Costa Rica

There are hotels nearby, but if you are staying in San Jose this is a great day trip since it is only a couple of hours away by bus. Jaco is a big, wide open beach with room for everyone. Even on packed days, it doesn't feel very crowded. It's a pretty famous surf spot in Costa Rica, but even with its popularity, you will still be likely to get your fair share of waves.There are palm trees for ...

The Mistico Arenal Hanging Bridges Park is just a short 15 minute drive from downtown La Fortuna. Shuttles are available for $18-25 or you can find a tour that includes transportation, admission, and a tour guide (about $60). General admission is $24 for a self guided tour.This easy hike is only 1.9 miles long and consists of 16 bridges, 6 of which are hanging bridges. The longer bridges can...

The beach just outside of Manuel Antonio National Park is called Playa Espadilla and you can camp here for free if you have a tent or hammock. This is a safe place, accustomed to tourists, but be careful with valuables while camping on the beach - always a good idea, anyway.The alternative would be to stay in one of the hotels or hostels that are on the other side of the street in front of the ...

Hiking the Chato Volcano, or Cerro Chato, is the perfect way to get an incredible view of neighboring big brother, Arenal Volcano. Arenal has the typical, conical shape that you think of when you hear volcano and is one of the areas most active volcanoes. You'll be perfectly safe hiking Cerro Chato, though, as it hasn't erupted for some 3,500 years. The trailhead begins at the La Fortuna Waterf...

With so much to explore in Costa Rica, I suggest you try and make time for Nauyaca Falls.You start by going to a small office on the side of Route 243 between Dominical and San Isidro. There you can purchase your entry ticket ($8) and decide if you want to hike to the falls or take a horseback ride. We hiked it of course!From there you can either park on the side of the highway and hike a stee...

This is a nice 1/2 day trip. La Fortuna falls is popular with tourist and locals, not just for viewing the falls but there is excellent swimming holes just below the fall and you can also swim right in the pool the falls fall into but the approach to that pool is very rocky and wet.  The falls are about 70 meters high and the sound it makes if deafening.  The hike to the falls is about one mile...

Poás Volcano was last active briefly in 2014, but most notably in 2009. It's one of the most active volcanos in Costa Rica. The main crater, Laguna Caliente, supports almost no aquatic life due to the incredibly high acidity.There's a $10 entry fee into the park per person. About a quarter mile away from the parking lot lies the active Poás Volcano at 8800 feet above sea level. If you arrive be...

Riddled with stygian chambers much like the holes in Swiss cheese, Barra Honda is unique among Costa Rica's network of national parks. According to its website, the National Park's crowning glory is its 42 known caverns, less than half of which have been explored by humans. Terciopelo, named after Costa Rica's deadly fer-de-lance snake, can only be reached by way of a single aluminum ladder, wh...

Rincón de la Vieja offers an immense variety of scenery and wildlife. The trail, Las Pailas, twists around the base of the volcano through jungle, geysers and low-dry foothills. The cinder cone volcano, Rincón de la Vieja (6217 ft/1895 m), is the main attraction.From the ranger station, the trail plunges into the jungle. It will snake up and down (beware of lots of roots on the path) and bet...