peek from this week's episode.
And I'm Melissa. And we are the Sunshine Travelers. Our passion is travel and sharing our experiences with those who enjoy it as much as we do, or those who want to learn more about travel, or even those who just want to live vicariously through our travel stories. No matter where you fall along that journey, get ready to hear about our firsthand experiences as we visit some of the most interesting and amazing places on earth. In this week's episode, we will be exploring the Pura Vida lifestyle in Costa Rica. The phrase Pura Vida means pure life in English, but in Costa Rica, it represents a lot more. It's a way of life, an attitude, and a perspective that highlights the importance of appreciating life's simple pleasures and finding happiness in the little things. It has been quite some time since our last visit, so we invited a friend of mine who is from Costa Rica to share an itinerary that anyone can follow to experience their own Pura Vida in this beautiful Central American country. Millie will guide us on where to go, what to do, and what to eat while we're there. So let's hop on a short flight from Florida, pack light, and don't forget to bring your bathing suit as we embark on a journey to Costa Rica.
to bring
You guys know that we prefer to travel with Delta because of my status. And this year, the Delta SkyMiles American Express card comes with a companion certificate that's valid for Central American flights, including Costa Rica. So this is an updated perk for all SkyMiles American Express cards. And we're thinking it might be a good time to revisit Costa Rica and experience it again for ourselves. Our
to Costa Rica have always revolved around Scott's work travel to San Jose, but we've always tried to find a little time to explore the nearby areas and enjoy a little fun. On one of our trips, we rented a car and drove towards the Poas volcano to experience part of the cloud forest near La Paz waterfalls. We stayed at a small boutique eco lodge with water that was heated using solar power. So you had one tank of hot water to use for the day. It was really beautiful there. And I remember it being pretty inexpensive. I also remember it being pretty inexpensive. I also remember it being quite a bit cooler in those higher elevations and pretty wet as well. We bought fresh strawberries from a roadside stand. And that was when we learned what frases are because it was strawberry season and they were just selling them everywhere. I would end up coming back to this area later in the week to Zipline and tour the Doca Estate Costa Rican coffee plantation. And so and then we went to the place to Zipline where you could also have lunch. It was just a small place. So not one of the big Zipline places that you're used to seeing in Costa Rica.
And Melissa did that Zipline by herself. That's not something that I probably would have done with her.
Yeah. So that's probably one of the few times where Scott was just like, okay, go, go have fun. So there's so much more in Costa Rica that we haven't done. So we invited our friend Millie to come on the show and tell us what she would recommend if you have at least five days to spend in Costa Rica. So let's join that conversation. at least five
We're excited to have our friend and my former colleague, Millie, join us tonight as we explore the beautiful land of Costa Rica. Millie, welcome to the show.
Thank you. It's nice to be here.
So tell us a little bit about yourself. You're currently living in the US, but when you and I worked together, you actually lived in Costa Rica. but when you and I worked
Rica. Oh, yeah. I've been in this company for almost 14 years. So when I worked with you, I was in Costa Rica. And then five and a half years ago, I got a promotion and a company relocation. And that's why I came here. So raised and born in Costa Rica. I was 18. I moved to the city. I used to live with my mom in a pretty small town. So I moved to the city to start working and actually pay for college. And that's how I started to work here. Then when I reported to you, it was actually my first managerial experience. And then I moved up until I got here. I really enjoy traveling. It's one of my favorite things to do. And one funny note on that is that I hate the planning. I hate planning a trip. I hate all the logistics and all that.
a trip.
But well, it's part of it and I really enjoy it. When I used to live in Costa Rica, I loved the beach. It was one of my favorite things to do. On a Friday, take the go car, to a beach. It was one of my favorite things to do on a Friday, take the car, go to a beach. And I usually do that by myself. Or if somebody wanted to join, that was great too. But I really enjoy traveling by myself. So that's one of the things that I really love. Costa Rica has a lot of things to do. You can go to the mountain, you can go to the city, you can spend some time in the beach. And if you want to go to the mountain you got you can go to the city you kind of spend some time in the beach and if you want to go to a pretty close beach it will take you just an hour and a half from the city so it's pretty easy to do that on the weekend yeah cool
we've been following you for quite some time now and it seems that you have quite the wanderlust or love of travel mentioned that a little bit said you don't like the planning but you love to travel tell us a little bit
yeah so now that we have a lot of artificial intelligence tools to do that that helps me a lot right but before i will just take my car book accommodation hotel airbnb a hostel and just go without a plan because of all I'm hitting. I'm like, I'm going to enjoy myself and then I will figure it out what to do over there. But it's not super smart if you actually want to get to know the place where you're going because having a plan actually allows you to do more in less time, right? But yeah, I mean, Airbnb saved my life because it's easy, secure, you know, safe for traveling alone. So, yeah, but if not, the hotels are always nice.
So, Melissa, you know, I can relate, Millie, because I don't mind the researching and all that stuff, the planning so much. But I much rather prefer it when you do it and I get to just show up and travel.
right? It's good to have that balance, but it is also good sometimes just to figure it out once you get there, right? Or ask people or to at least leave a little bit of room for that in your itinerary, you know, if you are a planner, you know, because then you do miss out on some things that could have just, you know, popped up. And so I'm curious real quick, what would you say is your favorite beach to go to in Costa Rica?
to at
Nozada. I love it. It's actually in the north of the country. It belongs to Guanacaste. It takes some time to get there. The streets aren't perfect. So if it is rainy season, it actually, you might find a river that you have to go through with your car. But it's great. It has the most amazing sunset. And it's super secure. Actually, I went there on July last year. I stayed for a week. I rented an Airbnb. It was from some guys from New York. Actually, most of the Airbnbs that I find now in Nosara, they are owned by U.S. people. I stayed there for one week. Yeah. So I was working then. I was working with U.S. time. So at 3 p.m., I was free. Go to the beach, read a book, see the sunset, and then just have some dinner around. Nosara is my go-to place.
So a couple of And then Nice. just have some dinner questions. Nosara is my go-to place. around. Nice. So a couple of questions. And we're going to get specific itinerary type stuff that you could help people with. But tell us so people can plan. When is rainy season?
