jinxie7

Hi...I'm going to Costa Rica on my Honeymoon in September. We have rented a 4 x 4 and have reservations at the following places:

Depart for San Jose at 7:50 a.m. Five hour Flight to Costa Rica.
Day One & Two - Villa Caletas
Day Three & Four - Tabacon
Day Five & Six - Tulemar Villas

Now here are my questions. Out of those three places what would anyone recommend as the best places to eat, do a zipline tour and rent ATV's? Where should I purchase a map for our driving purposes? Who has any packing suggestions? Should I bring any cash or are ATM's accessible and is Visa widely acceptable? Lastly, what are the must see/must do things that we really should try to get to while we are there?

Thanks in advance for all the help I can get!

sclubb

Hi - I would definitely take cash. We found most places might take credit cards, but their lines were sometimes down due to storms, rain, etc. Same with ATMs. So, to be on the safe side, take cash - and no bills larger than a $20. Of the places you are going, I was only in the Arenal area. We had a great dinner at Las Brasitas (Mexican) in the town of Fortuna. We also ate at El Novillo and weren't really impressed - that is on the way to Fortuna from Tabacon. I definitely recommend you drive to the entrance to Fortuna Fall (ask for directions in town) and hike down to the fall. Costs $6 per person & is a steep hike back up. Take a waterproof camera & watershoes - you can swim around near the base of the fall & hang out on the rocks. It is beautiful. Have a great time!

Ally

There is a slight problem with your schedule.
Villas Caletas is near Jaco, about an hour and a half from Tulemar, which is in Manuel Antonio. So it just doesn't make sense to go to Villas Caletas, then Tabacon, then Tulemar. You'd be backtracking. If these are the places you want to stay, do Arenal (Tabacon) first or last, with your two 'beach' hotels first or last, but don't split them up with Tabacon in the middle!

As for the map, I like the Berndtson & Berndtson map. You may be able to get them at Barnes & Nobles Bookstore, or order online at www.berndtson.com

jinxie7

We are back tracking so we can back to where we started at the beginning. Also, because Tulemar is somewhat closer to San Jose than Tabacon is.

Ally

Okay, I'm not sure why you'd want to end up close to where you started, but I'm sure you have your reasons!
But, I should tell you that Tulemar and Tabacon are ABOUT the same driving distance to San Jose, with Tulemar to San Jose being maybe a slightly longer drive.