour. It was more expensive than some other tours, though ($60.00 a person). That price includes either lunch or a t-shirt. You get to choose.
We spent most of our Manuel Antonio beach time at the third beach (Playa Manuel Antonio) and really liked it (plus there were monkeys at the beach).
I loved the pineapple pancakes at Mono Azul!
As for Centro Neotropico -- I wanted to go to the museum, but didn't make the time to do it. It does sound interesting! I highly recommend a tour of the Tirimbina Reserve (connected to Centro Neotropico). Our guide was Carlos and he was fantastic.
Have fun!
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