Costa Rica has always been on my bucket list of places to travel. I had never been to South America, and considering I can’t survive a full winter in Boston without at least a quick trip someplace warm, my friend, Erin Silva, and I decided it would be the perfect January trip. Although it is quite touristy, there are so many adventurous activities to do, and endless amounts of beautiful scenery. From breathtaking beaches, to luscious jungles, and cute, fuzzy animals (my favorite), you really can’t go wrong.
We chose to get the true backpackers, “Pura Vida” experience, and stayed in two different hostels in the two different areas of Costa Rica we went to: Manuel Antonio and Arenal. The hostels were conveniently called Backpackers Manuel Antonio and Arenal Backpackers. I would recommend staying here if you want a cheap option. However, neither of the hostels had hot water (luke warm at most) in the shower, and Manuel Antonio had communal showers/bathroom, so keep this in mind if you go this route! We definitely preferred the Arenal Backpackers hostel as it was slightly nicer, with a bigger and more beautiful pool, and a cute bar area in the front where you could eat traditional food and drink delicious Pina Coladas (or whatever you fancy).
During our four days there, we jam-packed a lot of activities for an adventurous vacation. The great thing about Costa Rica is that you can relax at the beautiful beaches, go surfing, and eat coconuts, if you want a relaxing vacation. On the other hand, if you want more action and adventure, there is so much to do, from boating, horseback riding, zip-lining, hiking and more. For us, we opted for the more adventurous route, so if that is the type of vacation you are looking for, I have included some of our top 10 favorite experiences below!
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Go on a Jungle Tour | Manuel Antonio National Park
I am a HUGE animal person, so was most excited to see adorable sloths, little monkeys, and other more exotic animals in their national habitat. The great thing about staying at the backpackers hostels, was we could organize all of our activities through the hostel, which was so convenient. We scheduled an early morning tour, and our tour guide picked us up in van at the hostel, and took us both to and from the Manuel Antonio National Park.
Our tour guide was absolutely amazing. I wouldn’t recommend going to the park without a tour guide. Some of the animals are unbelievably hard to spot unless you have a trained professional to find them (whether its way high up in the tree, or blending in with the ground). Our guide not only spotted many animals for us, he used his mega microscope with zoom to ensure we could see them and take zoomed-in pictures with our iPhones, along with providing detailed descriptions about each one. We got extremely lucky, and got to see a rare anteater in the day, cute monkeys playing, a sloth and its mama, and many more amazing animals. It is an experience not to miss!
2. Go on a Boat Tour
Going on a boat tour is something I absolutely would add to your list if you are in Costa Rica. It is a relaxing way to spend the day or night, and see the beautiful Costa Rican waters while you are at it. We had an absolutely amazing time, and it is very are easy to book through the hostel or online.
We chose the afternoon to sunset tour. Our boat tour provided snorkel gear so we could swim in the beautiful water and spot fish, as well as a delicious dinner and drinks. It was also a great way to meet some other tourists and have fun socializing. We watched one of the most beautiful sunsets I have ever seen (Titanic theme-song playing in the background, for all those romantic couples – haha). The absolute best part was spotting dolphins that swam right in the wake of our boat! It was an experience I will never forget.
3. Climb the Arenal Volcano
I have never in my life had the experience to climb a volcano (an active one – mind you), so it was something fun to check off my bucket list. It is great way to get moving and get some exercise while on your trip, and you get to see the most breathtaking views while you are at it.
In all honesty – you cannot actually climb to the top of the Volcano (considering it is still active, this would be a suicide mission). However, you can definitely get a good work out in climbing very close around the bottom of it, and it makes for some amazing photo-ops!
4. Go horseback riding
Horseback riding was one of my favorite activities at camp as a kid, but I hadn’t gotten the chance to go in years and years, so was very excited to get out my riding boots again (or sneakers – Haha). We booked our horseback riding trip through a local company in downtown Arenal. There are tons lining the main street and it is extremely easy to schedule. We combined this with zip-lining, and swimming in hot springs, all in one day (I will talk about each below), so it was quite the activity-filled day!
However, the day that we went it happened to be absolutely pouring rain, which made for an interesting experience. When you go horseback riding, you have a guide with you, who leads you through the jungle and to the hot springs, and sets the pace for the ride. Between the pouring run and mud, along with trotting through the bumpy jungle with a rocky terrain, it was an extremely fun experience, but not one for those who are timid about horseback riding with some speed (and bumps)!
5. Go Zip-lining Through the Jungle
Zip-lining was one of the most exciting (and scary) experiences of our trip. I would be lying if I said I wasn’t nervous, considering we were extremely high-up skyrocketing through the jungle. Additionally, it was pouring rain the day we went which made the zip-line go faster. However, our guides were amazing, making us smile the whole time and ensuring we weren’t too scared, and that we had a blast.
Additionally, all of the other tourists cancelled their zip-lining trip that day due to rain, so Erin and I were the only ones with the team on the zip-line. Due to this, they let us try so new zip-lining techniques including the super-man, and zip-lining upside down! I felt like I accomplished a lot to say the least after this excursion.
6. Swim in the Hot Springs
Swimming in the hot springs was another part of our zip-lining/horseback riding excursion, and as mentioned it was pouring rain, which made it a bit chilly. Since the hot springs were warm, it was a nice temporary relief from the cold rain, and since we were already soaking wet anyways, we opted to take a dip!
It was also beautiful as we were in the middle of the jungle. I would definitely recommend this if you have the chance!
7. Swim in the La Fortuna Waterfall
Costa Rica is home to some of the most beautiful waterfalls. Erin and I would have loved to go to them all, but we chose the La Fortuna, and we were happy we did!
It does take a lot of hiking to get to, but it is well worth the trek! It was absolutely breathtaking and so much fun to swim in (although it was freezing). It also makes for some beautiful photos.
8. Experience the Local Cuisine
One of my favorite things to do whenever I travel anywhere, is to eat. Of course Costa Rica is known for it’s delicious rice and beans, and ceviche. I had actually never had ceviche in my life prior to the trip, and by the end I was a huge fan!
The food was all so fresh and delicious, and I was glad we got the chance to taste local cuisines outside of just our hostel. Definitely set aside some time to try new foods and enjoy what they make locally, you will not be disappointed!
9. Drink Fresh Coconut
One of the best coconuts and coconut milk I have ever had in my life was at the beach in Costa Rica. It is easy to get a coconut from locals that sell them on the beach, and it was the most fresh, delicious coconut I’ve ever put my lips on! Do not miss the chance to get one if you find yourself on the beach and see a local selling them. Additionally, all of the fruit in Costa Rica is so fresh and juicy, I would recommend trying as many types as possible!
10. Relax at the Beautiful Beaches/Surfing
Costa Rica is known for having some absolutely beautiful beaches, so we were sure to cut out some time to relax and check out the scenery at the beach. It is of course known for surfing, but Erin and I had never surfed and unfortunately didn’t have time to include this in our schedule with all of our other activities. However, of course this is something I have heard great things about and would recommend doing if you are a surfer or want to learn to surf.
Erin and I chose the relax and tan on the beach, drink a coconut route. 🙂
I hope this post was helpful for anyone planning a trip to Costa Rica! Be sure to leave any questions in the comments box!