This was my first trip with an adventure company, and I would definitely consider taking another one with REI. The trip was extremely well coordinated, the guide was awesome, and I met lots of fun and interesting people.
Jimmy - our fantastic guide
Some highlights of my trip:
- San Jose - Cindy and I arrived a day earlier to settle in and walk around San Jose. Our hotel, Don Carlos was great. Although if you arrive at night, its good to know that its in the red light district. (This seems to be a recurring theme from my Luxembourg accommodations.) Our cab driver recommended us to stay in the hotel in the evenings. So we waited until the next day to explore the city. In the morning, we ate some delicious mystery bun at a bakery and wandered around the city. We went to the Central Market and parks, which was fun to see. There were quite a bit of hustle and bustle. However after a half day of walking around, we didn't see much else to do. So we spent the rest of the day reading by the hotel pool. Unless it's convenient with your flight times, I'd recommend skipping a tour of San Jose.
- Tortuguero - From San Jose, we drove a few hours to the Caribbean coast to the town of Tortuguero. Here we spent two awesome days kayaking through the jungle. We saw howler and white-faced monkeys, blue morpho butterflies, and a variety of birds (herons, toucans, parrots, etc). Kayaking through the jungle was fun, and our kayak guides (Ray, Jonathan and Andrea) were knowledgeable about all the wildlife. After our days of paddling through the jungle, we spent our evenings at the Mawamba Lodge. The food there (as with the rest of entire trip) was tasty - lots of rice and beans, fried plantains, fresh fruit, chicken and fish. Oh, something odd we saw were starving cows. Most of the cows throughout the country were skin and bones. Apparently, Costa Rica has been experiencing extreme weathers (global warming?) of droughts and excessive rainfall, both times that cows aren't able to feed enough. Pictures here.
- Quepos - We took an exciting (and bumpy) charter flight from Tortugero to Quespos, where we saw most of the countryside. It was amazing to see all the coffee and banana plantations, some of which are on steep hills. The pilot circled around the Irazu Volcano's crater lakes on the summit. Once we got to Quepos, we went straight to Titi Canopy Tours for treetop zip-lining. This was lots and lots of fun. Afterwards, we spent the afternoon in the Manuel Antonio National Park. The "hike" to the beach was a pleasant 15 minute walk. We saw more white-faced monkeys, sun bathed on the beautiful beaches, and did a little bit of snorkeling.The next day we drove to Los Campesinos and hiked into a remote village in the mountains. This was probably the favorite part of the trip. It was a moderate 2 hour hike. It was also great that we only saw one other tourist group. At the village, we snacked on delicious banana pancakes and relaxed in a natural waterfall and pool. Our hike out involved an unnerving suspension bridge and rural aerial tram. We also stopped by the Los Campesinos guide's house to sample cashew fruit and learn how to make sugar cane juice. Pictures here.
- On the third day in Quepos, we went whitewater rafting on the Rio Savegre with Iguana Tours. The river was low this year, so our guides worked extra hard to make it more exciting (running the rafts over the rocks). I loved floating along the river in the pool areas. The accommodations in Quespos was the La Mariposa hotel. Cindy and I really lucked out with a (honeymoon?) suite. Our room had amazing views of the jungle and coast, and the hotel had pool overlooking the ocean. We definitely enjoyed our stay there.
- Jaco - On our last day in Costa Rica, we went outrigger canoeing in Jaco. After we canoed to a beach, we snorkeled (in not very clear waters) and the tour group prepared an elaborate lunch. Although the kayaking and rafting were more exciting, this was also quite fun. Pictures here.
After Costa Rica, Cindy and I took our own trip for a few days to Belize. We figured it was on the way home :) We went to Caye Caulker, and enjoyed lazy days hanging out on the beach. We were there over Easter weekend, so it was packed with locals from the city. The highlight was snorkeling with sting rays. Definitely better snorkeling than in Jaco, and exciting to be so close to sting rays!
