The Best of CR
Manuel Antonio
This was my favorite place in Costa Rica to go for a beach trip. It has a beautiful beach and nearby Quepos has the nightlife. It`s about 2 1/2 hours from San Jose by car. The beach is perfect, and the sunset is amazing . The sand is white and the water clear. The public beach is half-moon shaped and usually the busiest. The National Park has an entrance fee and therefore is less crowded.
The beach is about 2km from Quepos, a small port town. Quepos is more local style. The tourists usually stay at some nicer hotels on the mtn/jungle path that runs between M.A. and Quepos. These places are nice and offer resort amenities, however, we were locals and did it the lcoal way. Besides, once it got dark, Quepos is the place to be....except on friday or saturday nights. Then, there is a club/diso on the beach that stays open all night. The parties are great, Que Rica!!!
Monteverde
Translated as `the green mountain`, this is one of the best places for environmentalists. There are many animals that are unique to this rain forest. Most people go for the bird-watching, jungle hikes and canopy tours. The canopy tour is one of the coolest things I`ve ever done. You swing from one mountain to the next (about 1km) while holding onto a zip line. It`s pretty exciting, and one of the best views ever. Imagine being hundreds of feet above a rain forest flying around 30mph only holding on to handlebars. Pretty amazing stuff.
Santa Elena is the nearest town. It is very small and very environmentally friendly. It has a few small hotels and a high school that is dedicated to nature conservation.
Tamarindo
This is the idyllic surf town that many people imagine when they think of CR. It has recently been developed by the big name hotel chains, but still is a small local village. The beaches are nice and the atmosphere relaxed. On the local beaches there are plenty of good waves but the best surfers boat out to other points like Witches Rock or Ollie`s Point (named after Oliver North- he set up a spy camp near here because of its proximity to Nicaragua). If surfing is the reason you are in Costa Rica, then this is the place for you.
Nosara
Nosara is a hideaway. It is located in the same vicinity as Tamarindo, but much less touristy. It holds an expatriate community that live here year-round or at least for a large part of the year. Also, there is a yoga school that populates this small town for several months throughout the year. There are a couple of small tourist hotels but they mostly serve return visitors or long-stays. I stayed here for a few weeks, and it was rare to see anyone other than the handful of local expats.
Quiet and secluded, the town is spread out over a 7km long beach. On an average day, you`ll probably see 5 people on the beach. Every building is surrounded by about a city block of jungle, at least. A regular walk will take you past monkeys, iguanas, and many other animals. I even had a family of monkeys that lived outside my bungalow. Add to that the yoga school and the great waves and this is the best retreat I can imagine.
My day was something like this: wake up at 7am, go to yoga class, get a pastry at the french bakery, go surfing, take a nap, go surfing, take a nap, read a book, go to the beach bar (the only bar) have dinner and a few beers, and do it again the next day. What a life!
Totruguero
This is the most unique place that I`ve been. It is a town that is completely unconnected by land. There are only waterways. However, the waterways are very narrow and in some places shallow, so you can`t take a regular boat into town. You must use a small canoe-like boat. After loading onto the canoe, you trust your guide to navigate through the marsh. The tree branches hang low, the muddy banks are narrow and who knows what lives in the water.
After your journey through the waterways, you come out into a lake. It is beautiful. Inside the lake there are regular boats that can take you around the town. It looks like a great place for swimming or waterskiing etc, but the water is inhabited by many different species of animals, including sharks, crocodiles, pirahnas etc.
The actual town is a small island-like area. There is a walking path through the middle of it. Some people use bicycles, but there are no motorized vehicle of any kind. The only other mode of transportation is a boat. Every house, hotel, business etc. has a small dock out back.
There is virtually no entertainment in the town, the town itself is the reason to visit. We spent a couple of days there and it was a great place to relax and enjoy the isolation.
Puerto Viejo
This is the Carribean. Costa Rica has two coasts, both Pacific and Atlantic. While most of CR has the pacific lifestyle, the east coast is no different from any other Carribean port area. Reggae music and ganja smoke fill the air. Once in the town, you forget that you are in Costa Rica. A combination of english, spanish and some other unknown dialect is spoken, making it very difficult to communicate with any of the locals. This is a great place to see, but the shady characters that roam the streets give it the edge that one becomes unnacustomed to in the safe CR.
The beach is nice, and surf is dangerous. There is coral reef that lines the beach and only the best (or craziest) dare to surf there; a helmet is a must. This is a locals only place, you must be a regular to be allowed out. I once saw a group of locals physically stop a guy from surfing. If you are a surfer, I suggest you find some other beach in the area or stay and watch the regulars, you`re sure to see a good show (and maybe some blood).
El Pueblo
If you go to San Jose, you must go to El Pueblo. It is home to around 10 bars. The bars are open every night, all night. each night one bar has some special event, and around 2am, it is always hopping. It may not be the 1st place you go, but it`ll almost always be the last. There are many small food stalls and open areas to take a break from the dancing. Pero, el razon para ir Al Pueblo es la musica y las mujeres. I spent many nights here y te amo el pueblo.