Rainy season in Costa Rica goes around May to November, something like that. It actually rains more in the afternoons. You kind of have pretty mornings and sunny mornings. It actually rains in the afternoon.
Okay. Yeah. It's not going to rain like the whole day then.
No. I mean, you know, if there is like depression going on, you might, but the norm is pretty mornings and then raining in the afternoon. But the norm is pretty
I'm pretty sure that I've visited during the rainy season before. And we laughed because one of the guys in the office had snorkel on his vehicle. And he was talking about, you know, he does a lot of like search and recovery rescue type stuff. And so he said sometimes he has to travel through those rivers or creeks and stuff like that. And so he needed it. So
other concerns for a traveler like during rainy season? So for example, like you said, you might have a river or something that you have to cross. I mean, are the rental cars like okay to do that? Is that just, is that typical?
They are okay. Yes. So when you're planning, if you're trying to go to the beach, make sure that you investigate the route, right? There are some beaches that are way too beautiful to miss, but they are actually pretty far away. And you have to deal with roads that are not in a good shape or rivers if it is rainy season. But I will say that in general terms, an SUV can take you anywhere that you want. So if you actually want to rent, I don't know, a pickup, that will actually serve you the purpose as well. But you can play with an SUV. Okay. All right. That's
good to know. And then, so if you are, I guess, let's compare it to like east coast time so how many hours behind east coast time is
at this time of the year is just one hour and then when we get to to the time change is going to be true so not too bad not too bad
people from the u.s aren't really going to experience you know you don't have to worry about jet lag either yeah
it's a really easy flight to costa rica i would imagine
from right? From almost anywhere in the U.S., right?
From Atlanta is four hours. Delta and Frontier has direct flights. And then from Miami, it's probably going to be like around three. So pretty easy flight, as you said. Yeah,
lot of people used if they were taking I think American, they would connect through Miami
go there.
go there. Well, you just returned from Costa Rica, didn't you?
I did actually yesterday. Nice.
Nice. And where were you visiting?
actually was visiting my mom. She's been with some medical procedures, so I wanted to spend some time with her and also spend some time in the city. I took advantage of my trip to visit my team down in Costa Rica. So I spent some time in the office as well. Well,
wonderful. Well, I'll tell you what, why don't you walk us through, if we had five days and we want to come down and visit Costa Rica, what would you recommend to us? Where should we go? You know, where should we stay? And then what should we do while we're there?
Five days. The first advice that I will tell you is if you have more time to stay more time. Five days is enough, right? But in five days, I will say you arrive to Costa Rica, right? San Jose. I will say to you, do you fly to the international Airport, which is Juan Santamaria International Airport. That will put you right next to San Jose. So actually, the airport is in Alajuela. That's another province, but everybody calls it San Jose. I will say that you can look for a boutique hotel in Barrio Amon, that it's pretty known for his history. in barrio mont that it's pretty known for his history any airbnb to be honest to stay there are way too many options to stay in the city the city is actually being developed to look like a city with high apartment complex and all that so there are pretty fancy apartments that you can stay bmb last week i stayed one it is called secret it's pretty close from la sabana that's kind of the center park of the city i'm gonna say it's pretty much like central park in new york but way smaller but it's it's kind of the same concept people go to have run in the morning it's pretty secure it has a little lake over there. So there are way too many options there. I actually paid $35 a night in a pretty nice apartment. And Airbnbs are being managed pretty good. They feel like a hotel, to be honest. And they usually have like the tower will have like a small restaurant. You can walk to any restaurant that it's pretty close from there so I will say it depends on your preference I will recommend an Airbnb or a boutique hotel in the city I will say you must visit the National Museum of Gold it's pretty pretty neat actually they have beautiful pieces if I'm not mistaken the entry is free but I need to actually research that If I'm not mistaken, the entry is free, but I need to actually research that because I'm not pretty sure. But if you have to pay, it's a pretty small amount, probably less than $20. Visiting the museum can take your afternoon, then you can explore Barrio Amon. Pretty nice. They have these like historic buildings. They are pretty small, but it's beautiful. And also Barrio Escalante. One of the nice things in Barrio Escalante is that they transform old houses into restaurants. So when you get into the restaurant, it's like getting into a house. It feels so cozy. So you kind of spend time in one of the rooms. It's pretty private and they have amazing restaurants. You can choose from seafood, steak houses, Italian, and there are some pretty nice also restaurants where you can actually try the local cuisine.
Nice. It sounds like it's changed a lot since I was last there.
Yes. You will be surprised on the changes that you can see in the city.
Yeah. And we're probably going to have to have you send us like the names of some of these places, right? So that we can put them in the notes and then people can go look them up. So what would you say is like the local cuisine? What would we expect?
So let's say the normal lunch, it's going to be called acazal. So acazal, it's going to be rice, beans, salad. Sometimes it comes with fried plantains and also a protein. So you will have the option to choose from fish, bacon, meat. It's a It's a lot of to be but it's pretty good. combination. carbs, honest, Like if you go to a small little restaurant and ask for a you will be amazed with the taste. casal, I will totally recommend if you want
So it would be like like like I home, like guess, home cooking. that Yeah, would
awesome. Then there are chifrijo. So chifrijo is pinto beans with rice. It's not as wet as a soup, but it's not dry. Then they put pico de gallo on top of it, pork and avocado. It's pretty good with a beer. Yeah. People love to do that. Like in the afternoon when they go out of work and go for a drink, Tufrijo is pretty good. Did you ever try Tufrijo?
