My Vacation in Costa Rica
We visited Costa Rica for Spring Break during the first week in April for seven nights. To my surprise it is a very dry time of year in the Guanacaste region. I was expecting more of a jungle vibe, but you have to travel away from the coast to get to the rainforest areas which are more green and lush or come to Guanacaste during the wet season. Locals recommend June-August and say that even though it’s “rainy season” it rains only part of the day.
It took about an hour and a half from Liberia Airport to get to our home away from home at the JW Marriott. On the way we encountered cows, horses, goats, and lots of motorcycles along with roadside homes and shops.
Once we arrived at the resort, I immediately got excited about the view and the big pool. The pool is large, and very refreshing with the heat. They have pool volleyball, hot tubs, and close access to restaurants. The resort overall is peaceful, with no loud music by the pool and very few planned activities. There were lots of kids here spending time with their families with it being Spring Break but not all chaotic or busy-feeling. There is a supervised kids club if you want to get some space from your younger siblings. They have an art station, video games, dolls, and a small playground area. While it’s for kids 12 and under I went in to get out of the sun and did art for about an hour each day which was nice.
In the evenings there is a DJ and fire for roasting marshmallows at sunset which is a fun way to end the day. I also liked the pretty hammocks and ice cream shop located by the main lobby. There are a ton of lizards that will eat almost anything and even beg at the tables at lunch time. We named the lizard that hung out by our room “Ed”.
The food was ok. I ate the tuna poke bowl almost every day from Azul – the pool bar and grill. The breakfast buffet was included in our stay with lots of options and fun new fruits I had never tried before like passion fruit and rambutans.I ate waffles with nutella most mornings which was awesome. Try the Kung pao chicken at the Asian restaurant and the burger at the steakhouse! Both were delicious.
We left the resort to visit Diamante which was about an hour and a half drive from the resort to see the sloths and toucans. They have ziplining, ATVs, and horseback riding along with an animal sanctuary. We chose the animal sanctuary and one hour ATV tour and went first thing in the morning. This was perfect since we got to see the sloth feeding and jaguar release. My favorite part was the toucans and butterfly exhibit where they let me release a butterfly! Stop for a popsicle and check out the play area near the bus stop. We ended up doing the $16 lunch buffet which was ok but overlooked the ziplining which was cool to watch. Next time, I would definitely like to try that. The zips were long and overlooked the ocean. We did the ATVs last. I felt safe riding on the back with my Dad and liked the stop we took right on the ocean for pictures.
Our next adventure was visiting the surf town of Tamarindo located about 30 min from the resort. Tamarindo is a surf village and there are lots of lessons being given on the beach in the shallow waters. We also saw horses riding on the beach and lots of locals and tourists sunbathing. We came for the shopping! Our favorite shops were Circus for the colorful artwork, Marena for recycled swimwear, Coastal for string bracelets, Ola Hau for tees, and La Oveja Surf House for tees, hats, stickers and most importantly -lunch. La Oveja is a newly remodeled hostel turned restaurant (and shop) and the food and ambiance are both terrific. I recommend the watermelon juice, hummus, and fresh baked argentinian cookies filled with dulce du leche. Yum!
The last few days of our trip were spent relaxing by the pool, walking on the beach, and binge watching movies out of the sun. This is exactly what I needed before going back to school and sports. I would describe Costa Rica as very relaxing and peaceful and in April – DRY and hot (about 90 degrees) without one drop of rain over our week’s vacation. I would like to come back and visit the rainforest areas near Monteverde and the Arsenal volcano. Those were all 3+ hours away and more than we wanted to travel on this trip. Adding it to my travel wish list!
Until next time, Pura Vida!
