Going to Costa Rica

[Zaphod]

I made a spur of the moment decision and bought a plane ticket with hotel reservation to San Jose. I'm pretty excited but a little scared too. Any tips besides the usual advice I will find on most sites? I'm going alone.

I plan to spend most of my time just exploring, since Costa Rica looks so beautiful. I am not very well traveled and don't know Spanish, so I'm a little out of my comfort zone. It will be hard to not appear as a tourist.

Is it worth paying for tours or should I just hike around on my own? What else should I do?

[VinceG]

Originally Posted by Zaphod

I plan to spend most of my time just exploring, since Costa Rica looks so beautiful. I am not very well traveled and don't know Spanish, so I'm a little out of my comfort zone. It will be hard to not appear as a tourist.

Is it worth paying for tours or should I just hike around on my own? What else should I do?

Don't worry about any of this stuff. Just do whatever you feel like doing. If a tour catches your eye, hop on board. I would recommend finding a good hostel in a guidebook, save that, the city is your oyster. Congrats!

[Zaphod]

I actually booked a place for a week but it looks like maybe it doesn't make sense to stay in the same place every day? The distances between cities and attractions is further than I thought and it might be arduous to go out and back each day.

Have you done one way or the other?

[VinceG]

Originally Posted by Zaphod

I actually booked a place for a week but it looks like maybe it doesn't make sense to stay in the same place every day? The distances between cities and attractions is further than I thought and it might be arduous to go out and back each day.

You plan on carrying everything you bring with you, everywhere? I wouldn't do that unless I was traveling bagless.

[Zaphod]

Not everywhere...just from one hotel/hostel to the next. Carry my luggage from one place to the next and keep it in the room/locker while I roam around. Have you been to Costa Rica?

[ssandra]

I've never been to Costa Rica but it is on my to visit list as well

I'd buy a Lonely Planet, pack only enough stuff to put in a back pack, and just travel whenever you feel like it, and stay in any one place whenever you feel like it. It is my preferred way of traveling...

[Clint Cora]

I've been to Costa Rica. San Jose itself is a good base but is dirty, noisy and polluted. Take a different day trip from your hotel each day - rain forests, volcanoes, white water rafting. I stayed a few nights in San Jose and a few in the northern part of the country to scuba dive. The parts outside of San Jose are much nicer.

[danas]

Sounds exciting!
Enjoy!!

[WarrenG]

I haven't been, but I hope to go next year. The conversation in this thread should be useful to you generally, and I thought this was a good site about Costa Rica specifically, written by a guy who lives there. He literally covers everything you'll need to know.

[VinceG]

Originally Posted by Zaphod

Not everywhere...just from one hotel/hostel to the next. Carry my luggage from one place to the next and keep it in the room/locker while I roam around. Have you been to Costa Rica?

I haven't, but I have traveled through Colombia, twice, and Aruba, once.

To me switching hostels every day would be a real hassle with bags. It's not just moving the bags, you also have to find the new place, which will of necessity be in another part of town, otherwise why switch? Maybe if you plan it all out beforehand, but I never liked such rigid plans. Too much can change in an afternoon.