Overview
From Andrew Harper
A visit here will confirm the most optimistic of expectations -- Costa Rica has a stable government and tourism infrastructure, a friendly populace and a tropical landscape teeming with exotic wildlife (notable residents include howler monkeys, three-toed sloths, spiny anteaters and sea turtles). Visit sooner rather than later, as the country is struggling to maintain a responsible pace of development.
A popular itinerary from San José includes a few days traipsing through the cloud forests of the central highlands, followed by several more days spent in a far more recumbent state at a coastal resort. At the moment, the Pacific Coast has all the marquee properties, including a new Four Seasons and the pioneering eco-lodge Lapa Rios on the Osa Peninsula, but the less trafficked Caribbean side has the sea turtles of Tortuguero.
Hotels
All recommended hotels in Costa Rica
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Hotel Casa Turire Colonial-style hacienda surrounded by a working estate encompassing tropical forests, coffee/macadamia plantations and the wild Reventazón River. |
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Hotel Grano de Oro Old World-style hotel occupying a handsomely restored turn-of-the-century mansion in a quiet residential section of San José (a short taxi ride from the National Museum, National Theater and best shopping districts). |
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Four Seasons Resort Costa Rica at Peninsula Papagayo Gracious 155-lodging resort overlooking two beaches from the hilly Peninsula Papagayo. |
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Hotel Punta Islita Appealing seaside hideaway on a forested coastal stretch of the secluded Nicoya Peninsula, 45 minutes by air west of San José. |
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Finca Rosa Blanca Coffee Plantation & Inn High-country inn overlooking the Central Valley and a landscape of rolling fields, coffee plantations and fertile orchards, 15 minutes from San José. |
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Alma Del Pacifico Stylish resort on a pristine beach north of Manuel Antonio. The 15 villas have vaulted ceilings, spacious baths and private terraces. |
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Arenas del Mar Beachfront & Rainforest Resort Hillside resort sloping down to a secluded beach near the port of Quepos. |
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Florblanca Resort Tropical haven fronting a long, picturesque beach at the southern tip of the Nicoya Peninsula. |
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Gaia Hotel & Reserve Boutique resort on a 12-acre nature preserve near Quepos. |
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Lapa Rios Ecolodge Engaging wilderness refuge dramatically sited above the Golfo Dulce in an isolated corner of the Osa Peninsula at the southern tip of Costa Rica, an hour by air from San José. |
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