Costa Rica in Very Rainy Season

[IzzyBella]

Hello! This is my first trip report so bear with me. We got back last week from a fabulous trip to Costa Rica, and since I really enjoy reading others reports when I’m planning (and daydreaming) I thought I’d give this a try. This trip was me, DH, and DD9, as well as DBIL and DSIL. There were 35 total on our trip with about 12ish kids. It was awesome for DD because there were four kids 8, 9, 9 and 10 (the rest were older.)

This was our second ABD after doing Backstage Magic last summer, and while we enjoyed both, these two trips couldn’t have been more different!

DAY 1: What ABD calls day 1 was really just a travel day. We left BWI around 9AM and arrived in San Jose after an uneventful 5 hour flight. We were met in baggage by a porter who handled our bags, helped us speed through security, and escorted us to our van to take us to the hotel. We were met at the hotel by our guides who gave us an overview of Day 2 and then we were on our own for the rest of the day. We enjoyed some time at the pool where we met some of our fellow travelers, and had dinner at the hotel before going to bed.

Any questions, just let me know!

 

[CaliforniaGirl09]

I'm in! Looking forward to reading more about your adventure (and love the pic!).

 

[IzzyBella]

DAY 2: Day 2 was supposed to be our white water rafting day. Suitcases were ready for Tinkerbell by 6:30 AM and breakfast was anytime from 6 - 7:30. At 7:30 we met as a group for introductions to our fellow adventurers before heading out for the day. As instructed by the guides on day 1, we all showed up wearing bathing suits and/or drifit clothes and we had daybags with clothes to change into after rafting. This is when we learned that Costa Rica has two seasons: rainy and very rainy. Due to the rain the prior days, we couldn’t raft as the river was too high. We were zip lining instead.

We delayed our departure to give everyone a chance to get their suitcase off the bus and change if they wanted. Then we took the 2 hour drive to zipline, stopping once for a bathroom break. One of the guides narrated part of the trip with information about Costa Rica, which I think most people enjoyed.

Zip lining was a blast - everyone but 3 participated. But, it was terrible conditions. The weather changed so quickly that at times we were zipping in torrential downpours, we could rarely see the landing platform from the starting platform due to fog/clouds, heard thunder, and we were all drenched and freezing while waiting (in Costa Rica! In July!). Somehow it was about 3PM before we were done and got lunch and we all swear it was the best food ever (likely since we were cold and starving). I think most people slept on the bus ride back, which was much shorter than in the morning. As a side note, those that didn’t zipline really didn’t get to do anything but wait around. They were supposed to do a nature walk but I don’t think it was safe with all the mud on the side of the mountain.

“Tinkerbell” took pity on us, I think, because the guides announced we could all send out 5 items to be laundered at the next hotel. That was very much appreciated, because I don’t think my clothes would have dried on their own.

That night was a lovely welcome dinner in Arenal. After dinner, there was live music and dancing instruction which DD really enjoyed, as she’s a dancer.


Would we raft on day 3? Would it ever stop raining? Stay tuned to find out!

 

[Marlin0305]

Looking very forward to hearing about the details of the rest of your trip! We are planning to go next April. My daughters are particularly excited about rafting so I am hoping your story has a happy ending. Could you also share some of the details about your flight? (How much were tickets? How far in advance did you book?) I am curious because I am not finding direct flights from BWI (or other East Coast airports).

 

[IzzyBella]

Could you also share some of the details about your flight? (How much were tickets? How far in advance did you book?) I am curious because I am not finding direct flights from BWI (or other East Coast airports).

We flew Southwest, and booked as soon as they released the flights for our dates. They had nonstop flights on Saturdays to San Jose and also back from Liberia, so we stayed an extra night after ABD ended in part to get the nonstop flight home. We used points for our flights but I think they were $500-$600. I will reiterate we booked as soon as the flights became available. BIL/SIL waited a couple of weeks and paid several hundred dollars more. Hope this helps!

