8 Tips for First Time Travel to Costa Rica

Costa Rica is expensive! San Jose is dangerous! It’s always raining in Costa Rica! How many of these have you heard? And for the first time traveler navigating Costa Rica’s diverse landscape, it can be challenging to plan a trip, especially if you are on a budget.

I traveled solo to Costa Rica for 12 days and here are 8 top tips that helped me travel safely and affordably while exploring much of the beautiful country. I spent time in San José, Manuel Antonio, Monteverde and Puerto Viejo. I still want to explore more, but for now here are a few tips that will be helpful to anyone traveling to Costa Rica.

TRANSPORTATION TIPS

I didn’t want to rent a car so I pieced together private and public transportation. I heard too many things about hidden rental car fees and I hate driving in the dark or alone in a place I’m not familiar with- especially internationally. I used a combination of PRIVATE transportation, SHARED shuttle and PUBLIC bus. Once in a place I used taxis or Uber.

Private transfer from San Jose to Manuel Antonio (I hired a family member of a friend), and from Monte Verde to Puerto Viejo; shared shuttle with Interbus from Manuel Antonio to Monteverde and public bus from Puerto Viejo to San Jose. For the transfer from PV to SJ, I bought the ticket directly from the bus station in Puerto Viejo the day before departure. There’s also a shuttle from PV to SJ HERE.

2. DON’T SKIP SAN JOSÉ

DON’T SKIP San José: There are beautiful museums and fun markets like the Central Market! Take a food tour, go out to eat, go dancing and check out the Jade Museum. Totally worth it. I stayed at the Grano de Oro hotel and it was fantastic! And there was great salsa dancing at Amon Solar.

3. BUDGET YOUR MEALS

BUDGET YOUR MEALS: I learned that most hotels included breakfast! This was a game changer. And the most affordable and filling meals were at sodas where you can get a casado or plate of rice beans, meat salad and plantains for about $10 USD. I would eat two meals a day and be totally full!

4. EXPLORE SAFELY:

EXPLORE SAFELY: As a solo woman traveler, I am normally more cautious about safety when I travel, and Costa RIca is very friendly. My main tips are to be cautious alone at night. I had taxi drivers tell me not to walk alone at dark in San José. I listened. I felt very safe. The most unsafe I felt tbh was my fear of walking on a road and getting hit by a car or stepping on a snake.

5. EXPLORE THE DIVERSITY

EXPLORE THE DIVERSITY: Costa Rica is so diverse and there is so much to see. I know I wanted to see the pacific side, Monteverde because it’s so unique (and it reminded me of Wisconsin!) and the Caribbean side because of the indigenous and African culture.

6. RESEARCH YOUR STAYS

I researched my stays heavily – in Manuel Antonio I wanted to be near the beach, though that meant I didn’t have the view you get from the high cliff area that is popular. I stayed at Karahe on the side opposite the beach, closer to the park which made it a bit harder to get to Quepos. I ended up using the public bus that ran up and down the road since the road was narrow and winding.

In Monteverde, I stayed HERE in a beautiful lodge owned by a local family. It was within walking distance to shops and food and yet so peaceful. In Puerto Viejo I stayed in three places – I loved this spot because it was the closest i had been to the beach and I love glamping, I stayed here which was amazing too and a bit more upscale, but getting to and from PV was harder due to the lack of buses and costs of taxis. I stayed HERE in Playa Negra which was a great location! And in San Jose I Stayed HERE – and HIGHLY recommend.

7. PACK WISELY

As a solo traveler I want to pack light. But I also wanted to be prepared. There is lots of rain – but no one carries a rain coat! You just get wet. It’s the most amazing rain and so warm. Bring shoes that can get muddy, or some kind of hiking sandal that is easy to clean. If you go anywhere in nature, you will get muddy. Bring layers – in Monteverde it can get cold at night.