longer stays?

[sportsterjohn]

Has anyone stayed in Costa Rica for longer periods of time? I am thinking of spending a week there and could use some advice on where to stay, what to see etc.

[Sekhmet]

We spent two weeks in Costa Rica a few years back, split between touring and the beach. Started in San Jose, which has some fine Spanish colonial buildings, good museum, fabulous theatre and some nice botanical gardens. Next travelled to the Caribbean coast for a few days in a lodge in the Tortuguero NP - probably the highlight for us as we are particularly interested in wildlife watching - our stay included a 5am birdwatching trip by boat in the canals.

Next a drive up into the mountains to the volcano/hot springs are around Arenal, and finally a few days in a beach hotel on the Nicoya peninsula on the Pacific coast.

It's definitely worth travelling around rather than staying in one place because, for such a small country, there is such a variation in the geography and ecology.

 

Hope this helps - it's a wonderful country.