broadway79

Hi All,
I need a little help with our itinerary for Jan 2010 and was hoping some of you might be able to offer some advice. My boyfriend and I (in our early 30's) are planning a trip to CR. It will be my second trip (but have only been to central region) but his first so I want it to be extra special for him. We are planning to go to Arenal for several days for some adventure-hiking, zip-lining, repelling, and then probably Tortuguero for a night. But then we were thinking of heading to the beach. We want a unique beach though as we go to the beach all the time back home. So we were trying to decide if we should visit Manuel Antonio or the Osa Peninsula (looking at Bosque de Cabo). I've read that it is somewhat difficult to get to Bosque but we don't mind if it is well worth the trip. We're not really the type to just lay on the beach all day, we prefer to enjoy the beach for a couple hours and then also do adventure activities. My head is spinning from all I've read about all the beaches in CR but we just can't decide which would be best. We don't want a commercialized beach, but something very unique and gorgeous. We also were looking at Puerto Viejo but thought MA and Osa seemed to have more to do and a little more character? Correct me if I'm wrong. Any advice would be much appreciated!!!

RAC

Have you looked at Montezuma or southern Nicoya? The Ylang Ylang beach resort is wonderful--the only way to access it is by the beach--it's about half a km up the coast from town.

hipvirgochick

I would pick Osa over Manual Antonio by a long shot if you really want to soak in the rain forest. Bosque del Cabo is definitely worth the trip. If you don't mind hiking to the beach you can still have your beach time, but it's true you will miss the beautiful beaches inside MA park, however commercialized they're gorgeous. I suggest 2 nights in Tortuguero if you can swing it, 1 night really doesn't give you that one full day that you need.

rpowell

I agree with the 2 days in Tortuguero to get the most out of that part of your trip.
Also, Osa over MA.

tully

I would pick the Osa over MA in a heartbeat. Honestly, considering it's remoteness I don't think it's that hard to get to - a 55 minute plane ride and a 45 minute car ride (which is bumpy, yes, but fun and beautiful). The Matapalo beaches are great becuase not only beutiful but there is rarely more than a half dozen people on them. They are not on your doorstep if you stay at Bosque, it's a hike down the trail or you can arrange a quick transfer, but if you don't want to hit the beach all day every day then that would be a perfect fit anyway.

Melissa5

We visited Manuel Antonio, ARenal, and Monteverde on our first trip to Costa Rica. We have lots of beaches here in Southern California, so I wasn't impressed with Manuel Antonio as I felt it was overtouristed and to me the beaches were just okay, and the rainforest there at the park was also overly affected by man...

I would suggest the Osa although we haven't been there yet as I am planning our trip to the Osa (Bosque del Cabo) for January!

Don't forget that from Bosque del Cabo it's actually a long walk to the beach, just so you know...I understand it's about an hour's walk? You can see and hear the ocean from the "deluxe cabinas". (As I mentioned we haven't actually stayed at Bosque del Cabo but I'm researching it as we are booked to stay there in January.)

broadway79

thanks for all your comments and suggestions! and RAC, thanks for letting me know about Ylang Ylang-it looks amazing as well! hmm, now I want to fit BdC, MA and YY in! But since we will only be in CR for 10 days, I guess we will have to choose just a few destinations.

Any thoughts on spending just one night in MA and then heading down to BdC? Or is that just too little time? I would love to see the beaches inside the park that everyone speaks of. Also, any recommendations on where to stay in MA?

Ps-Based on your advice, I think we will try to fit in two nights in Tortuguero. Can anyone recommend activities while there besides the cruise?

Thanks again!

ShellD

I wouldn't consider BDC a beach destination at all. It's great for the wildlife and jungle, but if you plan to spend significant time at the beach, that's probably not your place. It seems to me the MA gets a lot of negative talk here, but having been to both, I actually enjoyed our time at MA better than in the Osa. Not to say I didn't like BDC - it's wonderful - but I don't see the comparison between the two places. I don't find MA to be this hugely commercialized town. I think La Fortuna is more commercialized, or so it felt to us. I will say though that we stayed at Tulemar and didn't go to the national park beaches, only their private beach.

We say a lot of wildlife in MA - right on Tulemar's property. Plus you have a great variety of restaurants there. We had gorgeous views and sunsets every night.And you have easy beach access.

At BDC there's a lot of hiking available, more variety of wildlife and beautiful views. But you can't walk right to the beach and it's not the same type of beach as say the private beach at Tulemar with boogie boards, a snack area and bar service. You eat all your meals there and dinner is served family style with all the guests eating together from a buffet selection, but the food is exceptional and the guests are very friendly as is the staff so that was not an issue.

It really depends what you're looking for - to me they are both unique experiences. I would go back to either - both offer different things.

I didn't think BDC was difficult to get to, it actually takes almost the same time as getting to MA because you'll probably fly from San Jose and then get picked up by a driver so your travel time is not too bad.

I don't think it's worth it to spend a night in MA and then head to BDC - too much travel. I'd pick one or the other. But you could spend a night or two in one of the beach locations in Puerto Jimenez like the Iguana Lodge or Black Turtle Lodge. They have beach access and would be on your way to BDC.

For your Tortuguero portion, usually there are packages you get that include so many boat rides out in the canals, possibly a trip into the town, you can see the turtles laying eggs at night or maybe eggs hatching depending on the season. We used Fran and Modesto Watson for our package and it was a good deal They take care of all of the details for you. They offer 1 and 2 day packages. Although if you're going in January, you may want to skip Tortuguero this trip since it's not turtle season and save that for another trip. It's a unique area, but the turtles are a great part of visiting! Especially if you want to fit other regions into your trip.




And I totally agree, try to stay in Tortuguero for 2 nights. That will give you one full day and you'll need that there! It's a really unique area.