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Finally travelling again!

This article is an experience lived during the CODID-19 pandemic, and while the tourism sector was slowly reopening again. 

After months of reducing it to your own four walls as far as possible, it was high time for my family and me to rediscover and enjoy the spectacular natural beauties of Costa Rica! In this blog, you can find out what these are, under what conditions you can (again) rediscover them and how the various attractions, transport companies, hotels and restaurants have adjusted to the new normal ... I can tell you this much: Travel is finally possible again and urgently needed for body, mind and soul!

Getting there, over hill and dale or the ferry

The popular beach spots of the southern Nicoya Peninsula can be reached from the north of the country via the provincial town of Nicoya and some small, typical Guanacaste villages. A 4x4 vehicle is necessary all year round, and especially in the months of May to November, because several rivers have to be crossed and the route leads over large parts on natural roads. Deer and coatis often cross the road and the installed monkey ladders above the street are also used briskly!

If you come from the south of the country or the Central Valley, use the ferry - like us - from the city of Puntarenas to Paquera. You can reserve and pay for the approx. 1-hour crossing online in advance at www.quickpaycr.com. You're going to be able to enjoy a wonderful view of the small islands of the Gulf. From Paquera to Montezuma it is only about 30km, to Santa Teresa less than 50km. The trip is a scenic highlight, which is why we artificially extended the journey with a picnic at one of the lonely, paradisiac bays.

Even those who are not travelling by rental car can reach the southern Nicoya Peninsula easily and comfortably: depending on their budget by a short domestic flight or a private or shared land transfer. All transfer options meet the applicable hygiene regulations and offer you constant disinfection and distance options.

The penisula’s natural highlights

What makes this corner of Costa Rica so special? Its originality, many kilometers of coastline surrounded by tropical vegetation, spectacular waterfalls, such as the waterfall of Montezuma and the oldest protected area in the country, the Cabo Blanco National Park (Spanish: Reserva absoluta Cabo Blanco), in which you can reach the exotic “white cape” with its numerous wild birds on a 5 km long jungle path. Upon arrival, you may refresh in the pleasantly lukewarm sea. The Cabo Blanco National Park at that time was already open again, every Wednesday to Sunday from 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. (Now there are no restrictions anymore). The medium-demanding hike was also possible for my 9-year-old daughter and takes about 2 hours each way. We watched a lot of wild animals and had a wonderful day! 

In the eastern part of the peninsula, the “Curú” reserve with its beautiful Playa Quesera is worth mentioning, as well as the snorkeling spot “Isla Tortuga” and the bioluminescence which regularly occurs over here.

Lodging - but how?

The accommodation options on the Southern Nicoya peninsula are at least as varied as its nature is. All of the locations mentioned are famous for their relaxed atmosphere and trendy restaurants, bars and activities... last but not least, cozy co-working spaces attract digital nomads from all over the world for a relaxing long-term stay in Costa Rica - to mention also the positive, new possibilities of working, traveling and living.

From simple backpacker accommodations to exclusive boutique hotels, you will find classic hotels as well as fully-quipped apartments and luxurious beach houses with fantastic sea views or direct beach access. The choice is yours and at ARA Tours, we are happy to help you find your personal dream accommodation. 

Some of our favorites are e.g. the Nantipa Beach Resort, which promises a “Tico Beach Experience” first class, of course in the best possible location, right on the beach. For medium-sized budgets and guests who appreciate being near what’s going on in the village, we can also recommend the Hotel Esencia and Santa Teresa by the Beach. Between Tambor and Paquera lies the Tango Mar Beach Resort, where you can lodge in style, almost in a private bay. The Eco Boutique Hotel Vista Las Islas is located on a hill with a breathtaking view on Isla Tortuga. And if you are looking for a slightly different form of accommodation, you can book one of the luxurious tent suites at Isla Chiquita Lodge, from which you can enjoy your personal Robinson Crusoe experience on the island of Jesucita in the middle of the Gulf of Nicoya.

What else can you do?

Are you looking for the best wave? Then you have come to the right place in Malpaís and Santa Teresa, where you can surf in good company and with plenty of space on the miles of sandy beaches. Here, even the spectacular sunsets have their reputation. At the moment we were visiting, the beaches were only open until 2:30 p.m., but we could still enjoy the view from many of the cozy beach cafés and bars! Today, there are no restrictions anymore. 

For yogis, Santa Teresa is like the Costa Rican Mecca. What better combination than the local easy-going lifestyle and body and mind strengthening activity, whenever possible with a fresh sea breeze? Here you will find professional teachers of all difficulty levels and styles as well as nice yoga colleagues from all over the world: ideal conditions to process the various changes of the past few months positively.

