24 days and counting!! We now have an official itinerary as all our excursions were booked last week. Yay!
Best place to see all this info is on the TripIt page I set up. I sent you an invitation to view last week, so check your email. But here's a much less detailed version:
Monday, February 27: Depart KCI at 6:28pm, depart DEN at 11:59pm.
Tuesday, February 28: Arrive SJO at 6:07am. Private transfer to Lost Iguana in Arenal. Arrive 11ish. Hot springs and dinner at Tabacon. Cost: $85
Wednesday, February 29: What better way to spend Leap Day than rappelling down waterfalls? Canyoneering 9am-1:30pm. Cost $81. La Fortuna waterfall hike 1:30-3pm. Cost: $10 entrance plus $70 transportation
Thursday, March 1: Zip line day! 8:20am-12pm: Hanging bridges tour. 12:30pm: Sky Tram and zip line. Cost: $95.55 with zip line, $65.45 without
Friday: March 2: Transport to Manuel Antonio. Leaving Lost Iguana at 9am. Arrive 3ish.
Saturday, March 3: Sunset catamaran sail 1:30-6pm. Cost: $97
Sunday, March 4: Nat'l park guided tour and beach 7:30am Cost: $45. Birthday dinner for Kelly. Prob book a table to watch the sunset, so likely starting around 5pm
Monday, March 5: Transport to San Jose. Leave 12pm. Arrive 3-4ish
Tuesday, March 6: Bye-bye Costa Rica. Flight departs 7:05am
Packing Tips
Via Kelly (via someone on TripAdvisor):
Lightweight zip off/on pants are a modern day travel miracle - bring 2 pairs
Bring a long sleeved shirt, but not a sweater - something light & quick drying that can be layered
A light windbreaker/raincoat that can get added to the layering
Sarongs are a way better packing option that beach towels - they dry more quickly and are lighter
Bring travel packs of stain remover or a stain removing pencil
Consider bringing things that you can ditch along the way (the runners on their last few legs rather than brand new ones)
Other handy items - travel size hand sanitizer, tummy meds, ziplock bags, earplugs, a couple each of safety pins, paper clips & clothes pegs. Some duct tape (wrap a bit around a pen to avoid carrying a whole roll). Flashlight, small lock, and a tiny converter between a 2 hole & 3 hole electrical socket. I've found all these immensely valuable and they don't take much room.
Here's the list I send everybody who's coming to stay with us:
• Sunglasses
• Sunscreen (spf30+)-the sun here is extremely strong!
• Lip balm with SPF
• Swimsuit
• Hat
• Insect repellent
• Anti-itch cream
• Poncho/lightweight raincoat
• Travel size umbrella
• Prescription medicine
• Flip flops
• Shoes/boots with non-slip soles that you can get muddy
• Water shoes w/ secure straps
• Long lightweight pants
• Long lightweight shirts
• Camera & accessories
• Binoculars
• Flashlight or headlamp
• Backpack for day hikes
Lightweight zip off/on pants are a modern day travel miracle - bring 2 pairs
Bring a long sleeved shirt, but not a sweater - something light & quick drying that can be layered
A light windbreaker/raincoat that can get added to the layering
Sarongs are a way better packing option that beach towels - they dry more quickly and are lighter
Bring travel packs of stain remover or a stain removing pencil
Consider bringing things that you can ditch along the way (the runners on their last few legs rather than brand new ones)
Other handy items - travel size hand sanitizer, tummy meds, ziplock bags, earplugs, a couple each of safety pins, paper clips & clothes pegs. Some duct tape (wrap a bit around a pen to avoid carrying a whole roll). Flashlight, small lock, and a tiny converter between a 2 hole & 3 hole electrical socket. I've found all these immensely valuable and they don't take much room.
Here's the list I send everybody who's coming to stay with us:
• Sunglasses
• Sunscreen (spf30+)-the sun here is extremely strong!
