Sunrise in Montezuma

27 November 2017 | by Robyn Margaret McComb
Montezuma is a laidback Pacific beach community on the southern tip of the Nicoya Peninsula in Costa Rica. What is the point of going here? For one, you will have amazing views of the ocean. You will also have access to countless fun activities, from snorkeling to horseback riding on the beach to hiking up the Choro waterfall. Wildlife is abundant and the rain forest crowding the water’s edge is teeming with toucans, capuchin monkeys, howler monkeys, tapers, huge colorful iguanas, and countless other wildlife species. But the best part of Montezuma for me was being able to watch the sunrise over the Pacific.

Discovering more remote places in Guanacaste

08 August 2017 | by Luise Badway
Guanacaste in the far north-west of Costa Rica is a region which is known for its huge diversity of landscapes and activities. You can find pristine beaches, impressive waterfalls, dry tropical forest, wide expanse of grasslands, high volcanos and thermal springs… So there are a lot of things to do and you could probably spend weeks discovering this beautiful region! As we only had a normal weekend for traveling, we tried to pack as many different activities as possible in two days and did not regret it.

9 things I love about San José

02 August 2017 | by Katharina Geiselmann
If you have ever talked to someone who's been to Costa Rica or read about Costa Rica when planning your trip, you probably haven't heard a lot about its capital, San José. And even if you heard something, it was probably something along the lines of “Oh there's really nothing to do in San José, it's a pretty ugly city”. Well, I have been living in this city for about 6 months now, as I was doing an internship here with a German company (fyi: I am German), and though I need to admit I was not thrilled right from the start, the city has won me over. Let me tell you why San José actually makes it pretty hard for me to leave it behind, by casting light on 9 things I love about this city.

Weekend Adventure in Tortuguero, “the Amazon of Costa Rica”!

22 July 2017 | by Liz Guinessey
After months of waiting to check Tortuguero off my bucket list, turtle season finally arrived and I made plans with a group of friends to spend the weekend down in tropical jungle paradise. We left San Jose early to make it to the boat dock in La Pavona. After driving through the rainforests of Braulio Carillo National Park and abundant banana fields, we made it to the busy boat dock on the Rio Tortuguero. We were quickly swarmed by folks selling tours and boat rides, but we navigated the swarm and hopped on a river boat destined for Tortuguero Village. The boat ride itself was the beginning of what was to be a very adventurous weekend!

Water everywhere!

21 July 2017 | by Luise Badway
A really nice day trip from San José which includes lots of adrenaline, action and nature is a tour of rafting on the river Pacuare. This river is located west of the capital and flows through the Province Limón into the Carribean Sea. It is best to reach from the town Turrialba where you can find lots of different tour agencies that offer rafting tours, but some also can pick you up in San José center for an extra transportation fee.

Pura Vida at Santa Teresa - Beach, Surfing & Yoga

30 June 2017 | by Luise Badway
This time I headed to the Pacific Coast on the Peninsula Nicoya, Northwest of the capital, for a weekend trip to Santa Teresa. I took the bus on Friday at 6 am from the Terminal 7-10 (14 $) which drives up to Puntarenas where the ferry leaves for the Peninsula. The price of the ferry is included in the bus ticket, so the procedure is really easy and you can enjoy the 1,5 hour journey on the ferry with a stunning view over the sea and small islands.

Mangrove reforestation on the Osa Peninsula of Costa Rica

15 June 2017 | by Liz Guinessey
This past week I had the chance to head down to the beautiful Osa Peninsula of Costa Rica. It is one of the more difficult areas to reach in the country, and as a result it has maintained its rural roots, notably lacking the large-scale development found in areas like Guanacaste and the Nicoya Peninsula. The Osa Peninsula is not for all travelers - by bus it takes at least 8 hours to arrive from San Jose, and once there the weather is hot and humid and cell phone service is limited.