And - often not mentioned, but certainly there and in large numbers: Walkers like us who enjoy a long walk on the beach with a 360º panorama in sunny or cloudy conditions. We get pleased on almost all beaches of the peninsula with their natural pools and rock formations, shells and other treasures.

Conclusion

The short trip to the Nicoya Peninsula was so good for us! It liberated, relaxed and also reassured us that Costa Rica’s nature is more beautiful than ever and that the tourist businesses have prepared exemplary for welcoming their guests again.

The essence of Costa Rica is at home on the Nicoya Peninsula! A mix of pure relaxation, an active nature experience and freedom of lifestyle is what you feel overhere. Santa Teresa, Malpaís, Montezuma and Tambor should not be missing on your individual road trip through Costa Rica. This region offers you almost unlimited freedom to refuel in tropical nature. Costa Rica is waiting for you! ARA Tours is waiting for you! We’d be glad to assist you with your travel planning - just write to us at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.!

ARA Tours Testimonials-FeedBack

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  • Janaina & Dieter

    The trip was wonderful! Your help was invaluable and without your choices it would not have been so good! I am very very satisfied and very happy with the choices you made!

    Thank you very much for everything!

    Janaina & Dieter
  • Kathrin, Ines, Matthias & Ingo

    Hello dear Aline, many thanks to you for the great compilation and organization of the trip. We were able to spend eventful, interesting and wonderful days in Costa Rica and will keep them in good memory. A thank you also goes to the ARA Tours team, which was available 24/7 for problems and questions, which were solved and answered quickly and reliably. The punctuality of the transfers offered should also be emphasized. In summary, it was a wonderful holiday.

    Kind regards

    Kathrin, Ines, Matthias & Ingo
  • Carina und Thomas

    Hello dear Aline,
    Now we have arrived back at San Jose Airport after a great trip. Everything worked out great and the tour was just perfectly planned and organized. Thank you very much. We take a lot of positive memories with us.
    Best regards.

    Carina und Thomas
  • Yvonne Deiss

    The Costa Rica trip together with my family is already behind us - it was wonderful!!! Everything went smoothly from A to Z, we had a wonderful time, no incidents and wonderful experiences.
    We all enjoyed it very much; the nature is enormous, but also the warm-hearted people, the cleanliness, the food - we are very enthusiastic!
    At this point I would like to thank you very much for your support in the preparation, for all the bookings, clarifications and enquiries!!!
    We visited the waterfall in La Fortuna and had a great view of the Arenal. In Monteverde we did a Hanging Bridges and Zipline tour and in Nosara a surf course. In Finca Rosa Bianca we did the coffee tour, it was all great, fun and interesting 😊. All in all, we saw lots of animals, always ate well, enjoyed the beaches....even in rainy weather 😊. Often we were even glad that it was overcast, otherwise it would have been almost toouuu hot for us.
    So THANK YOU again so much for everything!!!!

    Yvonne Deiss
  • Christina

    Many thanks for the extensive support (before, during and after the trip) and the professional handling of our concerns. With your support we had a smooth and unforgettable vacation in Costa Rica! Our favorite hotels: Hotel Plaza Yara and the Poas Volcano Lodge - a dream!
    All the best
    Christina

    Christina
  • Steinebrunner

    Yay! I´m glad we are back on track. Thank you again for helping us with all these changes.
    I´m glad we choose ARA-you are amazing! Thanks for all your help! It made it a very memorable visit!

    Steinebrunner
  • Janka

    Hi Eli & ARA Team,
    We have spoken to the guest and they are super enthusiastic about their Costa Rica roundtrip! Everything was well organized, nice hotels, nice mix of activities & beach and they have big compliments for you guys!!
    Many thanks for all the good work!! The guest highly appreciate it!!
    They had lunch nearby in Ara Ambigua Lodge, and they loved this place. Friendly staff and good food!
    Do you work with this accommodation? If so, we would love hear 😊
    Once again, heads off for this amazing trip!
    With warm regards

    Janka
  • Thomas, Deborah, Eva & Paula

    Dear Priska
    Happily I write some words to you in English, so you can easily forward them also to Ara Tours, please. Thank you all, we spent a magic time in Costa Rica! Baumeler's and Ara Tours organisation and logistics were perfect, everything worked out even better than we expected. The tours were brilliant, we really enjoyed everything very very much!
    All the accomodation was absolutely wonderful... the setting, the quality, the food, with happy helpful friendly staff everywhere. It was a wonderful way to experience this beautiful country the way we did, on a private tour with personal guide and drivers. We saw and learnt sooo much - it would have been impossible to do so on our own.
    Especially we praise our brilliant guide Fernando Perez, we benefited so much from his truly wide knowledge and deep love for his Country which he passed on in lovely encouraging way. We even became friends and we will meet in Switzerland coming September! Also our driver Carlos Sandi was great, not only as a driver but also as a compagnion, animal spotter and photographer. Thank you!
    So.... now we just enjoy our last day...
    Sunny greetings, pura vida