• Lip balm with SPF
• Swimsuit
• Hat
• Insect repellent
• Anti-itch cream
• Poncho/lightweight raincoat
• Travel size umbrella
• Prescription medicine
• Flip flops
• Shoes/boots with non-slip soles that you can get muddy
• Water shoes w/ secure straps
• Long lightweight pants
• Long lightweight shirts
• Camera & accessories
• Binoculars
• Flashlight or headlamp
• Backpack for day hikes
Activities Itinerary
Tuesday 2/28 (Arrive at our hotel approximately 11am)
Activity: Hot Springs
Info: Purchase a Day Pass to Tabacon Grand Spa Thermal Resort that includes dinner. http://www.tabacon.com/info-day-pass-entrance-with-lunch-or-dinner-thermal-springs-one-day-passes-package-18-1-48.html . Can purchase spa treatments if you’d like. http://www.tabacon.com/costa-rica-resort-the-grand-spa-5.html (Note: we also have a spa at our hotel). Day Spa Pass option is $175 http://www.tabacon.com/info-day-spa-package-special-packages-package-24-6.html
Cost: $85 includes entrance to hot springs and dinner OR $175 includes 60 minutes of spa treatments
Participants: Everyone
Wednesday 2/29
Activities: Canyoneering and Waterfall hike
Info: The canyoneering tour is a half day tour and can be done at 7:30 am or 10 am on the 29th. Since Lost Iguana is a ways out of town, the 10 am tour might work best for you as you wouldn’t have to get up so early. After the canyoneering tour, before taking you back to Lost Iguana we could take you to the La Fortuna Waterfall for an hour before taking you back to Lost Iguana. In the price included below for the waterfall I only included transportation (guide and trail entrance fee not included) because the waterfall is pretty self explanatory (basically hiking down the well marked trail to the falls, taking pictures and perhaps swimming in the pool downstream from the waterfall [no swimming in the waterfall pool itself]) and most people prefer not to pay extra for a guide.
Cost : $81 for canyoneering, $10 entrance fee to waterfall, $70 transportation fee (total, not per person)
Participants: Me, Kelly, Pez, Todd, Laur, Marites, Damien, Niki, Brian, Matt
Thursday 3/1
Activities: Hanging bridges, sky tram and zip line
Info: Sky Walk hanging bridges at 9 am with a break of about 1 ½ hours during which you could get lunch at Chill Out (the Sky Trek restaurant) before taking the Sky Tram up the mountain at 2 pm and take the Sky Trek (zip line) back down before heading back to Lost Iguana.
Cost: $96 (includes transportation, hanging bridges, sky tram and zip line) Hanging bridges and sky tram only (no zip line): $72 with transportation
Participants for everything including zip line: Me, Kelly, Pez, Todd, Laur, Marites, Damien, Niki, Matt
Participants for bridges and tram only: Brian, Tom, Kate (Kate, I wasn’t sure where you stood on this since I’ve only talked to Tom ~ please let me know if you want to do the zip line)
MANUEL ANTONIO
We decided to definitely book the catamaran and national park tour in advance. People are interested in other activities (kayaking, mountain biking, mangrove tours, surfing, etc), but we decided to play those by ear & possibly book once we’re there.
Friday 3/2
Activity: Drive from Arenal to Manuel Antonio
Info: I’m estimating we’ll arrive in MA around 3pm. We decided to leave this afternoon free since we don’t know exactly when we’ll be arriving.
Saturday 3/3
Activity: FREE MORNING. Need to be back to house around 1pm. 2p-6pm: Sunset Catamaran cruise
Info: Includes: Transfer, lunch or dinner, snacks, drinks (soda, cocktails and beer), snorkel gear, sailing down the pristine coastline of Manuel Antonio. Start from Quepos Marina and sail down to National Park with a stop at Playa Biesanz cove for snorkeling.
Cost: $87.50
Participants: Everyone
Sunday 3/4
Activity: National Park guided tour, followed by some beach time. FREE AFTERNOON. Kelly’s big 4-0 birthday!!
Info: Roundtrip transportation to/from hotel, park entrance fee, professional naturalist bilingual guide with high-tech equipment, fruit and water. 2 hour guided hike then spend as much time as you want at the beach. Want to start fairly early in the morning.
Cost: $45
Participants: Everyone
Monday 3/5
Activity: Noon checkout, transfer back to SJO area.
