Caribbean Travel Dreams Blog

Costa Rica Adventures with Travel Dreams - 11/2 to 11/8/08

Our six night adventure only hit a fraction of what Costa Rica has to offer. We visited the Central Valley (San Jose, La Paz Waterfall Gardens, La Fortuna/Arenal), and then headed down to the South Pacific Coast of Quepos/Manuel Antonio, staying at Peace Lodge, Mountain Paradise and Hotel Parador along the way. Tours included Sky Tram/Sky Trek in Arenal; guided tour of Arenal National Park; an evening at Eco Termales in Arenal; guided tour of Manuel Antonio National Park; Titi Canopy tour in Manuel Antonio; Mangrove Boat Tour in Quepos. I've documented our Costa Rican journey in this blog entry, but also composed a mini-website that journals each adventure along with photos at www.traveldreamscostaricanovember08.shutterfly.com

La Paz Waterfall Gardens & Grounds Around Peace Lodge

Our first full day was a little rainy (then again, we were in the rainforest at the tail end of the "green season"). Our stay began at the beautiful Peace Lodge, which is right in the midst of the La Paz Waterfall gardens... more on that under the "Peace Lodge" page. Located about one hour from San Jose in Heredia ,La Paz Waterfall gardens is a combination nature park, wildlife refuge, and 70 acres of wildlife and forest to explore. There are 2.5 miles of trails along the La Paz River, above, below and right next to 5 breathtaking waterfalls, the highest 120 feet tall. The nature park & wildlife refuge consist of hiking trails, butterfly garden, hummingbirds galore, aviary with exotic birds, as well as monkey, jungle cat, frog, orchid & reptile exhibits, and a replica casita of Costa Rica centuries ago.  Animals in the wildlife refuge have been rescued, not captured

We woke up to the sounds of the La Paz Waterfalls in the distance and watched the numerous hummingbirds visit the feeder on our balcony. Clean, fresh air and beautiful scenery ... what a way to start a vacation ... and the sun even peeked through for us.  We had a hearty breakfast (included at Peace Lodge), packed our rain ponchos and headed out to the hike the grounds and visit the exhibits.

Our first stop was the enclosed aviary, where we were met by toucans, parrots, and some other beautiful birds flying freely around us ... but be sure to watch your earrings as the sign says, the gray parrots like to steal them! Other exhibits included the most beautiful butterfly garden, hummingbird garden with so many hummingbirds you could feel the breeze as they flew by, monkey, jungle cats, exotic frogs & reptiles.

Another highlight was hiking the trails by the 5 waterfalls at La Paz, the highest being 120'. Trails and steps were steep, but downhill most of the way, and on a normal day there is a shuttle to bring you back up. The trail to get the shuttle was washed out during our hike, so we had to make our way back up the hills. Exhausting but still beautiful.

This was truly a beautiful way to begin our adventures in Costa Rica!

Peace Lodge

Our first night in Costa Rica was spent in the beautiful Peace Lodge located in the midst of the Las Paz Waterfall Gardens, near the Poas Volcano,just about an hour from San Jose.Peace Lodge is one of the Small Distinctive Hotels of Costa Rica and by far one of the most unique places I've stayed, the only accommodations located onsite at the La Paz Waterfall Gardens. Free internet access in the lobby; spa services available, robes in the room. Guests of Peace Lodge have free access to La Paz Waterfall Gardens.

Our private balcony was large with rocking chairs, hammock, stone jacuzzi with waterfall, hummingbird feeder (which fed a lot of hummingbirds while we were there!), and a spectacular view of the La Paz River Valley and rainforest ... so relaxing to listen to the waterfalls in the distance. We were just over 5000 ft. above sea level at this resort.

Each room is named after the scientific name of a butterfly. We stayed in a Deluxe room - Siproeta epaphus. The grounds are very hilly, so it wouldn't be the best choice for someone with problems walking. Each building is located along the hillside with an unobstructed private view.

Our room had hardwood floors, a beautiful handcrafted raised King canopy bed, stone gas fireplace with a seating area in front, futon-like bed (where my son slept) CD player with a handful of CD's (various music mixes), satellite TV with free DVD choices, mini-bar (with reasonably priced choices ... Imperial beer for $3), coffee maker with complimentary Britt coffee, dehumidifier which kept the room free of moisture so common in the rainforest (and which also helped to heat the room).

I'm going to have a hard time trying to describe the bathroom ... words won't describe how cool it was. The shower was a separate area with stone walls and your choice of "standard" or "waterfall" water flow; a stone tiled bathtub; sprawling wrought iron chandelier with "flower" lights on each branch; large vanity with two brightly painted sink basins; choice of aromatherapy scents with an electric diffuser.

