{"id":7752,"date":"2018-09-24T14:47:14","date_gmt":"2018-09-24T12:47:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/ilbackpacker.it\/?p=7752"},"modified":"2026-10-28T18:23:54","modified_gmt":"2026-10-28T18:23:54","slug":"backpacking-costarica","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ilbackpacker.it\/en\/destinations-en\/costa-rica\/backpacking-costarica\/","title":{"rendered":"Costa Rica Travel Guide"},"content":{"rendered":"<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Costa Rica has historically been one of the most visited countries in Central America. It&#8217;s a country rich in flora and fauna, beautiful beaches, volcanoes and truly hospitable people, and it boasts one of the oldest democracies in the world, in contrast with the other countries in the region.<\/span><\/p>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">In short, Costa Rica has undoubtedly been on the radar of mass tourism for years, a country where traveling is extremely easy and the tourist infrastructure is well developed. The other side of the coin, though, is the cost: for anyone traveling on a small budget, Costa Rica is notoriously the most expensive country in all of Central America, but that certainly doesn&#8217;t make it any less impressive.<\/span><\/p>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">In this guide, you&#8217;ll find lots of useful tips for planning your trip to Costa Rica, as always with an eye on the budget.<\/span><\/p>\r\n<div id=\"quick-menu\" style=\"text-align: left;\"><\/div>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><strong>Quick menu<\/strong><\/p>\r\n\r\n<ul style=\"text-align: left;\">\r\n  <li><a href=\"https:\/\/ilbackpacker.it\/en\/destinations-en\/costa-rica\/backpacking-costarica\/#why\">Why visit Costa Rica<\/a><\/li>\r\n  <li><a href=\"https:\/\/ilbackpacker.it\/en\/destinations-en\/costa-rica\/backpacking-costarica\/#when\">When to visit Costa Rica<\/a><\/li>\r\n  <li><a href=\"https:\/\/ilbackpacker.it\/en\/destinations-en\/costa-rica\/backpacking-costarica\/#doc\">Documents and vaccinations to enter Costa Rica<\/a><\/li>\r\n  <li><a href=\"https:\/\/ilbackpacker.it\/en\/destinations-en\/costa-rica\/backpacking-costarica\/#what\">What to do and see in Costa Rica<\/a>\r\n    <details>\r\n      <summary>Destinations<\/summary>\r\n      <ul>\r\n        <li><a href=\"https:\/\/ilbackpacker.it\/en\/destinations-en\/costa-rica\/backpacking-costarica\/#puerto-viejo\">Puerto Viejo<\/a><\/li>\r\n        <li><a href=\"https:\/\/ilbackpacker.it\/en\/destinations-en\/costa-rica\/backpacking-costarica\/#san-jose\">San Jos\u00e9<\/a><\/li>\r\n        <li><a href=\"https:\/\/ilbackpacker.it\/en\/destinations-en\/costa-rica\/backpacking-costarica\/#quepos\">Quepos<\/a><\/li>\r\n        <li><a href=\"https:\/\/ilbackpacker.it\/en\/destinations-en\/costa-rica\/backpacking-costarica\/#manuel-antonio\">Manuel Antonio National Park<\/a><\/li>\r\n        <li><a href=\"https:\/\/ilbackpacker.it\/en\/destinations-en\/costa-rica\/backpacking-costarica\/#tortuguero\">Tortuguero<\/a><\/li>\r\n        <li><a href=\"https:\/\/ilbackpacker.it\/en\/destinations-en\/costa-rica\/backpacking-costarica\/#monteverde\">Monteverde<\/a><\/li>\r\n        <li><a href=\"https:\/\/ilbackpacker.it\/en\/destinations-en\/costa-rica\/backpacking-costarica\/#la-fortuna\">La Fortuna<\/a><\/li>\r\n        <li><a href=\"https:\/\/ilbackpacker.it\/en\/destinations-en\/costa-rica\/backpacking-costarica\/#nicoya-peninsula\">Nicoya Peninsula<\/a><\/li>\r\n        <li><a href=\"https:\/\/ilbackpacker.it\/en\/destinations-en\/costa-rica\/backpacking-costarica\/#montezuma\">Montezuma<\/a><\/li>\r\n        <li><a href=\"https:\/\/ilbackpacker.it\/en\/destinations-en\/costa-rica\/backpacking-costarica\/#santa-teresa\">Santa Teresa<\/a><\/li>\r\n      <\/ul>\r\n    <\/details>\r\n  <\/li>\r\n  <li><a href=\"https:\/\/ilbackpacker.it\/en\/destinations-en\/costa-rica\/backpacking-costarica\/#iti\">Suggested itineraries in Costa Rica<\/a><\/li>\r\n  <li><a href=\"https:\/\/ilbackpacker.it\/en\/destinations-en\/costa-rica\/backpacking-costarica\/#how\">How to get around Costa Rica<\/a><\/li>\r\n  <li><a href=\"https:\/\/ilbackpacker.it\/en\/destinations-en\/costa-rica\/backpacking-costarica\/#cost\">Backpacking Costa Rica: costs<\/a><\/li>\r\n  <li><a href=\"https:\/\/ilbackpacker.it\/en\/destinations-en\/costa-rica\/backpacking-costarica\/#safe\">Backpacking Costa Rica: safety<\/a><\/li>\r\n<\/ul>\r\n<a href=\"https:\/\/ilbackpacker.it\/en\/destinations-en\/costa-rica\/backpacking-costarica\/#quick-menu\" style=\"position: fixed; right: 18px; bottom: 18px; z-index: 9999; padding: 8px 12px; border: 1px solid #999; border-radius: 6px; background: #fff; text-decoration: none; font-size: 14px;\">\u2191 Menu<\/a>\r\n<img decoding=\"async\" class=\"img-fluid\" src=\"https:\/\/ilbackpacker.it\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/lucertola_basilisco_maschio.jpg\" alt=\"Male basilisk lizard.\" width=\"1110\" height=\"624\" \/>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><em>Male green basilisk lizard, Cahuita National Park. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/ilbackpacker\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Instagram!<\/a><\/em><\/p>\r\n\r\n<div id=\"why\" style=\"text-align: left;\"><\/div>\r\n<h2 style=\"text-align: left;\"><strong>Why visit Costa Rica<\/strong><\/h2>\r\n<ol style=\"text-align: left;\">\r\n \t<li><strong>The people<\/strong> of Costa Rica are known for being among the happiest in the world and for their laid-back lifestyle, often called &#8220;pura vida&#8221;. In general, you can say that the locals are extremely friendly and hospitable.<\/li>\r\n \t<li><strong>Flora and fauna<\/strong>. National parks and protected areas cover 23.4% of the territory, the highest percentage in the world. In a country that takes up only 0.03% of the Earth&#8217;s surface, you&#8217;ll find about 5% of the planet&#8217;s biodiversity, figures that are impressive to say the least.<\/li>\r\n \t<li><strong>A largely modern and safe country<\/strong> with one of the highest human development indexes on the continent. As I already said, Costa Rica is an exception in the region, thanks in part to the abolition of the army back in 1948, an example for many.<\/li>\r\n<\/ol>\r\n<div id=\"when\" style=\"text-align: left;\"><\/div>\r\n<h2 style=\"text-align: left;\"><b>When to visit Costa Rica<\/b><\/h2>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Temperatures in Costa Rica can vary greatly depending on altitude, creating lots of different microclimates. The climate is particularly unpredictable in mountainous areas, but you can still identify two distinct seasons:<\/span><\/p>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><strong>The dry season<\/strong><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> runs from mid-November to April. During this period there&#8217;s almost no rain, the skies are clear and temperatures are excellent.<\/span><\/p>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><strong>The rainy season<\/strong><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> runs from May to mid-November. Rainfall is heaviest during September and October, often concentrated in the afternoon, while mornings are sunny.<\/span><\/p>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The best times to visit Costa Rica are November, April (after Easter), and May, when the rains are just over or just beginning. During these months, nature is lush, and prices are lower than during the high season, which runs from December to March.<\/span><\/p>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">That said, I personally visited the country in June, so during the rainy season. Maybe I was lucky, but the weather certainly wasn&#8217;t bad. The only two months that are best avoided, if possible, are September and October.<\/span><\/p>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"img-fluid\" src=\"https:\/\/ilbackpacker.it\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/libellula_costa_rica.jpg\" alt=\"Dragonfly in Costa Rica\" width=\"1110\" height=\"624\" \/><\/p>\r\n\r\n<div id=\"doc\" style=\"text-align: left;\"><\/div>\r\n<h2 style=\"text-align: left;\"><b>Documents and vaccinations to enter Costa Rica<\/b><\/h2>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\">With an Italian passport you get a free 90-day tourist visa from the moment you enter the country (the rules change depending on your nationality, so check yours). You can do the classic &#8220;visa run&#8221;, which means leaving and re-entering the country to get another 90 days, practically indefinitely if you&#8217;re interested; I&#8217;ve met people who&#8217;ve been doing it for decades.<\/p>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><a href=\"http:\/\/www.migracion.go.cr\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">This is the official immigration website<\/a>.<\/p>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\">Officially, Costa Rica <strong>requires proof of onward travel within the limits of your visa<\/strong>. This isn&#8217;t a problem for anyone who has a return flight or a flight to another country (a bus ticket is fine too), but it could be for those who have a one-way ticket and plan to leave the country by land or sea without a set date or booked tickets.<\/p>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\">Checks are at the discretion of the border officer and of the airlines at check-in before departure; I wasn&#8217;t asked for anything. This is also the experience of lots of other travelers, but reading the various online forums, there are cases of people who were actually asked for proof of onward travel. My advice is to rent a ticket (a real one, it&#8217;s a paid service) on a site like <a href=\"https:\/\/onwardticket.com\/?a=Ilbackpacker\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">onwardticket<\/a> or use <a href=\"http:\/\/www.returnflights.net\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">returnflights.net<\/a> (free, no frills) to print a fake booking!