A travel guide to Costa Rica!

Travel to Cahuita

camillafrederiksen — Tue, 25 Aug 2009 16:24:11 +0000

Blink and you will miss Cahuita, which is hidden a few hundred meters down an road off highway 36, 10 km south of the petrol station at Penshurst. The small town, which supports a district population of 4.200, epitomizes the south Caribbean – laid back but with just enough energy to keep things ticking along. Don´t rush, don´t hibernate, do something in-between.

The predominantly Afro-Caribbean town sitting on a small rocky peninsula – the first protuberance of significance south of Limón – is barely larger than a football pitch. Heading north out of town, a bumpy dirt road shadows the dark sand beach of Playa Negra, drifting past quiet hotels and lodges. South of town, a small creek leads to the golden sands that mark the northernmost point of Cahuita National Park, home to some of the best coral reefs in Costa Rica.

Local tours in Cahuita

Beyond heading to the beaches of Cahuita National Park there are several popular tours. Locally it is easy to rent mountain bikes to explore on your own, or go horseback riding. Also on the Playa Negra road is Rainy Bay with surfboards to hire and surf school, aimed particularly – but not exclusively – at women. Hiking in the Cahuita National park, with a local guide, or snorkeling at the exclusive coral reefs in the huge water territory of the Cahuita National Park.

Where to go in Costa Rica

camillafrederiksen — Mon, 24 Aug 2009 21:20:13 +0000

Choosing where to go in Costa Rica is tantamount to being a child in a huge sweet shop – the choice is daunting and you want to do it all… immediately. Given the amount of choice, it is worth doing a bit of planning. The longer you have the better, but even with just a few days, you can visit a couple of spots and still have time to relax on a beach before heading back home. Below are a few suggested itineraries on where to go in Costa Rica.

Most people arrive in San José, the capital of Costa Rica, where you can spend a couple of days sightseeing. It is really the only place in Costa Rica with any significant cultural attractions, so if you like museums, art galleries and cerebral fodder you should stop for a couple of days in San José. Beyond the capital, the Central Highlands are a tidy mosaic of coffee plantains, and volcanic hills dotted with towns normally close to a national park. Typical day trips from the capital take in the craft town of Sarchí with a steady climb to the huge crater of Volcán Poás. A tour of the scenic Orosi valley, is easily followed by a steady climb to the steaming vents of Volcán Irazú. Or ride a ski lift through the rainforst canopy in National Park Braulio Carrillo, just 90 minutes from San José.

North of San José, Volcán Arenal leaves onlookers trance-like as the glowing lava crashes down the mountainside. Nearby the world-famous cloud forests around Monteverde provide a brief insight into magnificent diversity of the highlands.

Guanacaste to the northeast draws visitors to the volcanic landscape and bubbling mudspots of Rincón de la Vieja, the birder´s wetlands paradise of Palo Verde and the Tempisque river basin, the dry forests of Santa Rosa and the cultural landscape of the sabanero – Costa Rica´s very own cowboy.

Beach Lovers and surfers can pick almost any spot from the Nicoya Peninsula down to the Central Pacific coastline to find a personally tailored version of paradise with lively resorts and quiet hideaways covering all budgets and tastes of travelers.

Southern Costa Rica is generally a tougher option. Traveling overland down the mountainous spine of Costa Rica, Chirripó Grande is Costa Rica´s highest peak and a challenge for the trekker, and to the south on the Osa Peninsula, the pristine National Park Corcovado is a moment of magic for the adventurer and wildlife lover.

The Caribbean divides neatly in two halves. North of Puerto Limón, the canals of Tortuguero provide a quiet moment of awe struck contemplation encountering the wildlife and vegetation of this aquatic inland water-world, while on the coast turtles nest on the beaches as they have for millions of years. South of Limón – the carnival capital of Costa Rica – the discerning traveller can find a blend of comfortable, laid-back retreats offering personal service, sometimes at a price, and quiet undeveloped beaches – perfect for the budget traveller.

Pura Vida!

Costa Rica from the Caribbean to the Pacific

camillafrederiksen — Sun, 23 Aug 2009 22:13:02 +0000

For tropical paradise, beach life and a sense of adventure Costa Rica is hard to beat. Costa Rica is tiny but packs an all-natural punch – only Brazil and Indonesia have more nature on offer and there are more bird species here than there are in the entire USA. Volcanoes erupt and simmer, rainforests are systematically drenched, and nature loves it – singing back a triumphant chorus of celebration as the forest paints Costa Rica green. Like the sketch pad of an evolutionary madman fill of half-started, half-finish ideas, the place struggles to fit neatly into regions. A loose line of volcanoes run Costa Rica´s length, dividing the Caribbean Coast from the Pacific. To the north, the mountains are volcanic, to the south, forced up by the earth´s shifting plates. A couple of Pacific peninsulas separated, by a few hundred kilometers of clear ocean water, are quite similar in shape but while one is dowsed in annual rains, the other suffers periodic droughts.

Neat lines of coffee bushes rustle in the gentle breeze of the Central Highlands which has been the economic driver in Costa Rica for centuries. Highways and tourist routes are dressed with billboards for fast food, golf clubs and hotels. Break off – by accident or intent – and beyond air-conditioned rooms, cars and buses, the towns bump and grind their way through life, just about making a living.

Bridging these two Costa Rica´s – the destination and the home – are the Ticos. Friendly in the extreme, at times helpful to the point of embarrassment, the Tico world is devoid of the traumatic history of conquest, revolution and drawn out conflict. Life is for living, and a good, relaxed life should be celebrated. As the Tico says, life is Pura Vida!

In pursuit of adventure in Costa Rica

camillafrederiksen — Sat, 22 Aug 2009 20:28:40 +0000

You choose the level, Costa Rica provides the settings. From gentle downstream safari floats, to blood pumping white-water descents, gentle hikes to continental crossing treks, you can seek out a little excitement wherever you like and take it just as you find it. All over Costa Rica will you find nature tours where ever nature goes. Seek out the birds, spot the monkeys, the funky frogs and the plants never seen back home.

Zip Wires and hanging bridges weave through forest canopies throughout Costa Rica, and you can mountain bike and horseback ride wherever you like. There is surfing all down the Pacific coast, windsurfing on Lake Arenal and kitesurfing in Bahía Salinas. Try white-water rafting down Class IV and V rapids, hot air ballooning or bungee jumping, you find it all in Costa Rica.

Chilling time in Costa Rica

Some of this trip must be about fly´n´flop, so take time to relax and take time to reflect on your Costa Rica experience. Beaches fringe the country, almost non-stop along the Nicoya Peninsula. Head further south to the refined hotspots of Jacó or bohemian south Caribbean for a more laid-back approach. Find the time to slow down, and find true Pura Vida in Costa Rica.