I did. You know, here's the problem is when I was traveling back then and I would travel for work, it was usually you would fly into the airport. You'd go to the hotel. you'd go to the hotel, you'd go to the office, you'd probably go back to the hotel and have dinner and stuff like that. So, you know, Melissa is the one who said, I can't believe you go to these amazing places and don't try all of the local, you know, cuisine and stuff like that that so she's really the one who encouraged me in our travels to start doing some of that and like now i've got all these places i want to go back to because i really missed i missed it right i've been there but i didn't really see anything or do anything or experience the the local culture
have to go back to Costa Rica. It's going to be, first of all, looks so different to what you remember, because during COVID and all that, I think it took me like three years to go back to Costa Rica at one time, and when I was there, I was like, everything changed in just three years, right? So I'm pretty sure that you will find the difference so
worth a day then in san jose you feel like yeah you
go to the local market if you can if you want to actually see kind of the dynamics in the local market you will actually find the small restaurants where you can actually taste the real flavor yeah oh nice okay
because a lot of times people do skip you know you would skip the city especially thinking about like costa rica to go to but it sounds like it's definitely worth some some time and to see yeah definitely
definitely if you go to the gold museum then then you can go to the main market have some, and then go to Barrio Escalante and then wait until the dinner. You can walk around, have coffee at one small place with local coffee and local cuisine too, and then have dinner, steakhouse or something like that. Yeah, definitely one day in San Jose will be worth it. Okay,
good to know. Yeah, worth that's good to know. it. Okay, that's good to
to
where are we that's Yeah, off good to to So know. where next? are we off to next?
I will say the Arenal Volcano. So I think you guys went to Poas, that's closer to the city, but Arenal is actually part of Alajuela. It belongs to a city that is called San Carlos in La Fortuna. It's just amazing. If you guys have a nice weather, you guys will be able to see all the volcano in its best, right? So you can stop at La Fortuna waterfall. There are some waterfalls that are just amazing. You can actually pay for a pass of the day so that you can enjoy it without actually staying in the hotel. Then I will say you should stay on a hotel with the view to the volcano. Sometimes in the afternoon when it's getting dark, it gets so cloudy that you cannot see it, but in the mornings it's just beautiful. So you have more chance to actually see the volcano in the morning. So most will be a hotel with the volcano view.
And that's good to know. Now, you mentioned in San Jose, you can actually stay for fairly inexpensive. And so then how much would a hotel with a view of the volcano? What would that look like in U.S. dollars?
might depend. Do you have options? But I will say you can estimate somewhere from 80 to 150.
So really inexpensive. I mean, really affordable compared to lots of places to go. That's good to know. Wow. The volcano.
So there I will say just stay for the day. You can take a hike, enjoy the Hispanic view, you know, a lot of birds and fauna and animals that you can actually see, raccoons, monkeys, all that. Definitely spend the night in the hot springs. That's so relaxing. Like after, you know, you've traveled, you went to the city, you traveled to the volcano, then getting into the hot springs in the night will be great. Like you will have a good rest that night. It's amazing. And
do we, what do we look forward to? Is that like at a certain place or is that as part of like near a hotel or how do we find the hot springs to go to?
these Fortuna, it's kind of the main town when all the hot springs are. So you're pretty, pretty close to a lot of places that will offer you the hot springs. Most of the hotels that are close to the volcano will have that option. So you don't need to kind of just focus on finding a hot spring because that's probably the majority of the hotels.
right. Good to know. And then, and then how far are we talking about going from San Jose to that area?
It might take you about three and a half hours. Okay. So it's not too bad. The distance might be less than what you think, just because of the way your streets work down there. The distance are not that far, but it might take you three and a half hours.
I remember when we were there that things don't really have addresses. It's more about how far there's like landmarks, right? Go this many kilometers and then look from this and then look for this. Is that kind of people need to be aware of?
Yeah. If you ask somebody walking in the street, hey, how do I get there? That's the answer that you're going to get. Hey, from that tree that you see over there walk 200 meetings and then do a left right but waste is pretty good down there it's it's pretty accurate because most of the people use use waste so you can put their la fortuna or the name of the hotel you're heading to. And you will have like the approximate time. It's going to be pretty accurate and it will keep you posted on police on the route and that kind of thing. So it's pretty accurate. I will suggest that everybody, if it's planning to drive, to download Waze and use it.
right. Then I will say in the evening, I have a couple of recommendations. El Silencio del Campo, it's a pretty nice hotel. It has the volcano view. Arenal Quioro, it's another one. And there is another one that it's super known in the area. It's one of the most expensive, but it's really worth it. It has amazing hot springs, amazing people giving you service. And it also has the arenal that you can see. It is called Tabacón.
Okay. Okay. So I may or may not be over here like booking a flight, I think, in a minute.
in a minute.
We've seen some cheap airfares to Costa Rica recently. Yeah.
Yeah. Yeah, I know. So if you ask me where to eat, La Parrita de Maria Bonita has great cuisine, local. You have a lot of options there. And also, if you just want to go for a coffee in the afternoon, then Chocolate Diffusion Cafe. It's pretty good,
like you may have been there
i did and it was awesome so
the name of the town then where those places are going to be located is called la fortuna okay okay perfect then i'm
you guys kind of spend two days over there so you get there you book your, you spend the afternoon just knowing around. And then I will say two days because it will give you the chance to have a complete day in La Fortuna. So I will say day two and three will be there.
Okay. All right. And
you must head to Guanacaste. That's my favorite province. It's in the north of the country, and it is in the Pacific side of Costa Rica. I would say spend two days there, too. So day four and five. My favorite beach is Nosadas. I was telling you guys at the beginning. But I would recommend for a short trip, since you don't have to drive a lot, Playa Conchal. So Playa Conchal, it's really beautiful. It might take you about four and a half hours from La Fortuna, something like that. Okay. It depends on the traffic. You will find some tolls throughout the way. You can pay with credit card, but if you're planning to take some catch, it wouldn't cost you more than all $20, the tolls throughout the You way. can pay with credit card, but if you're planning to take some catch, it wouldn't cost you more than $20, all the tolls, one way. But what makes this special about Playa Conchal is that it's not the typical sand. It is actually made out of tiny crotch shells. So it's not that sticky sand that you get all over. It's actually crotch shell. So it's pretty nice sticky sand that you get all It's over. actually crushed shell. So it's pretty nice. Most of it is white and the water is pretty clear and super calm. You almost don't get waves. So it's pretty nice to relax, have some swimming or just look at it. And the sunsets in Guanacaste are amazing. Okay.
to know. So that's even a good place. Like if somebody was taking children or something like that, then that would be a good beach for kids to play and stuff like that. Okay.
