CHAPTERS
What You Will Find In This Post
DAY 1
Day 1: San Jose & Irazu
After a long but direct flight from Paris we arrived in San Jose. Honestly the capital city of Costa Rica is not really worth a visit but it’s a good starting point to go visit the magical Irazu Volcano.
If like us, you love volcanoes go get a sneak peak at the beautiful crater lake of the volcano…! It’s about 1h30 min drive from San José and you can get there by car (no long hike involved here! yey!)
Click for useful information to plan your trip to Irazu
Driving Time from San Jose: 1h30 Each way
Road Condition: Excellent, not even scary! Just beware of the traffic jam when passing through San Jose
Walking Time: 5 min
Difficulty: Easy
Bring With You: Sunscreen and good wind block as it is pretty windy and cold up there. Sunglasses. No need for good walking shoes.
Entrance Fees: 15$ per adult and 5 $ per child
Best Time To Visit: It is better to get there early in the morning as there are usually less clouds and you can see the inside of the crater and the beautiful colors of the lake!
Tips: Get up early to avoid the fog and make sure to check that the park is open as it can be closed due to volcanic activity!
Irazu crater lake from above
DAY 2 – 4
Day 2 – 4: The Cloud Forest In Alajuela
Getting here: The Cloud Forest is at 1h30 drive from San Jose, you can get there by car…but beware of the clouds!
from top to bottom: an aerial view of the El Silencio Lodge located in the Cloud Forest, Poza Azul, Catarata Del Toro and bottom is Las Gemelas
DAY 5 – 9
Day 5 – 9: Arenal / La Fortuna
The Area around Arenal/La Fortuna is a great option to experience all Costa Rica has to offer. From there, you get to explore the rich fauna of the tropical forest canopy at the Mistico Hanging Bridge Park, you can also explore the many animals of the Cano Negro swamps at the border of Nicaragua
Tips: Animals are more active when the sun is not too high so do favor the early mornings and nights to plan your tours!
The Three pictures on top show an Eyelash Viper in Mistico Hanging Bridge, a Capuchin monkey and a Jesus Christ Lizard in Cano Negro. Next is an Iguana in Cano Negro and below are red-eyed tree frog and one sloth in the Arenal area.
There is a range of activities that are offered to you in the Arenal volcano area. The Arenal volcano park itself is not really worth it but you can hike the hanging bridges, do some ziplining in the tropical forest and don’t miss the rafting on the Sarapiqui river. There are also various hotsprings that stems from the volcanoes around and the beautiful blue rivers and waterfalls (Rio Celeste) of the Tenorio National Park.
For more information, check out ultimate guide to Costa Rica
From top to bottom: Rafting on the Sarapiqui river, Mistico Hanging bridge park and bottom is the Rio Celeste Waterfall
DAY 10 – 13
Day 10 – 13: Nicoya Peninsula
The Nicoya Peninsula is the perfect spot to get some seaside experience in Costa Rica. It is located on the Pacific coast and the southermost tip of the peninsula area, called Mal Pais has a nice laidback kind of atmosphere with surfers driving buggies and a ton of healthy food options. You can go to Isla Tortuga which is one of the top spot for snorkeling in Costa Rica (although not the greatest we experienced in all our travel). This is one of the only area in Costa Rica with golden sand beaches so get ready to lay your towel and get a sun tan! After the mountains and the forest it is a really nice way to continue your journey through Costa Rica ! What we liked in Mal Pais is that it is still pretty remote and wild compared to other area of the coast with big resorts.
Getting here: It is wild and remote and indeed it is quite a journey to get there! You will have to take a ferry in Puntarenas and as you get closer to Mal Pais (the southernmost tip of the peninsula) you will evolve on unpaved dust roads… Do NOT trust google maps on this one! The journey takes about 5 hours from San Jose and 6 hours from La Fortuna. You can also catch a plane in San Jose and land in Tambo.