Hike to San Gerardo Field Station in the Children’s Eternal Rainforest

22 May 2017 | by Liz Guinessey
This past weekend I had the opportunity to do a little hiking off the beaten path in the beautiful cloud forest of Costa Rica. Along with two friends who live in San Luis de Monteverde, I hiked to the San Gerardo Field Station in the Children’s Eternal Rainforest, so named because it is protected in part due to the fundraising efforts of elementary school children in Sweden.

What is cheap and expensive in Costa Rica?

03 March 2017 | by Luis Carlos Chavarría
A lot is usually said about how expensive Costa Rica is. That's why I decided to create this post to list some things that you might get surprise are really cheap here. Am also list some things that are indeed expensive so you try to watch out in case you travel with a sensitive budget.

Where to exchange Costa Rican Currency colones (CRC) and dollars (USD)?

10 February 2017 | by Luis Carlos Chavarría
The first thing you should know is to never exchange money at the airport or hotel kiosks. They usually have the most expensive conversion rates and hidden fees. In Costa Rica the cheapest way to get local currency (colones) or US dollars is at ATMs. There is an ATM at the airport, if you arrive there just go to the ATM and you can easily redraw local currency Colón (CRC) or Dollars (USD). If the ATM doesn't work simply wait until you make it to the any city or town. ATMs are usually easy to find in different towns of Costa Rica.

Hiking the highest mountain in Costa Rica: Cerro Chirripó

03 February 2017 | by Luis Carlos Chavarría
You can hike up chirripó in one, two or three days. Doing it in only one day is extremely hard and recommended only if you are in good shape. The more days you can stay the better so you can explore all the different trails the park has to offer. I did it in two days and I will share my experience on this post.

This place transcended any other park I had been to in my whole life!

15 December 2016 | by Kandace Connell
I traveled to San Jose in late November. It was my first solo adventure and my first time flying on a plane. I packed meticulously and planned for over a month. I even brushed up on my Spanish! When I first got to San Jose I stayed with a friend I met over couch surfing (Couch surfing is an awesome online community, if you don’t know what it is, check it out!). I had planned to go to the east coast to Limón, but my friend suggested I try the west coast instead. He told me about Manuel Antonio and how awesome it is. From my travels to Central America with my family as a child, I learned that locals always know best, so I threw caution to the wind and was off!

Hiking the most biodiverse national park of Costa Rica: Corcovado

01 July 2016 | by Luis Carlos Chavarría
The park has different ranger stations in which you can get in through. Sirena Ranger Station which people usually sleep in, Leona Ranger Station which is the entrance from Puerto Jiménez and Los Patos. The latest being the most uncommon.

Getting to and from Juan Santamaría Airport in Costa Rica (SJO)

11 March 2016 | by Luis Carlos Chavarría
To get to San José city center from the Juan Santamaría Aiport in Costa Rica is really easy by bus.

Caribbean atmosphere, small colorful huts, everybody knows everybody

15 June 2015 | by Maeva Lehmann
After several weekends spent at home, in San José, it was time for me to go back on tour! Since Friday was an official day off (for the United Nations), I had a 3-day-weekend. So I took the opportunity to go on the Caribbean coast with my roommate. We went to Tortuguero, a small isolated village, only reachable by boat. So after 4 hours of travel, we felt as if we were at the end of the world.

A visit to reggaeland Puerto Viejo

25 May 2015 | by Maeva Lehmann
This weekend, I went to Puerto Viejo, a small village on the Caribbean coast, with two other interns. We took the bus very early, around 6 am from the Gran Terminal del Caribe, and we paid around 4 000 colones. The trip took 5 hours, it was fucking hot and wet inside the bus, and some people didn’t even have a seat and travelled standing.

This is the first time I was swimming in the Pacific Ocean. There were big waves!

01 May 2015 | by Maeva Lehmann
Last week, one of my best friends Eléonore came home! After 1 month in Cuba, she joined me in Costa Rica. I spent a great week in her company.

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