Costa Rica Adventure Travel Guide

Costa Rica is an amazing destination for adventure seeking travelers. With enough PTO earned at my corporate gig, I had an opportunity to experience the country's beauty and surf sports firsthand. Learn from my mistakes and consider my suggestions. Buy your travel guide and hit the road!

SAN JOSE

Most international flights arrive at San Jose International Airport (Juan Santamaria) SJO. Take care of any immediate currency and food needs inside of the airport because there are no amenities outside. The airport is located 20 minutes North of downtown San Jose. Most vacationers take the plentiful minivans and taxis pulling up to the curb of the smallish airport exit upon arrival for $20 each. No need! There is a local city bus outside of the airport that will take you downtown for less than $1. The bus stop is located down the exit ramp on the airports side of the street, about 100 yards from the airport exit. You might be riding next to chickens and 80-year-old abuelas, but this isn’t that why you are adventure traveling in Costa Rica? I found the bus ride to be rather fast, with minimal stops, plenty of highway air, and a fairly limited amount of space. Not bad.

BUS TRAVEL IN COSTA RICA. Thus began my love affair with public local Costa Rica buses. Overall, public buses run semi-frequently between major destinations, depart on time, are not over-crowded, are dirt cheap, and have no bathrooms. As long as you prepare by using the facilities at bus stations and load up on snacks and water before departure, you should have smooth trips.

Heeding the recommendation of a friend who taught English there, I didn’t plan to spend any time in the “armpit” San Jose. I would be back at the end of my trip anyways, so I charged on from the main bus station in San Jose to the West Coast: Jaco (Ha-Ko, gringo’s!)

JACO

The bus ride was about 2 1/2 hours and a handful of change from San Jose to Jaco. Jaco has exploded as a surf spot, simply because it is the closest Pacific destination to the residents of San Jose and the central valley, where the majority of locals live. In hindsight, one of the few disappointments of my trip was the difficulty in finding local ticos to mingle with. The gringo path in Costa Rica has bean clear-cut, and it doesn’t seem to meander into virgin local areas often. Perhaps I should have explored San Jose after all. There are international brand hotels and fast food chains in Jaco. A major street / highway runs a few blocks up from the beach.

BEACH & SURF. The waves here were good enough to hold the Billabong World Surfing Games 2009. Unfortunately I arrived immediatly after and the place was trashed. I’m not sure how much cleaner the town is normally, though, since other travelers reported similar experiences at other times. I was not compelled to surf nor stay in Jaco any longer than necessary. The beach is somewhat wide and has ok sand with smaller smooth rocks.

PARTY. Bars are plentiful along the main street in town. Many beautiful local women headed to the black awned Beatle Bar, so naturally I followed in tow. Inside, there were too many beautiful women. All by themselves. With hardly any guys in the bar. Yep, this was a prostitute bar. A shame too, because it seemed to be the only place in town with some decent action. I recommend the slightly smaller bars along the beach over the ones on the main drag in Jaco. The ocean is a much nicer sight than the dirty street where sketchy looking locals offer mary jane and coke.

DOMINICAL

From Jaco, I headed South along the Pacific Coast, transferring in Quepos to Domical. Both legs were under 4 hours each, for about 8 hours of total travel. No reservations are needed and a handful of buses run daily. Dominical is a small town primarily inhabited by backpackers. A dirt road runs along the beach creating the commercial corridor. There are a handful of hostels to choose from.

WATERFALL & SWIMMING HOLE. About 10 minutes South of Dominical is a descent-sized waterfall creating a swimming hole called Pozo Azul. There is a rope swing big enough to get a back flip out of! I believe there are a few tours that go here - which seems a bit odd to me because it is a smaller swimming hole. It is easy to get to by 4x4, which is necessary to cross a steam en route. Go to the village Escaleras in Dominicalito, about 5 kilometers south of Playa Dominical. On the main highway head towards the Bella Vista Lodge and then take the first road on your right. Travel past a school and cross over a small stream. Continue on this road for about 300 meters until you reach a point where the road widens. Listen for the waterfall! You might drive past it if you are not careful.

BEACH & SURF. The waves in Dominical are heavy. Best for intermediate to advanced surfers. Mainly beach break with rights and lefts that close out. The good news is that there are few surfers in Dominical and you will likely have your own break to enjoy. I noticed the other surfers were usually foreign- European. Rainforest overhang runs along the beach, which is walk able for about 15-20 minutes in either direction. The sand is brown and pebbly, but not uncomfortable to lie down in.

PARTY. When I went in the off-season, open bars were limited to 1 per night. Follow the sound to the party. There are primarily smaller bars playing music. The vibe is laid-back surfer / backpacker and most people you will see out are foreigners. This is not a typical pickup spot. You may even be content with easy nights relaxing with some local grown, high quality mary jane which is not difficult to find in this town.

Somewhere between the surfing and partying I met Jon, a larger, buzz haired surf traveler from Miami. Jon had a 4x4 and offered to drive us to Manuel Antonio after I told him of my plans to travel north.

