Tamarindo Travel Forum

We're heading to Tamarindo this December for our first trip to Costa Rica. We plan on mostly chilling out, doing a bit of surfing and exploring what sounds like an amazing place. Any "out of the ordinary" suggestions?

A couple of questions...

A friend suggested finding a "turismo" when we fly into Liberia and just taking it from there to Tamarindo. Is this a good way to go rather than booking a driver ahead of time?

Also, how far is Arenal Volcano - sounds like it is an amazing place to visit.

Arenal is an awesome place. About 3 hours from San Jose. Check out Las Lagos resort. You can't get much closser to the volcano.

Do yourself a favor and skip Tamarindo. After visiting Tamarino last week I was horrified with all the changes since my last visit. Lots of construction and new buildings – mostly 5-6 story luxury condominiums, a pizza hut, subway sandwich, TCBY yogurt and a Burger King! Walking around town requires dodging the trucks hauling construction equipment and choking on their dust clouds. We found that several of the restaurants we liked last year were either out of business or had been replaced with new buildings.

I met a Tica who had been living in Tamarindo for the past three months working in real estate. Even though she was making a lot of money she said she couldn’t take it anymore and had to move back to Escazu. Other locals told me that they can no longer afford to live in the area and don’t know how they will be able to get to work as their rents keep getting raised and they need to move further and further away.

TAMARINDO IS BABYLON

We rent a car and drive in when we go - it's half the expierence of Costa Rica! Do not pass up the 4x4 - it's a requirement if you don't want to get stuck. A mid-size car will usually be fine but if you have more than two people UPGRADE - those cars are TINY! The cabs are fine but just make sure that the cab has a number in a yellow triangle on the side. That means they are licensed by the gov't. No triangle means "ghost cab" and even Ticans tell you not to go that route. Arenal actually has good roads most of the way in but plan on it taking at least 3-4 hours. There are buses that make the trip - your hotel should be able to line this up for you. Call ahead and check and see if the volcano is visible before making the drive. Last time we went the volcano was covered by clouds and we never saw it. The hot springs there are AMAZING so it made the trip not a total bust. The cloudforest is also a must see. We'll be down there for the first two weeks in Dec - we're staying at Las Tortugas in Playa Grande. There's actually a lot to do in this area but you can't go wrong anywhere in Costa. Also you can find a "man with a boat" and for about $30 and he'll take you out and catch dolphin and tuna within shouting distance of the beach. He'll clean your fish and then your hotel or a local resteraunt will fix the fish for you. Last year, we ate our two Dolphin and Tuna that we caught all week. The chef fixed it different every night. Definitely go into the jungle, the howler monkeys are awesome. The guides are actually worth hiring because they show you so much more than you would have even seen on your own. All in all, within hours of landing, you'll be on Tico Time. No worries.
Have fun!

kambrose...........trying to contact this member to find out more about Playa Grande as we will also be there in December. Interested in how to find more information about the fishing and finding someone to cook while there. Any information would be most appreciated. Could not get email in VT to send.

We feel this area is well worth taking 10 days to explore.