And in the area, you can find beautiful hotels, expensive, more cheap, and even Airbnbs. If you go to the beach, you will find a lot of beautiful houses for rent. So if you're traveling with a lot of people, an Airbnb is a great choice because they have accommodations for 15 people, 10 people. So most of the people who invest in having a property over there, they think about renting it. So it's pretty nice. They even have shirts for you to take to the beach. They give you coffee, things like that, right? So at the end, it's one good option if you're traveling with the family. I mean, it's my preference. I hate to be in a place where it's packed or full of people. So I prefer to stay in Airbnbs or small hotels but in conchal you can stay in they have like two marriott's down there jw it's pretty close from it they open also the w it's over there too but yeah it's very nice area then
nice area then yeah something
i always say is the ride that you take to a Costa Rica beach is way different than going to Miami or Florida, right? Because first of all, the beaches are public there. Like nobody can prohibit the entry to that specific beach. And then you can drink, you can eat, you can do whatever You can eat. you want in the beach. You can do whatever you You want in the beach. can take your picnic to the beach. You can take your picnic to the beach. Most of them have trees and palm trees around, so you will find a shade. It's so relaxing. Like you see people with all the food and drinks, and they are planning to stay the whole day at the beach. whole day at the beach so they plan to start early go to the beach around eight have some lunch right there and then see the sunset it's kind of a whole day plan that's
of place
is kind of
kind of my kind of whole day plan right there yeah good thing about being in an airbnb or somewhere with a kitchen is then you can go shopping and then you have all that stuff to then take to the beach and
a way to
have it. So that's awesome.
Yeah. So I will say you can have also a good dinner at a beach restaurant. So many restaurants that has the sunset view, they will have the patio in the sand. You have kind of all in one, right? You're sitting in a restaurant, they're giving you food, and you're looking at the sunset right there. Some of them have live music, so it's pretty cool. Even if it is not high season, you will have a blast.
Some of
Oh, nice. And so I'm going to assume that it's a little more expensive in this area.
a little bit more expensive than in the city, but not much, actually. Like you can find restaurants where it's going to charge. I'm going to be saying around dinner for two might be around maybe $60.
too bad.
Any particular recommendations for restaurants there? Not for restaurants. Okay. Seafood. You have to try the seafood. It's going to be so fresh. My favorite thing to eat at the beach is fried fish.
Okay.
serve it with fries. You have the, it's the whole fish that they've tried for you it's amazing it comes with pataconis pataconis are made out of plantain like green plantain you might have tried that on a cuban restaurant it's pretty similar i think they call it plagiaros Okay. I'm mistaken. But it is like a small, like a patty out of a tain they put. They
They smash. Exactly.
So it comes with beans. Sometimes they put cheese on it and pico gallo, though it's pretty good. I would say a ceviche as well. You guys have to try ceviche in the beach.
Awesome. Yeah. Love ceviche. Do do and so i guess just asking like for the fresh catch or the local catch right then however then that's how they're preparing it so it's very similar to what we ate a lot of in the bahamas as well so just yeah fresh fish okay so yes i was telling
food recommendations. So, casado, you guys are going to find a casado everywhere. So, that's traditional, rice, black beans, plantain, salad, and a protein. For breakfast, probably gallo pinto. Kyle, do you remember trying gallo pinto?
like they had that at the hotel. The options you could get.
Yeah. So gachapinto is rice and beans. We eat a lot of rice and beans, but mixed together, right? It usually comes with different size. Fried plantains, fresh cheese, bread, some eggs, and sometimes even ask if you want to add some salad. But it's usually.
There was a roadside restaurant near where the office was that they took us to where you sat outside. And I remember that, you know, they came around and, you know, just served everything on old look like diner style plates or whatever. I do remember that that was the specialty. plates or whatever. I do remember that. That was the specialty. So, yes, I did have that.
Awesome, yeah. And probably they also serve chip frijol. I think I know what plates are you referring to. It was like a small bar that we went after the office. Yeah. The chip frijol is pretty good. As I was telling you guys, it's a mix of refried beans, like the ones that are bigger, rice, pico de gallo, pork, avocado on top of it. And sometimes it comes with chips. So it's pretty tasty.
we ate before this interview. I thought I'd be starving right now.
And some good things to know is tip is included. So usually when US people go there, they're used to just tip at the end, but it's already included. So if you see your check, it comes with a 13% of tax and 10% of service. That 10% is it goes directly to the server.
Okay. That is good to know. And then tell us a little bit about like the
too. So like currency and you need to be prepared to colonists because U.S. dollars are widely accepted. And actually, I think locals prefer to have dollars. So if you don't have any colonists, you will be fine. Most of the places take actually credit cards. If you're going to a small town in the beach, a small restaurant, they might not accept a credit card, but they will take U.S. dollars. So I wouldn't say you don't have to do any eat a small they conversion. might not accept a credit restaurant, but they will take dollars. card, U.S. So I wouldn't say you don't have to do any conversion. If you go to a toll and pay with U.S. dollars,
they will
change in colones. Don't exchange in the airport. That's the most expensive thing you can do. So you can use an ATM to just get some colones in there. But yeah, U.S. dollars are widely accepted. You wouldn't have any problem if you don't have colones. Okay. That's good
to know. And that's what we usually recommend to people is like before you leave the airport, you know, want to have some local currency, right? To have that. But then it's always good to just have some U.S. dollars, you know, extra. So that's good to know. And so, and then to have, like you said, so most places take cards, but I guess if you're way off or, you know, you want to get something at a little small place, it's good to have something.
going to assume, though, that that means it's about eight hours back to San Jose.
No, because I was going to recommend that you can fly out from Liberia. That's located in Guanacaste. recommend that you can fly it out from Liberia that's located in Guanacaste so if you book a flight you can do a multi-city get to San Jose but fly back from Liberia so that will give you like two hours drive to the international airport over there you can actually rent the car in the city and return it in the Liberia airport okay that's good
so you don't have to make that whole return trip yeah yeah it
it will save you some time to kind of enjoy a little bit more of Guanacaste. So yeah, fly to the international airport in San Jose, Juan Santa Maria, you can rent a car there, you will see dollar rent a car, Adobe and all the ones that we have here in the US. Then fly back from the international airport in liberia that's daniel oduberk i'll send you guys that so that you guys can take a note of it so as i was telling some highways have tolls you can pay with credit card in some of them but i will advise to have some cash anything will happen in the road so but 30 dollars should be enough for you to pay the tolls
is there anything specific about driving in costa rica that somebody should be aware of yes
so people are trying to survive in the street right like one of the things that i love about driving here is that if I put my signal, because I'm going to move to the line next to me, if you do that in Costa Rica, if you put the light that you're going to be passing to the other line, they will try not to let you.
kind of surprised.
