Ocotal anyone?

[Jester]

But at Shark Place, I did see a huge stingray (maybe 8 ft. accross from wing tip to wing tip).

Were you thinking of Cocos Island? That is where a great deal of Jurassic Park was filmed. Unfortunately, it requires a liveaboard to go there and dive. It's quite a ways out to sea.

DSAO!

 

[triggertravel]

Thanks Hoover for all the info. on Costa Rica.

We are flying into San Jose on Wednesday, staying at Tabacon for two days, 6 nights at Ocotal, and a couple nights in Rincon. I can't wait.

I'm having some ear problems so I hope I can dive. If not, that OK as it sounds like there is plenty to do in Costa Rica.

Is their any food that was really good? I'm not a big beans and rice type of person but will eat it if that's my choice.

Thanks again for the relply.

Will

 

[Jester]

But in general, the restaurants serve a wide variety of fare, from Argentinian, Brazilian and Peruvian to Italian and Mexican. Don't be afraid to try anything/everything.

BTW, Costa Ricans don't go to dinner until fairly late. If you're like most Americans (Like me) if you go to a restaurant before 7:00, you're going to be the only ones there.

If you're spending the night in San Jose, catch a cab to El Che. It's Argentinian in an area of town called Escazu. It's kind of a hole in the wall place, but the beef is EXCELLENT! There are other places with bigger reputations - The Monastery comes to mind, but their food isn't anywhere near as good.

Have a great time, and tell me all about it when you return!

 

[sailorgirl70]

Looks like I might be diving at Ocotal Resort in Costa Rica on Feb. 15 & 16. Will anyone else be there?

No - I am going to be there from January 16 through January 24th. I'll post when I get back though and fill you in. Have fun!

 

[GotAir]

I stayed a week in Tamarindo its about 45 minutes west of Liberia. i dove on the catalina Ilands and other place's. swam with the Sharks! and my dive master took a ride on a manta. I tried to hitch a ride but I didnt know how much pressure to put on my fingure's to latch on with, and he pulled away. I'll never forget CR and tamarindo and the people. I made one mistake tho I thought I could rent a car with cash No Way Jose CC only. everybody knows that I guess but me! I didnt mind because the dive boat picked me up at the hotel every morning. I dove everyday i was there. In may its there low season and there was just a few people in the hotels and on the boat. It was like having a personal dive boat. I'm going back but it will probably be in may again after my season is over. thanks for letting me share on this thread.


Mike

 

[BeauB]

...I'd avoid things like the "Canopy Tours" and "Whitewater Rafting", not because they're not fun, but because these things can be done elsewhere, and it's not what Costa Rica is know for...

Actually, Costa Rica is definitely known for it's whitewater! It is one of the top whitewater destinations in the world (my list would have West Virginia, Colorado, Costa Rica, Chile, New Zealand, Nepal up at the top). There are a number of great big water runs as well as uncountable amazing creek runs. Certainly you can enjoy whitewater elsewhere, likewise you can enjoy diving elsewhere.

I head to Costa Rica at least once a year to whitewater kayak - this Thanksgiving, I got hijacked to the beach by some kayaking friends from Europe who wanted to hit the beach for a week before heading to Turrialba to kayak. Serendipitous as I ended up getting my c-card at Playa del Coco with Rich Coast and did some of the great local dives as well as a Catalina dive.

Enjoyed it so much that I headed back again for New Year's (just got back) this time staying at Ocotal and diving with them and did Catalina a few more times. Amazing humpback encounter - five of them together! Many manta, huge pod of dolphins and lots of other things amazing to my newbie eyes - tons of eagle spotted rays, stingrays, octopi, sea horses, white tip reef sharks, lots of eels, sea snake, turtles, huge schools of various fish, etc, etc.

 

[cdiver2]

I wasn't able to take their day trip to either Bat or Catalina Islands, but I've heard nothing but good things about both destinations.

