allergickid

Planning vacation in late August and considering Costa Rica.
Worried about the rain. Interested in hiking/beaches/watch the turtles/rainforest etc. Planning to stay in air bnb--no resorts. Heard that northern region and Caribbean coast can be dry. Any suggestions on the best places to visit late August. Also is it necessary to have a car? Worried about driving unfamiliar areas in the rain.
Thanks for any suggestions.

volcanogirl

Tortuguero is an area known for turtles. For the ones we saw the nesting season was July through October. You would want to stay at one of the lodges along the water though, rather than an air bnb because the lodges organize all the excursions through the canals, have guides on staff, etc. When we went to view the turtles we had to partake in a lottery system to get to go, and then those chosen went out with a guide. They ask that you wear something black so you don't disturb the turtles. We like Manuel Antonio for beach time, but it would be rainy in August; for drier weather you could head to one of the Guanacaste beaches. For hiking, we really like the Arenal Observatory Lodge in the Arenal/La Fortuna area. It's out by the lake and has a lot of wildlife on site. When we've stayed there they had free guided hikes each morning. I'd personally be concerned about security at air bnbs. Friends of ours had theirs broken into while they were staying there. For me, it's better to stay somewhere with staff on site and security.

volcanogirl

I like this weather map to give an idea of general weather patterns; just mouse over the areas you're interested in.

https://costa-rica-guide.com/travel/...-map-rainfall/

Jodah73

If you do not want to stay in lodges or resorts there are several independent tour agencies in Tortuguero, Corcovado, Monteverde and other popular tourist destinations offering daytours and excursions covering all the major sights.

However, for security reasons, it might be better to stay in an accomodadation with staff on site. If you are on a tight budget there are hotels and ”hospedajes” with affordable prices and decent security.

You do not need a car. Costa Rica has an extensive network of buses. It helps if you speak some Spanish. It was possible, but a little difficult to get to Tortugero by bus and boat. There are also more expensive tourist shuttles between the major tourist destinations, usually offering door to door service.

volcanogirl

We usually don't rent a car. We hire private drivers through our hotels when we reserve them. They'll take you between cities, and then we use taxis once we're in town, or some hotels have shuttle services. You wouldn't need a car in Tortuguero since that area is canal-based and on the water. There's also a shuttle service called Interbus; you can check their website and see if it goes to the areas that interest you. You would have to operate on their schedule though and share the shuttle with other passengers.

allergickid

Thanks for all the suggestions. Regarding places to stay--we stay in air bnb due to my sons food allergies. WE cook most our meals. We have done this for all our travels. Is this unsafe in CR or is it unsafe in some areas to do this.
Our itinerary so far is arrive on San Jose Aug 18 or 19
Go to La Fortuna --3-4 nights
Tortuguero--2-3 nights
TRavel to Puerto Viejo or somewhere else in Caribbean coast--still researching places--2-3 nights. Found a nice air bnb in Manzanillo in caribbean coast that is close to Punta uva. Is that a nice area to stay at/safe?.
Back to San Jose and fly out.
I will be traveling with my two adult children
I am also open to flying to Liberia--go to Guanacaste region and hit other places,Open to any suggestions. We do not surf--but were going to Caribbean coast since it is supposed to be drier in August.

Thanks

allergickid

Another question. My daughter is a bug magnet....gets bitten by mosquitoes even when no around gets bitten. Gets stung by jelly fish/sea anemone every time in the ocean. She seems to attract critters in land and sea.
Since we are visiting the rain forest, I assume there will be tons of critters/mosquitoes etc. Any suggestions on protection that works. Will have her wear long sleeved shirts/pants and use DEET. Any other recs?

volcanogirl

Covering yourself and wearing DEET are your best options, not much else you can do other than that. Mosquitoes will depend on how much rain they've had.

Nelson

You may be surprised that there are not tons of mosquitoes. That has been our experience staying in rain forests in Costa Rica, Guatemala, Belize, and Mexico. However that was during the dry seasons. I've seen bazillions more mosquitoes in the Rocky Mountains. Still, there are certainly biting tropical forest critters around.

You don't need 100% DEET, you can use 30%, which seems to be as effective, just doesn't last as long and not nearly as nasty to apply as the 100%.

Also, you can decide which of her long-sleeved outfits will be her out in the forest clothes and spray them with Permethrin before you leave. Google "sawyers permethrin", this stuff seems to work. If you don't want to do it yourself there is a service called InsectShield that will do it for you, but I've never used them.

Ironically, after spraying our hiking clothes for a recent trip to Belize my wife got a nasty spider bite while in bed. But we never once needed to put on DEET even though hiking for several hours each day.

I've read anecdotal reports that using coconut scented soap and shampoo is a bug deterrent. Have no idea if that's true but I like coconut scent so I figured why not.

Good luck.

volcanogirl

Regarding AirBnbs, our friends were sleeping when their was broken into at night; all of their electronics, cameras, iPhones etc. were stolen. Pretty scary, so while it's not common, I'd ask what their level of security is. There was also a case on the news where a woman was murdered in her AirBnb. I've always felt safe everywhere we've gone, but not sure I would have the same level of comfort with an AirBnB.

mlgb

Agree with volcanogirl, Costa Rica is not the safe haven that it was 30 year ago. I only found out about breakins in the area where I stayed after I got home, although the homeowners did sort of drop hints, e.g. "I've got a gun and everyone in town knows about it."