Take the Kids Along Family Guide Book

Transcription

1 Take the Kids Along Family Guide Book Costa Rica By: Marina K. Villatoro TravelExperta.com

2 Costa Rica Pris/ne Beaches Ac/ve Volcanoes Rain Forest Adventure Close Encounters with Wildlife Welcome to Costa Rica Did You Know: 1. Costa Rica literally means "Rich Coast" which is filled with beaches that are surrounded by lush tropical forest. 2. Some of the best Adventure and nature tours can be had in Costa Rica. 3. More than 25% of Costa Rica s land are nadonal parks, reserves and wildlife refuges. 4. Over 5% of the world s bio- diversity lives in Costa Rica. 5. Costa Rica has over 120 volcanoes with 5 acdve ones that you can visit at a safe distance. 6. This is one of the most kid friendly Central American countries! Table of Contents I. Map of Costa Rica II. About Costa Rica III. Recommended IDnerary IV. Taking the Kids to Eat V. Shopping with Kids VI. San Jose & Central Valley VII. Arenal & La Fortuna VIII. Monteverde & Santa Elena IX. Manuel Antonio & Quepos X. Dominical XI. Tamarindo XII. Montezuma XIII. Puerto Viejo XIV. Cahuita XV. Tortuguero XVI. Puerto Jimenez XVII. Sarchi

3 Must Sees Arenal Volcano and La Fortuna The most adventurous spot in Costa Rica in the heart of the rain forest! What are you in the mood for: 1. Watch lava flow while relaxing in hot springs 2. Ziplining 3. Canyoneering 4. Horseback riding 5. Hiking There is something for everyone here! Manuel Antonio Na/onal Park San Jose Costa Rica s capital city is a booming metropolis! Nowadays, there are tons of acdvides to do in this area from visidng museums to visidng volcanoes and coffee plantadons. So if you have an extra day, you ll be surprised to what you can do here. This is one of the most popular areas to visit. And for good reason. The beaches are spectacular. Tons of in water and out of water acdvides to be had. But the best part, Manuel Antonio NaDonal Park is one of the only places where you are guaranteed to have monkeys, sloths and other furry creatures make friends with you and visit you on your porches. Monteverde Cloud Forest Monteverde Cloud Forest is considered one of Costa Rica s Seven Wonders. Its biodiversity and wildlife surrounds you. Visit the privately owned reserves, walk along the oldest and longest hanging bridges in Costa Rica, see hundreds of hummingbirds right in front of you and enjoy a real Cloud Forest.

4 Recommended I/nerary Day 1 Arrive to San Jose and enjoy an evening exploring Avenida Central, San Jose. Day 2 Arenal - 3 hour drive from San Jose - enjoy the ahernoon exploring La Fortuna town. Day 3 Adventure Dme, choose your choice of tours: ziplining, hiking, boat tour, canyoneering. Day 4 More adventures in Arenal. Day 5 Say bye bye to Arenal and head over to Manuel Antonio NaDonal Park (5 hour drive) enjoy the sunset over the water. Day 6 Explore Manuel Antonio nadonal park and meet some of the furry animals that live there. Day 7 Kayaking the mangroves and snorkeling. Day 8 Say bye bye Manuel Antonio and drive to airport (3 hours) to go home.

5 What To Eat Gallo Pinto No respectable Costa Rica House will be without this most typical Tico dish: Rice and beans mixed together with onions, red peppers and Salsa Lizano. Ticos eat this for breakfast, lunch and dinner. Casado Restaurant Tips You have to eat at the local eateries, SODAS, which are all over Costa Rica. The meals are enormous, homemade and dirt cheap. Trendier restaurants include a 10% Dp, but I definitely recommend Dpping at the SODAS since it s usually run by families and they don t add the gratuity. This is the most common lunch/dinner meal. Casado literally means Married Man. It was the dish that the wife had ready for the working husband when he came home for lunch: Rice, beans, plantains, salad, potatoes or pasta and a meat choice. It s super filling and can be tried in every SODA! Tamale Another typical Central American dish that has been revised with Tico flavors. Their version is drier than other countries, without sauce. And they call it Pina which is two tamales wrapped together. They add: chicken, pork or beans. And is more available around Christmas Dme. Rice and Beans This is the Caribbean s version of Gallo Pinto. It s made with coconut oil and even though it looks the same, the flavor is quite different. As with Gallo Pinto this side dish is eaten with every meal.

