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There are many reasons why You’ll want to visit Costa Rica. First of all, for the Pura Vida, the philosophy of light and carefree living that has made the ticos one of the happiest people in the world. 

Another important factor is certainly the attention to the environment and the profound respect for Nature that characterizes this corner of the world surrounded by greenery.

There is also a reason closely related to the trip: although relatively small, this nation is very rich in diversity. Its coasts are bathed by two oceans.

There are different climatic zones and you go from volcanoes to jungle, from endless beaches on the Pacific to coves on the Caribbean coast, from murals and crowded neighborhoods of the capital to mountain towns.

Costa Rica is a very wild country and for some experiences it is almost impossible not to join a tour. The problem is that many of these are really expensive. Where and how to book them, then? We recommend people found the best rates by searching on the net.

It is very convenient because you can book the ticket for your excursions directly online, at the best price, but you are still entrusted to a local guide, thus favoring the local economy.

We also recommend to the Airbnb places, this experience is perfect for living authentic experiences with the locals such as cooking classes to discover all the secrets of a perfect cascades or a gallo pinto . So, you can discover the perfect cooking of plantain, a banana-like fruit that, once cooked, becomes irresistible.

Well, but Let’s start with some stops you must do:

1st stop: Tamarindo

The first stop you shoud do is in Tamarindo. It will take you more than five hours to get there from Santa Teresa, if you choosing not to travel along the coast precisely because the road is at the limit of impracticability especially when it rains.

To be able to drive on the asphalt it is necessary to go towards the hinterland of the Nicoya peninsula, until you reach Puntarenas. From here you go up towards Pueblo Viejo di Nicoya, where you take the road that leads back to the coast and then to Tamarindo.

It is a very touristic place but some travelers say it has about breathtaking sunsets. Both are true: Tamarindo is full of people who come to Costa Rica just to relax and there is very little authentic left in this area. It feels like being in a small Cancun.

However, at the same time, it makes sense to visit it if you are a lover of fiery sunsets, because the beach offers truly unforgettable views. It is also a great spot for surfing and diving enthusiasts. And parties too.

2nd stop: Monteverde

 

Stopping in Tamarindo at least a couple of nights, then explore a very fascinating area of ​​Costa Rica: The Arenal. It is an area in the heart of the country, consisting of a volcano and a lake bearing the same name. There are several interesting locations in this area, one of which is certainly Monteverde 

It is a mountain village more very high, where you can put your flip flops back in your backpack and take out your hiking shoes.

 To get there from Tamarindo you have to drive if you have a rental car for about five hours, making the last leg completely uphill.  It is a spectacular road, which offers extraordinary views across the valley.

Monteverde seems to have ended up in another country: dense thicket and many views completely dominated by Nature. Monteverde is famous for trekking and for its nature reserves, where it is possible to admire protected flora and fauna.

For those looking for a free activity, there is a beautiful fig tree reachable via a side road that starts from the Cloud Forest Lodge car park, whose roots have created some truly spectacular plots.

 You can climb through the cracks inside the trunk, and it is an experience that reconnects you deeply with Nature.

Those who want to get away from the heat of the beaches and take long walks in the midst of the greenery and cool of the mountains, cannot miss a visit to Monteverde.

3rd stage: La Fortuna

 

After Monteverde you must go towards La Fortuna. To get there, you go down the mountain and drive along part of the perimeter of Lake Arenal, another place that does not seem to belong to “postcard” Costa Rica given the presence of German chalets and pastry shops. 

In this place you will enjoy a very quiet atmosphere, ideal for those who love camping in the silence of Nature.

La Fortuna is known for the Arenal Volcano. There is a beautiful legend that several local people explain: apparently the name derives from the last time there was a strong eruption. 

It is one of the most fascinating places to visit in Costa Rica. There is a magical atmosphere and there are unique vibes. Not only because waking up to the sight of this wonderful volcano leaves you speechless, but also because from here it is possible to leave for a series of truly exciting treks.

I certainly recommend taking a walking tour to visit the waterfall immersed in the jungle (impressive, really worth a visit) and the suspension bridge in the heart of the vegetation.

Another important recommendation is using any Costa Rica Tourist Guide or you can also use some tourism site to find the right tour, because here are the cheapest prices and tons of experiences to choose from. There is also a trek directly to the volcano.