At the entrance to each room, Peace Lodge puts the name of the guest on the door with little wooden blocks ... nice personal touch. I just loved the knobs on the jacuzzi and bathtub ... stone "rocks" with brightly painted tree frogs ... a touch of "the Flintstones".

We stayed at Peace Lodge one night and experienced breakfast, dinner and lunch before leaving for Arenal. Breakfast was included, tasty standard fare with a few extra Costa Rican specialties (Gallo Pinto/rice & beans, of course). Lunch was at the Trout Bar - located next to a pool, jacuzzi, and trout lake you can actually fish for trout (must be great in warmer weather, it was a little cool and rainy when we were there). Food was good and not too pricey, and of course trout was on the menu. Dinner at Vista Poas was a little pricey but delicious, a nice atmosphere with a fireplace and bar. Dinner was a flat rate of $35 per person (4 course meal) or a la carte (pricewise the $35 pp was a better choice). Children flat price of $15. Of note, all restaurants add on 13% tax & 10% service charge/tip automatically

Arenal Volcano and National Park Tour

Arenal Volcano is located in La Fortuna, about 2 to 3 hours from San Jose or the Guanacaste area, and is one of the most visited active volcanoes in Costa Rica. It's the third active volcano in the world, and also one of the youngest at 7000 years old. The most devastating eruption happened in July of 1968. It continues to erupt with rumbling heard throughout the day, "puffs" of smoke seen down the side where lava rocks tumble down ... and if you're lucky (like we were), you get to see a little red fireworks on a clear night.

We had a full view of Arenal from our room at Mountain Paradise and were very fortunate to have some clear days to see both cones of the volcano. It's a majestic site, and there are numerous hotels in the area offering beautiful views.

While in Arenal we chose to go on a 2 hour guided hike through Arenal National Park followed by a visit to Eco Termales Hot Springs (included dinner).  Javier, our guide on this tour, was so full of knowledge during our hike and very proud of his country.  I found throughout our trip to Costa Rica that it is most beneficial to have a guide whenever one is offered for any tours... their expertise points out the little things you could have missed and passes along tidbits of valuable information to share with their group. The half-way point of our 2 hour hike was climbing the lava rocks to a vantage point which I believe is the closest you can get to the base of Arenal. The hike through Arenal National Park is an easy hike, but the climb up the large lava rocks isn't for those with trouble walking. The good thing is you don't have to climb up if you don't want to ... it's no reason to not take the National Park tour.  Atop the laval rocks we got an excellent view of the lava rocks rolling down the mountain that day (easy to follow via the puffs of smoke) ... but the best show was that evening watching the red lava rocks roll down the side.

After our hike, we headed for a couple of hours of relaxing time at Eco Termales Hot Springs. There are 4 "pools" varying in temperature from 95 to 100 degrees ... totally heated by Arenal Volcano. Lockers and towels were included, and changing rooms were very clean; you are told not to bring any money into the hot springs ... not necessary because even though they have a full bar (alcoholic & non-alcoholic drinks reasonably priced) it is on the honor system (had a pretty good Margarita myself). As you leave, you advise the front desk what you had to drink (no receipts are provided when you order a drink) and pay on the way out ... don't find that too many places!  The tip jar is also located at the front desk. Eco Termales Hot Springs has a restaurant on site outside of the thermal springs pools, but we did not eat there. Our tour included a delicious dinner at Arenal Restaurant ... choices from beef, fish & chicken prepared various ways ... always with Gallo Pinto. Our biggest treat of having a clear night and being able to see the red lava of Arenal was a great way to end a fantastic day in Arenal. Unfortunately, I don't have the type of camera that would develop the nighttime shots of the red lava... I tried though!

Mountain Paradise Resort in Arenal

Mountain Paradise is a fairly new resort, located close to the town of La Fortuna with full views of Arenal Volcano. There are 12 separate buildings with two Jr. Suites each (we stayed in a Jr. Suite) and three buildings with 2 bedroom suites. We were met with a cool drink and towels before driven up the hill to our room in a golf cart; a fresh fruit basket in the room; coffee maker with complimentary Britt coffee. Free wireless internet; if you don't have your laptop, the staff will let you use the computer in the lobby. The resort is small, with one small pool (small children's area, jacuzzi and bar), and one restaurant on site (same menu for lunch and dinner, no lunch menu). Breakfast is included. Our Jr. suite was large and comfortable; one king size canopy bed, one double bed, table with 4 chairs ... anda huge bathroom with toilet in a private area, one sink, two showers (one stone waterfall shower and another "regular" glass enclosed). We stayed at Mountain Paradise for two nights and spent quite a bit of time outside of the resort on tours, which was a good thing because there really wasn't much to do at the resort. Most guests are out seeing the country or they head into town for meals. We had one dinner included in a tour (at Arenal Restaurant), but ate the rest of our meals at the one restaurant. We were given suggestions for places to eat in La Fortuna, but we were so busy during the day and too lazy by the time we got back to head into town.