6 Arenal & La Fortuna Volcano Show Natural Hot Spring Tons of Adventures Welcome to Arenal Volcano and La Fortuna

7 Map of La Fortuna Town

8 Did You Know: 1. Arenal Volcano is one of the most acdve volcanoes in the world. 2. Arenal Lake is the largest man- made lake in the country in the midst of a rain forest. 3. Arenal area is best known for the amazing and oh- so varied acdvides for all. 4. La Fortuna is an adorable town with fun eats, souvenirs and tons to do. 5. Before it became a tourisdc desdnadon La Fortuna was a small farmar s village. 6. The town is less than 10 km from the crater of the acdve Arenal Volcano. 7. La Fortuna is home to the closest airport to an acdve volcano in Costa Rica. My Take On It: Arenal Volcano is a MUST- DO locadon. If you have a limited Dme in Costa Rica make sure you visit Arenal and a beach area. The difference is the bio diversity of both eco systems which will be remembered by your kids forever. There are so many amazing tours to do in Arenal, you won t want to leave. Don t stay in the town of La Fortuna but on the road between the town and the lake. That s where all the best hotels are with the best views.

9 Kid Friendly Hotels The Springs Resort & Spa hop:// Rates: $385 and up A more luxurious hotel is hard to find. With the largest and the best hot springs in all of Arenal, you can spend the full day just sipping on Daiquiris while your kids have a blast on the slides or visidng the wildlife sanctuary on premises. And the rooms, well, like I said Luxury to the Umpteenth power! A r e n a l N a y a r a H o t e l & Gardens hop:// Rates: $225 and up breakfast included Nayara is the definidon of a luxury boudque hotel with amazing views, service and overall greatness. Rooms come with private jacuzzis on private porches. For Families they offer the Nayara Villas which have a living room and 2 rooms aoached. And your kids will never leave the pool area. Lost Iguana Resort & Spa hop:// eng/home.php Rates: $215 and up breakfast included This luxury boudque hotel sits 30 minutes out of town on the lava flowing side of the volcano. Family friendly with lots of hiking trails, wildlife encounters and a great pool with a swim up bar.

10 Kid Friendly Ac/vi/es Adventure Tours Cano Negro hop://alturl.com/h8x6j Rate: $60 per person lunch included One of the best wetlands in the country for viewing birds and wildlife. The boat tour takes you through the river and is a huge kid favorite! Hanging Bridges Entrance fee: $25 per person Hanging bridges are a must to do while visidng Costa Rica. If you are only visidng Arenal, they have a fantasdc trail. However, if you are visidng Monteverde. I would save the hanging bridges for that area and do acdvides only found in Arenal area. You don t need a guide for this hike. You can easily do it on your own. Rain Forest and Volcano Hike hop://alturl.com/j89zz Rate: $39 per person If you don t have a car and want to do a guided tour. This tour would be perfect for you! You first walk through the rain forest and end at the volcano lava flowing side lookout point.

11 For the complete Guide and tons of Insider Fun BUY NOW! - Find the Best Family Friendly Hotels and Adventures - Free and Dirt Cheap Attractions for the Whole Family - Secret Spots to Explore - Insider Tips and So Much More! So Buy Now and Have a Trip of a Lifetime With Your Family Take the Kids Along! Costa Rica Family Guide Book

12 Fun Info & Disclosure Time is so precious. Especially when it comes to planning your family vacadon. So why waste it on looking through hundreds of websites (most of them outdated) and reading through 300 page guidebooks that barely touch upon REAL family travel and kid friendly places? With our family's hours of researching and personally experiencing each locadon, hotel and tour I hope this book will help you with your trip and give you more Dme to do what you really love - being with your kids and gewng them excited for the new adventure! Each hotel and tour has been tested and approved by my family. We love the local and most authendc experiences from boudque, locally owned hotels to the most typical, and educadonal tours! The guide specifically stays away from restaurant recommendadons because traveling with kids takes on a whole different feel and many kids are either picky eaters or don't like to sit through a fancy dinner. What the guide (and I) do recommend and highly promote is eadng (or at least trying) local cuisines. The guide helps you navigate through the most common cuisines of each country and region. And most importantly to get the kids excited about experiencing new foods! Now it's Dme to have some SERIOUS fun! Happy Travels, Marina K. Villatoro and The Villatoro Family Travelexperta.com All contents copyright 2012 by Travel Lat Am Corporation. All rights reserved This informa/on was accurate when it was published, but can change without no/ce. Please confirm all rates and details directly with the companies in ques/on before planning your trip.