La Fortuna is also known for its thermal waters. There are numerous luxury resorts that have spas on their property but there are also free spas. It is something very rare in Costa Rica, and in fact they are not exactly free.

4th stop: Puerto Viejo

After La Fortuna it is time to reach the other coast of Costa Rica. And it is Puerto Viejo, it is a place where you can see the sea and feel asleep listening to the sound of the waves.

Costa Rica has a huge Jamaican and for that reason it has a pleasant effect on both the live music such as reggae cultural phenomenon and the cuisine, the main ingredient of which is coconut milk.

In addition to visiting the restaurants and craft shops, we certainly recommend renting a bike and going beach hunting.

If you’re continuing north you’ll reach Punta Uva, it is a beach where you can surf but also swim without running the risk of being overwhelmed by the waves.

This place is the ideal to have a beer and meet new people. For those looking for a more peaceful and Caribbean atmosphere, I recommend Playa Cloches, with the blue sea and without surfers.

 Very scenic Playa Negra, a wild beach with black sand located just before entering the center of Puerto Viejo. Well, we’re sure you’re gonna love the trip because Costa Rica is absolutely an amazing country to visit. 

In this article I want to show you a marvelous place called: Monte Verde (meaning green mountain), is the it is the quetzal’s habitat if you don’t know quetzal is a beautiful bird of heaven that lives in Costa Rica. Monte Verde has landmarks for bird watching and famous cloud forests.

 The city is now one of the centers of tourism in the country. the beautiful cloud forest has some delicious restaurants here as famous extension lines, and some interesting hiking evenings by Monte Verde torch are one of the favorite places in Costa Rica. 

it is a peaceful city to visit the surround rainforest. you can also walk on the famous skywalk, and if you’re at the right time, you’ll find a music festival that will make you unforgettable and don’t forget to sample your coffee and your best smile.

Now, let me tell you some useful tips you should know before traveling; like tips to save money, planning time, travel and travel budget money, as well as recommended places to make it easy to plan your trip.

Well, now let’s get down to the bussiness and talk about general expenses in Monte Verde.

If you want to stay in a hostel you should know the price range Hostels vary in price, but they typically range from around 5,7500 crc per night for dorm beds and 15,000 crc for single rooms including bathroom and breakfast.

Hotel and Restaurants 

You can also choose budget hotel these kind of hotels start at 10,700 crc per night for double rooms with breakfast.

Another important thing you should consider is about the average cost of food meals in restaurant “sodas” typically cost 1,600 crc for local dishes.

 the main course in most restaurants, budgeted, costs about 5,335 crc, a popular tourist restaurant, costing about 10,665 crc per meal.

When you arrive at Monte Verde you’ll find a good array of restaurants, with a lot of varieties and taste. And please don’t forget visit The Treehouse Restaurant you’re really going to love it here! 

A major part of traveling is getting from place to place.  Transportation costs in Monte Verde in commonly by bus. A bus trip from San Jose will cost 2,665 crc, local buses cost 1,065 crc with cloud forests from Santa Elena.

You can also travel by taxis from Santa Elena to forest cloud reserves typically cost 4,800 crc.

Useful tips for saving money

If you are a student this place has some important discounts most of the country at tourist attractions offer discounted students if you show them student identification when paying.

If you love to camp you can record accommodation by throwing tents at La Colima lodge for only 2,665 crc per night.

Using public buses from San Jose cost only 2,665 crc – this offers great savings on the cost of private shuttle buses, which cost 21,330 crc.

There are many places and things not to miss in Monte Verde cloud forest – cloud forest is the most popular tourist attraction in Monte Verde and the main reason people come here to visit. 

Remember you don’t need to pay to watch the world’s largest collection of orchids, thousands of large wild cats, species of plants and insects, as well as more than 400 species of birds, including the famous Quetzal. 

One of the most popular ways to see the forest is to walk across a series of suspension bridges through roofs or zip wires around skywalk and trek. Yes, I am talking about Canopy Tour, this tour is amazing. 

While few entrepreneurs do the same thing, it is now the most prestigious company.

