Booked two tickets for Costa Rica for 10 days at the end of November. Landing in San Jose. Let the planning begin? Southwest has roundtrip tickets now for ~$260. I ended doing United ($295) because they had the dates I wanted.
Hit the Arenal area for a couple of days of proper jungle action, then head to the coast. Avoid Tamarindo, waaaay too touristy. I loved Quepos, Mariposa hotel, iirc. The caribbean side in general is a much more laid back and less crowded vibe if that's what you're looking for.
Ya the goal is to avoid touristy places. When I went to Hawaii earlier this year I made the mistake of staying in Wakiki for 2 days. Nothing but Japanese tourists.
Jaco! Go to the casino and experience the ladies of the night...or day there also. Rent a 4 wheeler and explore the trails on your own. Absolutely beautiful.
Be prepared to be seriously bent over at the car rental place. If you plan on driving over there, I'd get and pay for the package over here so you don't get bent. They place a multi-thousand dollar hold on your cc then strong arm talk you into getting expensive insurance or you'll be responsible for any damage. You think ok - I'll just take care of the car, but they charge outrageous fees (keeping your deposit) for you for every scratch and ding including the ones you know were there before but didn't catch. Most cars are a pos. CCs will only cover 50k which is about the cost of a Sentra-like car down there and that still won't stop them from hitting your card. My last 2 rentals were $1000 for a week on a 7 passenger Toyota SUV and $500 for week on a serious POS Nissan (and they wanted premium fuel on the refill - fat chance on that). Those places are thieves that have their day coming but just be prepared beforehand. The water is now drinkable. The ocean is ok but not better than Destin IMO. Arenal is ok. You want to try and go off the beaten path IMO and see the Costa Rica wildlife. It's disappearing fast. 25 years ago you would see all kinds of Toucans, and exotic birds but it's almost rare to see those now. Monkeys and iguanas are still rather plentiful if you venture out.
Who'd you rent from? I think we used National, and it was about $700 for a Rav 4 for eight days...can't remember what the insurance situation was, but I wasn't offended. They also wanted us to return the car empty, which I've never heard of. No problems with dings or anything, and we drove on roads you wouldn't feel comfortable doing more than 15 mph. Water is drinkable in some places as of March 2014--ask the proprietor. Sounds like you had an unlucky experience. Arenal area is beautiful. Manuel Antonio has beach monkeys.
If you've never been, go white water rafting. It's a blast. You'll hear a lot about zip lining, which is fun and fine, but quickly becomes a bit repetitive/boring.
I love rafting, and I've been all around this world, but the Pacuare is the greatest I've ever seen. If you are into that, you have to do it while you're there. Do not rent a car, make friends with a guy and say "I will pay you $20 to drive us [from point A to point B]. If it is a longer trip, pay 50-plus.
But I mean is there a part of Costa Rica where we can stay without driving and have a good time with enough to do and see?
I've heard Isla Nublar is kind of over, but you can check out Isla Sorna. It is less touristy, but still has some amazing wildlife available for any shutterbugs in your group.
Honestly I haven't been since '03, but that was my favorite place in the whole country. I'd love to go back, let me know what you think. Random thoughts: If you like spicy food (or anything other than bland), take some hot sauce with you (cholula type stuff). They try to like italian-style food, it is terrible. Avoid it unless the kids really want "pizza". Go fishing, catch fish, find restaurant, tell restaurant how to cook your fish. And lobster. Snorkeling is outstanding if you like to look at stuff and pretend you're in an aquarium.
From what I see online it still looks like a prime spot in Costa Rica. Snorkeling and maybe scuba diving (if I ever get certified) is exactly the kind of stuff we want to do. Good tips on the food. Makes me think of the blandness of food in Spain. Having a restaurant cook the seafood we catch sounds awesome though.
