Advice On Visiting Costa Rica

by jtrombetti

posted on 08/27/2009

If you're looking for a place to visit, take my advice and go to Costa Rica. It's a trip of a lifetime, and each moment you spend in this vibrant place will bring more excitement and enchantment in your life than you could ever hope to expect from any one place. Costa Rica is truly a vacation experience not to be missed.

From the Pacific Ocean to the Caribbean Sea, there is so much to see and do in Costa Rica. This country holds a myriad of destinations to explore and a variety of landscapes and climates that are sure to please the most hard to please traveler.
many of Costa Rica's seven provinces including San Jose, Puntarenas, Guanascaste and Heredia. I saw volcanoes, rain forests, fabulous beaches and unimaginably beautiful forest reserves.

The mountains in San Jose were majestic and the tours of several of the coffee plantations were informative, as well as entertaining. I drank so much coffee (delicious I might add) that I had plenty of energy to spare to dance the night away in one of San Jose's hottest Gringo Gulches -- The Beatle Bar, in Jaco Beach. I also had the opportunity to explore San Jose's unique architectural buildings that combine European style with a definite Costa Rican flair.

I loved Heredia, which is a sleepy town full of adobe houses and more coffee plantations. Here I learned what it meant to harvest, dry and roast delicious coffee beans. I visited the Barva volcano -- absolutely incredible -- and the Braulio Carrillo National Park, a birdwatcher paradise. This park is a tropical rain forest and teeming with natural vegetation and animals along its river banks.

In Guanacaste, I learned about cattle ranching and totally enjoyed the warm hospitality of its local residents. I also spent time on many of Guanacaste's beaches, which also host many fabulous places to stay. My favorite beach was Panama that has pure, white sand and gentle rolling waves - ideal for swimming. Another favorite beach I explored was Grande Beach - I loved it because it is home to the leatherback turtle - a fascinating specie to watch - which I did for hours! And, I can't rave enough about the delicious food served in local Guanacaste restaurants. I enjoyed so many traditional Costa Rican dishes, I gained at least five pounds in the five days I spent in the area.

But my all time favorite place in Costa Rica was Puntarenas because there were so many wonderful places to stay along its outstanding coastline, which runs 500 miles to the Panamanian boarder. Here I met lots of interesting people, mostly tourists, coming off cruise ships to spend a day or more exploring this extraordinary place. I loved the Carar'as Biological Reserve shown to me and several others by a very handsome professional guide. Rico (our guide's nickname) also took us to Manuel Antonio National Park, where we spent hours enjoying the hectares of its rain forest. A highlight of this tour was spotting the spider monkeys that live in the forest as well as over 100 other mammals and birds. I had to watch what I ate in Puntarenas because the food (mostly seafood) was utterly fantastic and I feasted on the catch-of-the-day - of course limiting my starches and sugars.

Finally, I must mention Alajuela, 'the land of Mangoes,' in Costa Rica. I visited the Arenal volcano, which was beyond description as far as magnificence goes. It's an active volcano that is surrounded by (you guessed it) more rain forests and all types of wildlife that have learned to adapt to the climate and gases released by the volcano.

In all, I spent four fabulous week in Costa Rica and have memories that will last forever. I can't recommend traveling to this magical country enough -- but only if you have at least several days to enjoy all the many wonders of this gorgeous place. Tip: Stay in a bungalow no matter where you are -- it's the only way to really enjoy the characteristics and uniqueness of Costa Rica.

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