Costa Rica

Planning Our Trip

My friend texted me in December and said “Have you been to Costa Rica? United has a fare sale.” For ~$500, we flew first class, round trip from Seattle to Costa Rica. Due to constraints in PTO, we only went for 5 days, including travel. Before the trip, we planned hostels, booked a car, and briefly researched activities. We decided to just figure out what to do when we got there.

Getting There

Met my friend, Tom, for drinks in the lounge before our flights. Had a red eye out of Seattle to Houston, and then an hour layover before the flight to San Jose. In San Jose, we picked up our rental car and started on our way to La Fortuna. Money saving tip: The bus from San Jose to La Fortuna is only ~$6. We decided to save a few hours and rent a car since we already had such a short trip.

La Fortuna

We arrived midafternoon at La Fortuna with very few plans. We knew we were near Arenal Volcano and likely wanted to do some hiking. We stayed at Arenal Backpackers Resort (actually a hostel). Our first stop was for food. From there, we headed back to the hostel, settled in, and scoped out the hostel. Tom and I were both eager to meet other travelers and soon found ourselves with four new Canadian friends. We spent a few hours playing cards with Marissa, Jess, Kate, and Kendra. They filled us in on their plans for the next day and we decided to join. We headed to bed early to prepare for the long day ahead.

First full day in Costa Rica! We woke up, got breakfast, packed for the day, and picked up some 6 L jugs of water. Tom and I drove to the Mistico Hanging Bridges and met the girls there. This was a fun, scenic walk through the rainforest on a variety of different paths and bridges. We had fun exploring and finding different birds and animals.

Following the bridges, we headed back to the hostel to change and eat a VERY quick lunch at a soda nearby. Tip: Sodas are restaurants that serve typical Costa Rican food.

Our second tour of the day was a $35 tour that included a hike near Arenal, swimming in a waterfall, bathing in hot springs, transportation, and a speedy tour guide named Franklin. This was absolutely worth the money and Franklin really made our experience fantastic.

Just about all of us were exhausted at the end of this day. It didn’t stop us from heading out on the town for dinner and drinks. Still, we ended up heading to bed early. Tom and I had a 4ish hour drive the next morning and the girls had an early bus to catch.

Jaco

After a 4ish hour drive through curvy roads, thick fog, and some enlightening conversation, we arrived in Jaco. We walked in to the main area of our hostel, Room2Board, and were greeted by a party in full swing. Wow! The hostel looked to be a lot of fun, and we were later proved right.

We quickly changed, ate lunch, and checked out the beach. Tom got to swim in the Pacific Ocean for the first time! After playing in/getting destroyed by the waves, we headed to check out the pool and bar. First stop; Four Lokos. Turns out, Four Lokos are quite the talking point. Almost immediately, Lindsay and Cale asked us about them. We ended up spending the rest of the trip with the couple.

After some time in the pool, we watched the sunset, got ready for dinner, and the four of us headed to eat some sushi. Post sushi, we stopped at the store to grab some more drinks, and then joined the party back at the hostel. Tom and I ended up going to a club in Jaco while Lindsay and Cale were down for the count.

After staying up late and indulging in alcohol, it’s a surprise Tom and I made it to 9 am yoga! It’s hard to pass up the yoga when its free! After the class, we grabbed breakfast, signed up for surf lessons, and headed out to play in the waves again. The beach was followed by the pool and then surf lessons.

Our surf instructor gave us some on land tips before we headed to the water. Both Tom and I hopped up on the board pretty quickly. For me, the hardest part was walking the board back in to the water. Every time a wave came, I was carried 10 feet closer to shore again! This was exhausting. Overall, surfing was fun, yet exhausting. I love spending time in the water and learning new activities.

Tom and I scarfed down some food and then the four of us got in the car to head back to San Jose.

San Jose

What should’ve been about an hour and a half ride took about three due to traffic. We had some fun conversations and marveled at how there were “no rules!” in Costa Rican traffic.

We arrived at our final hostel for the last night, ate food, got ready for bed, and then stayed up late talking about the trip.

Getting Home

We had an early morning wake up call to return the rental car and get to our 6:30 am flight. After a smooth journey home, we parted ways at Seatac to resume non-vacation life.

Costa Rica Thoughts and Advice

I wish I could’ve spent more time in Costa Rica! The trip was sunny, relaxing, and full of activities. I had a great time with Tom and hopefully have found a new travel buddy in him.

For those planning to travel to Costa Rica, I highly recommend our hostels in La Fortuna and Jaco. Unfortunately, we weren’t thrilled with our hostel in San Jose, though, it seemed like a great one for meeting new people. We also really liked Mistico hanging bridges and our tour near Arenal.

For those looking to spend more time in Costa Rica, the buses seem like a good option. Tom and I really enjoyed the flexibility of the rental car, but, it did come with an added cost.

Remember, wear sunscreen, make new friends, and Pura Vida!