Costa Rica, where, worth the trip?

[gypsyjim]

Every one of these posts has been useful!

Costa Rica has not been on my radar, before this, and I am not finding a wealth of info, like on can for sites like Bonaire, so all your comments and suggestions are helping me fill in the blanks. Not sure Costa Rica will be the final place we settle on, but it is certainly in the running so far. Colleen found some all inclusives she wants me to research there next.

I also need to really study a map, and see what is close to what, and what is not.

 

[Pudsky]

My wife and I are also going to be going to Costa Rica. We are going the middle of January for two weeks. This is all great info. We are staying in Tamarindo. Really looking forward to this vacation. All this info is great!

 

[gypsyjim]

Hi Pudsky.
What caused you to pick Tamarindo? Where do you fly into, etc.
Curious, as the proximity to Bat and Cat Islands seems to be close enough there, but not sure what the access to the Arenal volcanoe is like from there.

 

[Pudsky]

We have a friend who is staying there for a while. He has a condo rented. That is where he is, so thats why we are going to Tamarindo. We have not purchased our plane tickets yet, but we are planning on flying into Liberia, which is about a 45 minute drive. There is a dive center in Tamarindo, (agua rica dive center) so I will be contacting them for info as soon as we get exact dates nailed down.

 

[mintaka]

We just returned from a week at Ocotal.. I can highly recommend them as dive ops... safe, very friendly and knowledgeable. As well as local diving, we did Catalina one day and Bat two days. I could have done Bat every day... the dives there were awesome: octopi, eagle rays, lots of big morays and a lot of big bull sharks. Here's a pic I took on Thanksgiving at Bat

 

[SantaClaus]

Hi there,

We are going to Cahuita and Tortuguero in Christmas week. Do you know any diving centers near Cahuita or Tortuguero?
Thanks in advancehttp://www.anywherecostarica.com/destinations/tortuguero-costa-rica

 

[dolesorchard]

Have been to CR ten of the last twelve years. My first choice for diving short of Isla Del Coco is Isla Del Cano. A really great trip would be to go to Drake Bay and it is a fairly short trip to Cano. Cano is far enough off the coast to be good vis. almost any time. We have been to Cocovado Adventure Tent Camp and loved it. There is another place in Drake Bay that does a lot of divng, but I cannot remember the name. This area is my favorite part of the country, much more green and lush than Guanacaste with a lot more wildlife and far fewer people. With the coast road finished now it is not a bad drive either. I would recommend Feb over March as it can get a lot hotter and more humid in March. If you go to Guanacaste, I can second El Ocotal resort and give Costa Rica Diving in Flamingo a plug as well.

 

[ffhamm]

Was just in Costa Rica a month or so ago. Went to the Arenal area and then a week in Guanacaste, near Playa de Coco.
The diving was not great, but it WAS diving. We had a great time in Costa Rica, and would recommend it to just about anyone, just not for the diving exclusively.

Jeff

 

[pa diver]

My wife and I along with 7 others will be satying just north of Tamarindo in an area called Potrero Beach. We'll be there from Jan 14-27 and plan to do some diving around the Catalina Islands in hopes of seeing Manta's. I think we are too far from Arenal and other major volcanos but we plan to take a day trip to Monteverde cloud forest. From my reading the pacific northwest at that time of year is still green from the rainy season with beautiful weather. I picked up a Fodors Guidebook and it had a lot of info.

 

[dolesorchard]

Guanacaste will be pretty brown by mid January. Arenal is a longer distance drive, but I don't think it will be any more time than Monteverde and its a more pleasant drive to a more rewarding place. I think Monteverde is way over rated and over priced.