MANUEL ANTONIO

A beautiful highway leads the way from Quepos to Manuel Antonio National Park (Parque Nacional Manuel Antonio). My trip to Costa had to include at least one trip into the rainforest, something I had hoped to experience since elementary school. Manuel Antonio sounded at least as good as the others if not better and was convenient to my travel route, which shaped up along the Pacific coast. Hotels and hostels run along the main road from Manuel Antonio town down a mountain to the beach.

HIKE. Parque Nacional Manuel Antonio lives up to the hype. Yes, I paid gringo prices to enter and met travelers from my hometown waiting in line, but tranquility and open trails lied ahead. Get lost in the park for at least half a day. There are private and not so private beaches to discover, as well as amazing lookout points. White-face monkeys, sloth’s, giant lizards, and a myriad of bird life abound.

BEACH & SURF. Las olas, the waves are calmer in Manuel Antonio, suitable for beginners. The beach is quite nice with white sand with few pebbles. The water is a beautiful azul, more glassy than choppy. You can walk a good distance along the beach up to the park entrance or play beach volleyball.

PARTY. A variety of nightlife options exist in Manuel Antonio including sports bars, clubs and a casino. Our hostel worker shuttled a busload of travelers to an open-air dance club good on Saturday nights. Drinks and covers are expensive as the town experiences heavier tourist traffic. Fresh seafood at a myriad of restaurants is amazing. Overall, Manuel Antonio was one of the highlights of my trip. From Manuel Antonio, I bussed to Quepos and on to Puntarenas where I caught a beautiful and inexpensive ferry ride to Paquera en route to Mal Pais / Playa Santa Teresa.

MAL PAIS / SANTA TERESA

With its remoteness, lack of people and abundant coastline, Santa Teresa feels like an escape in paradise. Especially when the rainstorms hit. There are a wealth of small hotels, hostels and restaurants with international flavor. No fast food. There’s a good vibe going on here that hopefully wont be spoiled.

BEACH & SURF. The surf is great with intermediate difficulty. The beach line is rugged with rock outcroppings (point breaks) and cove after cove is waiting to be discovered. The sand is nice and the rainforest overhang is omnipresent.

PARTY. There are less than a handful of bar/clubs in Santa Teresa. Although the town had a more relaxed hippy vibe going, I was delighted to learn of an all night moon party at one of the outdoor cabin hut clubs overlooking the beach. What must have been the whole town showed up and partied into the morning. It was a blast. I must have partied a little bit too much, because I missed the infrequent bus out of town. Time was ticking on my 2-week vaca clock, and I was ready to change things up so I decided to rent a car and headed up to the most popular Costa Rica surf destination, Tamarindo.

TAMARINDO

Tamarindo has obviously been touched by the American traveler’s hand. Prices are high (for Central America). Many hotels and some hostels are available in this large town.

BEACH & SURF. Although overblown, the beach in Tamarindo is beautiful. It is wide and long with a variety of surf conditions. Waves are crowded. Tamarindo is the launching point for trips to famous reef breaks Witches Rock and Ollie’s Point.

PARTY. Families, hardcore surfers, backpackers, vacationers, and everyone’s mother go to Tamarino. You will likely have to out-shout large groups of SoCal surfers in the bars and clubs. There are many restaurants clubs and bars within a walkable town. The nightlife is jumping in Tamarindo. Just don’t expect to meet a Costa Rican.

LA FORTUNA / ARENAL

Cradled in the central valley nearest the impressive Arenal Volcano and lake is La Fortuna town. Plenty of hotels and hostels are available in this quant town laid out on a street grid surrounding a park and church. Beyond the volcano, outdoor adventure is the draw to La Fortuna.

HORSEBACK RIDE AND ZIP LINE. After shopping the abundant tour providers in town, I decided on one of the higher elevated, longer zip-line tours with horseback ride. White-water rafting and ATV tours are also available, as well as a trip to the impressive La Fortuna waterfall. The zip-line tour was amazing! It was exhilarating to fly through the rainforest like a monkey.

VOLCANO WATCHING. Volcan Arenal is one of the world’s most active volcanoes. Tours will shuttle you to ideal lookout points, but with a rented car you merely need directions. Even though it was raining when I was there, I was able to catch a glimpse of a few lava streams flowing down the mountain. Awe-inspiring. Natural hot springs flow into town. Access to them is available at pricey hotels and spas, and through friendly locals willing to share their town’s treasure.

PARTY. La Fortuna is a slower, smaller town good for families. I found what was probably the only party in town at a good-sized karaoke and dance club 10 minutes up the road. There are a variety of good local restaurants though, and two fast food restaurants.

The Caribbean Coast of Costa Rica, with its laid back rasta vibe, clear water and pristine beaches appealed to me greatly, but I focused on Pacific Coast surf-spots and couldn't miss rainforest and volcano. Alas, my 18 days in paradise had run out. I made it back to San Jose from La Fortuna in 3 hours, stopping at nearly every fork in the windy road for directions and snacks.

Overall, Costa Rica is an amazing place to visit. The rainforest, mountains and beaches are beautiful. The animal experiences and surf spots are among the worlds best. Opportunity for adventure lies around every corner. Enjoy your travels.