Do you know Monte Verde has Music Festivals?  this festival takes place in January and February every year. around 5,335 crc approx., you will get a classical jazz and Latin music experience at the bromelias music park and Monte Verde institute.

Connecting with nature

Cloud forests are good places to go hiking, but for a less crowded travel period heading to nearby Santa Elena reserves, there are more than 8 miles of existing routes with different difficulties. trekking is recommended, both reserves will get the most out of it.

As I said before the city is a bird paradise, although there are more than 400 species in the area where most tourists crave the aim of glorious quetzal, dense cloudy forests, conditions and damp, so you are going to enjoy about wildlife viewing 

 it can make it harder to spot small breastfeeding fleeing about, but outside the woods you might see or maybe hear howler monkeys and squirrels.

Don’t miss coffee & sugar tour travel offers several options for those looking for a glimpse into the practice and process of brewing coffee and harvesting sugarcane in the region, with el trapiche tours among the best. 

When you back at the farmhouse, you can see how the raw materials will already open into a variety of final products such as liquor, sugarcane, raw sugar and roasted coffee.

Monte Verde also offers you some exciting activities such as Monte Verde snakes where tourist can watch more than 40 species (including vipers and non-venomous frogs, poisonous frogs, toddrons, lizards and turtles). 

Now, It’s the butterflies’ turn in Monte Verde you can visit Butterfly garden is located between Santa Elena and cloud forest as the Monte Verde butterfly garden consists of four separate butterfly gardens, gardens

Butterfly garden also offers an interesting discovery of medicinal plants and leaf cuts, the ant colony has quite a lot to see for an entry fee of 4,800 crc.

Working experience in the rainforest at night while most people just visit the rainforest by day, just a night’s walk gives you the opportunity to see some of the countless nocturnal animals (everything from tarantoo coatis will stick to bugs) 

Find your best camera it’ll be worth absolutely! If you decide to visit de the bat forest Are you afraid of bats? it doesn’t have to be! wild bats in Monte Verde have a look that provides information on the earth and the behavior of these nocturnal creatures in a rainforest-controlled environment. 

One of the neatest features is a sonar microphone that allows visitors to listen live to bats using echolocation.

Do you love Eating cheese?  the Monte Verde cheese factory gives visitors some background in British influence in the area and the production of dairy products. be sure to sample some of the ice cream at the end!

And Finally don’t miss swimming at San Luis falls:  this is a three-hour hike through the rainforest to get 330 feet of falls, but you can still arrange a horseback ride. What else can you ask for?

It is my pleasure to tell you how can you travel to Costa Rica safely. Where do you want to go in 2021? For many travel enthusiasts, 2020 was marked by hardships. But things are looking better now. Nowadays long-distance travel makes possible again.

A suitable land for a trip is Costa Rica not only that the peak tourist season in the months of October, November falls, the country also offers various ways to travel off tourists.

Why travel to Costa Rica during the Coronavirus period? Costa Rica is an incredibly diverse country. The mixture of jungle, beach, volcanoes and rainforest offers a suitable combination for all travelers. 

Even if Coronavirus has been shaking up the travel world lately, trips to Costa Rica are still possible – the country is even one of the most recommendable travel countries for this time.

The best time to travel to Costa Rica, the dry season, slowly begins in October. In autumn you also have the advantage that you can still experience the blooming, green landscape that the previous rainy season led to. 

In the main dry season, which runs from December to April, you can look forward to constant weather conditions and up to 40 degrees. 

At the end of 2021, the corona situation should also have eased and it is likely that trips will be able to take place again with fewer restrictions.

Costa Rica & Sustainability – Routes away from the crowds

Overall, Costa Rica strongly focuses on sustainability and tries to offer the most environmentally friendly tourism possible. There are countless good eco-lodges in nature where you can stay overnight and from where you can plan day trips. 

Costa Rica was actually a pioneer in the field of sustainable tourism. Nevertheless, it is noticeable again and again that there is still a lot to improve, for example with regard to capacity limits in national parks or more days of rest. 

If fewer tourists come in the next few years, there will probably be an even greater focus on sustainability.

In the rainforests of the country you can spot the following animals, for example: raccoons, monkeys, slots, macaws.

Costa Rica is a comparatively small travel destination where you can see a lot within about 2 weeks. The risk of infection is generally low, especially on hiking trips and trips to nature.

