Question Planning trip to Costa Rica - Isla del Caño

[fabay]

Hi everyone,

I'm planning to visit Costa Rica during the last week of December to dive at Isla del Caño.

I'm an AOW diver with a bit more than 200 dives, and I'm traveling with my two daughters, who are Open Water certified. They have around 20 dives each, all done in lakes and the Caribbean Sea, so all easy dives with no drift and good visibility.

Is Isla del Caño a good and safe place for OW divers? Based on what I've seen online, I think so, but I'd appreciate it if someone could confirm this.

Regarding accommodations, I'm planning to stay in Uvita, but I've read that the last week of the year is very busy in tourist areas. A lot of people take the week off, so routes are often congested, and hotel and service capacities are generally full. Is this true? Any tips if this is the case? Unfortunately, I'm a bit constrained by my job, so my vacation dates are almost fixed.

Thanks in advance!

 

[Pedroo]

Hello Fabay,

Of course, someone may disagree with me, but in my experience at most dives in Costa Rica, Isla del Cano is the best. There you have available sites for every diver like DSD, OW, or even more deep dives. There are also places for snorkeling, which clearly shows that the island is accessible to everyone.

December is the beginning of the high tourist season, and indeed if you leave everything to the last minute there will probably be no room for you either in hotels or on tours. This is due not only to the number of tourists, but the limits of the national parks - Marino Ballena, Isla del Cano, or Corcovado. All of these parks have daily entry limits that cannot be exceeded.

So I advise you to start booking tours and accommodations now.

You can ask about diving here: costaricadivers.com

 

[rmorgan]

If it's like when we were there, you'll be fine. The only concern would be that the guide we had was a little zippier than we were, and visibility was down around, maybe, 40-50', so one needs to be attentive. But the dives were livelier than expected, and the rides out and back were fun. One caveat--we were staying in Drake Bay, and I think the rides are a good bit shorter from there than from Uvita. FWIW, Drake Bay is very chill, and the dive op there, Costa Rica Adventure Divers, is quite excellent. Costa Rica's a terrific country!