Follow Along our Travels!

We had been talking about Costa Rica for several years before this trip, but at the time we mainly focused on domestic trips since our own country is so large and diverse. Then COVID hit and we couldn’t go anywhere internationally for 2020 and 2021 which means when the world opened up, we took the first opportunity it felt safe to do so and booked Costa Rica!

This first trip was meant to be a taste of everything: jungle, forest, adventure, chill, beaches, etc. It delivered on all fronts. It also made me fall in love with this Central American country that has so much to offer for the tourist. We also spoke with locals and ex-Pats that moved here and learned a lot about how/why people come to feel at home and stay in Costa Rica.

We chose to fly into Liberia airport which is the northern area of the country. Technically it isn’t much further to get to Monteverde from San Jose airport, but we heard that customs can be a pain there and generally just try to avoid flying into bigger cities if a smaller airport/city will work. Liberia airport was an easy experience and a great jumping off point for our adventures.

Monteverde

I still tell people that I may move to the Monteverde area someday. This preserve in the cloud forest of northern Costa Rica stole my heart from the minute we arrived. There are so many options for new experiences here. There are adventure options (ziplining and ATVing), nature options (hiking, waterfalls, guided nature walks) and the wildlife is world renown due to the lovable sloths and relatively hard to find Quetzal and other birds. Apparently this area is one of the top birding destinations in the world — something I did not know when we came but totally understand now.

Monteverde Cloud Preserve area and the tours we did around it were all about the wildlife and animals. I don’t know if we just got lucky or if this area always teems with it, but we saw so many varieties of birds, reptiles, amphibians, insects, butterflies and mammals. The animals are striking in their beauty and the way our accommodations and tours were set up, you truly felt like you were in their habitat and an observer in their world.

This itinerary packs in more than just the wildlife. The town itself is called Santa Elena and is small but gives a good glimpse of what a small town here is like: coffee shops, restaurants (typical food and international), bars and stores catering to tourist. Having been to Costa Rica now more than once, I still recommend this area as a place to feel the Costa Rican Pura Vida vibe.

Highlights from Monteverde:

• The Hidden Treetop Canopy. This is one of the more unique places I’ve ever had the pleasure of sleeping in. Nestled into the forest this boutique hotel is tucked away from the town and offers some amazing wildlife viewing opportunities from your room and the dining area. (I didn’t know there were so many variety of hummingbirds! I could have stared at them coming and going all day.) It is also eco-friendly and the woman who owns it is an ex-pat with a ton of connections/recommendations for the area. She encouraged us to book some tours with our guide Koki and that did not disappoint! This is not the cheapest place to stay in Monteverde but it included a delicious, homemade breakfast each morning and views that cannot be beat.
• The guided tours. Now, if you have read some of our other posts, you know we aren’t always big on guided tours because sometimes they feel limiting in what you can see/do on them. However, in this case, I highly recommend the guided tours so that you can see ALL the things you would have a hard time seeing on your own or with the naked eye. Plus, the tour guides are so knowledgeable! Our favorite was Koki and the night walk in the forest. Fair warning though if you are scared of snakes (me!) and spiders (Chuck!), they will likely be on tour as they are a huge part of the wildlife in the area but even with the fear factor, this still ended up being our favorite tour we took.
• San Lucas Treetop Dining. If you are planning on going to this area of Costa Rica, stop what you are doing and book now! This is a special treat. For one, you are nestled in your own glass box that overlooks the cloud forest so it is very romantic (Pro tip: book the earlier seating option so you can watch the sunset) and two the presentation of the food, stories that came with each course and the utter deliciousness of it was worth every penny. Let’s just say that if this was in the US, you’d be paying $500+ for this meal. Now, that isn’t to say this is the cheapest meal option but it is very memorable.
• Ziplining! I have a healthy fear of heights so I was a little concerned about ziplining in a 3rd world country. However, Chuck did his research and this park (Selvatura) has impeccable safety ratings. While on the tour, I felt safe enough to try the Superman-style on the last line. I’m still amazed I did it but flying through the cloud forest (in this case the actual clouds) was such a rush and I’m glad I pushed through my initial anxiety to do it.

The Beaches: Nosara/Playa Pelada and Tamarindo

So why did we choose to go from the cloud forest/jungle to the beaches? On this trip, we wanted a variety of what Costa Rica had to offer so for us that meant a 50/50 split. And of all the beaches available to us, why were these chosen? Nosara is a well-known surf spot because the waves are consistent and the coast allows a lot of spots to go out in (or so my husband says since I’m not much of a getting-in-the-ocean person). Tamarindo was chosen because of its proximity to the Liberia airport and its bustling scene. So what was the verdict on these two towns?

