• Overview

Costa Rica is a country with a lot of nature and wildlife, like monkeys – 4 species that live there – macaws and sloths. Only to name a few of Costa Ricas Fauna. That’s why we especially recommend Costa Rica to people who like nature and animals and just like to do outdoor activities. We don’t talk about a special travel season, because in our opinion there is no best time to visit Costa Rica. Chris and me travelled during the rainy season and it wasn’t less beautiful. What you need to know, the weather can change really quick from sun to rain during the rainy season.

• Arrival

As we travelled from Germany we had a longer journey ahead of us. From Frankfurt International Airport to Paris Charles de Gaulle Airport we had a travel time of one hour and half an hour. After a few hours the plane took off to Juan Santamaria Airport, with a travel time of 11 hours and half an hour. We recommend travellers to watch out for options and to compare flight offers on different websites like Skyscanner for example. Direct flights are likely to be more expensive than flights with one stop, as we found out during our research. In our opinion, the trip is still quite manageable even with a layover.

• Accommodation

Our stay was in La Finca Lodge, about 30 minutes away from La Fortuna and about 2 to 2 hours and 30 minutes from Juan Santamaria International Airport. We had a transportation organized from our lodge, which we had already contacted in advance to prepare our arrival. How we did it is one possible option. But you can also rent a car near the airport. Therefore ‘Alamo Rent a Car’ is a company you could choose. It’s a five-minute-drive from the airport. More about our experience in point no. 4.

To get more into detail about the accommodation, it was a mid-range accommodation which is located in the district of Platanar, province Alajuela. The lodge itself is surrounded by jungle. La Fortuana is the next reachable big city, but it’s an half-hour-drive from the lodge. If you want to have dinner outside the lodge or need to get some groceries, you need to know it’s a 30 to 40 minutes walk. The accommodation offers breakfast and dinner a la carte. What we really appreciated was the opportunity to taste traditional costarican meals. La Finca Lodge also offers activities you can book. We choose an ATV-Tour and had a lot fun, but more of that later in point no. 5. The lodge has own animals, like donkeys, miniature horses and more. The property is very beautiful and well-kept. There are also created jungle paths, where you can see wildlife, if you’re just attentive enough. The staff was very helpful, friendly and lovely. What we appreciated most, is that we felt comfortable from the very first second and it felt more private and besides from the mass tourism, because of it’s location.

• Rental Car

Do you need a rental car, if you visit Costa Rica? It clearly depends on your needs and wishes. If you want to enjoy more time in one place, maybe you don’t need a rental car or only for like a few days, if your planning on going on a major activity. If you want to get around a lot and see different places, you need a rental car. Busses are not really available and reliable.

We had a rental car from Alamo for 8 days in may/june and the price was about 440 US-Dollar, total insurance included. The reception of the lodge organized the car for us. The deposit was 500 US-Dollar. Our experience with them was very uncomplicated and easy-going. On our last day we brought the car back by ourselves. We also got back our deposit uncomplicated. Alamo Rent a Car is located 5 minutes from the airport. They have regular shuttle services that bring travellers to the airport.

• Activities & must-see’s

In the first days without a rental car, we were watching out for wildlife and discovered the whole area around the lodge. We also had some relaxing time at the pool and went on a hike around district Platanar by ourselves. At our first time in La Fortuna city we visited El Salto, a free place to refresh in the water and where you can also use the famous rope, to jump into the water. La Fortuna has a national bank, where you can get US-Dollars or the costarican currency Collones. The city has many cafes, restaurants and a lot of small shops, where you can buy souvenirs or local products like costarican coffee for example.

With our lodge we’ve booked an ATV-Tour, where everyone had its own ATV. The guides told us how to drive and we also got a helmet. We drove over sticks and stones, through mud and rain, crossed part of a river. It was a lot of fun and gave us adrenaline while driving the ATV, especially in the rain and at the same time admiring the landscape. We also saw howler monkeys in the trees and a famous rainbow tucan during the tour. It was definitely an experience we would repeat.

What else did we do during our time in Costa Rica? We visited the waterfall near La Fortuna and Bajos del Toro, where you can hike along 6 waterfalls. The waterfall La Fortuna has 2 swimming zones. Also if you visit Bajos del Toro, you can refresh in the water. To get to the waterfalls you need to follow trails with many stairs, which can be quit exhausting, but the views are worth it.

The region around La Fortuna is also known for its hot springs. There is a public space called El Choyin, where you can experience the hot water for free. Its also possible to go to places where you pay for the entry, but maybe have more comfort like sanitaries and where you can for example get some drinks. We did both, on the one hand we visited El Choyin. On the other hand we went to Termales del Bosque, where the entry was included in the ATV ticket price. Originally the visit was part of the tour but due to a landslide we couldn’t reach it by the ATV’s, thats why our guide told us, we can go there another day and stay there as long as we want. In our opinion it was very unstressful in this way and very calm without any pressure to enjoy the hot springs surrounded by jungle noises. Our recommondation is to ask the guide directly to use the entry this way, for a calmer and more enjoyable experience.

Another day we decided to go to Proyecto Asis, which is an animal rescue center for wild animals, with the goal to release them into the wild again. Most of the animals are in the rescue center because they had an accident. Some of them are sadly there because humans held them like pets in their houses and they are not used to nature anymore and wouldn’t survive. The rescue center cares for the animals and tries to rehabilitate them. Some of them are going to live there forever. If you want to learn a lot about the different animals and species, about their behaviours and many more, you need to put Proyecto Asis on your list. The entry supports the work and the maintenance of the rescue center. They also have an own souvenir shop, where you can get special gifts.

Also the National Park Volcan Arenal is a must-see if you want to be close to nature. Its worth it for the views, where you can take amazing pictures of the vulcan with the lake. If you take some time you can watch out for animals. We saw tucans flying from tree to tree and also different shaded hummingbirds.

With the organisation green vacations we went on a Safari Tour. With boats we crossed the Penas Blancas River. What we saw during the 3-hour-tour:

• sloth
• crocodile
• howler monkeys
• turtle
• tucan
• different types of birds

The trip ended with a few snacks and drinks and friendly conversations with other visitors and the guides.

Mistico Hanging Bridges Park is an activity where you can also discover wild animals and cross bridges in different heights. You can go by yourself or with a guide that explains you a lot. We did it by ourselves, saw coatis and the common blue jeans frog. It was fun to go over the bridges and see the jungle ground under your feet.

The Butterfly Conservatory in El Castillo was magical with all the butterflys flying around. There are also different frog species. You can also go on a walk around the conservatory if you want. The conservatory is guided and in this way you learn more about the animals.

Cost overview

Flights	1720 €
Accommodation (breakfast included)	1240 €
Food	480 €
Rental Car	385 €
Activities	595 €

All of the prices are for 2 people. We travelled for 14 days over the end of may and the beginning of june.

Conclusion & our recommendations

Be sure to try the sodas when you’re in Costa Rica. Sodas are small restaurants, where you can taste traditional costarican meals for very good prices. We often paid between 20 to 30 € for meals and drinks for both of us.

When you’re travelling in the rainy season, better take your rain jacket with you where ever you go. Don’t trust the sunshine, because the weather can change real quick.

If you’re worrying that you don’t have enough time, we can tell you from our experience. Two weeks are absolutely fine to see a lot and absolutely worth the long flight.

Always take your time looking around for wild animals and you will see the most. As already mentioned you can visit national parks, go an hike or choose an accomodation surrounded by jungle.

What else: be inspired, have a lot of fun, just be spontanious and enjoy or how Costa Ricans say: Pura Vida!