6 Tips for Your Trip to Costa Rica
Costa Rica is one of the main hotspots for tourists and travelers from around the world, and there’s plenty of reason as to why it’s so popular. It’s a perfect combination of beautiful rainforests, awe-inspiring volcanoes and stunning beaches. However, a trip to Costa Rica can be best enjoyed if you know about a few things beforehand. In order to help you with that, the following list of traveling tips have been prepared to make your experience as good as it should be.
Book Early
There is apparently no shortage of hotels in the little Central American country, but neither is there a shortage of visitors! It’s more or less packed around the year, but if you are planning to visit during the winter months and especially during the holiday season, you will need to book your luxury hotels in advance and as early as possible. Along with the North American crowd, a lot of the locals also return home during the high season, making Costa Rica a very busy place during those months.
It’s Not a Budget Trip
Few Latin American nations are as expensive as Costa Rica so don’t plan a trip there with the expectations of seeing prices as you would in Ecuador or Mexico. If you want to save a few bucks, we recommend visiting during the off-season. If you don’t want to miss the famous Limon Carnival or the Fiestas Palmares, though, you better be prepared to spend good money.
Choose Any One Backpacking Adventure
In Costa Rica, you have basically the Monteverde or the La Fortuna to choose from when it comes to backpacking adventure, sports and outdoor activities. Of course, you can opt to visit both places, but if you don’t exactly have a very long vacation, sticking to any one of them is probably a good idea; given how much distance there is in-between the two places.
Beware the Rain
Not that it’s always a bad thing, but you don’t want to be caught in the middle of a Costa Rican downpour without adequate waterproof clothing and dry bags, while out on a backpacking tour. The Costa Rican weather is as unpredictable as anything so never make the mistake of not packing in rain protection by looking at a sunny sky.
Knowing Spanish Helps
It would be unreasonable to ask that you learn the entire Spanish language for a trip, but knowing a few key words might actually be a good idea before traveling to any Latin American country. The good news is that Costa Rica has a very healthy population of English speakers, but it’s always better to haggle in the native tongue!
Head West to Avoid the Crowd
The Pacific Coast in the east is where all the crowds are, but if you instead choose to head west and towards the Caribbean coast, you will find it to be much more secluded. However, keep in mind that it’s also much less developed and harder to reach.
Costa Rica is a beautiful country and you will probably enjoy it no matter what, but the tips above will prepare you about what to expect nonetheless. While you are planning the tour, it might not be a bad idea to plan a visit to nearby Panama and Nicaragua as well in the same trip, provided you have the time.