Nosara has a lovely, small town, laid back beach vibe to it. There are a lot of ex-pats and digital nomads here too. The roads are still dirt (well they were in 2021, they are currently paving them) and people get around on motorbikes, tut-tuts and off-roading vehicles. You may have heard of Nosara for another reason as it is well-known as being a blue zone. You can tell that the area prides itself on health and wellness with its activities offered at a lot of the hotels (yoga, Pilates, surfing) and the clean-eating restaurants all through town. Without too much effort, everything is farm to table. It reminds me of what I imagine somewhere like Cabo San Lucas looked like 40 years ago. I really enjoyed how chill it was and Chuck really enjoyed surfing here and surf culture.

Tamarindo definitely has more hustle, bustle and tourist vibes to it. People come here for the beaches, the beach restaurants (big bonus is that you can have sand in your toes at every meal if you’d like), the fun cocktail bars and shops. My favorite thing is that there are vendors walking around on the beach with a little cooler and they sell coconuts that they cut open for you to drink right away! Great hydration in the heat! After the mellow vibes of both Monteverde and Nosara, this town brought the excitement and liveliness. All in all, both places had distinct personalities and depending on what you are looking for in your trip, either would be good options!

Highlights from Nosara/Playa Pelada and Tamarindo:

• Guiones Beach at Playa Pelada is gorgeous at sunset. It is a long, curving beach with a lot of sand so you can just walk for over a mile in each direction along the sand. We saw tourist and locals alike doing the same thing each night we were out.
• Massages: If you are a massage person, Nosara area is known for cheap and good massages. We had someone come to our hotel room and give us great massages for a fraction of the cost at home. Highly recommend! And if you are nervous about picking somewhere random for the massage, the hotels all have people they can call.
• Monkeys! While we heard monkeys in the Monteverde area (howler monkeys which are very loud), we didn’t see monkeys until we were in Tamarindo. They just chill in the trees above the hotels and restaurants. It is quite a sight to look up and watch them socialize with the other monkeys!
• Dragonfly Restaurant in Tamarindo. This was recommended to us and it was the best meal on the beach side of this trip (note: it is not actually on the beach though like some of the other spots). It is casual and not super expensive but the food was amazing. Actually, all the food in Costa Rica is very good. It is fresh, prepared in a simply way but delicious.

Tips for Traveling Around Costa Rica – And Another Random Tidbit:

• Most important tip if you are driving yourself around this country – use WAZE over Google Maps or Apple Maps. The locals will tell you this as well. And funny story but we did not do this upon our first big drive from Liberia to Monteverde and Google took us the “shortest” way. This short way had me stressing for a good portion on whether our car would make it up/down several hills with all the potholes, rocks and the grade of the hill!
• Speaking of potholes … there are many and they can be tough to navigate and see. Plan on going slow and the driving time taking 30-45 minutes longer than expected. Alternatively, there are a lot of transfer services that do the driving for you. If you aren’t comfortable driving with these conditions, I highly recommend going the transfer route. My in-laws did this recently in Costa Rica and had a great experience!
• Rainy season (May-Nov) vs dry season (Dec-Apr). There are very distinct seasons in Costa Rica: wet and dry. Depending on where/when you end up going on your trip this will make a big difference in your experience. However, having said that, we were here in the dry season this time and it was still wet/cold in the Cloud Forest/Monteverde area which I wasn’t expecting and ended up with a sweatshirt as a souvenir. Moral of the story: bring layers and rain gear no matter what the weather says it is going to be. By the time we got to the beaches, I was ready for some warmth and the beaches delivered that! It is very hot in the dry season at the coast. Definitely bring loads of sunscreen, options to cover up and rent the umbrella for $5. Your skin will thank me as the sun is very strong this close to the equator.
• This is random but I’ve noted that Costa Rica is a good traveling spot for the food/allergy sensitive (gluten and dairy specifically). My sister has food allergies and traveling internationally is challenging for her so I always look at places that may work. In each place we went, most of their food was labeled. Additionally, due to the simple food preparation, most of the food can easily be modified. I should qualify this by saying I don’t have a food allergy so no direct experience with this at the restaurants, but I am always looking for easier traveling experiences for those that are.