    Thomas, Deborah, Eva & Paula
  • Yvonne & Andrea

    Hello all
    Unfortunately, our wonderful trip is already over and everyday life has caught up with us again. We would like to thank you very much for everything. The trip was planned exactly according to our wishes and we have seen so many beautiful places.
    Thank you Stefanie!
    We have felt completely comfortable and top cared for by you. Via Whats App we got immediate answers to our questions, with the car everything worked out great. In all locations we were treated very warmly and nicely. It was just so indescribably beautiful, we will dream of the beautiful experiences for a long time. In any case, we will warmly recommend you and hope for a next time. Thank you, thank you, thank you.
    Best regards.

    Yvonne & Andrea
  • Anita

    We have arrived safely in Switzerland and have already returned to work.
    It was a wonderful trip you put together for us.
    Your excellent service, as well as the 24 hour support service from ARA Tours, was truly outstanding.
    I have already recommended you several times and would book with you again and again. Thank you very much and keep me informed if there are any interesting offers.
    Best wishes.

    Anita
  • Lukas & Isabelle

    Hello Pedro, our time in CR is coming to an end and we wanted to say "thank you very much for organizing a phenomenal week". Everything has been well organized and we have seen many beauties of nature. Thanks!

    Lukas & Isabelle
  • Reinout & Yvonne Woittiez

    Thanks Jenny for the clear answer. We will make an appointment via the link you gave us.
    Today we visited National Parc Cabo Blanco. What an amazing park, so quiet for tourists, so full of animals, really lovely and therefore together with Monte Verde, Cahuita and Corcovado the park today, Cabo Blanco, scores high in our ranking of most beautiful parks of CR.These parks give us reason, together with the Pura Vida in CR, to come back soon. We'll keep in contact.

    Reinout & Yvonne Woittiez
  • Dominik

    Good day Jennifer
    As we have already told Simone, the stay at Lapa Rios is extremely enriching, thanks to the well planned planting and the untouched environment we see a lot of animals. Contrary to the plans before the stay, we do not want to visit more animals in captivity at the end. We will have a look at the few hours before we leave.
    We thank you and your team very much for the excellent advice and the permanent support! We can only recommend Ara Tours.
    Best regards.

    Dominik
  • Daniel, Jana und Theo

    A big thank to you, you saved our vacation!
    Communication already worked very well in Germany. The help from you, especially through Aline, should be mentioned here. This was fantastic from the first WhatsApp message to the last. We already know Costa Rica, so we knew what we wanted and what not. Ara Tours was an important point of contact for us. We are very grateful to Aline precisely because our actual travel agent cancelled our trip 36 hours before departure. She immediately organized everything for us. Whether the hotel in beautiful Punta Leona, the tours to the national parks, even the shuttle service with the great driver Guillerno Ortega has to be mentioned here. We are very grateful to you, dear Aline, but also to the entire Ara Tours team. You too made our almost 3-week trip to Costa Rica unforgettable again. We would love to come back and of course we will book through Ara Tours again.

    Daniel, Jana und Theo
  • Wolf Family

    Thank you, everything really worked out great. Super organization and at any time quick info / help / support from you!
    We liked it very much. The conclusion in Quepos was crowning. We liked the beach in the National Park Manuel Antonio very much. We would have liked to stay longer, but we take home many wonderful, unforgettable impressions. PURA VIDA!
    Many thanks to you Aline! We will gladly recommend you to others.

    Wolf Family
  • Neumann

    - The route was super planned, first time to arrive at the beach and then from Monteverde with excursions inland etc. and at the end again beach - perfect!
    - Support from Ara Tours was VERY good!!! Through Whatsapp reachability the service was great, very quick answers / very flexible, good suggestions etc. Also with the doctor Ara Tours helped with translations by phone - that was very, very good!
    - The Home Stay day was absolute highlight - very authentic - so they got to know the locals REAL, the family was super friendly and very open and have talked about everything. Not at all touristy perceived, you were also allowed to look at the house there and Mrs. Neumann found it also a great experience for their children

    Neumann
  • Marine & Bruno Serra

    Hello
    We would like to thank you personally for this beautiful trip that you organised for us and for the follow-up that you did throughout the stay. A big thank you also to Jennifer d'Ara tours! Thank you again and have a great week!

