2 Day Costa Rica Side trip after Cocos

[pakman]

I've got 2 days to kill after my Cocos trip on the Aggressor. I guess the port is in the town of Puntarenas. One of my old friends who has property has suggested going down to Dominical further to the south. I've heard others recommend Lake Arenal area.

Wouldn't mind getting out to Tamarindo but that might be too far for a 2 day trip. Anyone recommend Jaco beach area for some surfing?

Anyways, I'd love to hear some other recommendations from people.

Only concern I have is I'm gonna have close to 50kg of diving and camera gear, so taking any local puddle jumpers will be difficult...

Transportation: how's driving around Costa Rica? Pretty safe to rent a car and drive around to most tourist areas? Are taxi costs reasonable for long haul trips (2-3hr) to/from San Juan?

 

[Deep Blue DIving]

If you're looking for some more diving, head to Playas del Coco. The best diving in the country is offered here and we also have some surf spots here.
Driving around with a rental car is save, but never leave the car with your gear inside.
Enjoy your trip and hopefully see you soon!

 

[Scubahippo]

Rent a car and go to Guanacaste, good diving and close to Ollies Point and Ruca Bruja for some quality surfing. You can stay at Ocotal, great place and very professional dive operation. You can get on a boat from Playa del Coco, 5 minutes from resort, and surf those two surf sports.

 

[pakman]

thanks guys... most likely I will be all dived out from a week out on Cocos Island.

BTW, does anyone know if the int'l airport in San Jose has a luggage storage service?

 

[NTSilver]

Pakman
We dove Cocos in May and had 3 days in CR before our return flight. We concentrated on the Arenal area. It was spectacular to hike in to a live volcano, zip line through the rain forest canopy, horseback ride, relax in the hot springs, see frogs, tucans, monkeys and other wildlife, white water raft on the Saraguipi. We used a driver, Leo Rodrieguez, who is also a guide and are very glad we did. It wasn't that the roads were bad, it's just a 3 hour drive and we were exhausted from the diving. You can email Leo at leratravelcr@yahoo.com. It was $160 from San Jose to Arenal. We actually hired Leo to drive to and from, however, he ended up staying with us and doing all of the activities as well - we had our own private guide through the rain forest etc and we saw and experienced things we otherwise would not have. We enjoyed it so much we are going back to Cocos next year and will again spend 4 days exploring CR.
Please feel free to PM me with any specific questions.

Nonie

 

[ChrisM]

I also spent 2 days in the Arenal region before cocos. Stayed at the Arenal Observatory Lodge, view of the lake out of one window, arenal out the other. Agreed, zip lines, hot springs, cheap meals in town at the sodas.... great times.

 

[bikefox]

Like the others have said, Arenal if you want to get away from the water for a couple of days. If you want a layed back town with some cheap hotels, good food and surfing, I would suggest Samara Beach.

http://samarabeach.com/

 

[riguerin]

I've got 2 days to kill after my Cocos trip on the Aggressor. I guess the port is in the town of Puntarenas. One of my old friends who has property has suggested going down to Dominical further to the south. I've heard others recommend Lake Arenal area.

Wouldn't mind getting out to Tamarindo but that might be too far for a 2 day trip. Anyone recommend Jaco beach area for some surfing?

Dominical is a punchy beach break. Get's hollow, but closes out when it gets size. There is no surf in Jaco, but there's some good breaks within nearby driving distance. Hermosa (another hollow beach break) is closest. Jaco is a fun party town, though. It's a popular stagging area for the surfer crowd.

Tamarindo is too. There's a good beginner wave out front. The river mouth can get good, at times. Neighboring Playa Grande to the North gets some sold A-frames. There's some good breaks to the South. Witch's Rock and Ollie's Point the the North are regional classics.

Depending on your surfing ability, CR has something to offer for everyone. Are you regular or goofy foot ? What is your experience/ability level ? Long boarder/short boarder ? Are you traveling with boards or do you plan to rent ?

Only concern I have is I'm gonna have close to 50kg of diving and camera gear, so taking any local puddle jumpers will be difficult...

I'd definitely leave it some place safe if possible.

Transportation: how's driving around Costa Rica? Pretty safe to rent a car and drive around to most tourist areas? Are taxi costs reasonable for long haul trips (2-3hr) to/from San Juan?

Yeah, it's comparatively safe (relative to other Central American countries), albeit petty crime (i.e. car break-ins) has been rising. Like anywhere you travel in the world, you have to exercise good judgment. I personally use Sana Air to hop from one area to the other. Depending on the destination, I then either rent or use local transportation to get around.

Costa Rica is a great country and vacation destination. You should definitely take advantage of the off time to see the country.

 

[Leejnd]

Well, re the driving...the roads in Costa Rica are 80% pothole, 20% road. And they are windy, and the bridges sometimes have no railings, and people drive like maniacs, and most of them are single lanes each direction so you constantly get stuck behind slow trucks and buses...but other than that they're fine! You just need to be aware that it will take you 3 or 4 times longer than you are expecting to get anywhere. So my recommendation would be to spend your time doing something not too far from Puntarenas, so you don't spend all of your two days on the road.

Costa Rica is one of my favorite places on earth. Like others said, a lot depends on what you are interested in. But if you are the adventurous type and you're looking for something really fun that isn't underwater, I'd suggest spending a day or two at the Adventure Park at the Hotel Vista del Golfo. It's not too far from Puntarenas, and it offers a bunch of great activities such as an incredible zip line tour, ATV tours, horseback riding, and other stuff. They actually have two zip line tours - one is a half-day tour, with one of the longest cables in the world; the other is a full day tour that starts with a horseback ride to the beginning point, followed by 25 cables over 11 waterfalls, as well as a rappel down a waterfall. It was definitely one of the most fun things I've ever done! And the ATV tours are fantastic on so many levels -- an absolute BLAST, as well as breathtakingly beautiful, going way up into the cloud forest and along mountain ridges overlooking the Nicoya Peninsula many miles away.

They have a hotel and restaurant there, but you can go there for day trips as well. It's an easy drive from Puntarenas -- we spent this past Christmas week at a resort in Puntarenas, and drove up there one day and did the full-day canopy tour. Here's their website:

http://www.finca-daniel.com/index.htm

You might want to consider staying there -- the hotel is decent, and a great price, and you could leave your gear and stuff in your room while you're out doing adventures. The couple who own the place are German and are just really quality people, and they'll do right by you. The airport is a few hours away in San Jose, and trust me that you don't want to spend any time in San Jose. So I think your best bet is to find a room somewhere as a base and explore.

We have friends who live in Costa Rica, and we go to Vista del Golfo every time we visit. It's one of my favorite places to go. Check it out!

 

[pakman]

Riguerin, thanks for the info. Just looking for a nice scenic beach with a forgiving beach break for a rusty longboarding kook like me (if I can find one to rent... .

And thanks Leejnd for the travel tips... Yep, didn't give myself a lot of time. Would love to spend a full week traveling around but I've got some family commitments in the States before I head back to Asia.