oldtimer
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I'm headed to Costa Rica in a couple of weeks . I rented a 4x4 and plan on driving through most of the country . Is there anything I should be aware of or careful about ? Is it safe , in your view....? Thanks , Matt .
Been to Costa Rica ?
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It is quite safe, overall. Just take the routine precautions.
Sounds like lots of fun.
DocVikingo
Sounds like lots of fun.
DocVikingo
tigerdiver
Guest
I was there for 8 days last summer and it was fantastic. We stayed in San Jose for the 1st and last night because of our flight schedules. Despite what you may read the main roads are not that bad in my opinion. However there may be stretches of roads that are the worst you've ever seen. So although it may only be 45-50 km it will still take 1 1/2 hours.
I dove Cano Island off the Pacific side and it was awesome. We saw white tip reef sharks and dolphins and tons of aquatic life. Nice thermocline at about 70 fsw. Vis was good and current wasn't too bad except for between a couple of underwater peaks.
So enjoy.
p.s. Brush up on you espanol if you will be headed to the more non-tourist areas of the country.
I dove Cano Island off the Pacific side and it was awesome. We saw white tip reef sharks and dolphins and tons of aquatic life. Nice thermocline at about 70 fsw. Vis was good and current wasn't too bad except for between a couple of underwater peaks.
So enjoy.
p.s. Brush up on you espanol if you will be headed to the more non-tourist areas of the country.
Scuba Chip
Guest
I've made 4 trips to Costa Rica. Each time, I was on land only for a day or two on each side of a liveaboard tirp out to Cocos Island.
I would have to agree that the place is safe. The people are friendly. But get away from the larger towns/cities and you need the "Espanol". You can visit a volcano, or two or three, do a cable canopy tour through the jungle in a number of places. Be sure to bring back some Costa Rican Coffee. The Dark Roast is great, and makes nice gifts to friends and family.ut:
I would have to agree that the place is safe. The people are friendly. But get away from the larger towns/cities and you need the "Espanol". You can visit a volcano, or two or three, do a cable canopy tour through the jungle in a number of places. Be sure to bring back some Costa Rican Coffee. The Dark Roast is great, and makes nice gifts to friends and family.
ut:I was there in March and went to Playa Ocotal on the northwest coast. My wife and I also rented a 4x4 and drove there from San Jose. The main highway is CA1, the road is not that bad but in places the traffic is standstill because the road is only two lanes and you are driving through the mountains. You should definitely brush up on your Spanish before you go, but you won't have any trouble finding someone that speaks English. It is as safe as anywhere but just be aware that petty theft is a problem in some of the heavy tourist areas.
If you are staying on the mainland and are not going to the Cocos Islands you will want to go to the Playa Del Coco area in Guanacaste. Playa Ocotal, Playa Hermosa and Playa Del Coco are all great but Playa Ocotal is the nicest. Look to stay at Villa Casa Blanca or the Ocotal Resort. The diving is excellent from all three places because they all take you to the same dive sites. The local diving is great but the vis is not the best. Take the trips to Catalina Island and the Bat Islands. When I went to Catalina there were several Manta Rays that we dove with and that were around the whole time. There are also scorpion fish, morays, eagle rays, white tip sharks, huge sea turtles, whale sharks and bull sharks. You won't be dissapointed! Have fun!
If you are staying on the mainland and are not going to the Cocos Islands you will want to go to the Playa Del Coco area in Guanacaste. Playa Ocotal, Playa Hermosa and Playa Del Coco are all great but Playa Ocotal is the nicest. Look to stay at Villa Casa Blanca or the Ocotal Resort. The diving is excellent from all three places because they all take you to the same dive sites. The local diving is great but the vis is not the best. Take the trips to Catalina Island and the Bat Islands. When I went to Catalina there were several Manta Rays that we dove with and that were around the whole time. There are also scorpion fish, morays, eagle rays, white tip sharks, huge sea turtles, whale sharks and bull sharks. You won't be dissapointed! Have fun!