Driving in Florida a little bit. Yeah,
you know, driving in Florida, it's similar to driving in Costa Rica. I can see that. The motorcycles drive like crazy. So people might be used here. Motorcycles are driving like a car. They're not driving like crazy. In Costa Rica, let's say in the city in peak hour, motorcycles are just going to try to pass through the cars. So you got to be paying a lot of attention before you make a move to another line because a motorcycle might be just trying to do the same. People use motorcycles in Costa Rica because it helps them to get faster to a place, but it's not because it's faster. It's just because because it's faster. you're driving like crazy. It's just because you're driving like crazy. So it's pretty dangerous. I would not recommend you to rent a motorcycle because it is dangerous.
Okay.
Yeah, then Waze will take you anywhere. Waze is a good tool for you to use as a GPS down there.
And then I guess just so people know, like the driving though on this side of the road and in the car is just like the It's US. the same. Right inside the road, you're on though on this side of the road and in the car is just like the U.S. It's the same. Right inside the road, you're on the right hand side of the car. So anything unusual about, yeah, road signs or anything like that? Or other than that, it's just watch
It's the same.
out. No, I would say just watch out for holes in the way.
I do remember is there was no shoulder on the road. Like you had the road and then there was a really deep ditch on the side of the road.
Yeah, it is. It is a normal actually in more in places more far away from the city. They don't have a shoulder. It's it's just a road. We just have a space to build a road. So if you get into an accident or something like that hopefully not but you will probably need to wait until the the police get there before moving the car opposite to here that you have to move your car to the shoulder
okay good point but you really do need to rent a car because you're not going to be able to unless you went on a group tour, right, where they're going to take you on a bus. But you really have a lot of freedom if you rent a car and do your own thing. OK, I wouldn't
a lot of freedom
depend on public transportation. It might get messy and it will make you lose a lot of time.
OK, so one of the things that we were thinking about is often it helps to have like a travel assistant or a travel agency or someone like that help you in some foreign countries. But it sounds to me like Costa Rica, that's something that you could plan out yourself and use booking.com or whatever Airbnb to then book all of your stays and rent a car just like you would anywhere else. So I don't seem
like you would
need a travel agent to really help you with this.
No. I mean, if you are somebody who don't like to take care of anything, then of course, I will recommend that. But you can get around pretty easily like even though the Spanish is the language that we speak down there many people speak English and in tourist zones they will actually just look at you and start speaking English in one of the places that I like to go no sada they will always speak in English actually people offering you service are from other countries, from Argentina. There are a lot of Argentinians there. So just with hi, you can learn to say hola or some basic Spanish, you will get around. People will actually speak English to you. So you don't really need to worry about not speaking the language. So you can get around pretty easy.
I'm glad you pointed that out. That's actually funny that we didn't even ask you that, but that was our experience, right? I even had him when we went, Scott was working one day and we hired a guy to take me to a zip line and a coffee plantation. I had lunch with him and stuff like that. And a lot of places you go, like you might find that the younger people speak English, but not the older, but you know, his English was great, you know, and, and fine. And that was my experience everywhere I went. So it's, I'm glad you mentioned that, but it's true. Would be a great place as a first international trip. I really feel like, right. Is to go to Costa Rica because you really could, you know, communicate easily and get around easily. And
exactly. And if you're planning to stay in the city, you don't even have to rent a car. You can actually play around with Uber. It's widely accepted in the city. You just have to sit next to the driver. They don't like you to go in the backseat because they used to be persecuted by the police because they were illegal and all those topics that went around Uber at the beginning. So if you sit next to them and they get stopped by a police, they can say, it's just fun. I'm not providing any service. But they prefer when you sit in the seat next to them. Okay.
That's a great tip to know. That's a great tip to know. Yeah. Yeah.
Yeah. It was like that when I would go to Montreal for work and the driver would call you and say, hey, come out. I'm going to be in this car and sit in the front seat. Yeah. And then often the taxi cabs would be there. And like when they saw you go get in the car, they'd get out their cell phones and they'd videotape you and we're going to turn
now and in Costa Rica I don't think they they they have any problem right now but it's just people got used to just sitting in the front seat instead of giving trouble to the driver right because it was actually cheaper than the regular taxes so it actually serves both but yeah if you plan to stay in the city, just play around with Uber. You don't really need, if you go to the beach, probably you don't find an Uber.
Yeah, well, and I think you miss out on a lot though, if you don't go to the beach, the volcano for sure. So what would you say if somebody was taking this five day trip, you know, five, six day trip, not including, you know, airfare to and from, roughly how much do you think they should kind of budget if you just kind of had a guess low to high?
Excluding accommodations, I will say $500. Okay. And
they could just look at, and then they could look at from there hotel nights, depending on if they wanted to stay low end to high end. If you
tours in the beach, you can book it through the hotel. That's going to be a little bit more expensive. And you can hire someone local who has that small business. It's going to give you a better price. that small business is going to give you a better price so those 500 can cover for good tips if you want to give some tips some tours to do entries to the volcano or things like that so and 500 is probably for two people excluding the the hotels okay well
affordable yeah
that is very affordable um now one thing that that we didn't talk about yet, that a lot of people go to Costa Rica to do zipline. Well, so what area would they look at if they were especially interested in zipline?
