Review of my recent Costa Rica/Nicaragua Trip.
Costa Rica and Nicaragua – Wednesday 8 March – Friday 24 March 2017
Below is a day by day review of the tour, but in short this was a fabulous holiday which I would recommend thoroughly. There is a lot of travel involved, but the scenery makes up for this. We started with a group of 22 people, 17 women and 5 men. 2 people flew from Manchester and the rest of us from LHR. Unfortunately one lady had to abandon the trip after Tortuguero. Our Tour Manager was Prisca Demolli, Local Guide was Ronald and our driver throughout the trip was George (a really good driver). Ronald was also with us throughout the trip and the local Guide in Nicaragua was Edgar.
Day One
This was a very long and tiring day. The flight departed on time. Since the flight was not full there was plenty of space to spread around and it was also very easy to walk around without being in anyone’s way. I had paid a supplement for extra leg room. We all had to go through security at Houston Airport. Internal flight from Houston to San Jose was full and you only got a complementary drink, any food had to be paid for. Unfortunately by the time the trolley reached me, there was no vegetarian option available so I had to wait till breakfast the next day to eat! We reached the hotel in San Jose just after 11:00 pm local time - 5.00 a.m. UK time.
Day Two
We had a leisurely start at 09:00 for a tour of San Jose. We visited the Cathedral, National Theatre (a place of great beauty) and the Gold Museum. I personally found the Gold Museum very interesting. Most of us went to a restaurant with Prisca and Ronald for lunch and afterwards had a wander around the main street before returning to the hotel. We had a welcome drink in the evening.
Day Three
This was a day of very early start. After a very quick breakfast, we left the hotel at 06:30 for Tortuguero. We stopped for another breakfast where we were lucky to spot a sloth up a tree. I spotted a Blue Jeans dart frog – I thought it was an insect till Ronald told me otherwise! Prisca then spotted two more frogs. They are so tiny. The drive to Tortuguero was a long one, but the changing scenery made sure no one was bored. We drove through the Braulio Carrillo National Park crossing the continental divide and the views were really breathtaking. On the way we stopped at Del Monte banana processing plant where we were allowed to take pictures from outside and we all had an opportunity to stretch our legs. It took over an hour by boat to reach the Pachira Lodge. We had to take a longer route – the route depends on the depth of water level. After a late lunch at the Lodge, everyone departed by boat at 15:00 for a visit to Tortuguero village except for Doreen and I who missed the boat (this is another story!). We made it to the village by a private boat transfer but missed the film about Turtles – I have seen this on TV a few times so was not disappointed. We then walked along the beach followed by a wander through the colourful village. Some people swam in the sea. We returned to the Lodge early evening.
Day Four
The first 2 hour boat trip of the day through the canals of Tortuguero National Park started at 05:45. We saw lots of birds, 2 different species of sloths (two toed and three toed) and iguanas. After breakfast at the Lodge on return, some of us went for a walk around one of the trails – we saw some spiders, dragon flies and a Mexican porcupine sleeping soundly up on a tree near the swimming pool. I went flying in the shrubs when I lost my footing trying to take a picture! Some people saw an armadillo. After lunch, on the way back to the room a few of us were lucky to see some howler monkeys quite close and then one of the hotel staff took us to see a lovely sloth, which was on a tree near the staff quarters. Second boat trip of the day left at 14:30. The sun was very strong to start with but after a while it was quite pleasant. We saw birds, turtles, spiders, capuchin and howler monkeys. Returned back to the Lodge at around 16:30. I had a lovely huge Blue crab living not far from my room and got some great photos.
Day Five
Left the Lodge at 08:30 for the boat journey back to the mainland. It took 1.5 hours to reach the mainland. We made a stop for the included lunch at a local restaurant and after another comfort stop reached the Tilajari Resort, situated near San Carlos River around 15:30. I went for a walk around the resort after settling in. Saw some butterflies in the butterfly house and then walked up to the river where I saw some beautiful birds. No sign of any crocodiles though.
