wanted: 8 day authentic CR trip, during peak season

The NW Pacific area from Tamarindo to Coco/Papagayo is all out packed at Xmas. Being High Season Monteverde and Arenal will also be crowded, as these are the two most popular places in the country.

The real CR lies inland overall, where the nature and wildlife are, so consider Rincon, Celeste Tennrio, Cano Negra, and Arenal areas.

For an authentic time in a ranch setting and family style meals, on a river in Tennerio, consider La Carolina Lodge.

Your best served to have a rental car but wait until morning to pick it up. Just stay by airport.

for an inexpensive hotel near the liberia airport, take a look at hotel santa ana. [http://www.hotelsantaanacr.com/] it is 5 minutes from the airport and much less expensive than the hilton garden inn, which is also near the airport. a good nearby restaurant is la choza de laurel.

if you are arriving a bit late in the day, you could consider staying either in playas del coco or playa hermosa - both 30 minutes from the airport and easily accessible by taxi. the next morning, pick up your rental car or just spend a couple of days in one of these beach towns. playa hermosa is much quieter than playas del coco which is only 15 minutes away if you want some water-based activities. here is a good write-up about playas del coco [http://www.anywherecostarica.com/destinations/playa-del-coco-costa-rica] on this same website, you can find information also about nearby playa hermosa or playa ocotal.

whether or not you spend the night at the beach, you could pick up your rental car the next morning and then head for the tenorio national park area and the rio celeste. there are several lodging options near the park entrance, one of them a luxury lodge, and in the nearby town of bijagua. [www.tenoriolodge.com] is one, [www.celestemountainlodge.com] is another - but - my absolute favorite is [www.casitastenorio.com] i think your daughters would love this place. the owners are a nice young couple with a baby. he is also a guide and will be happy to show you the sloths and monkeys that live on their property as well as pointing out birds and frogs and teaching them to milk a cow! they also have horseback riding. (this area is about 2.5 hours from the airport.)

on to the arenal area which is about 2.5 hours from the park. you can actually take one road into the park and continue down that road to the "other" side where you can take the highway to the arenal area.

for something a little different, you can head for a place called la ensenada lodge. [www.laensenada.net]

a few other "off the beaten path" suggestions:

northern pacific beaches of cuajiniquil [www.cuajiniquil.com]
yoko termales at miravalles volcano [www.yokotermales.com]

another great area to consider is the sarapiqui area. you could stay at one of the lodges in that area and take a boat trip on the river or just spend some time hiking the many trails. try this for more information [www.anywherecostarica.com/destinations/sarapiqui-costa-rica]

a really great "off the beaten path" would be a trip to the island of chira.

an excellent organization for "off the beaten path" travel is [www.actuarcostarica.com] there has been a real surge of interest in "rural community tourism" and these people are probably the best at that. they have a great trip to the island of chira that you can read about.

the "off the beaten path" spots will be your best bet to avoid crowds.

as for what will be open on january 1 - it varies. most places will be open and all tourist venues but some places will be closed. it kind of depends on the owner.

The poster should send Wiremu a check....thats some concise info!

Thank you so much! Great suggestions! Just the kinds of things we like. I will look into these places and hopefully they will have some availability. If you or others think of anything else, I'd love to hear. Thanks again!

armstrly - glad i could help. let us know if you have more questions.