Nice beach towns, Costa Rica

[MarkWithaC]

DP and I are thinking of a December trip to Costa Rica. We really want to stick to the Pacific not Caribbean side, and want to travel around a bit but then stop for a good few nights to relax. We'd love to do this in a beach town that has nice beaches, a few cafes/restaurants/food shops and a laid-back vibe and is fairly quiet ie not very full of tourists and no loud thumping music and drunken hordes at night. So Manuel Antonio, for example, doesn't sound like our scene.

It should also be handy for day trips by public transport (we won't have a car) to things like sanctuaries/waterfalls/interesting towns/coffee farms.

I'm leaning towards self-catering, probably via Airbnb, but am open-minded about a (reasonably priced) lodge or B&B or something, although again we'd like something low-key and relaxed.

Is this too much to ask? I've read a few blogs that say CR beach towns aren't that great. I'm really hoping not.

In theory, yes, but the logistics seem a bit daunting, plus the fact that my DP isn't great at bus journeys of more than about three hours...

@MarkWithaC what's your planned route?
Minivan transfers were good for routes where buses weren't that easy (more expensive though). We used these twice and they tended to have a loo/quick cafe stop half way.
E.g. exploradores.com
We used them to get back to SJ from the Carribbean side, but actually did a rafting trip midway. It would have been the same price to just do the rafting as a day trip.

I'm vaguely considering two. Either:

• San Jose to San Isidro el General/Cloudbridge cloud forest/Chirripo national park/nearby coast/Osa Peninsula (for Corcovado)

or

• San Jose to Monteverde cloud forest/Nicoya town/coast and national parks of Nicoya Peninsula.

The latter looks like shorter journeys and possibly nicer beach towns, but possibly also less amazing nature.

Playa Hermosa was a very relaxing cool vibe. Not a big town, you need the next bay along for that. We loved the wild beach there

I hadn't heard of the Cloud bridge cloud forest. Looks great, and an easy journey from SJ.
Reckon I'd pick that itinerary if the onward buses are straightforward.

It's a fair few years since I went so you'd need to read up for more recent reviews, but Coco was great for what you're after, and we got a bus from San Jose.

It does, doesn't it? And quieter than the Monteverde one, apparently.

I am leaning towards that one. I'm just a bit unsure about where we'd stay for Corcovado. I'm not sure if Puerto Jimenez is good for access to beaches on foot or by public transport.

@MarkWithaC the Facebook group 'Costa Rica Travel Tips & Resources' might be helpful for that.

Thanks!

We went to Osa last year. Most stunning place I've ever been. Mile after mile of utterly beautiful (and totally empty) beach and unspoilt rainforest. But it's certainly not a public transport, local restaurants destination. We stayed in an amazing hotel,, but it was an hour's drive along an unmade road out of Puerto Jimenez, with nothing else for miles around except other eco hotels hidden away in the rainforest. We didn't even go to Corcovado 'proper', as it would have been another three hour journey to get there (and expensive), and the wildlife is so amazing everywhere on Osa that we didn't really feel the need. I guess you could stay in PJ and have more transport/dining options, but I think that would rather defeat the object of going to Osa in the first place. NB if you do go to Osa, it's much quicker to fly, and I don't think the flights are that expensive (and the views from the tiny plane are wonderful!).

Manuel Antonio is very pretty and has far more restaurants etc, but it is very busy. We stopped very briefly in Uvita, so didn't really see the town itself, but the coast and park looked beautiful. Didn't go to Nicoya. Monteverde and Arenal both lovely.

We liked the general vibe much more on the Pacific side than the Caribbean side, but the wildlife watching in Tortuguero was pretty special.

Thanks for this. Yes, one possibility is to stay in an eco lodge where we’re catered for (and perhaps collected on the way in and given a ride out on our way out). They’re quite expensive, though, and a few I’ve had a look at also look fairly booked up already for when I’d want them.
Interesting to hear that one might not need to go to Corcovado itself to have a good experience!

