Costa Rica Trip Planning Tips - I Live Here

Costa Rica Travel Guide

I have been living in Costa Rica for 8 years full time now and I began traveling it some 16 years ago. This amazing country boasts numerous attractions in many different areas, but a lot of tourists end up staying in the wrong place for their entire Costa Rica Vacation because they read exaggerated reviews or listen to comments from people who claim to be very knowledgeable about everything from areas to accommodations and even property sales. Certainly you can understand that it makes no sense to plan a $2,000 dollar trip, based on bad information from someone who passed by an area yet, really did not get the chance to know it. Needless to say, these blog writers, which are completely false in many cases can and do cause huge confusions amongst not only tourism readers but also among many Costa Rica Real Estate enthusiast as well, simply because they like to gossip. My idea is to help you learn how to plan your trip to Costa Rica correctly.

How to Build a Costa Rica Itinerary

Visitors should not reserve anything until they figure out or talk to a qualified agency about what they want to do and see. I cannot express that strong enough. Every single Costa Rica Hotel you choose will depend entirely upon what you’re going to be doing. Although this country is only the size of West Virginia, it takes along time to drive from one place to another. Before you decide to jump out and book a Costa Rica Car Rental for a week, let’s figure out what you will need it for. This is the exact reason this website was created for. It is meant to be unbiased and helpful, but at the same time it gives users helpful knowledge or tells the user how to find what your looking for.

What do you want to do in Costa Rica

A huge number of the Costa Rica Day Tour options can be done no matter where that you stay. Take canopy tours or Zip lines as an example, there are over 50 of them in the country. At the same time let’s look at Costa Rica Diving, whale watching or turtle nesting; now these can only be done from certain areas. The same rule applies for things such as Costa Rica Fishing, volcanoes, national parks, specific waterfalls or whitewater rafting and don’t forget about the amazing animals that can only be seen from certain areas. Even things such as Costa Rica Golf will also dictate where that you will stay. So, first make a list of what you want to do and then begin placing towns next to them that will accommodate the activities.

Understanding Costa Rica Prior to Selecting Accommodations

Once your activity list is complete then you’ll need a good Costa Rica Map so you can familiarize yourself with where each area is located. Everything written below is from my personal travels that began in 1992 and then I moved here eight years ago and still currently live in Costa Rica full time. Below is a general description of each area that should help in planning.

Central Valley Costa Rica

Because the central valley is home to the main Costa Rica Airport called Juan Santamaria International, it is an area that is often used for first or last night stays due to flight arrival and departure times. In planning your trip you really want to arrive early and depart late if possible. My basic rule says to take your arrival time and add 45 minutes for clearing customs and get your baggage. Next, add 1 hour if you’re renting a vehicle and then add your driving time to where you’re going. If everything added together does not get you in your room by 6pm then you need to overnight in the central valley. Other than having Costa Rica Dental work treatments I’d try to avoid staying in the Central Valley unless you absolutely have to because there’s not much to do.

North Pacific Costa Rica

The north pacific area is called Guanacaste and is known mainly for one thing, its endless shores of Costa Rica Beach towns. There you will find that the “Playas” start around Playa Coyote and go northwards all the way up to Nicaragua. The most popular areas are Samara, Nosara, Tamarindo, Flamingo, Playa Grande, Playa Conchal, Playa del Coco, Ocotal, Playa Panama and Playa Hermosa. When you’re ready to head out to the Guanacaste area just remember that it may be a good idea to use a Costa Rica Shuttle Transfer due to poorly marked roads and crazy drivers. I am not saying that you shouldn’t drive in Costa Rica because I do everyday, but I am saying that you may want to watch before trying it yourself.

Costa Rica Nicoya Peninsula

From almost every shoreline across the entire country tourist can watch or participate in Costa Rica Surfing during high tide. The Nicoya Peninsula is no exception to this rule. There are three main areas that are visited here; Tambor which is has the largest and nicest accommodations along with daily small domestic flight charters. Then there’s the unique little town called Montezuma that is known for its partying, laid back attitude and monkeys. Last we have Mal Pais that is the surfer’s paradise in the area and it has recently begun booming with businesses. In these areas along with others many travelers Learn Spanish in Costa Rica, party all night and spend as much time as possible in a surfers paradise. Due to the crowds of singles, I personally would not recommend this area to most people who will be traveling with children.

Central Pacific Costa Rica

The main towns to point out in this zone are as follows; Jaco, which is the countries oldest vacationing spot for the nationals who live inland because it is easy to get to, provides all types of water sports and is only 2.25 hours away from the capital. Finding a Costa Rica Vacation Rental here is pretty easy due to lots of over building in the town. Heading south you will find the next biggest town called Quepos. This port town basically only exit because of its famous co-part named Manuel Antonio, which is only about 2 miles away. Here you will find that this Costa Rica National Park is heavily visited each year. Last you may want to check out Dominical which is another surfer’s haven and is about an hour south. This is really the last main place to visit before you head to the Southern parts of the country.

South Pacific Costa Rica

Nature lover’s delight is the best way to describe this area however it is also the perfect location for a Costa Rica Wedding with its rain forest background. Pavones is hard to reach but best known for its surf breaks. Zancudo offers an excellent chance to hook a big fish. Golfito is a port town that offers a small airstrip with daily charters and also offers nationals duty free shopping. Puerto Jimenez is another place that you can fly into and fish from. Cabo Matapalo and Carate are famous for their rain forest and close proximity to the Corcovado National Park and Drake Bay is on the other side of it and has a bit of everything from deep sea charters to whale watching to dive spots. Although most people would fly into these areas, any of the places listed above can be driven to but with some difficulty, at the very least you can expect a minimum 6 hours drive and some of the areas will be 8.5 hours from Juan Santamaria. Unless you’re the real adventurous type I would not recommend you traveling in this area without good Costa Rica Information from an travel agency that lives here and knows the country well. They can build you a trip package that is tailored to your needs and combines everything together including meals and transfers.

Inland Areas and the Caribbean Coast of Costa Rica

The main inland areas are Arenal which is most famous for its Costa Rica Volcano and Monteverde which is a must see for the Cloud Forest and its amazing views. There is also La Virgin or La Paz that is famous for its Costa Rica Waterfall and mountain foliage and then there’s Sarapiqui and Turrialba that are neat areas but are best known for their Costa Rica Whitewater Rafting rivers. On the other hand, the Caribbean side of Costa Rica is straight forward and easy. The town of Limon is nothing good to talk about and heading south you will find Cahuita, Puerto Viejo and Manzanillo. These towns basically have no law, the police are crooked and the towns are out of control and are drug infested areas that are not worth seeing in my opinion. However, north of Limon city is Tortuguero which is worth seeing for its canals, animals & turtle nesting and above it you will find Barra del Colorado which is great for fresh water Tarpon and Snook.