 

[IzzyBella]

DAY 3: There was too much rain on the prior day so we still couldn’t raft this day, but that was okay me because I was most looking forward to our “real life Jungle Cruise”. After breakfast we headed out for a 2 hour bus ride north to the Nicaragua border. We had our own boat which we took for a leisurely ride down the river, while the driver and one of the guides spotted for animals, etc. Whenever we saw something, they would position the boat as close as possible, and gave us plenty of time to get up and take pictures. We saw sloths, iguanas, three types of monkeys, bats, and various birds and lizards. We stopped our boat ride slightly short of the normal spot because the water level was too high and the boat couldn’t get under a bridge, but the bus was waiting to take us to our lunch spot.

After lunch we drove back to Arenal and had the rest of the afternoon free. We saw several of our fellow adventurers at the pool before dinner, which was included by ABD but was whenever we wanted to go. This was one of the better meals as we got to order off the menu, rather than having a buffet.

 

[sayhello]

DAY 3: There was too much rain on the prior day so we still couldn’t raft this day, but that was okay me because I was most looking forward to our “real life Jungle Cruise”. After breakfast we headed out for a 2 hour bus ride north to the Nicaragua border. We had our own boat which we took for a leisurely ride down the river, while the driver and one of the guides spotted for animals, etc. Whenever we saw something, they would position the boat as close as possible, and gave us plenty of time to get up and take pictures. We saw sloths, iguanas, three types of monkeys, bats, and various birds and lizards. We stopped our boat ride slightly short of the normal spot because the water level was too high and the boat couldn’t get under a bridge, but the bus was waiting to take us to our lunch spot.

After lunch we drove back to Arenal and had the rest of the afternoon free. We saw several of our fellow adventurers at the pool before dinner, which was included by ABD but was whenever we wanted to go. This was one of the better meals as we got to order off the menu, rather than having a buffet.

Wow! Great wildlife photos!

Sayhello

 

[Marlin0305]

We flew Southwest, and booked as soon as they released the flights for our dates. They had nonstop flights on Saturdays to San Jose and also back from Liberia, so we stayed an extra night after ABD ended in part to get the nonstop flight home. We used points for our flights but I think they were $500-$600. I will reiterate we booked as soon as the flights became available. BIL/SIL waited a couple of weeks and paid several hundred dollars more. Hope this helps!

Thanks so much! I'll plan to stake out the Southwest site!

 

[Marlin0305]

Nice pictures!

 

[oktracy]

Great photos & great report!!

 

[IzzyBella]

DAY 4: At breakfast we were told the good news that we were going white water rafting today! We left the resort with our daybags for the 90 minute ride to the river. After suiting up and a 10-minute safety briefing we were ready to go. It was a beautiful day, sunny and hot, which was good because we all got SOAKED. There was some good-natured water fights between rafts on the few smooth sections.



I’m not sure if the river always runs this high, or if it was aided by the recent rain, but we had awesome conditions. Plenty of rapids to keep things fun for everyone, but no one fell in. My dd, who was very nervous, loved every minute of it, and it ended far too quickly.




Once we pulled out of the water we got our bags off the bus and changed, while the raft guides prepared a buffet lunch for us. On the way back to the resort we stopped at the small town of La Fortuna for about 90 minutes. (On the original schedule we were to have longer time here including lunch on your own, but it was cut short by the itinerary change.) In the short time, we went to the pharmacy to get some antihistamine cream, grocery store for Costa Rica coffee, and tried both an ice cream place and a gelato place (I have no shame). They were both yummy, and dd really liked her special unicorn cone.




We had a short time at the resort to rest and clean up before meeting at 5 to go to the hot springs. They were only a 10 minute drive and it was so gorgeous. We had about 90 minutes to enjoy the various pools before meeting for dinner, which was another buffet. At this point I realized I was tired of buffets, but the company still made meals very enjoyable. The whole group really got along, and so we enjoyed sitting with different people at meals.


Looking back on this now, I realize we had a very busy day!

 

[mamajab]

Who were your guides? We did this trip last year, and we had Jenny and Gabby. I know Gabby was leaving for another opportunity, but Jenny was the best!

 

[IzzyBella]

Who were your guides? We did this trip last year, and we had Jenny and Gabby. I know Gabby was leaving for another opportunity, but Jenny was the best!

Our guides were Summer Rose and Grieven, and they were both excellent!