Just wanted to check in and get some takes regarding a vacation we have planned in a few weeks. My family and I are traveling to Costa Rica for 8 days in the late July / early August time frame. Planning to break it up by spending the first few days inland in the Arenal / La Fortuna area seeing the volcanos, rain forests, waterfalls, etc.... then heading to the pacific side to stay on the coast.

Couple of questions

First... I have a rental car setup to get around the country. Looking online, the intrawebs makes it sound like traveling by car in CR is treacherous. Just wanted to get the take of those that have been there on traveling by rental. I have a 4x4 rented and the longest hauls will be from Liberia Airport to the La Fortuna area, and then from La Fortuna to the Tamarindo area. Any thoughts / opinions on driving in Costa Rica? I'm wondering if it's not actually as bad as they make it seem.

Secondly... just wanted to get recommendations on sites / things to do while we are there. We'll be seeing Arenal volcano, trying to see local waterfalls, etc as mentioned... anything else? What about in the Tamarindo area? Any recommendations are welcome.

Thanks everyone.

Manuel Antonio NP is a can't miss IMO. Pura Vida!

Use Waze for navigation in the car. If you were flying into San Jose, the first hour can be intimidating, but Liberia is a breeze to drive and launch from . Playa Conchal was a favorite beach of mine up there, and Rincon de la vieja was a decent excursion as well.

The Tamarindo area is nice, but Playa Conchal has a more secluded and quality beach.

If you are in the Fortuna/Arenal area, consider whitewater rafting as well. We were going to do it on our trip there in August, but changed plans to Deadwood SD this summer. Make sure to fit in the hot springs while there.

In the area that you are in, also consider Monteverde for a day or so. The cloud forest is a nice little hike, and there are coffee and chocolate tours there as well. It is not too bad of a drive from Arenal to there and some nice views are sure to be had. If you are okay with some mountain driving, this might even be considered a relaxing drive. The roads are pretty good and not too much traffic there. We did a night tour there as well and it was pretty neat.

Best pizza that I have ever had was just outside of Monteverde on the road to Tilaran. It was just across from the coffee tour that we took.

Try a pipa fria and eat at a soda or two.

Also, familiarize yourself with Whatsapp. It is your best bet for communication with locals for tours.

I rent a car often traveling to CR for work. You'll be fine. Can be a bit lawless at times but you go with the flow and use some common sense. You'll feel comfortable enough in short order.

We thought driving around was really easy. A few things to do in la fortuna area:
North shore coffee tour. Hanging bridges(get a guide). Waterfall repelling…not good if afraid of heights. Night frog tour in jungle. There's a sloth trail on outskirts of town called la something with a b…saw lots of sloths, owls, frogs, birrds, etc. go visit the volcano and hike around. We enjoyed going to rio Celeste but it is a full day trip.

Here in Tamarindo right now. We stayed two days at Hacienda Guachipelin and did the tubing, hot springs and waterfalls. All were great. The tubing is great and waterfalls/oils much worth going to.

We spent three nights at Hacienda Pinilla and went to the beach club on Avellanas and also JE Marriott. Both top notch. Surfing in Avellanas is difficult.

We are spending four nights here in Tamarindo. Seems like people either like the Tamarindo vibe or not. We like it (3rd time here). All different kinds of food , very friendly people. We stay at the Diria, but Tamarindo isn't too resorty. Would do the estuary tour once to see the crocodiles, etc. The Tamarindo beach isn't beautiful but it's great for beginner to intermediate surfing. It is always crowded on the beach and in the water. If you're not into surfing you might like another town/beach.

Can also do the ATV tours and zip lines if you like those.

We love Costa Rica. All parts. Pura Vida. Have fun.

Jealous! Driving is so much fun in CR. A 4x4 is fine. Love the water crossings. They are fun, not scary and the locals do them in Corrolas. Did that same drive last year and no problems. Obviously Google maps or some other map app is essential.

I can't remember our outfitter but the white water rafting on the Tenorio river was the best thing we did.
Also enjoyed the Zip line and ATV tours near Tamarindo.

We rented a little 4x4 at SJO and drove to Puerto Viejo on the Caribbean coast to La Fortuna to Tamarindo on the Pacific coast over a couple of weeks. No issues driving but I'd suggest not driving long distances at night as some of the roads have potholes that are hard to see in the dark.

Thanks everyone for the replies.

We are staying at the Diria in Tamarindo so good to see some experience here with that location.

Driving was definitely the biggest (really... only) concern we had but it seems the consensus is that isn't that big of a deal. We'll be there in the rainy season of course so hopefully any water crossings will be minimal. We fly into Liberia, so our biggest drives are Liberia to La Fortuna.... La Fortuna to Tamarindo... and Tamarindo back to Liberia. Everything else will just be localized driving. Roads seem okay looking at google maps, but you never really know til you're there.

Again, appreciate the comments and suggestions.

Sounds like a fun literary.

There's a Wal-Mart in Tamarindo where you can stock up on snacks and drinks.

Zip lining on the side of Arenal (Arenal Ecoglide Park) is a good time.

Skip the "German Bakery" on the road between Arenal and Tamarindo. Terrible pastries and way overpriced.

We have been at the Diria the last 5 days. Rainy season really isn't much in Guanacaste in June July. 10 days here and only rained briefly a couple of days. Same on our other trips here.

Tamarindo has been great as always. Have fun.

Just did the drive from Liberia to La Fortuna last week. The drive was not bad. The only dicey part is driving along the lake which is very windy and can make those prone to motion sickness car sick. Diid the drive back from La Fortuna to Tamrindo and gain not bad but Plan on 3.5 hours due.

This was a our second consecutive trip and i can say there is a ton of construction going on especially in the Guanacaste area so be prepared to be stuck around convoys of dump trucks or trucks towing heavy machinery.

Lastly, always keep a look out of motorcycles as they can come out of nowhere and have no problem weaving in and out of traffic.

I've been to the Pacific side twice. I feel like the roads were significantly better in 2022 than previously.

Favorite meals were at The Naked Indian and Coco Loco. The owners of Coco Loco also own a catering co with private chefs. We hired the chef for three nights and it wasn't much more than going out to eat. Well worth it.

Spa day at Los Altos de Eros was so unique and probably my favorite part. I didn't want to leave. The drive there was questionable though. They served lunch with the spa day and I was very impressed.

Private catamaran was worth every penny, especially after seeing the other boats packed like sardines.

We had a very budget friendly "real housewives" vacation experience and was one of my favorite vacations yet.