It's a resort with a lot of potential, but I did have a few suggestions for improvement: no refrigerator; room was damp; the closet was very small with only 4 hangers; one mirror; no iron/ironing board. Despite the fact that the bathroom was huge, there was only one towel rack that held two towels, no shelves or vanity per se (we had to keep our toiletries in the bedroom), no hooks on the doors for wet clothes/towels/robes.  Having an open shower and only one mirror in the jr. suite located in the bathroom could cause an issue if someone was taking a shower and wanted privacy and another person needed a mirror to get ready.

Other than these suggestions for improvement, the staff was excellent ... friendly, courteous, helpful ... and the grounds were very nice. There are quite a few choices in places to stay in the Arenal area.

Sky Tram/Sky Trek Canopy Adventure in Arenal & Titi Canopy Tour in Manuel Antonio

I've done zipline canopy tours in St. Lucia and Jamaica, and by far the Sky Trek Canopy tour in Arenal was the best. Aventuras Arenal Sky Tram/Sky Trek tour starts with a briefing and then a slow, beautiful ride in an open gondola up the hillside, above the rainforest, with a beautiful view of Arenal Lake. Each gondola has a tour guide who points out interesting facts about the area, flora & fauna, wildlife, Arenal Volcano, etc. When reaching the top, there is a large observation deck with unobstructed, panoramic views of Lake Arenal.  Once you reach the observation deck, the options are to take a 30 minute guided walk and ride the tram back down to the base ... or do the canopy zipline section, making your way back down via 8 zipline traverses. Unlike most canopy tours, this one didn't involve any hiking to get to the platforms because you started at the top.  We opted to zip it, and I'm so glad we did. Our guides were Luis and Diego, great guys. There was a professional photographer at the very last traverse, but along the way our guides took pictures with our individual cameras (all the pics you see were taken by Diego & Luis).

For those who were a little nervous to zipline, there are two "practice" cables where you can give it a shot and then have the option to back out and take the tram back down. Once you pass those two practice cables, there's no turning back though. We had a couple of nervous nellies in our group (including my son), who all agreed they were glad they went through to the end and would do it again in a heartbeat (as a matter of fact, my brave Keith did it again later in the week in Manuel Antonio). This was a professional operation, safety and cables were topnotch, and they were well intuned to each person in the group. My son opted to do a "piggy back" with one of the tour guides the first couple of zips,and then he couldn't wait to go alone. At one point, the guides told him he was too light to go on one of the cables alone (it was one of the "slow" cables), and he was actually disappointed he had to team up with a guide!  I timed one of the zips, and it took 40 seconds for the person ziplining to get from our platform to the next platform. Very cool.

One thing to remember is to actually look around you as you're zipping on the Sky Trek tour in Arenal. Some of the cables are hundreds of feet long and give you clear views of the lake and volcano ... a sight not to be missed. Most zipline tours I've gone on are above the lush forests with views of vegetation ... more of an exhilarating experience/adrenaline rush than for the view. This was the best.  I didn't even mind getting "stuck" at one point along a cable ... just turned around and hand-over-hand pulled myself back in (that's the series of pictures with me coming in "backwards"). Yes ... Luis decided to take a blow-by-blow photo account ... good workout though!

Later in the week in Manuel Antonio, we did another zipline tour, Titi Canopy Tour, with 16 traverses, some long cable runs, too. Most of the scenery included lush rainforest. Our guide "Monkey" was nice and considerate in making sure you felt comfortable (for some reason his English with a Spanish accent sounded like Borat). Mid-way through the traverses there was a break where we were provided bottled water, and in the end we were given fresh fruits, cookies, water & juice.DVD's with professional pictures taken during the ziplining and stock photos of wildlife & flowers in Costa Rica were for sale (cost $30 for my family of 3). We passed since we had so many photos already. This tour involved a lot more hiking than the Sky Trek.

Hotel Parador, Manuel Antonio/Quepos

Hotel Parador is about a 5 hour drive from Arenal, past Jaco, through the fishing town of Quepos, and up a long bumpy road.  Eduardo, our driver, said road will be finished when the condos along the road are finished. At check-in, children receive a balloon and some Costa Rican candy; on the bed in the room, there are coloring book & crayons and more candy for the children. We were escorted to our room by a staff member and advised of the amenities of the resort. In the room were towel animals on the bed (a la cruise), and a plate of fresh fruit. Room has an iron/board, coffee maker with complimentary coffee,and a mini-bar (more $$ than Peace Lodge). There is also free wireless access & a complimentary air conditioned computer station just off thelobby. Hotel Parador is more a typical upscale resort with amenities you come to expect with a nice resort.