    Marine & Bruno Serra
  • Walter Eggenschwiler

    We really appreciated your (almost) daily updates from Costa Rica on Covid and related issues. That was a highlight compared to other incoming agents worldwide! We thank you for your effort and wish you that you manage the coming time well and stay healthy.

    Walter Eggenschwiler
  • Ronald Raadsheer

    Our great compliments for keeping us informed every day on the developments. We wish you all the best and keep yourself and families in good health and mood during this unprecedented period!

    Ronald Raadsheer
  • Kathrin Vonschiller

    You are really super! It is impressive how you manage the crisis with your super flow of information and the great reversal. Hats off!

    Kathrin Vonschiller
  • Michael White

    Hello, we were on a round trip in Costa Rica from 27.11., which was booked through BigXtra and organised by them. We would like to take this opportunity to thank you very much. The tour was simply amazing! The support by Carlos was just great. We have done many trips before, but this one was an unforgettable experience thanks to Carlos. Carlos speaks very good German and was able to sensitively introduce us to Costa Rica, its incomparable nature and its great, friendly inhabitants. Pura Vida became for us a term for the attitude towards life in Costa Rica. Please say hello to Carlos from us and once again a huge thank you to him in the name of the whole group of 8. We wish him only the best for his future.

    Michael White
  • Evelyne Thommen

    Wie just did a 4 week trip in Costa Rica which was organised from ARA tours and we really liked it - well done Ara Tours! We also had a guide - his name is Enrique. His German is really good and he knows a lot about Costa Rica and he showed us a lot of animals. We had a wonderful time with hime - thank you so much Enrique!

    Evelyne Thommen
  • Tanja Weber

    perfect tour perfect tour guide pablo, everything very well organised 👍👍👍👍🇨🇷🇨🇨🇷 were thrilled

    Tanja Weber
  • Ines Lechner

    Many thanks and great praise to our tour guide Mauricio and our bus driver Adrian! We felt very comfortable during the 2 weeks in Costa Rica. The wide-ranging knowledge of Mauricio and the super driving skills of Adrian were particularly admirable. Thanks to the eagle eyes of both of them, we had the opportunity to observe a variety of animals in Costa Rica. Thank you for everything!

    Ines Lechner
  • Sabine Schumacher

    I can only recommend ARA Tours. Thanks again to Nicole for the great planning of the tour and the support. Our tour guide Peter Käser was simply incredible (a walking encyclopaedia) and always had an answer to all my questions about the flora and fauna and the history of CR. Our driver Julio carried my father on his hands, for which I am very grateful. CR is also worth a trip for wheelchair users at any time (with ARA Tours, of course).

    Sabine Schumacher
  • Familie Thieme

    We would like to thank you once again for organizing our trip [...] through the beautiful country of Costa Rica. Our special thanks go to our tour guide Enrique, who with his extensive knowledge of flora and fauna about his country brought it very close to us and made us want to come even a second time. We were very glad and happy to travel with him, as he was also very committed to our problems on site, in addition to his competent function as a tour guide.

    Familie Thieme
  • Familie Stalder

    Thank you from the bottom of my heart for your sensational effort! I do not know such a competent tour guide as with you really from nowhere else... and we have already traveled a lot... 🙏🏻🍀

    Familie Stalder
  • Katja Stadelmann

    I wanted to thank you again for the great Costa Rica trip. We flew back home very happy and with many great impressions. A compliment for the super organisation. Everything worked out perfectly (except for the handover of the rental car, which was force majeure...). So thank you again and I have already recommended you to friends:-)!

    Katja Stadelmann
  • Conny Koch

    You and your team have organized a great trip and wonderful days for the guests in your beautiful country and I thank you very much for that!

    Conny Koch
  • Denise Steiger

    Thank you very much for your email and the tickets. We really appreciate how quickly and efficiently you deal with our requests each time!

    Denise Steiger
  • Philippe

    Hello Christine Thank you very much for this information. The support is super👍 many thanks Gruss

    Philippe
  • Marianne & Stefan Gräub

    Otherwise, the planned trip was a complete success. Everything went well and the visits you organised were all very interesting. The visits you organised were all very interesting and gave us a great insight into the respective topics. The fact that the Ticos are very friendly and always ready to help was fully confirmed.

    Marianne & Stefan Gräub

    Contact Information

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    Phone: +506-2232-0400
    Email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

    Address

    Apdo 799 – 1007
    San José, Costa Rica

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