If I were going to suggest the perfect Costa Rica Vacation, I'd start with spending a day or two in San Jose. There's a lot of historical stuff in this city.

I'd then go to the northwest coast (where Ocotal is) for a few days, then travel down towards the southwest coast (more pristine and much less populated. I'd go to the SW via San Jose, and on the way, take a few days to stop at Arenal and the Tabacon Resort, take the 4-in-1 tour out of San Jose (Poas Volcano, Rain Forest, Waterfalls and boat trip down the Sarapiqui River - probably get to visit a coffee plantation during the trip).

I'd avoid things like the "Canopy Tours" and "Whitewater Rafting", not because they're not fun, but because these things can be done elsewhere, and it's not what Costa Rica is know for.

I really hope you enjoy your trip!

p.s. There's a little known butterfly farm almost right in the middle of San Jose. Sorry, I can't remember the name of the place, but for $6, you get admission to see the butterflys (really beautiful) and a nice hot lunch in a small cafe setting.

The white water rafting was the best I have ever done, Tabacon was great and the canopy tour also we did two different ones. The diving at Ocotol sucked and I also had my car broken into (on there grounds). Never again

 

[Jester]

When someone asks me for an opinion, I try to give it honestly.

BeauB - If you're really into White-water rafting, then by all means, DO IT! I suspect the average diver isn't quite into it to the degree that you are.

cdiver2 - The next time you go, you should probably stay somewhere else.

DSAO!

 

[frankzeg]

We just returned from Ocotal and had a less than spectacular time which might be weighed against the glowing reports in this thread.
The Resort & Town:
Ocotal Resort is a nice place but unless you stay in one of the large cabinas you will be compelled to stay behind glass doors since there are no provisions for screens. And there are plenty of things seeking a wee bit of your protoplasmic self. This is rather sad since it would be great to actually hear the ocean and feel some breeze while inside.
But in general it is OK. It is called a 4 star resort- the views are 4 star ( most of the resort is up on a cliff) the rooms are 3 star. It is also a fair hike to the beach unless you stay at the lower cabinas. Getting to town (Coco) will require a bike or car.
BTW the iguanas are really cool and all but they bite fast if you are planning on feeding them. They rendered one guest's finger less functional after one such session. Use caution.
There are plenty of other places to stay and also eat down in the little town of Playa del Coco. Try the refrescos in the eatery next to Rich Coast Divers. The Lonely planet guide will get you started on the other places. An ATM exists in Liberia which demands a car to get to. If you want to skip San Jose and the rather tedious drive to this area (Guanacaste) you can fly direct to a newly built international airport just outside of Liberia. This allows you to avoid interminable lines of crazed trucks and some very impressive pothole clusters ( we met a guy from San Jose who got three simultaneous flats in one of these brutes). It may look small on a map but the highest real speed limit in CR is 48 mph and paradoxically there are plenty of speed traps. If you go over 40 km over the limit (not too tough in some areas) they can take your passport. Once again- use caution.

December Weather
The weather in Guanacaste in the dry season is a problematic thing. Although it is nice and warm in late December it is also amazingly windy. Like 20-25 knots gusting to 30-35. These papagayo winds haul from the Northeast and impinge on the waters off of Ocotal/Playa Del Coco and make for some entertaining seas. These winds are why they put wind turbines farther inland on the ridges and also why there are world-class sailboarding venues a bit farther north.
The trip to Catalina normally takes 45 minutes or so. We spent nearly two hours getting there and some would find it definitely not-fun. Catalina Island is a rock only a few hundred yards long and there is VERY limited shelter on the lee side. This could make your surface interval less than fun too- especially if you are seasick-prone. These conditions also makes going to Bat Islands essentially impossible during this season from Coco. This is not to say that the local beaches are windblown- they are sheltered and very pleasant

Dive Shop
The dive shop at Ocotal Resort was one of the low spots on our journey- they flat out refused to go to Catalina in this season. Despite our low-level pleading they told us: “next March”. They were a surly lot at best. We ended up going with Rich Coast Divers down in the town of Coco. Jessica ( I think) is the new owner there and has a decent boat and a selection of New Scubapro gear. Her boat driver is top notch and got us out though the slop about as painlessly as can be done. If there was a panga-driving contest this guy would place high. They did the trip with a 4 person minimum and we were able to muster that.