That would be Monteverde. So I have kind of another places to consider if you want to i mean i kind of put together something that will let you start in san jose go to a volcano and then go to the beach and then return from there but if you have more time or you're going in another month probably monteverde is the best way to go they have a national park in there it rains all the time so it's hard for you to not get wet so you gotta pack accordingly but if you want to do a rainforest
to do a rainforest right
yep it's like it's a rainforest part of costa rica it's pretty nice they have zip lines you can do hike that if the weather are lows you can see the caribbean and the pac side from one point. So it's pretty awesome. Monteverde, it's probably around four hours from San Jose. Okay. And I would recommend to have at least an SUV. Okay. Four-wheel drive will be better.
then the same thing, a couple of nights so that you have a full day to explore. I would say two.
say two. Yeah yeah I will say two days will probably two nights will get you through everything that you have to see there
okay and then so you said you had some other places then so where
else yeah so the Caribbean Caribbean side it's awesome a lot of people prefer to go to the Caribbean than to the Pacific side. But for the Caribbean, you have to take into consideration that it rains all the time. And the best time to go will be around September and October. It has a lot of African people over there. So their culture is pretty rich. It's way different to the rest of the country. culture it's pretty rich it's way different to the rest of the country one of the food that you have to taste if you go to limon limon it's the province it's rice and beans they it's pretty similar to the gallo pinto that i was explaining before but they put in there some coconut milk and they spice it different with a lot of flavor. So they will give you kind of the gachapinto with the coconut milk and also a protein that they do also with coconut. So it's tasteful. Okay. Okay. The drive is about four and a half hours from Costa Rica. It might take you longer. It all depends on the traffic, but at least you can plan for at least four and a half hours to go there in car. And
so then what town or are we looking at a particular town to stay that you would recommend?
I would recommend Manzanillo. It's going to be a little bit further away, probably about five hours. But it's just amazing. Like the weather, the vibe is different to the rest of the country. On the side note, they don't have sunsets. We can see the sunset from the Caribbean side of Costa Rica, but it's amazing. So I will recommend you to go to the Cahuita National Park. It's a small hike with a lot of Afro-Caribbean influence. So you can see the music and the reggae and the animals are just great. The other day, and I think I have in my Instagram a picture with a raccoon. I was eating some seeds and the raccoon won them. And I have a picture of them. I have to show it to you guys. It is not recommended to feed the animals but people do it anyway so they are pretty used to people so they get close to you it's so nice
cool wow so that just sounds a whole different feel but you would have the sunrise there
just sounds
yes and not the sunsets okay sorry bye
to yes go to Limon, Limon is the province. Cahuita and Manzanillo are the places that I'm recommending. And I would say at least three nights because it's going to take you longer to get there. The weather might not be perfect. So, if you want to enjoy, I would say three nights so that you have time in case the rain doesn't allow you to go to one of the parks so that you can have more time there.
Okay. And you said September, October. So what do you expect in the rest of the year? Just a lot more rain? A lot
more rain, yeah.
Okay.
else do we need to know about Costa Rica? Is there anything that we haven't covered?
Temperature during the year, it has stayed pretty similar throughout the year. I would say like daytime in the city, it's between 70 and 80 degrees. Temperatures during the night might get a little bit chilly, 60s. But now that I went there, you know know it is super cool here in atlanta and when i went there it is cold but it's different because it's humid like the cold in here is dry if you go there is humid it feels different like you can see that it says 60 but you can feel that it's earlier than 60. okay but it is pretty much the same throughout the year. Guanacaste and Punta Arenas, which are in the beach side, it gets a little bit hotter. I'm going to say between 80 and 90s. During regular time in the evenings, it might be between 70, 75. So you definitely doesn't have to pack a sweater to go to the beach. In Monteverde, it rains a lot. Temperatures probably around 65 and 80 in daytime. In the evening, it might drop to, I'm going to say 50, but it might stay in the 60s. I remember
even in La Paz, it was a little bit cooler up in the volcano area, right?
Yeah. So we usually talk about this at the end, but since we're talking about temperatures and you've mentioned some packing things, so it sounds like you want to have some kind of rain jacket, no matter what. And then layers, right? Because if you're going to go to these different places, then you're going to want your but you're going to shorts, want a jacket and you're going to go to these different places then you're going to want your shorts but you're going to want a jacket and you're going to want warmer things then also hiking type shoes that are are waterproof and in shorts or pants that you can you know hike in and things like that anything else you can think of that you definitely need to pack for the springs and the beach too so but yeah it is definitely
definitely but you mentioned something pretty important it is layers try to pack light clothes but yeah as you said if you're going to the volcano in the evening it's going to be a little bit colder than if you went to the volcano in the morning for example so just plan to have a light jacket colder than if you went to the volcano in the morning, for example. So just plan to have a light jacket for the evenings. And if you're going to the mountains, you can expect a little bit cooler temperatures over there. Okay. Let's see what else. I will say make sure you pack mosquito repellent. That's pretty important. we have a lot of mosquitoes in the beach and
is that readily available like you could pick that up yeah get there okay and then as far as like sunscreen we always recommend like reef safe sunscreen that's just good anywhere is that available like that that's easy to find safe it is
it is available yeah you can go to any supermarket and actually find it in the supermarket okay there are some walmarts around the city that you can find anything basically okay if you go to a drugstore it is easier to find that kind of stuff too right
we always say like if you don't forget it, right, they're always going to be some kind of drugstore, Walmart, something like that. You can. Exactly. Yeah.
to end each interview by asking our guests the same three questions, right? The first is, what is your favorite place you've ever visited? So it could be anywhere in the world that you've been.
going to say Thermat in Switzerland. I love it. I went there five years ago and I'll definitely need to come back. I went there in summertime and I want to see winter time. It's probably going to be magical.
is the challenge with somewhere like that, right? You're like, okay, I need to see both of these seasons. But yeah, I'm sure that is just beautiful.
Our blood's gotten too thin living at the beach. Cold weather is not our friend anymore. Yes, but
you can bundle up.
question we have is, what are some of the top places on your bucket list?
Alaska and probably Iceland. I want to see the Northern.
Yeah, we did too. And like this year is supposed to be like one of the best years.
