Costa Rica Honeymoon?

ac411020 · October 2013

So fiancé and I had decided to go on a honeymoon to Italy a few months after our wedding. Things changed so now we need to take our honeymoon right after our wedding at the beginning of February. Since we don't want to go to Italy in the winter, we are now thinking about Costa Rica.

Does any one have any tips for where we should go see? Also, any recommendations for travel agencies to book through?

We are looking to go for about 10 nights and enjoy activities such as zip lining, fishing, snorkeling, etc., but would also like some relaxing time at a beach. Budget is around $6000. Thank you!

Molly&Andy · October 2013

Take a look at Nayara Hotel near Arenal/La Fortuna. It is amazing and they are opening up another property right next door that might be even better. We did the zip line with Sky Trek which was awesome. We also did a couple of excursions while in the Arenal area.

We spent 4 night at Nayara and 3 nights over in the Guanacaste area. Such a beautiful country and we can't wait to go back. You won't be disappointed.

ac411020 · October 2013

Awesome, thanks! I'll have to check out that hotel.

girlinchicago · October 2013

We did 12 nights in CR for our one year anniversary. I believe we spent around $6k, though we went in June/July which tends to bring lower prices. Our itinerary was as follows: 3 nights el Silencio Lodge and Spa (cloud forest) 3 nights Arenal Nayara (volcano/activities) 3 nights Lapa Rios (wildlife) 3 nights Oxygen Villas (beach/relaxing) I lovvvvvved our itinerary and El Silencio and Lapa Rios were out of this world amazing. El Silencio is totally mysterious and the cabins are gorgeous with private hot tubs on the deck. The couples' mud massage there was incredible and food was fresh and delicious. Great for hiking and a good first stop. In Arenal, we went to the hot springs, went ziplining and whitewater rafting. We were glad we went to Arenal but we thought Nayara was totally overrated, but I will say that we have very high expectations and have stayed in a lot of hotels over the years. I can elaborate more if needed. Lapa Rios is just an incredibly unique place - it's not for everyone. It's a special place, especially for honeymooners, but there's no AC (not needed in Feb. though!) and it's rustic luxury. Still, the wildlife viewing, the rooms, and service were incredible. Oxygen was a joke, I won't even elaborate. We booked with Costa Rica Experts and they took care of everything. If you were interested in a similar itinerary, I would totally recommend 3 nights El Silencio, 3 nights Arenal, and 4 nights Lapa Rios. I also liked the look of Arenas del Mar if you wanted to go the Manuel Antonio route instead of going down to Lapa Rios/Osa Peninsula. Places like Florblanca and Latitude 10 also appealed to me, but it was out of the way for our itinerary. Good luck!

cruffino · October 2013

We're going to CR for our honeymoon in Feb too. Staying at the Marriott in herradura. We're renting a car so we can drive around and see things. If you're interested in doing any driving, we're renting from wild rider which was highly recommended on tripadvisor and a couple other sites.

ac411020 · October 2013

I actually just booked our trip today! We're staying in La Fortuna for 3 nights, Monteverde for 2 nights, and Manuel Antonio for 4 nights. I don't think we're going to rent a car because all of the transfers between cities are part of our package. We're doing a ton of excursions too! I'm so excited! Have fun on your honeymoon!

nmsa · November 2013

My fiancé is from Costa Rica originally and we went last year to visit family. It's a beautiful country, I hope you have a wonderful time! You have lots of great itinerary suggestions from PPs. If you go to Monteverde (which I definitely recommend) we loved Selvatura Park for zip lining and the walking bridge tour. We did the bridges in the early AM when the park was still very empty and at times it was like we had the whole forrest to ourselves.

One tip, if you plan on renting a car to drive anywhere other than highways, especially if you drive to Monteverde - get a heavy-duty 4WD. The roads are rocky, steep, and sometimes pretty narrow. We had a little front wheel drive borrowed from a family friend and it was an extremely nerve-wracking trip.

ac411020 · November 2013

@nmsa we booked our trip last week and we are going to Selvatura Park for zip lining and the walking bridge tour. Glad to hear it's fun!