Day Six
We left at 08:00 for the optional excursion to the Hanging Bridges of Arenal. We spotted a green pit viper curled around a branch/root very near the path. We all lined up with other groups to take a close look and a photo. We saw lots of leaf cutter ants. The walk was a bit strenuous but enjoyable. The clouds lifted on the way back to La Fortuna and we had great views of Arenal Volcano. After lunch we had some time to browse the shops and visit the Church. Late afternoon some of the group went to enjoy the Tabacon Hot Springs. I decided not to go and take the opportunity to relax and treat myself to a Spa treatment.
Day Seven
We left at 08:00 for the optional river float trip along the Penas Blancas River. The scenery was stunning. We saw sloths, birds, toucans and a crocodile. Unfortunately the toucans flew off by the time our boat reached the tree and I was not able to take a photo which was very disappointing as I really wanted a photo of a toucan or toucans. There was one very noisy boat and perhaps this made the toucans fly away. We stopped for refreshments at a local farm house where we met two lovely elderly sisters. After the stop it was back on the floats. Two or three people decided to have a swim in the river! On the way back we made a short stop for refreshments and to see the iguanas.
Day Eight
We had an early start at 07:15 to travel to the cloud forest of Monteverde. We first travelled along the beautiful Arenal Lake before the road became bumpy and bendy. Comfort stop was made at a place overlooking Lake Arenal. Weather was a bit wet and windy. We then stopped for the included lunch at Don Juan Coffee Farm. I decided not to go on the tour of the coffee farm as I was still feeling the effects of the bendy road! I enjoyed sitting outside watching the nature and was lucky to see a Coati who walked past looking for food. We reached the hotel around 15:00. I missed the talk given by one of the original Quaker settlers. Few of us went on the optional guided night walk and were very lucky to see a toucan settling down for the night, a rare Kinkajou, a tiny frog, a Coati family, a butterfly (can’t remember the name), an armadillo and a coiled green viper high up on a tree. I enjoyed the night walk very much. Pity we did not see any big snakes even though I am not too keen on snakes!
Day Nine
We had a 08:00 start for a visit to the cloud forest nature reserve. Had a pleasant walk before visiting the local town of Santa Elena where we had lunch and browsed the shops. I would have loved to visit the serpentarium but did not think there was enough time to enjoy it in a relaxed pace. Later those who were not doing the optional canopy zip line excursion went back to the hotel in the coach and the rest of us went in a minibus to Selvatura Park for the zip line adventure. I thoroughly enjoyed this excursion though I gave the Tarzan Swing at the end a miss. It became very windy, cloudy and wet at the last 1000 meter zip line. We all had to do this line in tandem and I had a bit of a wait before one of the young guys reached the high platform. By this time it was getting quite cold. You could hardly see through the clouds. This was a wonderful experience and in all there were 13 zip lines of various lengths. There was quite a bit of walking to do between the lines.
Monteverde is one place where you do need something warm, e.g. a fleece as it was quite chilly.
Day Ten
Today was a very early morning start at 06:30 to take the Pan-American Highway to Nicaragua. We had a comfort stop after 2 hours and then another stop at a supermarket to get our lunch. We were very lucky and sailed through passport controls on both Costa Rica and Nicaragua sides very quickly – we were through Nicaragua border ca 12:50 where we were joined by Edgar. We had a brief photo stop at Lake Nicaragua and then we stopped at the village of Catarina, which overlooks the beautiful volcanic Apoyo Lagoon. We saw some howler monkeys on the trees. We reached our hotel just before 17:00. Some of the group went with Prisca for an orientation walk, but I opted out.
Day Eleven
Those doing the optional Carriage Ride and Lake Nicaragua Boat Trip left the hotel at 08:30. The horses and carriages were waiting for us outside the hotel. We made a couple of photo stops before reaching Lake Nicaragua where we got on a boat for a very enjoyable trip on the lake where we saw lots of lovely birds. The coach was waiting for us when we disembarked and we joined the rest of the Group for a walking tour of Granada. After the walk the rest of the day was free to do as one wished. I had lunch with three of the fellow travellers at an Irish Bar and then spent the rest of the afternoon relaxing.
