Costa Rica is a place I have wanted to visit for awhile. It was our first attempt at getting the girls out of the country (besides Mexico). We planned an 8 day trip over the girls "ski week."
We flew in to San Jose, Costa Rica. It's one of the two international airports in Costa Rica. Unfortunately, it's the further airport from the areas we were wanting to visit. However, do to costs and times, it was the better option. We arrived after midnight and took an uber to our hotel. The hotel had a Mediterranean feel. It was beautiful in every way. We slept a short night there and then drove to our first destination, Arenal Volcano. It was a few hour drive through the beautiful country. Once we arrived, it was very green, moist and cloudy (normal being at the top of a volcano). Our hotel had over 30 tropical springs. We played around in several of them. We had dinner at a local restaurant with views over the volcano. The next morning we went on a river raft ride. We saw tons of unique birds, sloths and monkeys. Later in the afternoon we drove to the coast.
Once we arrived in Guanacasta we saw some of our soccer friends. It was nice to see some familiar faces. We spent the week relaxing at the JW Marriott, zip lining and horse back riding. Horse backing ride was a highlight for the girls. We started in the trees and ended on the beach. We saw monkeys in the trees and even a random cow. Both girls did wonderful on the horses and want to do it again soon. Zip lining was quite the adventure. The girls were brave and we all had a great time. We visited a few local towns. In one we rented jet skis and went out to the ocean. Addy and I rode together with a modest speed. Addy had fun pushing the acceleration. Justin and Alexa had a more adventure approach. They had quite the speed. Although it ended with some blood and tears, they had a wonderful time. We are all wanting to do it again.
On the Marriott property there were a lot of wild, but fed horses. We took several trips out to see them. We brought them apples and enjoyed their company. One day they even got into the parking lot and we helped guide them back to the fields. The Marriott also offered a kids club. This was a first for us besides the cruises kids club. The girls enjoyed stopped in and doing a craft while we were having some quiet time.
Costa Rica is a fabulous country and we hope to go back in the future.
