Today I am presenting another of the off the beaten path Costa Rica vacations designs to appeal to the niche customer looking for that Costa Rica vacation experience that is just right…like Dorothy’s proverbial porridge pot.
Today’s design is for the hardcore water sports enthusiast. The package below features the best locations for engaging in Costa Rica’s top water sports…surfing, scuba diving and white water rafting.
The Costa Rica Waterman Design
Destination #1: Dominical
Days 1 and 2: You fly into the San Jose airport and depending on your flight arrival time, you can either spend that first night in the city, or head south to the beach. Your final destination will be Playa Dominical, the most rocking beach town on Costa Rica’s southern pacific and a place featuring consistently good waves for surfing. There are a number of hotels to choose from, but our choice for you would be Villas Rio Mar. It is located a short walk from Dominical central. A very nice place with beautifully manicured tropical garden grounds and a great pool and restaurant. But you won’t be spending much time enjoying all that…for the waves, they beckon thee…
Day 3: Time for surf. You can bring your own board or rent one at a number of surf shops featuring a good selection of rentals. There are three main breaks in the area. Dominical itself features the most powerful waves of the three and also the most crowded. It is best if you have a little experience under your belt. If you are more of a novice surfer, you might want to try Dominicalito, which is a much gentler wave and less crowded. A little further south is the beautiful beach of Playa Hermosa (my personal favorite). Hermosa can get pretty big and hollow at the right tide on a good swell. But it is a fun wave and the crowds are much less than Domincial. Also, the beach is just gorgeous there…much more so in my opinion than the beach at Playa Dominical.
Destination #2: Drake Bay
Day 4: You can spend another day surfing or head further south to your next destination…Drake Bay. These days the road to Drake Bay is much better than it used to be and driving there is now more of a feasible option. Nevertheless a 4×4 is recommended if you are doing a self-drive. Another option is to take a tourist shuttle to Sierpe and then a boat from there to Drake Bay.
Drake Bay is a place of pura naturaleza. You are really in the jungle, complete with large jungle cats lurking that could actually eat you. However, seeing one those would indeed be rare (and being eaten ever rarer, thankfully) and a highlight of any trip to that area. But what you are here for is that island you keep seeing off the coast that looks almost close enough to swim to. That is Isla del Caño (or Caños Island) and it offers some of the best scuba diving in the country. You first day will be used up with just getting to this very remote place. So rest up for the diving to start early the next day. We recommend staying at Jinetes de Osa, which caters to the diving crowd. But there are other options like the more upscale Aguilas de Osa and the Corcovado Adventures Tent camp for the really adventurous sorts.
Day 5: This day will be “diver down” all day. Enjoy some of the best diving you can experience with a vibrant coral reef teaming with marine life.
Destination #3: The Pacuare River Lodge Experience
Day 6: Again, you can decided to spend another day of diving, or head back to civilization. It is a really long haul back, so my recommendation is a domestic flight from the Drake Bay airport. If you are using a rental car, of course that means you will need to be able to turn it in at Drake Bay. That will have to be arranged with the rental car company and will likely require an additional fee. Of course, if you allowed us to design and manage this itinerary for you, all those details would be covered in advance (hey, I had to get a little plug in there). The flight back will be a little over one hour. You will stay in San Jose this night because the next morning, very early, our little adventure continues.
Day 7: Early the next morning you will be off to the next phase of our adventure…white water rafting on Costa Rica’s premier river, the Pacuare. Depending on the time of the year (green season being a time when the river is higher and running faster) you will experience class III and IV rapids on one of Costa Rica’s most beautiful rivers. To top it off, you will raft in to the spectacular Pacuare Lodge. This is an eco-lodge on the river banks that features luxurious accommodations in the middle of the jungle. This place is so remote as to practically off the grid.
Day 8: The next day you will raft out and then head back to San Jose for your last night. Alternatively you could opt for two nights on the river and spending the following day hiking, swimming and enjoying on site activities like the lodge’s own canopy (zip-line tour).
Day 9: Unfortunately it is time to go home.
So, there you have it…the perfect design with the hard-core waterman (or woman) in mind. Folks, we got a lot more where this one came from, so stay tuned for more off the beaten path Costa Rica vacation ideas.
Post by CRG
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