Costa Rica on a Shoestring

Arrive in San José at any time. Check into our hotel and enjoy the city. Please try to arrive before 6pm for an important group meeting where you can meet the Chief Experience Officer (CEO) and the other group members.

Located in the central highlands, San José enjoys a moderate climate. Like most cities, San José has its good and bad sides; it is the centre of government, theatre and art, as well as of air pollution and congestion. It has beautiful parks and museums, as well as a few beggars on the streets. It is big and often noisy, but even from its crowded downtown streets, you’ll often enjoy a view of the surrounding lush mountains.

Probably the hardest thing you will do in San José (other than get safely across the street) is keep the street numbering system straight. Street and avenue numbers are posted on buildings at the corners of some intersections—but not all! Keep looking as you walk, and you will eventually find one.

If you arrive early, head into downtown San José to visit a museum, shop or people-watch in the main plaza, a good place to watch San José at its most lively. A mime, juggler, marimba band, magician, or storyteller may be performing for tips, and artisan booths are common, creating a regular arts and crafts fair atmosphere.

A source of pride for ‘ticos’ (as Costa Ricans are called) is the National Theatre. Inaugurated in 1897, the building was paid for by coffee growers through a voluntary tax on every bag of coffee exported. Underneath the adjacent Plaza de la Cultura sits probably San José’s best known museum, the Gold Museum; its spectacular collection of indigenous gold art belongs to the Central Bank of Costa Rica.

The National Museum, housed in the Bellavista Fortress, offers exhibits on pre-Columbian art, colonial art and furniture and religious art within a 19th century building that was converted from a military fortress after the army was abolished. The Museum of Costa Rican Art, located in La Sabana Park, is housed in the old terminal building for what used to be the international airport. The 11th floor of the Instituto Nacional de Seguros building houses the excellent Jade Museum, which houses a marvellous collection of jade objects and pre-Columbian ceramic and stone works.

The best and least expensive places to buy souvenirs in San José are the markets. The two main ones are the ones in Plaza de la Democracia, which is an outdoor open market, and the Central Market, where handicrafts are sold along with boots, fish, flour, herbal remedies, shirts and everything else you can imagine. Always watch your belongings and be ready for crowds.

NOTE: Like any city where tourism is on the increase, crime also tends to increase. While San José is not a noticeably dangerous city, there are certain precautions you should take. Make sure that you are aware of your things at all times and don't go out carrying expensive gear or jewellery.

We begin with an incredible bus ride over the mountains, then we set out by boat to reach the small town of Tortuguero, which is only accessible by boat and plane. There are no roads to Tortuguero, so we take the only route there is: canals, both natural and man-made. Along the way we may see herons, egrets and spoonbills, as well as amphibians and reptiles like caimans and the Jesus Lizard, famous for its ability to run on water. Eventually the tropical rainforest gives way to prime beaches, ideal nesting grounds for sea turtles. Tortuguero, on the Caribbean coast and close to the Nicaraguan border, is the perfect place to experience Costa Rica’s lowland jungle, complete with some of the best birds and wildlife spotting in the country. The beaches around Tortuguero, a sleepy Afro-Caribbean town, host the nesting grounds of a variety of sea turtles (as the name implies), and Tortuguero National Park was created in 1975 to protect the four species of sea turtles which nest along the beaches: Green, Loggerhead, Hawksbill and Leatherback; the latter nests from mid-March to May, whereas the other species nest from July to September. Walking paths extend through the village and into the National Park, although the main means of transport here are boats, as there are no roads to the town, and naturally no cars. The Caribbean Conservation Center, just outside of town, is an excellent source of information about the turtles and their tropical habitat.

Approximate Distance: 134 km
Estimated Travel Time: 5 hours

We set off by boat to navigate canals parallel to the ocean on a ride with spectacular wildlife viewing en route from Tortuguero to Moín. Continue south to Cahuita, a sleepy Caribbean town with attractive beaches and a great national park. Spend the day hiking the park's trails, snorkelling vibrant reefs, eating coconuts with the monkeys or simply relaxing in the sun. Wildlife is easily spotted in the park. The beauty of the beaches in Cahuita continues straight through the Cahuita National Park on the southern end of this small town. The nearby local reefs offer excellent snorkelling opportunities to those who wish to stray further out than the warm Caribbean shore. With a modest nightlife, this is deinitely a place to chill out!

Approximate Distance: 218 km
Estimated Travel Time: 5hrs

A short hour-long bus ride takes us to Puerto Viejo de Talamanca where we can enjoy our last couple of days on the beach. The picturesque village’s white and black sand beaches are surrounded by exotic tropical vegetation. Options include renting a bike or hiking through Manzanillo National Wildlife Refuge. Try snorkelling or take it easy and explore La Isla Botanical Gardens. Rent a boogie board or surfboard if the waves are calling, dance the night away to reggae and calypso, taste flavourful Afro-Caribbean cuisine, and succumb to the natural beauty of this tropical paradise. This area of Costa Rica was quite isolated until a road was built a only a couple of decades ago, and it still hasn’t lost its charm.

Approximate Distance: 20 km
Estimated Travel Time: 45 min

We return to San Jose with a bus ride over the mountains back to the Central Highlands, approximately a four hour journey, for some last minute shopping and a final night on the town.

Approximate Distance: 215 km
Estimated Travel Time: 4.5 hrs