Costa Rica- Arenal Region
The first third of our Costa Rica honeymoon found us smack-dab in the central north of the country, at the foot of the Arenal Volcano.
We spent three nights at the Tabacon Grand Thermal Resort, a medium sized hotel tucked into the lush, jungle-y hills surrounding the base of the volcano.
The Thermal Resort, as you might have guessed, boasts its own thermal baths, fed by waters warmed by the volcano. A series of stepped pools and waterfalls increase in temperature as you climb to higher levels. The resort mixes cold water with the hot springs to make the temperature bearable; 106.5 degrees at its hottest, and about 86 at its lowest point, the swimming pool.
Beyond the hotel, there is so much to do in the Arenal Area.
We spent our first day exploring the Arenal National Park on a hanging bridges tour, followed by a visit to La Fortuna waterfall and finally to the town of La Fortuna.
In the park, we saw many interesting species of plants and bugs, including leaf-cutter ants, and many birds. We spotted one monkey, and one sloth who was asleep and had his back to us so we couldn’t see his face.
In the late 1960's, the volcano erupted twice in 3 days, and both the landslides and the gasses were blown away from the town of La Fortuna, which was renamed “the fortunate,” in response to their luck.
We had dinner at an incredible restaurant, off the beaten path in La Fortuna, called La Parilla de Maria Bonita. We then headed to the Lava Lounge for drinks, a neat bar with live music where a portion of their sales goes to the Costa Rica Dog Rescue. Dogs wandered the bar and I was very happy to be there!
The following day, we hiked in the Arenal Volcano Park, or 1968 trails, which walk along the areas that were devastated by the last major eruption of the volcano.
We were very lucky with clear weather that allowed us to see all the way to the crater of the volcano, and see the water vapor rising from the heat of the vents! While climbing the volcano is illegal, many guides will take you up the mountain for an under the table payment. We chose not to do this, of course!
We finished our day at the hot springs, and started our evening at the Ecogarden Arenal for a night hike. The weather has recently been very dry so we didn’t see as much activity as “normal,” according to or guide Jose, but we saw a few really neat frogs and bugs, and one Cayman.
Jose and his family live next to the park and maintain it, and it’s a massive labor of love. His wife served us papaya juice and empanadas after our hike, while his children did their homework with a flashlight in the kitchen. We really enjoyed meeting Jose and his family and visiting their ecogarden, which is a really impressive project for which Jose says they receive no government funding- so if you’re in the area, make sure to pay Jose a visit!
We finished this portion of the trip with a morning zip line tour and then headed northeast to Tamarindo for four nights by the Pacific Ocean.
