Anybody been to Costa Rica? What did you see & do while you were there? Was there anything you really liked or disliked? What time of year did you go?

Just looking for some personal experiences & tips for ideas of stuff to do or avoid.

 

I had a few friends go there.... they spoke highly of it.

 

I've been a few times. If you grew up in south florida and surfed, it was your first surf trip.

I've been there in apr - aug months. Things to do: a big attraction is the ocean. you can surf, fish and dive to your heart's content. There are rainforests your can tour, some with zip wire type transportation through the canopy of the jungle and i believe there is a volcano or two you can see though i've not done that.

What you want to do will help determine where you stay or vice versa i guess, but we always rent a car (4x4 actually, and i suggest you do the same) and you can get most any where within a day.

common places to stay (these are all over the country geographically): quepos, tamarindo, hermosa/jaco, dominical. i'm sure there other good places but all my experience in costa rica has been surf-related.

 

Cool. Did you surf on the Caribbean side or Pacific? I think we'll be heading towards the Pacific side. So far, from doing some research, it looks like I'll be trying to fit these things into the itinerary:

Arenal volcano
Zip Line/Canopy tour ... either Monte Verde, Arenal or Rincon de la Vieja
Tamarindo Beach ... maybe some other beaches
Deep Sea Fishing ... maybe out of Tamarindo.

 

I stayed in Jaco for a few days as well as San Jose in the Hotel Del Rey. I recommend whitewater rafting; I can't compare to other locations, but it was a great time. The zip line was also incredible. There's no shortage of beans and rice or fresh fruit, which was great.

I'm not a surfer, but we tried to boogie board and those waves were absolutely huge.

 

Same here my co worker go every year. they love i can ask for good spots if you like.

 

My brothers and I just went in August. We stayed on the Pacific side in Puntarenas and Manuel Antonio. Manuel Antonio was freakin awesome(it's a nature park/town) and Puntarenas had an all-inclusive that we stayed at(not ideal for young single guys. too many families were there) We're all in our early-mid 20's so we thought that places like Jaco and San Jose would be fun, but they just weren't; just too much sleaze going around, and so we only stayed long enough to surf. EVERYWHERE you go you will be no more than 30 minutes away from somewhere to go ziplining, so don't worry about that. The hot springs on Arenal at La Fortuna are cool, and sometimes the monkeys will come down by the pools!

If you're looking for less crowds, I would recommend the rainy season; it's really not much worse than Florida weather. The only real difference is the afternoon rains last about 3 hours longer than in Florida. This also happens to be the low season for tourists. Ev erything(food, alcohol, transportation, flights, lodging, etc..) is much cheaper, plus you can interact better with locals if that's what you want.

Be wary of non-touristy nightlife; the club we went to one town over had amazing food served all night, but when we went inside they were auctioning off women. Definitely different than something you would see here...

 

Definitely. Any additional input I can get is appreciated. Thanks!