AllenG
Contributor
Gstone - thanks for the information. A couple questions -
1. Are there special sites of interest on CA1 between San Jose and Guanacaste (e.g., volcanos, etc.)? How long a road trip are we talking about (how many hours)?
2. When you say the viz is not the best, what are we talking about? 20 feet? 30? 50?
3. What water temp are we talking and at what time of year? Are we talking 1/4", 5 mm, or 3/2 mm suits?
4. How long are the boat trips to Catalina or Bat?
5. Is the local diving substantial different than Catalina or Bat?
1. Are there special sites of interest on CA1 between San Jose and Guanacaste (e.g., volcanos, etc.)? How long a road trip are we talking about (how many hours)?
2. When you say the viz is not the best, what are we talking about? 20 feet? 30? 50?
3. What water temp are we talking and at what time of year? Are we talking 1/4", 5 mm, or 3/2 mm suits?
4. How long are the boat trips to Catalina or Bat?
5. Is the local diving substantial different than Catalina or Bat?
AllenG,
Sorry it took me so long to reply, as to the answers to your questions:
1. There are not any special spots of interest right on CA1. Everything is from 1/2 hour to 2 1/2 hours off of CA1. Volcan Arenal, Monte Verde Cloud Forest Etc. However the drive itself is breathtaking.
2. The visibility depends on the dive. It can go from 20 to 60 feet during one dive, it just depends. I have been told the visibility is better during the rainy season.
3. I was there at the end of March, 80 degrees at the top and 63 at the thermocline at 60 feet. You can get away with a 2mm shorty and be very comfortable.
4. The boat trip to catalina was about 1 hour 15 minutes. The Bat islands are a lot further and most dive ops run overnight trips to get there. I did not go to the bats so you might want to email the local dive shops.
5. The local dives I went on were great, but the visibility was a little better at Catalina. The local dives have a lot of stuff to look at too and from what I was told, it is not uncommon to see both Mantas and Whalesharks on a local dive. I did not see any however.
The diving is really good. It's not the clarity of the carribean, but you will see more wildlife. You may even hear the distant call of a larger whale.
Sorry it took me so long to reply, as to the answers to your questions:
1. There are not any special spots of interest right on CA1. Everything is from 1/2 hour to 2 1/2 hours off of CA1. Volcan Arenal, Monte Verde Cloud Forest Etc. However the drive itself is breathtaking.
2. The visibility depends on the dive. It can go from 20 to 60 feet during one dive, it just depends. I have been told the visibility is better during the rainy season.
3. I was there at the end of March, 80 degrees at the top and 63 at the thermocline at 60 feet. You can get away with a 2mm shorty and be very comfortable.
4. The boat trip to catalina was about 1 hour 15 minutes. The Bat islands are a lot further and most dive ops run overnight trips to get there. I did not go to the bats so you might want to email the local dive shops.
5. The local dives I went on were great, but the visibility was a little better at Catalina. The local dives have a lot of stuff to look at too and from what I was told, it is not uncommon to see both Mantas and Whalesharks on a local dive. I did not see any however.
The diving is really good. It's not the clarity of the carribean, but you will see more wildlife. You may even hear the distant call of a larger whale.
Well , just got back from Costa Rica and I've got to say it was a very good trip . Of course this is only my opinion as everyone else will probably have a different agenda if they go . San Jose was a little on the uncomfortable side as you tend to keep an eye open for something to happen , just was'nt totally at ease . Once we got in the 4x4 and out past San Ramon it was great . Newly paved 2 lane for about 3 hours up to Arenal Volcano , it's like a go-kart track , lot of fun driving up and down and around mountains . Volcano was something to see , then drove 3 more hours up to the Pacific and stayed at El Ocotal Resort for 5 days . Dove 3 days and have to say ( personnally) I had ****ty dives . Other divers spoke of better dives in the days before I got there so in all fairness....Diving aside , we had a great trip and the sights ( on land ) were worth the trip .
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