First, let me just say how excited I am to be sharing my Costa Rica photos on a platform where you can experience them on a large screen as well.Ā šš¾Ā I mean, enjoy them however you’re able to but if you can see them on a display larger than a phone, please do!Ā š
ThisĀ tripĀ is from spring 2015, but while going through the photos to prepare this post, I found myself reliving the full panoply of emotions from my Costa Rican memoriesĀ š¹š. FromĀ the awe in experiencing my first sunrise at Playa Espadilla, to the rush while zip-lining hundreds of feet up in the air at Manuel Antonio Park… it all came back.
Costa Rica was my sister and I’s first Sister Trip outside of the US. When traveling together we typically like to do a lot of outdoor activities, try different foods and just talk to people, especially locals. We got to do a lot in one week, so in effort to not overwhelm you with too many words, I’ll give bullet point descriptions of our trip below. If you click to enlarge a photo, youāll get a little more info.
There’s so much more of Costa Rica I want to see, includingĀ the volcanoes in the north and coral reefs in the south, which I heard, are insane. Costa Rica is truly an adventurer’s paradise. If you’ve been, please tell me how your trip went and the awesome places you got to see!
Enjoy, share, repost or just stare really hard and maybe, just maybe you’ll be teleported to one of these beautiful places, lol. For another quick cyber vacation, go see the BelizeĀ post! Feel free to ask me any questions!
Here’s Costa Rica!
Where we stayed:
- In booming San Jose- luckily with a friend who was studying abroad there at the time but if you plan on going there are plenty of lodging options in the city.
- In picturesque Dominical- Pyramys Life Hostel. We love hostels when we travel, not only because theyāre great to meet chill people, backpackers and people our age, but also because we move around a lot when we travel. Subbing in hostels in a couple locations definitely lowers cost.Ā šš¾
- In colorful Quepos- El Faro Beach but in the hostel part. We planned Quepos really last minute so this was our only option for lodging but it was great. I enjoyed the gigantic pool.
What we did:
- Lots ofĀ ‘beach chilling’ and napsā
We hit Playa Jaco (pronouncedĀ ha-ko), Playa Dominical, Playa Dominicalito and Playa Espadilla. Fun fact if you haven’t visited my About MeĀ page- Naps on the beach are one of my favorite things to do!
- Lots of food eatingĀ šš¹š¹
From the meal options to the flavors, the seafood, the drinks…Ā I was in heaven. EverythingĀ tasted so fresh and made with love.
- Horseback ridingĀ š
We traveled through the Puntarenas forest by horse to get to Nauyaca Falls. The entire trail to the fall is beautiful. There momentsĀ when we were surroundedĀ by trees so tall they looked like they were touching the sky, and others when we traveling along the perimeter of small hills and got to catch some magnificent views.
- Hikingš
It was about an hour hike from Dominical to Poza Azul Falls. I wouldn’t say I needed the exercise lol, but our hostel host volunteered to do the hike with us and gave us a little history of the area and the small villages we passed on the way, so that was really cool.
- Waterfall chasingš
We visited Poza Azul Falls, Cascada Verde Falls and Nauyaca Falls. I was obsessed with Nauyava as you’ll see below. Tip: The waterfallsĀ flow at their full capacity in theĀ fall. To see Nauyaca at full capacity is one of theĀ reasonsĀ I wantĀ to go backĀ someday.
- Zip-liningšæ
This was the activity my sister was looking forward to the most.Ā Our tour ended with a 1o foot drop into a pool of water at the bottom of a waterfall. It’s a lot less scary than it sounds.
Transportation:
- Uber
- Taxi
- Travel buses
Tip: From/to certain parts of the country there is only one highway connecting to the city so sometimes traffic can get pretty severe. Ask around and plan if you’re going town hopping!Ā
Music:
- Ā Hip-hop, soul, R&B but mostly soca and reggae.
Souvenir ideas:
- Hammock, painting, traditionalĀ sweater or skirt.