Catalina Diving
Our experience was of necessity limited due to the rough seas but in my book the diving was in general C+ to B+ – with a FEW notable exceptions. There is no real reef there- just a lot of volcanic boulders with a very limited fish community on the bottom. The Costa Ricans are in the process of stripping that area to the last fish and the results are obvious. Sea cucumbers, urchins, octopus are very rare since these were fished intensively over the past years. There are some white tips, cornet and other pipefishes as well as the usual tropicals but not in great abundance. Water temp was 78 to 79 with a max depth around 70ft vis is limited- 30ft . In mid-water (30 ft) there is more to see – small to medium schools of runners and other tuna-bait, small groups of spotted eagle rays, but nothing of amazing proportions.
The dives are essentially short drift dives (S to N for us) over a bouldery bottom. Since we realized there was more to see mid-water this did pose a problem since the greater drift speed is such that if you start at mid-island (where the lunch spot is) you will run out of island before you are at half a tank. This perturbed our knuckleheaded divemaster who then insisted on swimming fast AGAINST this current (acting as if there was some spectacular creature he had just seen upstream of us) until we had prematurely exhausted our air. This annoyed everyone greatly and was a sour note to an otherwise OK diving day. Lesson learned- start the dive at one extreme of the island and try not to get this cretin as divemaster – regrettably his name escapes me.
This generally mediocre diving experience was compensated for by one amazing and in the end, sad encounter. During our safety stop the mother of all mantas showed up. I have seen plenty of mantas in Yap, Palau, and the Galapagos but she was truly enormous. The 18 foot wingspan was really overwhelmed by her thickness which approached a yard. She came right at us out of the blue and I had to swim aside to avoid being run over. Then we all saw something which made my wife weep and me feel sick to be a human. She was dragging a net that extended at least 20 feet behind her. Encrusted in barnacles it must have been there for months. Her leading edge was cut deeply in places. I tried to break the trailing fibers but no-go. She banked around us and then we realized that all our dive knives and snips were in the damn boat. We were helpless to aid her.
In what is surely the stupidest thing I’ve done in 30 years of diving (my wife assures me of this) I swam up to her and tried to lift the net off of her. I just HAD to try something. I think this pained her due to it cutting into her leading edge and she took one slow look at me with that calm eye and then floored it. I have to say it was interesting to be swatted by a really big fish. The sensation was that of being hit by a garage door covered in sand paper.
Anyway this was certainly one of the coolest and saddest days I’ve had diving. I keep thinking how I might have felt if I had had a little bitty knife and helped that magnificent beast. And I swear I will never forget a knife or snips again- EVER.

So bottom line: This area is not really a great dive destination – at least if you dive here exclusively in this season. If we had not had a one minute manta encounter we would have rated it a solid C-. The area is being heavily impacted by fishing and it shows it. Based on our experience elsewhere the Catalina island area should be swarming with fish- it just isn’t. We did not dive the more local islands since they seemed to be checkout sites for neophytes and reports suggested they were pretty tired. For the same money Cozumel would be worlds better in this season.

 

[Jester]

If those who are interested will take note, it's been almost a full year since I started this thread. It may well be that El Octotal has deteriorated to some extent, but I suppose it's fair to say that ANY place will get both positive and negative reviews.

However, I don't think it's fair to put a bad rap on Costa Rica diving due to a bad experience at a specific resort. Don't get me wrong....I love Coz, but I also thoroughly enjoyed diving the CR Pacific Coast, and I found it to be considerably "different" than Cozumel diving. I'd go back to Guanacaste in a heartbeat, but in all honesty I'd consider a different resort, if only for a change in views and a new experience.

Y'all have fun!