Day Twelve
We left the hotel at 08:00 for the optional trip to Managua and Masaya Volcano. In Managua the first stop was the local market where they were selling iguanas (it is illegal to eat them, but they were on sale). I personally did not go to have a look but someone who did said that it was not a good sight as they had their mouths tied up. Next stop was the lookout point where we had great views of Lake Nicaragua and the volcano. We then stopped at the Revolution Square where we had free time to wander around. After included lunch we went up to the volcano to have a glimpse into the smoking crater. On the way back to the hotel we stopped at Masaya craft market. Nicaragua is poorer than Costa Rica but browsing the market was a pleasure as you were not pestered by anyone. You were free to have a look without anyone bothering you. They did have lovely things on sale and I purchased 4 small pottery bowls and of course, a fridge magnet or two! We were back at the hotel before 16:45.
Day Thirteen
Today was a 07:00 start to travel back to Costa Rica. We sailed through customs within an hour or so. First stop was at the supermarket to get lunch, water etc. and also something for a picnic lunch for the next day. We then made a surprise stop on a bridge of Tarcoles river where there was a group of 20+ crocodiles basking in the sun. I have never seen so many crocs in one place and some were huge. We reached our hotel in Jaco around 15:30. The modern hotel was lovely and within walking distance of Jaco town. I personally do not like big hotels but was pleasantly surprised by this hotel. It did not seem crowded at all. There was a casino and a lovely outdoor pool with a beach very close by. Some of us walked to the beach to watch the beautiful sun set.
Day Fourteen
This day was meant to be an excursion to Carara National Park in the morning and then afternoon optional mangrove cruise, but it was switched to Manuel Antonio National Park instead – a very wise decision. We left at 08:00 to travel to Manuel Antonio National Park. It was a very hot and humid day. We saw a nocturnal bird (can’t remember the name, but it was very difficult to spot due to camouflage), tiny spiders, howler monkeys, spider monkeys, sloths. We then went to the beach area where some people went for a swim and a few of us had a picnic lunch surrounded by howler monkeys. There were lots of young monkeys playing and it was nice to watch them in action. On the way back to the coach, Dave and I took a wrong road and saw two iguanas having a fight. One was holding on to other iguana’s leg and the other iguana was holding on to the belly of the one holding the leg. I do not think they could injure each other as they don’t seem to have any teeth! We were back at the hotel around 15:30.
Day Fifteen
This was the best day in Jaco. Those who decided not to do the optional Tarcoles River tour (The Jungle Crocodial Safari) really missed out. We left the hotel at 08:00 for the morning excursion to Carara National Park followed by the Tarcoles River cruise in the afternoon. We were split into two Groups for the Park. We spotted birds including Scarlet Macaws in the National Park along with a poisonous frog and bats. We lost Anna briefly in the park when she got separated from our Group and took a wrong turning! The Tarcoles River tour was the best one to spot birds. We saw so many exotic birds along with crocodiles – two very huge ones. Our Guide known as the Crocodile Man fed chicken to a huge crocodile named Tornado. I have never been so close to a hug croc before! We also saw another huge crocodile that had lost a part of one of his front foot and the top of his jaw in a fight. You could see all its teeth. We were told that they feed him to keep him alive as it would be very difficult for him to hunt for food. Costa Ricans really care for their environment and wildlife.
Day Sixteen
Today was the day to travel back to the UK. Flight from San Jose to Houston was on time and again it was a full flight. We had 3 hours at Houston but then the flight was delayed by over an hour. We did not arrive at LHR till around 13:15 instead of 12:00 so another very long day (and night!).
In summary, Costa Rica is not cheap but well worth a visit. The people care deeply for the environment and nature and Ronald, our Guide was very passionate about his country. We learnt a lot from him. Food was delicious and we had plenty of fresh fruit every day. Fresh fruit juices were also delicious.
