Arenal to Monteverde to Tamarindo

Costa Rica | Dec 27 - Jan 6, 2025

Had a great time! Zip lining, canyoning, and hiking were all top notch in LaFortuna. Had a much better view of sloths in Arenal than on the Sloth tour, but we had bad weather during the tour, so no fault to that organization. Don Rufino was tasty, but by far our most over-priced meal of the whole trip. The boat ride from Arenal was nice but I felt it was presented as a way to avoid a long, bumpy shuttle ride. We still had a long, bumpy ride in a van after the boat. We added a coffee tour on our own in Monteverde since our cloud forest hike ended an hour earlier than expected. The forest guide was very informative, but it felt rushed; I would’ve preferred more time to hike and explore the forest on our own at the end of the tour. Treehouse restaurant was the best dining experience. Decent prices on the food and drinks, cool pics with the tree, and the live music was phenomenal. The transfer to Tamarindo was long as expected, but took 2hrs longer than expected. We also stopped twice for 20min breaks. Added 40min unnecessarily. 10min bathroom and snack breaks make more sense. I don’t want to waste vacation time in a roadside gift shop. It was wise not to book anything for that afternoon with the slow drive. Also great was the hotel dining at El Jardin del Eden. Breakfast and dinner half-board was perfect. Huge breakfast spread and gourmet dinner options. No need to waste money outside restaurants. All 3 hotels were great. I would recommend all 3 as long as the people you are booking are capable of the hikes. Lomas was a decent uphill walk from pool/restaurant up to the room, but there’s a golf cart on site if needed. Helped a lot when it rained. Ficus was a grueling hike up from St. Elena. Golf cart on property was good, but back from town was rough. Even Jardin had a long walk from the beach, but it was a flat path. Probably the best part of the entire trip aside from food and stays was the catamaran sunset experience in Tamarindo. Olman and Graciela were both very helpful before and during the trip to help with reservations and transfers.