Vacation week in Costa Rica

My husband and I are planning a vacation in Costa Rica in late May.

The itinerary is as follows:

May 24: Arrive in San Jose
May 24, 25, 26, 27: La Fortuna Arenal
May 28, 29, 30: Totuguero - beach activities (including surfing)
May 31: Drive/Fly to San Jose for departure

In La Fortuna Arenal, we would like to include activities like hiking through the rainforest, visiting the volcano, hot springs, cloud forest, butterfly park, hanging bridges, etc.

1. Can you please suggest accommodation in both places (we are not looking for 5-star resorts - just cozy, comfy places with beautiful views, preferably)? Would you recommend pre-booking? Do you think we should go through a tour guide to book accommodation and activities?

2. We have been warned not to rent a car during our stay. Is it better to fly to each of these locations or to get a taxi? We don't want it to get too pricey, but don't want to waste whole days driving, either.

3. Would it be preferable to get a tour guide, especially at La Fortuna Arenal (so as to make the best of the short visit) or to go alone? We are both relatively active and enjoy outdoor activities. We would prefer to go alone, but do not want to miss out on anything good.

4. In order to get the best rainforest and beach experience out of Costa Rica during our 1 week stay, would you recommend some other combination of towns instead of La Fortuna Arenal and Tortuguero?

Thank you in advance. Reply to this

Hi kavitha.
Sounds like you have an exciting vacation lined up!
For arenal there are many hotels and as John said book through Arenal Net and you get better rates taht going to the hotels directly! Dont book a tour guide for your whole trip, it is easier to pick out the guided activites that you are interested in. In Arenal there is the volcano, rafting atv{s canopy tour, loats to keep you busy.
Tourtugero is great for nature, though if you are looking for a beach holiday this may not be the best spot. I absolutely adore tortugero, it is so peaceful and the nature that you can see there is astounding. You can organise trips from San Jose, the mawumba lodge is really good, although there are many cheaper and good places like the ilang ilang lodge. I would spend one or two nights maximum in tortugo.
If you are looking for more of a beachy vacation try Manuel Antonio, it has the national park, plus many activites like atvs, rafting, horses, scuba diving and snorkelling.
I hope this info helps and Pura Vida!
Katharine
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