My boyfriend and I are travelling to Costa Rica (SJO) for 10 days in August, 2017. We have tentatively booked a car rental through expedia (pick up in SJO and drop off in Manuel Antonio/Quepos with Alamo). We have a tentative itinerary - La Fortuna/Arenal then to Manuel Antonio and finally down to Drake Bay, Osa Peninsula. Looking for recommendations on places to stay (open to airbnb, hostels, or cheaper hotels), see, visit as well as any local tours or guides that are great.
Has anyone done the drive from La Fortuna to Manuel Antonio - if so how are the roads, how long did it take, etc?
We are both very active and adventurous and would like to have a more "authentic experience."
Matt Watson

We did fortuna to Monteverde to Manuel Antonio in 11 days in November using only bus and tours. In fortuna there are tons of kiosks that offer tours. If you're in good shape the full day tour up Cerro Chato plus nature walk views of the volcano and Lake plus a soak in the hot springs is fun (we skipped the hike but did the rest). We also did a one way tour (jeep-boat-horseback riding-bus) that took us from fortuna to Monteverde. If you make it there definitely do zip lining and the night hike. In Manuel Antonio stay at the wide mouth frog hostel. We stayed at all budget hotels and paid about $40 USD/ night for a private room, private bathroom and breakfast.

I did the Osa Peninsula out of Puerto Jimenez and if you have the time, I can't recommend Surcos Tours enough. Not sure if they have options out of Drake Bay, but their guides are phenomenal. If you can get a tour into Corcovado National Park, particularly the Sirena Ranger Station area, do it!

We are planning to do a day hike from the Sirenia ranger station. As we are travelling to the Osa from the pacific side it's much harder to get to Puerto Jimenez compared to Drake Bay.

If you're booking through expedia be prepared to pay the mandatory car insurance fee as they often don't include that in their prices. We did the drive from Fortuna to San Jose and took highway 702. Drive to MA is fine and less busy once you pass Jaco. You can take highway 27 from SJ to the coast - it's a toll road but in bit better shape and don't have transport trucks passing in the oncoming lane like on the 1, lol

How do you get around paying the car insurance? I have my own and don't need to pay for it (rental cars included).

I don't know specifically about Costa Rica, but certain countries require proof of insurance in order for you to waive it. My credit card gave me a letter confirming my rental was insured in the countries I will be travelling through. Also double check that you have third party. I though I had everything but turns out if i hit someone I have to pay out of pocket for their damage. So even though I waive the CDW I do get the SLI, supplemental liability insurance.

Costa Rica has mandatory insurance for car rentals. I've heard some people getting around if they have a written letter from their cc company but even then I've heard it isn't always accepted or doesn't cover third party damages ^.

We just had this problem!!! Got back February 25. Booked through expedia and a $500 rental all of a sudden jumped to $1400!!!! It is a mandatory insurance - you can't get around it. We were supposed to rent from SJO but ended up not taking the rental and cabbing it to Jaco and figuring it out there. Each city has their own insurance amount - I think Jaco was an extra $12/day... where as renting from San Jose was $37/day. So annoying!!!!

Wow thanks for the heads up! We have a really great price locked in with expedia for our rental, so if the additional car rental insurance is 37/day it may be cheaper to go that way than re-booking lol

Make sure that any quotes you get have the insurance included. That is the problem here in CR. Poas and Vamos are two local complanies that are pretty reasonable for rentals. If you plan on using C.C. insurance make sure you bring a letter from the C.C. company outlining all the insurance. Even if the company accepts that, they will likely put a hold on you C.C. for 5K U.S. so make sure your card has the room.

And if you are in the Fortuna / Arenal area I highly recommend the hot springs at Termales Los Laureles. It's a big place, lots of hot pools, water slide, good view of the volcano and also included in your entry is a ranchito that has electricty and potable water. So you can bring a lunch and cooler, or a plug-in pan and cook something. It's a great day. http://www.termalesloslaureles.com/

For those of you that have rented cars in Costa Rica, what would you do different in the future if renting again? I'm trying to keep cost down, but seems like the mandatory insurance is pretty expensive and seems like its the best option in case of an accident in terms of coverage.

Don't rent a GPS. My car rental company offered GPS at $9/day but wifi at $10/day. We were in the mountains a lot so it wasn't guaranteed the Wifi would work but the GPS was terrible and out dated. We would map out our next destination when we had wifi, turned on location on our call phone (doesn't count against roaming), then it would basically act like our GPS. Or just buy a package from your cellphone company and use Google Maps while you're there.

Drake bay was amazing!! It's an adventure just getting there, river and open ocean, which is part of the fun! Be prepared to get off the boat in chest deep water and carry your pack on your head to shore! We went on a jungle tour at night with an entomologist, a highlight of our time in Drake Bay. We stayed at Jade Mar, very basic but had an amazing view! Make sure you hike to the top of the hill to the little pub for a drink, if it's still there!

Did you take the boat shuttle to Drake Bay from Sierpe? I have looked into the night tour with the "bug lady" ... perhaps the same person?

Shawnee Belleville yes that is where we boarded the boat shuttle. They used to pick up at a little waterfront restaurant. Things may have changed since 2011! Once you arrive to Drake Bay there were no docks to unload passengers so be prepared to time the waves just right to hop out into chest deep water. Like I said before all part of the amazing adventure:) The night tour was with 'The Bug Lady' so worth it!!! Enjoy, it is such a wonderful place!!!

Great! Thanks for the information! How did you get to Sierpe? Seems like the boat still leaves from a little restaurant, but there's not a ton of info on how to get the Sierpe? I know that likely there will be shuttles or buses, but just looking for a bit of personal insight! (We are travelling from Manuel Antonio area)

We are heading to CR in August, too. I'm curious to hear how you decided where to go!

Hmm, to be honest, we wanted to get a good mix of the different regions in CR - volcanoes, beaches and ecotourism/jungles. I am big into wildlife and the Osa Peninsula was a must for me due to this. We then chose a volcano region that were interested in (Poas was a close second but we'd heard from friends that Arenal was pretty amazing so decided on it). we then chose a beach region that connected the two points that we really wanted to get to. I definitely think we are going to be busy and travelling a bunch, but from what I've heard and the research I've done so far, it seems that the travelling can be just as good of an experience! Angela

Driving anywhere in Costa Rica takes twice as long as you expect it to, plan accordingly

I don't use my GPS every day, but for the 5,000 or so kilometers that it's tracked I have averaged 52 Km/H. That is city and highway driving, so take your time and enjoy the view. Pura Vida. (V's are pronounced as B's ... just so you know)

no road signs in Costa Rica! only rented a car for a week and argued our way out of insurance (insurance was going to cost as much as the rental). traveled everywhere by bus for over two months. when you get the car, mark down every little scratch and ding as the rental company will try to blame it on you.

http://thecrpost.com/.../gringo-guide-to-tico-traffic-signs/

Here is an article on insurance requirements in Costa rica Hope this helps http://costa-rica-guide.com/.../car/rental-car-insurance/

Svetlana