I heard. Yeah. I, I need to plan something to see them. It's definitely my bucket list.
then finally, where are you going next?
am I going next? Probably Italy sometime around September. I want to
September. I want
mom to the Vatican. She's pretty Catholic, so I'm pretty sure that she'll love it. So that's on my next travel. But actually, I'm flying this weekend to Cancun. So I'll be in Cancun for five days.
weekend to Cancun so I'll be I'll be in Cancun for five days okay and have you been before no it's actually my first time it's for my sister birthday she she had it planned with his fiance and just gonna hijack her planning okay so you already have a plan
have a plan I was going to say we do have an episode about Cancun because we absolutely love Cancun. So that you may have heard, but we also have some tips. I don't know if we've shared our tips on the Vatican, but making sure that you or your mom, you book that early morning tour. So before everybody gets to go and then you get like first people in the Sistine Chapel. That's just a special, that's a special experience. So that would be our recommendations that your mom
your mom would really appreciate. Book a guided tour for certain. But one thing I was going to remind you is remember, if you're keeping track of the countries that you visited, Vatican is its own country.
you're right. I didn't thought about it. Yeah. Awesome. Yeah.
just thought about that the other day when we're going through our countries list. And I saw somebody
And I saw somebody else posted on Instagram and they were like, Oh, we get to count this. And so I told Scott, okay, add one more because we didn't count that. Yeah. You get a bonus. So I always
try to do like a one big. Three per year. And then here and there yeah probably italy is going to be my
on 2024 well that will be awesome yeah to take your
so millie thank you for joining us tonight and thanks for sharing all of these great things about costa rica i think like melissa said is we going to have to put that back on our list again to go and really try to visit there and kind of be present more so than I was last time. Thank you once again, and it's wonderful seeing you.
Thank you, guys. It was so much fun sharing this with you guys, and thank you for the tips on Cancun and Vatican. Yes, absolutely.
to me like five days just isn't enough for Costa Rica. However, that seems to be true for us no matter where the destination is.
Totally agree. So what do you think? I definitely think that we need to go back to Costa Rica and explore more, especially the places that Millie talked about.
Yeah, I mean, I'd definitely like to go back as a tourist and to be able to enjoy it and vacation there. It's a beautiful place. Enjoyed going and, you know, had lots of great colleagues who worked there. But I would love to see it and experience that Pura Vida life for myself.
for sure. I also think that it's one of those places that you could go to over and over again and keep wanting to go back and explore more and explore some different areas. So I'm super interested in visiting the Arena Volcano area and staying in one of the hotels that she mentioned for at least a couple of nights. I do remember that when we took like a short hike in the cloud forest at the Poas volcano, it was actually more just like of a paved path, but we really enjoyed it. It was just, I mean, it was like a strenuous hike and we really enjoyed seeing the different vegetation there and the animals that were kind of all around.
One of the stories I remember about that is I remember we were walking on this path and like we were just in the clouds. I mean, it was you couldn't see more than five, 10 feet in front of your face when you looked out. But then just all of a sudden this wind blew in that crater opened up and then all of a sudden you could see down into the volcano.
And I think that it was like she mentioned too, right? You need to, if you have the time to spend there, and this was true when we were there too. And I think when we were in Quito, like he said that too, when we went to the mountains, right? So you might have some clear times at one part of the day, but then those clouds come in that cloud forest. So having a little bit more time there. So we got really lucky. I think we went pretty early and like you said, we saw it and then it was just, yeah, cloud cover came and then it was going to be cloudy the rest of the day. So, you
was just,
time to spend a little more time to spend in those places so that you get to see that. But her talking about that, I think that doing a little bit of hiking and getting to see that at the arena volcano and then just relaxing at one of those hotels with the hot springs, that just sounds really nice. Yeah, I was
I didn't know there were so many volcanoes in Costa Rica because originally when she was talking about I was it, surprised. I didn't know there were so many volcanoes in Costa Rica. Because originally, when she was talking about it, I thought it was the volcano that we went to. I thought that's what she was talking about. And then as we went back and did our show prep and our interview prep, we learned that we went to a different volcano. And so it sounds like there's quite a few different opportunities for you to go to different volcanoes and have different experiences along the way.
Yeah, for sure. But if you don't have much time and that you are only in that San Jose area, you can definitely get to experience some of those things. And so that's exactly what I wanted to talk a little bit more about, just to give a few more details that if you only had a weekend, right, you were having to base yourself out of San Jose or you didn't want to, let's say you didn't want to rent a car and drive and you didn't want to go that far, you could do some of these things by like hiring a tour or like taking a tour or hiring a guide, which is actually what you, we had done. We had organized somebody when you were working to take me to do the zip line and then to go to the coffee plantation. And he did all that with me and, you know, waited and had lunch because he knew the people and, and then just brought me back. So that's definitely something if you didn't want to drive and, or couldn't, or you were, you know, maybe solo traveler or something like that, that it would be possible to still experience a lot of these, what I would think of, you would think of like typical things you could do in Costa Rica, right? The Ziploc, the coffee, the volcano without going super far. So that's what I kind of wanted to mention. So I would definitely now after talking to Millie, take a lot of her suggestions, right? And go to some of these further places, the beaches and stuff like that. But, you know, it's
know, it's taken the recommendation of a local.
Oh, absolutely. Oh, yeah, absolutely. For sure. But so what we had actually done was added a weekend on the front of end of one of Scott's work trip. And like we mentioned, we filled that weekend with the volcano. We also went to the La Paz waterfall garden. And like we mentioned, we filled that weekend with the volcano. We also went to the La Paz waterfall garden. And that was somewhere, Scott, that you had been before, like as part of a part of a trip, or I don't know, y'all had some time one day and they, that was somewhere they took you. And then I just remember you coming back and talking about that. And so then when I was able to return with you, you were like, oh, we've got to, we've got to go, go to this place. And then we discovered when we were there and wanted to mention that too, is that's actually somewhere you could stay. We did not stay that, but at that La Paz Waterfront Garden, they have a lodge called the Peace Lodge there. So that would be just kind of, I think of a nice relaxing place where you could wander the gardens and then stay there. And then they had a restaurant as well.
