Last summer, my friend and I spent a month traveling in Costa Rica. It was an incredible experience and I am very grateful to have had the opportunity to explore such a unique country.
We started in Manuel Antonio, known for its beautiful national park. We paid $50 for a tour of the park, which was worth it as we saw many sloths (including a baby), monkeys (including white-faced and howler monkeys), poisonous frogs, and birds. The park also had a peaceful beach for relaxing. The rest of our days in Manuel Antonio consisted of sunbathing on the beach, swimming in the sea, and enjoying the pools at our hostel. We stayed in a Selina hostel which is a slightly more expensive brand of hostels but provided evening entertainment and visits.
We headed further up the Pacific coast for our next two stops. Santa Teresa was great because it was slightly livelier than the other areas we visited and full of surfers. Each day was spent relaxing on the beaches and watching the beautiful sunsets. We also ate several of our meals at a Soda near our hostel. A Soda is a type of local restaurant serving traditional, delicious and inexpensive Costa Rican cuisine. We particularly enjoyed Casado – a plate of chicken, rice, salad and beans. Another top recommendation is the Banana Beach Club – we had delicious pizzas and delicious cocktails here! Montezuma was our next stop and is similar to Santa Teresa but much smaller. A highlight of our stay was the day we spent at Montezuma Waterfall, hiking up to the waterfall and enjoying the hot pools below.
Monteverde is known for its impressive cloud forest and we took a canopy zipline tour.
After almost two weeks of exploring Costa Rica's Pacific coast, we booked hostels in Monteverde and La Fortuna, two popular areas further inland. Monteverde is known for its impressive cloud forest and we took a canopy zipline tour. This was a really cool part of our trip and a great way to see more of the forest, although the Tarzan swing definitely got our hearts racing! La Fortuna had more varied activities and seemed less expensive than Monteverde.
One of our favorite days was spent at Termalitas del Arenal. This was the cheapest spa resort we found, costing only around £6 each to enter, and the hot springs were extremely relaxing. We also visited the popular El Salto rope swing, spending a day jumping in the river and enjoying the water.
Our friends who visited Costa Rica before us really recommended Puerto Viejo, a town on the Caribbean coast. We trusted their advice and booked a hostel there for our last seven nights in Costa Rica. It was definitely the right decision to make! While the sea on the other side of the Pacific was warm, the Caribbean Sea was warmer and clearer. The food was also slightly different as the meats were usually coated in Jamaican jerk seasoning and topped with a rich Caribbean sauce. Other than that, the food was typical of what we had enjoyed elsewhere, with cafes serving refreshing smoothies, eggs and pancakes, and the like. restaurants offering pasta and fresh seafood. Most of our days consisted of exploring the local beaches. We also visited Cahuita National Park, although we didn't see as much wildlife as we did in Manuel Antonio. Almost all of our nights were spent at Hot Rocks, a large and popular bar in Puerto Viejo that offers fun themed nights including karaoke and a circus night!
We made sure to stay cautious but felt safe throughout the trip.
This trip was one of the best experiences I've had so far. We went during the rainy season in June and July, but we were very lucky because the rain didn't interrupt our plans, mostly occurring while we slept. It was hot during the day, which meant we were almost always in shorts, skirts and dresses. We also aimed to keep the trip as economical as possible, which was manageable as we stayed in nice, cheap hostels and used buses to get around.
As two girls traveling alone, we made sure to stay cautious but felt safe. throughout the journey. I would definitely recommend Costa Rica to anyone looking for a beautiful and safe country.
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