solo female traveler.. advice needed on these places

hi, i am going to be spending a couple of days by myself on the road apart from my friends.. which i'm apprehensive about as my spanish is atrocious (but trying to give myself crash course lessons). i was wondering of the following places, which has the best package with regard to.. relatively safe for a solo F traveler, great nature, other tourists to engage in conversation, easy to get to.. possibly in that order

rincon de la vieja...
sounds beautiful, but is it easy to get someplace to sleep in liberia one day in advance? will it be easy to find a tour group since i see that i'm not allowed to hike around by myself...it sounds relatively hard to get around in this area.

montezuma/cabo blanco

cahuita

carara and/or parque nacional de los quetzales.

thanks!

I don't think you'll have any troubles, just have caution if you get a taxi drive you around the driver will try to over charge you, when are you planning to come in green season it's easy to get a room anywhere. You'll probably find tour gruops at the hotel, just ask at reception.

You can get a tour from the beaches in Hermosa or del Coco to Rincon de la Vieja

Cabo Blanco you can get a public bus or a local 'tour´with a guide and gewt free transport included!

MONTEZUMA BEACH

thanks, for rincon de la vieja i was thinking of staying in liberia. do tours not go from there? is it better to start off from one of the beaches?

Your main risk will be petty theft, not personal safety.

At night always be vigilant of your surroundings, especially desolate areas, like anywhere.

Playa Cahuita does have a drug element, kind of a overflow from Limon. Most of it is not involving tourist, but the occasional crackhead may be desperate for a fix...random crime does occur on the beaches and roads, mainly at night or in lone stretches. few reports lately though, so enjoy yourself.

San Jose presents the biggest issues, so always taxi at night, and dont go throwing wealth around...in the way you look or dress...

Ticotims advice re safety is good!

and yes you can get a tour from Liberia, but i'd rather be on the beach
Its less than 40 mins drive from Liberia.

Montezuma is a safe haven full of beautiful wildlife, water falls, beaches and awesome yummy healthy food. It is a town full of progressive ex-pats and locals who are in a constant state of leisure. There are buses that run directly there or to Copano which is a 20 minute cab ride away. You can stay and work(very little to be done) at a butterfly garden for 80 a week which includes 2 meals a day and is a short hike from beautiful waterfalls.

i just spent 3 weeks traveling alone in CR and i am a 43 year old woman. i walked to food at night in san jose. i spent a week in cahuita and i can say that on one of my days i went walkingi n a bikini down the beach and forgot that dark would come quickly once the sun started going down. i returned to find my stuff including my chacos and my cash adn my sarong right where i left it and it was the only stuff on the beach. the place is laid back and safe and there are some sweet deals on places to stay. if you'd like a spot for $10 per night with your own bed and bathroom just a few steps from the ocean and the forest and a sweet breakfast just let me know.

i was also in Limon on my own getting cash at the scotiabank there. just remember to copy your passport and credit cards. scan them if you can and email them to yourself. that way oyu have an electronic copy you can access anytime and you wont have to be so paranoid about safety and your stuff as noone wants to take your pack.

my fave piece of jewelry when i travel alone is a metallic whistle on the end of a long rope that hangs between my boobs. noone sees it but i know its there and i will blow the heck out of that sucker if anyone even scares me.

i never felt afraid in costa rica but i did walk with company as much as possible and basically play as safe as i would in seattle, new york, atlanta or wherever i happen to travel in the USA. no reason to be anymore paranoid in CR than you would at home unless oyu live on your own 10k acre spread.