15

There is no direct bus from Liberia to Monteverde or La Fortuna, thats why, so land in SJ, then in morning bus to Arenal....head west after that.

16

according to http://www.yourtravelmap.com - the most accurate distance calculator you can find short of driving it and writing down your mileage: (remember - i live in costa rica)

san jose to monteverde: 144 km
liberia to monteverde: 140.3 km

san jose to la fortuna: 130.2
liberia to la fortuna: 142.8

san jose to tamarindo: 283.3 km
liberia to tamarindo: 76.5

with an itinerary of arenal, monteverde, tamarindo - perhaps you can see my puzzlement at a recommendation to fly into sjo.

as for the direct bus to monteverde: i don't see this as a reason to fly into san jose. it's not difficult to take two buses to monteverde from liberia. as lucapal wrote - take any bus going south from liberia (to puntarenas or san jose, both of which are very frequent) and get off at las juntas and get the bus from there to monteverde. for $35, you can get a shared van shuttle from liberia to monteverde (http://www.shuttlebus.co.cr

17

Because Tamarindo is not their final destination but just one segment. That comes before mid trip.They could well end up in San Vito for all we know before departing.

The argument about distances actually means little here in my mind.

18

ok so problem solved. SJ it is! thanks everyone for your feedback.

so the last 3-4 days of my trip i will be alone any suggestions on what to do for that part? i thought about manuel antonio but some say not worth it. maybe stay north part on the coast near tamarindo? I like beach time, spa, or group activities (hike a volcano?), i wouldnt do the car rental by myself so prob will take shuttles around. im not fussy.

thanks to everyone on this post!!!!!! I really appreciate your feedback. :)

Cheers

19

im flying into SJ - stay overnight
the next morning i will go to la fortuna for 2 days
then i will go to monteverde from la fortuna for 2 days
then i will go to tamarindo for 3-4 days
then i will decide what to do from there....
then back to SJ airport for departure. (which is why i thought about man. ant, but is not necesssary)

20

I do not see any reason why not to go to Manuel Antonio http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Manuel_Antonio_National_Park It is a beautiful park and area with great amenities.

21

Consider going from Tamarindo to Montezuma on a shuttle, if beach/surfing is your thing, hang there a few nights, either go further to Mal Pais, or take water taxi to Jaco and bus to Quepos, then 1N/2D in MA, (closed Mondays) and then its 3.5/4 hours bus back to SJ.

From Montezuma you have the Tortuga island kayak/snorkel day trip, and also Cabo Blanco NP. As well as some nice waterfalls nearby.

http://www.anywherecostarica.com/destinations