Tobyj we are off.to Costa Rica this year.and are going.to Osa. Was Tortugero different in terms.of.the.wildlife? We ummed.and ahhed about whether to include.it!

Yes, it was quite different. The main thing was going to see the turtles nesting, which was amazing, but it depends if you're there at the right time for the turtles (we went second half of July). But otherwise the landscape is just very different, at least from the other bits of CR that we went to. It's a network of waterways, so you see lots of water birds for example like herons and rails and kingfishers (there are other wetland parks in CR but we didn't go to any). So wildlife watching by boat - it's lovely drifting along the river. We also saw a river otter plus hundreds of golden orb spiders and land crabs, which we saw much less of elsewhere. For birdwatching there's quite a bit of overlap, but definitely some things you see only on the Caribbean, or only on the Pacific, or only in the uplands. The culture feels very different as well - much more of a Caribbean beach shack and banana plantation type vibe, which I didn't like as much tbh, but it was interesting to see the difference.

Where are you staying in Osa? We were about an hour west of Puerto Jimenez. The wildlife watching honestly is awesome, and really immersive (we barely left the hotel grounds, because there was so much there). NB it was the only place we came (unintentionally) close to some seriously fuck-off spiders, so brace yourself if that bothers you! There's a part of me that regrets not doing a day trip into Corcovado, and I'll definitely do it if I ever go again (you have a very high chance of seeing a tapir, which youre unlikely to see anywhere else, and you have at least a tiny chance of seeing one of the cats, though it's still a very tiny chance - most of the rangers we spoke to in CR had never seen one). But it's quite an undertaking, and in the end we decided we'd rather spend an extra day in our wonderful hotel, as we only had two full days there. NB if you definitely do want to go to Corcovado it's worth contacting your hotel to book in advance - the trips have quite limited numbers I think. The same incidentally with Manuel Antonio national park - they only sell a certain number of tickets each day, and they just close the gates once it's full.

If you're still planning your trip and you're really into your wildlife, then my tip would be to spend your money on some individial guiding so that you can ask lots of questions and tell the guide what you'd really like to look for (we also spent a bit on private transfers, which was perfectly nice but unnecessary in hindsight). And hotels with expansive grounds (we saw things in hotel gardens that we didn't see anywhere else!).

Have an amazing time. I'm jealous, would go back in a heartbeat, and my kids never wanted to leave!

Thanks, we're staying at Bosque del Cabo.in Osa. We're going in July so good turtle viewing but we have seen turtles nesting previously elsewhere. Tbh there's so much we wanted to see and do that we've had to be quite ruthless in our choices. So planning on Arenal, Montevrde and Osa. We could probably squeeze in Tortuguero if we reduce time in Arenal but it would be a squeeze.

We stayed in Puerto Viejo and it was great. Gorgeous beach. We went in 2014 as backpackers so not sure how it stacks up for a "grown up" holiday but the beach was gorgeous and we had great days out at the Jaguar Rescue Centre and the Sloth Sanctuary.

edit to add: as backpackers, we did it all on public transport without issue. I think we got a long distance bus from San Jose to Limon and then a local bus on to Puerto Viejo (and local buses to the sanctuaries I mentioned).

@savvy7 we stayed in El Remanso in Osa, which looks like it's the nearest neighbour to your hotel. In fact they look v similar. You'll have an amazing time!

Arenal and Monteverde are both lovely. NB if we'd had longer in Monteverde we'd have done a quetzal-spotting tour - the standard tour is lower level so you're unlikely to see them. Arenal was amazing for birds generally. Are you staying in the Observatory Lodge? We weren't, but got a taxi up there for the afternoon, as you can walk their trails even if you're a visitor (I think it's the only hotel actually inside the volcano park). Wonderful views, lots of birds, and it was the first place we saw spider monkeys (also saw lots in Osa) .

@tobyj we were booked into the Observatory Lodge but have recently switched accommodation as we've decided not to hire a car. So we're planning on going up there like you did to walk the trails. Really excited about our trip!