Tell me about Costa Rica - especially the North Pacific Coast

I stayed in Dominical for a week 20 years ago. Great little surf town. My room was $20 a night, split three ways. No clue what’s it like now.

quote:

---

I’m not OT rich, so keep that in mind.

---

The wife and I are headed to just outside Quepos in December with a big group. We got our flight from Atlanta, direct to San Jose on Delta, last week for about $800. There's only one flight a day from Atlanta on Delta. Not sure about other cities.

There are so many affordable places on airbnb/vrbo, etc. Costa Rica is not an expensive destination.

Look around and I'm sure you can find something great within your price range. We have two really nice houses with a chef everynight(we have to pay for food, but the chef is included) and it's gonna be maybe $300/couple per night.

quote:

---

When to go?

---

2nd week of December to middle of April. This is the dry season.

On the other hand, if you want the scariest driving experience of your life go during the wet season.

The majority of the roads are not well maintained. Think NOLA potholes in rapid succession on main highways with Ticos always speeding.

If you plan on driving (lots of people hire drivers and you don't have to be OT rich to do it) familiarize yourself with the Costa Rican car insurance craziness.

Liability insurance is purchased from the government and is required for everyone. (Typically about $15/day and rarely mentioned when you book the car) This only covers damages to things you hit. You'll still be on the hook for damage to the rental car.

You can purchase a variety of other insurance policies all the way up to zero liability. This link has lots of helpful info on this topic.

I usually buy the government required one and then use a credit card with rental coverage.

I know it sounds like I've complained and made it seem miserable but I just wanted you to be aware of certain difficulties. Honestly, it's one of the best places I've ever been. It's absolutely beautiful and the all of the locals are unbelievably nice.

I went to Santa Teresa in February. It was incredible, but I would do the trip differently knowing what I know now.

The roads into the town suck. Plan for that to be the case in your rental car.

The closer you can get into Santa Teresa, the better. We stayed in Hermosa. It wasn't far, but it was a pain in the arse to drive the 15 minutes into Santa Teresa each time. I would stay in town if I did it again.

If you fly into San Jose or Libera, take the Green Airways flight into Santa Teresa. It's worth whatever the additional cost would be to not have to drive.

Costa Rica is not cheap. Plan for everything to cost the same as it does in the states.

My wife and I have been to Costa Rica a few times. Our favorite areas are on the Nicoya Peninsula stretching from Montezuma up to Santa Teresa and beyond. We stayed at Casa Chameleon in Mail Pais. Highly recommend this area

Check out Las Catalinas, it is very easy to get to from Liberia. It is a brand new resort town (15-20 years old) that will give you all of the comforts of home while also providing the unique culture of costa rica. I seriously can't say enough good things about it. I would recommend renting a house, they come with a house mom that is just an incredible perk. The town itself is basically private to give you an idea of the level of quality you can expect.

Someone else mentioned casa chameleon mal pais, there is a casa chameleon on las catalinas that is also ridiculously sick.

Just got back from CR 10 days ago. Was an amazing trip. We flew into Liberia and rented a car. We drove inland to Arenal volcano for few days (crazy drive, but doable) and then spent a few day in Tamarindo. Arenal was something to see but I preferred the coast. Tamarindo is a busy little town with great food and shopping. There are so many little beach towns up and down the coast. Tamarindo beach itself is beautiful, but as others are saying, it's a more of a dark sanded surfing beach. We also went to Playa Conchal for a day, which is a blue water crushed shell beach that I would like to visit again someday. The drive from Liberia to the pacific coastal towns is a pretty easy drive.