On the left in the beach at Isla Tortuga, top right is a Porcupine fish and bottom right a sergent major fish.
One of the top experiences to not miss in Mal Pais is to rent an ATV and travel across the region through wild beaches, forests, and rivers… We really enjoyed it!
Tips: If you do not want to travel that far to get some beach side experience you can go to Las Catalinas on the north side of the Pacific Coast or to Uvita. I am not sure you will find calm waters and sandy beach as in Isla Tortuga though…
A buggy on a beach in Mal Pais (Nicoya Peninsula)
DAY 14 – 17
Day 14 – 17: Las Catalinas
As our trip was coming to an end we had to get closer to San Jose and head back north. Las Catalinas (in Guanacaste) is perfectly located for that and is a nice way of finishing your trip. You can do some snorkeling in Las Catalinas Islands which is where you can find the big fishes (mantas and sharks…) but visibility is often sub-par. You have some beaches there and we would strongly suggest to do some of the beatiful hikes in the Curubande area like Poza la Pipa and Catarata la Leona. Other than that you can just sit back relax in one of the beautiful hotels in the area and watch the sunset sipping cocktails !
Tips: Honestly you can skip this part if you do not need to relax and chill. Our schedule was pretty intense during our trip. We only have a few days of holidays in the year so we needed some time for oursleves enjoying the swimming pool the SPA…
Top left is a sunset from our room at Casa Chameleon Las Catalinas, top right is our terrace at the same hotel, and bottom is Playa Danta from above.
BONUS
Alternate Route
Now if you are longing for more wilderness and if you are not afraid to drive long distances and not bothered by taking an internal plane, here is the alternate route that we would suggest knowing what we know now:
San Jose & Irazu – 1 night
Day 1: Land & sleep in San Jose
Day 2: Get up early and go check out the Irazu Crater Lake then head to the Limon Province
Limon Province – 2 nights
Suggested Hotels: Ecolirios, Pacuare Lodge
Day 3: Enjoy rafting on the Pacuare river
Day 4: Go to the Tortugeros National Park
Be sure to do the night frog tour while in one of these hotels
Cloud Forest – 3 nights
Suggested Hotels: El Silencio Lodge & SPA
Day 5: Head to the Cloud Forest in the morning and check out the Catarata Del Toro in the afternoon
Day 6: Do the FULL Blue Falls tour
Day 7: Do the Rio Agrio + Poza Azul tour
Note: You can add 1 day to get to Poas volcano if the visiting condition change as today you can only stay 20 min at the crater, so you need to be really lucky with the weather…
Osa Peninsula – 5 Nights
Suggested Hotels: Lapa Rios Lodge, El Remanso Lodge
Day 8. Get to San Jose and catch a flight to the Osa Peninsula
Day 9. Eplore the wild rainforest surrounding the lodge and enjoy the canopy hanging bridges and/Ziplining in the morning, explore one of the many trails of the hotel in the afternoon and do not miss the night tour!
Day 10. Go to the Corcovado National Park
Day 11. Explore Drake Bay and Cano Island
Day 12. Get to Golfo Dulce (whale & dolphin watching + canoeing in the mangroves). You can head back up to Playa Cativo Lodge for this night.
Uvita/Manuel Antonio – 3 Nights
Suggested Hotels: Kura Boutique Hotel, Makanda By The Sea (at least for the last night)
Day 13. Get to Uvita enjoy the sea side and do not miss the ATV tours to the Eco-Chontales waterfall
Day 14. Enjoy some beach time
Day 15. Explore Manuel Antonio National Park
Day 16 Head back to San Jose
If you have more time… La Fortuna & Arenal – 3 Nights
Day 15. Get to Nayara Springs enjoy the onsite private hot springs
Day 16. Do a river safari in Cano Negro or check out the Rio Celeste hike
Day 17. Explore the canyons and waterfalls of Curubande
Day 18. Head back to San Jose
…. And Let us know what you think on the comment section below!
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