ok, so based on a spattering of advice:
ecotraveller’s guide is nixed (1st edition. plus, senseless and very hard to follow), as is fodor’s (which does not cater to my type of trip, if nothing else because of the published “word of mouth” quip: “my two cents on tamaramino: we would not have been happy staying in tamarindo proper. i told my wife i think we were the only two republicans within 50 miles. —stepmoore” eek.)
sounds like tortuguero is a winner. and volcanos are popular, although don’t they smell like sulphur? mmmm sulphur, which brings back memories of the outhouses of my childhood camping trips. this is going to be great. tamarindo sounds definite, if nothing else because it’s next to parque nacional marino las baulas = turtles!
josie from emmy’s/front porch raved about the osa peninsula, which has the last remaining silver of pristine rainforest in the country, parque nacional corcovado. it’s convenient how all of these things are on opposite ends of the country.
as for the how-to-get-around question, i honestly don’t know. the guidebooks do a good job of both saying it’s ok and making it sound horrific and scary to rent a car and try and drive around. josie said that it’s no problem. k2 says hell no. cheryl took buses, but san jose to puerto jimenez is like 8 hours. did i mention the part about wanting to visit all the parts that are far away from each other? yay! what happens if my recommenders disagree? can i stage a battle royale and have them fight each other, and then just listen to the winner? if i can arrange that, maybe i don’t need to go anywhere at all…
i think we’re decided on flying down on sat jan 6th and returning on wed jan 24th. although all the weekend flights seem to involve a redeye. it seems i can fly down on american through lost angels, which isn’t too bad. there’s a taca airlines flight i can’t figure out: orbitz, etc. say that there’s a plane change in san salvador there and back, but i called taca and they claim there isn’t. who knows? and do i want to be stuck in el salvador accidentally? or is that part of the troublonia peninsula?
Posted at December 4, 2006 12:04 AMel salvador is DEFINITELY part of troublonia. especially if you fly TACA, which is like a free, no-strings, month long ticket to lounge in troublonia prison. i’ve flown with them twice and both times are long anecdotes which end with, “and i guess i was lucky the entire vacation wasn’t ruined.” once they stuck me in san salvador (yes, the same) for 14 hrs because THE RUNWAY WAS ON FIRE. the other time as we were boarding the plane they blocked half of my party and left them in hondouras for TWO DAYS.
pay the extra money. do not fly TACA.
as to how to get around: driving will be more stressful but you’ll have more comfort and more control. taking buses will be uncomfortable but you’ll likely have some local experiences that you would otherwise miss. plus, if it takes 8 hours by bus it’s still a long drive. in costa rica there are likely “tourist buses” which will be more comfortable, have bathrooms, and play really loud brett ratner videos. the guide book should indicate.
on the other hand, having your own car means you can go places buses don’t. like smaller beaches. and to cinemas showing brett ratner videos.
Posted by: xz at December 4, 2006 12:55 AMif you rent a car, get a 4WD. i was there the same time of year (2 years ago) and the rain was so heavy on the east coast that the roads were closed because of mud and flooding. i can only imagine it’ll rain and, though flooding is less likely, muddy roads and stuckness-potential in a 2WD are a good bet.
Posted by: jason at December 5, 2006 6:41 PMComments are now closed for this entry. Thank you for playing.