Yeah. And I think it's an eco lodge as well. But if you're going up in that elevation, just remember, you're probably going to need like a windbreaker, a raincoat, something like that, because it is part of the rainforest up there and it stays pretty damp and cool. And
I think I would definitely recommend that in San Jose, probably take in Millie's suggestion if you wanted to experience San Jose and stay in the city. But we did have a couple of things to add to that. So we actually got to stay at a Marriott property that is not too far from downtown. And that is called the Marriott Bellin Gardens. And it's just outside of San Jose, but that is a beautiful property that just has beautiful views. And it's not, it's almost like being at like a estate or a hacienda or something like that. Wouldn't you
Scott? Yeah. It's got a lot of open air to it. I know when I would stay there, one of the things that I really enjoyed was in the evenings, just opening up the doors because I always had like a balcony room or whatever. Just opening up the doors to the balcony and letting that fresh air come in. And I don't know, it felt like there should be a golf course out behind there or something, but I think there was just large gardens.
lot of green space. And then of course, as you're saying, like as night fell too, you could start to see in the surrounding mountains, you could start to see those lights start to come on and twinkle. They also have a spa there as well. And so then you could take a taxi into the city to explore the places that Millie talked about, like the gold museum and the barrio Escalante. And, and then also that is what I had done there from, from that hotel. One day I had taken a taxi into town and gone to the Jade museum and then just walked around a couple of other places. And then the other place that we wanted to mention that is not too far from San Jose that again, Scott, you had been once before. And then on a trip that I got to go with you, we actually went back and this is a restaurant that is called the Restaurante y Mirador Ram Luna. It's Costa Rica's first viewpoint restaurant. It's 1700 meters above sea level. and it just has a beautiful panoramic view of San Jose and the central volcanic mountain peaks. It's about 40 minutes from downtown. When I re-looked it up, I didn't exactly remember. And like I mentioned just a second ago, I just love any city that's surrounded by mountains. And then as night falls, just starting to see those lights twinkle on the hillsides at night. So I would recommend going before the sun sets so that you could kind of see what the views look like and then, you know, enjoy dinner. And then as the sun is setting and it gets dark, so kind of get a couple of different perspectives. And that restaurant
that restaurant has a nice patio overlook, nice evening. You could sit out there and just have your meal outside and have that overlook. I will say though, just realize when you're going up there, you're going to feel like you're going through all these residential areas. And I don't think, you know, the taxi driver isn't taking you off somewhere in the middle of the woods. They're going to take you up to this restaurant. Just know that you've got to go through these like residential areas to get there.
Yeah. Cause it wasn't, it wasn't right there near St. Jose, but again, you had been there before. It was local people who had taken you there. And so when I relooked up the website, which we will link as well, it's, that's what they're known for. Just their panoramic views, the restaurant, which serves local food, they're known for their local food. And I think it's just a place that it's enjoyed by both locals, probably mainly for special occasions and when guests visit and then for tourists alike, for sure. Yeah.
Yeah. And San Jose has changed a lot since we've been there. So listening to Millie talk about that, if you have some time to spend in San Jose, definitely recommend that. And really cheap, you know, she was saying that you could get a Airbnb for like $35 a night. So yeah, for sure.
And I think that just I think her itinerary just gives you a good like sample, right, of the city and some things to do in San Jose. And then you have the hot springs and the volcano and some hiking. And you could add some zipline you know or something to that and then of course having a beach so it's like a well-rounded vacation itinerary right to get to kind of like sample a lot of things from Costa Rica and
guess if you're going up into the volcano area the mountains renting a car might be helpful to go up there or like you said just hire someone to take you up there. But you're definitely not going to need one downtown in San Jose.
Well, and like she mentioned, it would be difficult, right, to try to find parking just to get one after that so that you could definitely explore the other places that she talked about. Yeah.
The next place that she talked about was La Fortuna and the Arenal Volcano and said, you know, spend a couple of days there. It's about three and a half hour drive from San Jose. And so I think, you know, the idea is you're going to be in the city, a little bit of hustle and bustle. Then you're going to step out into the, just the fresh air of the mountains and the volcano, spend a little bit of time there, and then end your trip down at the beach with just total relaxation and, you know, living that beach life.
you know, I think that that's a great way to do that, because I think a lot of times our minds and our bodies have a hard time going from nonstop lifestyle, like when you're working, you're going to school, you know, whatever it is, kind of shutting down. And so that kind of eases you into that, right? So you get in there and you're still doing like the city thing, and then you're going to the mountains and maybe doing some hiking and that. And so it just kind of, you know, it winds you down from there. And like you said, then you're like, okay, you really start to relax. And then you can really enjoy that beach part of it.
And we'll share some of the names of the places that she recommended that you might want to try to stay in that Arenal area. But you could tell that just all the way that she talked about it and really the way she talked about just it being a getaway that she just wanted to get in her car and go to Guanacaste. Like that is the, that was the destination. Right. And I think it's partly why she also said, end your trip there. Well, maybe because there's an airport there where you can fly away, but you know, she's definitely saying, end your trip there in Guanacaste, spend a few days at the beach and really relax and enjoy that beach time.
And that was a great point, right? Because you always think of, I have to do that return trip. Okay, now I've got to drive back. So that was a great suggestion is that you could just drop your rental car at the other airport and then fly out.
And, you know, she talked a little bit about the traditional foods. I think that Costa Rica is one of those places that does have its own food. We laughed the other night because we said, you know, being in the U.S. and America, we don't really have our own food, unless you call a hamburger or something like that our food, right? But Costa Rica does. And so, you know, she talked about the Quesado, which was a traditional dish with rice, black beans, plantains, you know, a salad and some type of protein, whether it be chicken, fish or beef. Gallo Pinto, a popular breakfast dish consisting of rice and beans. So I think rice and beans really just become one of the staple things that you're going to find in a lot of the dishes in Costa Rica.
Yeah, for sure. And I just think, like she said, just like trying to find some of the smaller places, right, where you can get it made in the traditional way and just really have a sampling too, which is great. Like for have lunch, a sampling which of, is Like great. for lunch, have a sampling of everything.
Just kind of to wrap things up. Just remember when you're out, you're eating, you know, tipping is so different in different places across the world and where you go. But in Costa Rica, it is already included in the, in the check. So you've already paid a tip, but she did say that that the locals do appreciate it if you wanted to leave a little extra tip for them.
a lot of people think of Costa Rica and immediately imagine a beach destination. Sounds to me like Millie highly recommends the beaches in Guanacosta to meet that need. But the rainforest and volcanoes provide so much more to see and do when you visit. What's your favorite destination in Costa Rica? Send me an email, scott at sunshinetravelers.com, and let me know where you like to go. We love hearing and being inspired by your travel stories. When
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