There is a free scheduled shuttle into ManuelAntonio, where you can eat, shop and hang at the beach. The only beach walkable from the hotel is Playa Biesenz, down the hill road a bit, make a left and travel down a dirt trail (about a 10 minute walk). It's an interesting trail, can be a little muddy after the rain, but we did see a sloth hanging around during our walk and I'm sure monkeys can be seen at other times, too.There are no facilities at the beach, just natural beauty ... there is a Hotel Parador guard and a gentleman renting snorkele quipment, but no chairs, food & beverage service, etc., Lots of little hermit crabs, too.

The resort has an infinity pool, pool bar, and an adult pool (gated with a buzzer that's up too high for kids to reach). We didn't do much of what was offered at the resort (mini-golf, spa services, etc.). The grounds are beautiful, with a Monkey Trail to hike. They are building a new section with a lot more rooms and an additional pool, should be done in December.

Food & drink at this resort are definitely high priced. We did take a taxi down the bumpy road one night to La Cantina, a BBQ restaurant with live music. Good food at a good price, too. Taxi fare was $9 each way (plus tip).

Manuel Antonio National Park

Manuel Antonio National Park is the smallest of the national parks in Costa Rica, located just south of Quepos, but not short on nature and beauty ... so diverse with lush rainforest, beautiful white sand beaches, coral reefs to snorkel, and interesting animals to admire.The National Park is open 7am to 4pm daily, closed Monday. If you choose to enter the park independently (without a tour), entrance fee is $10/adult, children 12 and under are free. The beachside town of Manuel Antonio is a good place to visit for a bite to eat or drink and souvenier shopping.

We chose a 2 hour guided tour of the National Park, which gave us the expertise of a tour guide with an eagle eye and a powerful telescope to spot what our naked eyes would never have found ... three and two-toed sloths hanging way above us in the trees, squirrel monkeys "flying" from branch to branch, lizards and reptiles hiding in the trails. Our guide showed me how to take pictures through the telescope with my digital camera, which is how I could get such great shots of the sloths.

At one point, we stopped to rest along the beach and our tour guide noticed tracks in the sand left by a sea turtle's flippers coming out to lay eggs ... we followed the tracks and then found the nest. Our inexperienced eyes just saw random tracks in the sand and a pile of sticks. Well worth it having the knowledge of someone who must train for 4 years before becoming an official Manuel National Park guide. Our guide was just 27 and he'd been guiding people through the National Park for 12 years!

After our hike through the park, we walked a bit through the town of Manuel Antonio ... lots of shops, restaurants and crafters ... and had a refreshing plate of fresh fruit and a smoothie at Marlin Restaurant (included in our tour). We then had the option of staying and hitting the beach (catching either a taxi or the free hotel shuttle back), but we had the Titi Canopy Tour scheduled that afternoon sowe headed back to Hotel Parador

Mangrove Boat Tour, Manuel Antonio/Quepos

The final tour on our journey was a boat tour through the mangroves just outside of the town of Quepos.  When we woke up it was pouring and we thought it may be cancelled, but the downpour turned to drizzle and off we went at 7:30am once again.

Our guide, Barbara, was a Swiss native who has lived in Costa Rica for the past 10 years, and she was passionate about nature, ecology, and the preservation of wildlife ... another very friendly and knowledgeable tour guide. The boat tour was slow paced, no exertion, and it was very interesting to see mother nature at work in the mangroves which are another of the protected areas of Costa Rica.  Wildlife spotted along our tour included many different types of birds, colorful crabs, snakes (small rainbow boa), iguanas, and the "Jesus Christ" lizard (so named because they seem to walk on water thanks to momentum and webbed feet). Ours was a relaxing boat ride, while others toured the mangroves via kayaks.

When we arrived at the marina in the morning, we were offered fresh fruit, crackers & cookies, juice & coffee.  Following the approximately 1-1/2 hour tour, we returned to the marina where we were fed a freshly prepared lunch of fresh Tamarind juice, gallo pinto, and a choice of chicken or mahi mahi. It was delicious. We were back to Hotel Parador by 1pm, just in timeto enjoy a beautiful afternoon in the bright sunshine by the pool with new friends on our final day in Costa Rica.

 Hopefully you'll now feel like heading out to your own Costa Rican adventure ... be sure to give me a call to ensure your Costa Rica Travel Dreams come true!

Pattie Mitchell, ACC
Travel Dreams
E-mail: traveldreams10@yahoo.com
www.traveldreams.us