All of our transfers are included in the package we created, so we will not be renting a car, but thanks for the tip!

nmsa · November 2013

@akosakow Honestly, I wish we had transfer services too, because the drive scared me to death, so good call! I hope you have a truly wonderful time, it's such a great country. On the Selvatura Park zip line tour...the Tarzan swing is scary but SO fun! There's also a really great little open-air empanada stand right across the street from the Treehouse restaurant if you feel like a snack. Happy honeymooning!

ac411020 · November 2013

@nmsa I definitely want to do the Tarzan swing! I've been zip lining before (on what was described to me as a beginner course) and loved it so I'm assuming Selvatura park will be even better. Thanks!

mimee03 · November 2013

@akosakow where did you book through so that it included your transfers?

bananasplit472001 · November 2013

In your budget I would honestly travel all throughout Cost Rica to get the most out of you trip. Maybe fly into the Capitol San Jose for one night and then explore Monteverde cloud forest (zip line and hike) and Arenal Volcano. Stay at one of the hot springs in Arenal (Tabacon) then travel down to the Guanacaste region and experience the drier weather and surroundings. After that I would go to the Caribbean coast to experience more lush rain forest (February is in the dry season so it may not be very lush this time of year), wildlife tours, boat tours and white water rafting. If you are looking for a very tropical atmosphere you may not get that in Costa Rica in February, depending on how hot it has been. It is the high season from November-April so most places will be crowded and expensive.

brittleigh13 · November 2013

We did 9 days in Costa Rica and absolutely loved it. We stayed in Manuel Antonio and rented a house which was perfect but we also visited the resort Si Como No for a dinner and I highly recommend it.
Manuel Antonio National Park is amazing. The beach is awesome and they have fun vendors to go through right down the road from the beach. Get in touch with someone to book excursions-- its been so long I can't remember who we used. We went horseback riding on the beach which we highly recommend (but not if you don't ride, they are not real helpful, we actually were sent out on our own and the horses were not the best behaved but we ride all the time). We did a private ATV tour through the jungle and waterfalls which was definitely the highlight of the trip. They have a drink at all the restaurants in Manual Antonio called Monkey Business-- if you like Bailey and Bananas, it's to die for. Manual Antonio is the monkey capital of world so you see them everywhere and some are rather friendly. We also saw a ton of iguanas and even had a sloth in our backyard.
One of our best trips for adventure!

I will say in this area the drive from the airport was about 2 hours and the roads are not good but it was fun nonetheless to see so much of Costa Rica. The capital is not safe at all so be very careful with transportation out.

ac411020 · November 2013

@mimee03 we booked our transfers through package costa rica

hutchsl · December 2013

We went to Arenal for 4 nights - Tabacon Hot Springs resort. While there we did a class III IV rafting trip on Rio Toror through Desafio (discout coupon through Pura Vida Eh website). Fantastic trip. Also combo tour through anywhere Costa Rica (left out the hot springs since staying at Tabacon and it was included with the room). Did private transfer from San Jose to Arenal through Anywhere Costa Rica.

Took Shared transport (Anywhere Costa Rica) to Montezuma and stayed in a private bungalow on the beach. Hotel name is Ylang Ylang beach resort. Included breakfast and dinner. 10 min walk to town to grocery for mixers, snacks. Did a horseback excursion to the waterfalls through the resort. Also a snorkeling tour but it was not that great.

Took private transport back. One reason we did private transfer was our midday airline flights which meant we did not have to stay in San Jose. Difficult to make flight time for return from Montezuma based on sharded transport times (it takes a later ferry).

Researching for another trip I looked in to Manuel Antonio since it seems everyone goes there for HM. Found there are not hotels on the beach there. So you have to take a bus or walk to the beach. We were able to stay in Montezuma right on the beach on the edge of town. No development past that for a couple of miles. Depends on what you are looking for.

mimee03 · December 2013

Thanks @hutchsl ! Sounds amazing! Wish I was better at making decisions!

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