This was my favorite place in Costa Rica to go for a beach trip. It has a beautiful beach and nearby Quepos has the nightlife. It`s about 2 1/2 hours from San Jose by car. The beach is perfect, and the sunset is amazing . The sand is white and the water clear. The public beach is half-moon shaped and usually the busiest. The National Park has an entrance fee and therefore is less crowded.
The beach is about 2km from Quepos, a small port town. Quepos is more local style. The tourists usually stay at some nicer hotels on the mtn/jungle path that runs between M.A. and Quepos. These places are nice and offer resort amenities, however, we were locals and did it the lcoal way. Besides, once it got dark, Quepos is the place to be....except on friday or saturday nights. Then, there is a club/diso on the beach that stays open all night. The parties are great, Que Rica!!!
Monteverde
Translated as `the green mountain`, this is one of the best places for environmentalists. There are many animals that are unique to this rain forest. Most people go for the bird-watching, jungle hikes and canopy tours. The canopy tour is one of the coolest things I`ve ever done. You swing from one mountain to the next (about 1km) while holding onto a zip line. It`s pretty exciting, and one of the best views ever. Imagine being hundreds of feet above a rain forest flying around 30mph only holding on to handlebars. Pretty amazing stuff.Santa Elena is the nearest town. It is very small and very environmentally friendly. It has a few small hotels and a high school that is dedicated to nature conservation.
Tamarindo
This is the idyllic surf town that many people imagine when they think of CR. It has recently been developed by the big name hotel chains, but still is a small local village. The beaches are nice and the atmosphere relaxed. On the local beaches there are plenty of good waves but the best surfers boat out to other points like Witches Rock or Ollie`s Point (named after Oliver North- he set up a spy camp near here because of its proximity to Nicaragua). If surfing is the reason you are in Costa Rica, then this is the place for you.
Nosara
Nosara is a hideaway. It is located in the same vicinity as Tamarindo, but much less touristy. It holds an expatriate community that live here year-round or at least for a large part of the year. Also, there is a yoga school that populates this small town for several months throughout the year. There are a couple of small tourist hotels but they mostly serve return visitors or long-stays. I stayed here for a few weeks, and it was rare to see anyone other than the handful of local expats.
Quiet and secluded, the town is spread out over a 7km long beach. On an average day, you`ll probably see 5 people on the beach. Every building is surrounded by about a city block of jungle, at least. A regular walk will take you past monkeys, iguanas, and many other animals. I even had a family of monkeys that lived outside my bungalow. Add to that the yoga school and the great waves and this is the best retreat I can imagine.
My day was something like this: wake up at 7am, go to yoga class, get a pastry at the french bakery, go surfing, take a nap, go surfing, take a nap, read a book, go to the beach bar (the only bar) have dinner and a few beers, and do it again the next day. What a life!
Totruguero
This is the most unique place that I`ve been. It is a town that is completely unconnected by land. There are only waterways. However, the waterways are very narrow and in some places shallow, so you can`t take a regular boat into town. You must use a small canoe-like boat. After loading onto the canoe, you trust your guide to navigate through the marsh. The tree branches hang low, the muddy banks are narrow and who knows what lives in the water.
After your journey through the waterways, you come out into a lake. It is beautiful. Inside the lake there are regular boats that can take you around the town. It looks like a great place for swimming or waterskiing etc, but the water is inhabited by many different species of animals, including sharks, crocodiles, pirahnas etc.
The actual town is a small island-like area. There is a walking path through the middle of it. Some people use bicycles, but there are no motorized vehicle of any kind. The only other mode of transportation is a boat. Every house, hotel, business etc. has a small dock out back.
There is virtually no entertainment in the town, the town itself is the reason to visit. We spent a couple of days there and it was a great place to relax and enjoy the isolation.
Puerto Viejo
This is the Carribean. Costa Rica has two coasts, both Pacific and Atlantic. While most of CR has the pacific lifestyle, the east coast is no different from any other Carribean port area. Reggae music and ganja smoke fill the air. Once in the town, you forget that you are in Costa Rica. A combination of english, spanish and some other unknown dialect is spoken, making it very difficult to communicate with any of the locals. This is a great place to see, but the shady characters that roam the streets give it the edge that one becomes unnacustomed to in the safe CR.
The beach is nice, and surf is dangerous. There is coral reef that lines the beach and only the best (or craziest) dare to surf there; a helmet is a must. This is a locals only place, you must be a regular to be allowed out. I once saw a group of locals physically stop a guy from surfing. If you are a surfer, I suggest you find some other beach in the area or stay and watch the regulars, you`re sure to see a good show (and maybe some blood).
El Pueblo
If you go to San Jose, you must go to El Pueblo. It is home to around 10 bars. The bars are open every night, all night. each night one bar has some special event, and around 2am, it is always hopping. It may not be the 1st place you go, but it`ll almost always be the last. There are many small food stalls and open areas to take a break from the dancing. Pero, el razon para ir Al Pueblo es la musica y las mujeres. I spent many nights here y te amo el pueblo.
posted by kmac @ 18:55
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