1

beginning at the north: bahia salinas. a beautiful bay with very few tourists and some excellent kite-surfing. head for la cruz, near the nicaraguan border.

puerto soley - tiny fishing village

cuajiniquil - another tiny village - but - with a website! http://www.cuajiniquil.com

santa rosa national park - beautiful national park with small cottages you can rent. you can also camp here. there are a number of good trails in the la casona section -- this is where the cottages area located.

the guanacaste conservation area encompasses a HUGE area of preserves and national parks. take a look here for more information: http://www.acguanacaste.ac.cr/1997/principaling.html look in the left-hand column and click on "Visit the ACG"

south of santa rosa, you will find the papagayo peninsula which is carpeted with expensive homes and upscale hotels and usually best avoided unless you are carpeted with money.

south of the papgayo peninsula are playa hermosa and playas del coco. playa hermosa is quiet with a nice beach and playas del coco is more lively but the beach isn't as nice. http://www.footprintscostarica.com/index.php?reg=9

consider some inland areas also such as rincon de la vieja or tenorio. for rincon de la vieja, http://www.rincondelavieja.net and for the tenorio national park area http://www.casitastenorio.com casitas tenorio also has a fully equipped camping area and i think it is less than $10 a day to use it and the kitchen.

if you've been to costa rica before, you know to look for small hotels and "cabinas" and eating in "sodas." you can buy a styrofoam cooler at any supermarket and keep a lot of stuff with you to save on eating out.

2

Hi
If you don t wanna
spend alot money? Try neighboring Nicaragua or Panama------

3

Costa Rica aint cheap.

Also, the NW beaches around Santa Rosa NP, are desolate, super windy this time of year (kite surfing and off shore winds for great surf), so dont expect much in the way of anything else other than shear raw nature. Its also very HOT, and very DRY, brown and the sand can be dark, so hot you cant walk on it barefoot....

4

while it is windy in bahia salinas (kitesurfing), the sands are not black (or hot) and the wind tends to cool things off. same for puerto soley, cuajiniquil and la cruz.

and... everything is NOT brown. you will see forested areas that are green, gardens that are green with open pastures that are yellow/brown.

5

wiremu, there is a reason people dont go up there unless they are into surfing/kite surfing...its beautiful in a raw and pristine way, but very limiting due to the remote nature and arid dry and windy atmosphere. The rest of the entire NW CR is developed, for a reason as well.
Quiet seaside village, yes...thats a understatement...

6

solohobo, there are reasons why people DO go there. among them, "... its beautiful in a raw and pristine way..."

and -- the rest of the entire northwest of costa rica is NOT developed, unless you are referring to some of the beach areas, including your favorite tamagringo.

if you take a look sometime at the guanacaste conservation area website, you will find out a lot of information. really, most of the time, you don't know what you don't know.

7

come on now, when did I say Tamarindo was my favorite? For some lifetsyles, its a perfect fit, especially young famlies these days that want nightlife, surf and a nice beach, tons of lodging options and still a tropical feel as a surf town...

8

you have recommended tamagringo many times while most of us have written just the opposite. it's a "surf town" like newport beach is a surf town. it's overdeveloped, over-priced and probably the best choice for young people (not families) who want excitement and nightlife without a whiff of authenticity.

9

"Burnt out, unemployed and seeking refuge" sure beats "running from the law in my home country" which can be sadly the case with too many expats. I won't mention any names (and this isn't about anyone posting here) but two guys who have videos about Costa Rica travel talk on one of them about serious legal problems in the USA. Some of these types not only settle in CR but have land deals.

I agree that if your main concern is a tight budget, other countries in Central America would better. But it is still possible to travel in Costa Rica without spending a bomb. I had a $14 per night hotel with a swimming pool and lovely view in La Cruz.

Picking places that aren't on the main tourist trail helps, budget wise. But for that, Spanish would come in handy.

Edited by: RobertoGustavo

10

Costa Rica signed a new security arrangement with the US I read somewhere, I think there are so many deadbeats in CR wanted on all sorts of matters Federal/State back home, they needed to streamline the process between police in both countries...

Belize is not the only country with eccentric millionaires either....plenty in CR doing land deals.

11

Yeah, although it is off the topic the OP is asking about it is worth noting to all first time visitors: Be very careful about entering into business deals. A condo complex I was once interested in (in neighboring Nicaragua) turned out to be a total fraud and run by the most charming person, too. He is now in prison.

Anyway, I didn't mean to take away from the OP's questions....

My vote for a cheap vacation goes to La Cruz and Bahia Salinas in the north.

12

First, thank you everyone for the thoughts and suggestions. Yes, I am unemployed and, yes, I am not looking to spend a lot of money. But I do have resources and it's not like I'm going to be begging on the street. My Spanish used to be passable so I expect with some prior brushing up, I'll have basic communication skills. We may just head into Nicaragua if the advice takes us in that direction.

13

Once you are "In Country"..."Go Native"...

The farther you are from the tourist venues...the more you'll need the local language...

Find a nice village...and ask some one if there are any rooms for rent...

14

I ended up in Montezuma for the majority of my time in CR on this trip. Was horrified at Tarmarindo. Brazilito seemed like a good place to chill out too. Can't say I got into the vibe in Mal Pais/Santa Theresa. Appreciate all the advice. Cheers.