 You are out and about a lot in the open air and the bus transfers are rather shorter than with standard round trips.

If you generally value walking on very little-frequented trails, we recommend the following trip:

Hike Costa Rica close to nature. This trip takes place particularly strongly in nature and there are many beautiful jungle lodges, such as the Bananito Lodge in the hinterland of the Caribbean coast.

Requirements for entry

Since November, the limits are set for international air transport. The most important things about immigration at a glance 48 hours before boarding the aircraft, each person traveling must fill out a digital health form (“Pase de Salud”). The QR code received for this form must be presented upon entry.

An internationally valid health insurance must be taken out, which covers medical care in the event of an infection with Coronavirus as well as the costs for accommodation and food for the 14-day quarantine. 

This must be added to the digital “Pase de Salud”. Alternatively, on arrival at the airport in Costa Rica, health insurance can be taken out with a Costa Rican insurance company 

Foreign citizens who are not resident in Costa Rica must be able to present a flight ticket for onward or return travel upon entry.

Pay Attention: The national borders are still closed to passenger traffic, only Costa Ricans or holders of a residence permit can cross the border there.

The check-in and security checks normally as always extend to each other only at a greater distance. Boarding is then divided into smaller groups, e.g. depending on the row of seats is boarded so that there is no traffic jam in the plane.

Of course, you must wear a mask during the entire flight. However, the mask may be removed when eating or drinking. There are also strict hygiene rules at the airport.

Mobility in the country & restrictions

Costa Rica can be traveled quite well again all parts of the country can be reached. All airlines are gradually planning to continue their flight connections.

– There are bus connections to all parts of the country, but in some cases with less frequency.

– There is a driving ban for private cars on weekdays between 10 p.m. and 5 a.m., on weekends between 9 p.m. and 5 a.m.

Other restrictions – Restaurants must close at 10 p.m. on weekdays and at 9 p.m. on weekends.

– In closed rooms such as restaurants, hotels, banks, etc. the mask requirement applies.

Which airlines fly to Costa Rica? Direct flights from USA. In recent years, more and more airlines have been added to serve Costa Rica from Europe, including Iberia, British Airways and Edelweiss Air.

Don’t forget to check Accommodation & hygiene on site

Face masks are compulsory in public and indoor spaces, in restaurants as well as in hotels or buses. In the hygiene protocols, great care is taken to ensure that the necessary distance is given everywhere, that everything is disinfected and that there is the possibility of washing hands, e.g. when entering a shop.

Remember keep all measures in the selected hotels and restaurants.

Highlights of Costa Rica

Costa Rica has countless sights to offer. The diverse nature and fauna is particularly impressive: Manuel Antonio National Park, steaming volcanoes but they are not common in Costa Rica, the green Hills of Monteverde National Park, among others.

A question that comes up very often is whether the sights in Costa Rica are open again. The national parks and other attractions are now accessible again, in some cases with a reduction in capacity to 50%. 

What happens in the worst case? If you should get Coronavirus despite all the measures taken, or if the trip has to be broken off, provision is of course made here you will find the answers to the most frequently asked questions:

What can I do if I get Coronavirus? Costa Rica generally has a very good health system. There is compulsory health insurance for all residents and there are also 29 hospitals throughout the country and over 1000 smaller clinics available for tourists, where one can be cared for.

What measures do the common airlines take to ensure that fellow travelers are COVID-free?

A corona test or the like is not required. Each travel participant receives a guide along with the travel documents, in which the guests are asked to take responsibility for themselves. 

Only those who are absolutely symptom-free and have not knowingly been in contact with a person infected with corona should take part. 

However, there are often other regulations, for example from the airlines, that must be complied with.

What happens if a booked trip cannot take place due to corona reasons? If, for example, there is a travel warning, you can always rebook to another trip free of charge. Alternatively, a voucher can be issued or the deposit can be transferred back. 

So tell me are you willing to travel? Do you want to finally soak up the sun again? Have you got wanderlust? You finally want to look forward to a journey, sun and sea again? As you can see, you are well protected in the worst -case scenario. 

Costa Rica is a fantastic travel destination, regardless of Coronavirus! Contrasting nature, wild coasts and unique cloud forests await you here.