<\/p>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\">Vaccinations for hepatitis A and B are recommended. As for yellow fever, the disease isn&#8217;t present in the country, but if you&#8217;re coming from, or have recently been (less than 6 days) in, a yellow fever risk country (much of South America and central Africa), then the certificate is mandatory.<\/p>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\">For up-to-date information on visas and so on, I recommend checking your own government&#8217;s official travel advice (for example, the UK&#8217;s <a href=\"https:\/\/www.gov.uk\/foreign-travel-advice\/costa-rica\">Foreign travel advice<\/a>).<\/p>\r\n\r\n<div id=\"what\" style=\"text-align: left;\"><\/div>\r\n<h2 style=\"text-align: left;\"><b>What to do and see in Costa Rica<\/b><\/h2>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Let&#8217;s talk briefly about the currency situation, since you&#8217;ll often find references to prices in this guide. The local currency, called the &#8220;col\u00f3n&#8221; and abbreviated &#8220;CRC&#8221;, is the official one, but in practice there&#8217;s another official currency: the US dollar.<\/span><\/p>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The US dollar is in fact accepted practically everywhere, can be withdrawn from ATMs and is often used as the official currency when it comes to prices for tourist activities.<\/span><\/p>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">I recommend carrying both currencies because, when dealing with transport\/food and local businesses, it&#8217;s cheaper to pay in col\u00f3n: although the dollar is accepted, you&#8217;re often given an unfavorable exchange rate. For paying hostels\/hotels, tours and park entrances, on the other hand, the dollar is often cheaper.<\/span><\/p>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The exchange rate is about 1\u20ac = 513 CRC and 1$ = 457 CRC. For the current exchange rate, I suggest you <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.xe.com\/currencyconverter\/convert\/?Amount=1&amp;From=EUR&amp;To=CRC\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">check this page<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">.<\/span><\/p>\r\n<img decoding=\"async\" class=\"img-fluid\" src=\"https:\/\/ilbackpacker.it\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/mappa_turistica_costa_rica.jpg\" alt=\"Map of things to do and see on a trip to Costa Rica.\" width=\"700\" height=\"777\" \/>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><em>N.B. Several times throughout the guide, you&#8217;ll find links to <\/em><a href=\"https:\/\/www.alltrails.com\/\"><em>https:\/\/www.alltrails.com\/<\/em><\/a><em>. If you want to use offline navigation directly from the AllTrails app, you need to upgrade to the pro version. However, you can get around this by downloading the coordinates from the desktop version of the site in &#8220;Google Earth KML&#8221; format and then loading them onto <\/em><a href=\"https:\/\/organicmaps.app\/\"><em>Organic Maps<\/em><\/a><em>, which is by far one of my <\/em><a href=\"https:\/\/ilbackpacker.it\/en\/start-here\/app-travelling\/\"><em>favorite travel apps<\/em><\/a><em>.<\/em><\/p>\r\n\r\n<div id=\"puerto-viejo\" style=\"text-align: left;\"><\/div>\r\n<h3 style=\"text-align: left;\"><b>Puerto Viejo<\/b><\/h3>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Puerto Viejo is now a permanent fixture on any Costa Rica itinerary: beaches, palm trees, good surf and an atmosphere that&#8217;s laid-back to say the least attract thousands of travelers every year. Located on the Caribbean coast, about an hour south of Limon, it&#8217;s an excellent base for exploring the nearby Cahuita National Park and for breaking up the journey north if you&#8217;re coming from Panama.<\/span><\/p>\r\n\r\n<h3 style=\"text-align: left;\"><b>What to do and see in Puerto Viejo<\/b><\/h3>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">There are lots of beaches, and in the evening, although the town is relatively small, there are numerous bars and restaurants along the main street. If you&#8217;re interested, some of the beaches nearby have excellent surfing conditions!<\/span><\/p>\r\n<h4 style=\"text-align: left;\"><b>Cahuita National Park<\/b><\/h4>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Cahuita National Park is only a 15-20 minute bus ride north of Puerto Viejo and is undoubtedly one of the best places to see the incredible nature this country has to offer. The park has two entrances: the main one from the small town of Cahuita (<\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/maps.app.goo.gl\/eG7kmvjfzkGPc9xf8\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Google Maps<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">) where entry is by voluntary donation and a second entrance from Puerto Vargas (<\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/maps.app.goo.gl\/E49g3n8REgesScAw9\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Google Maps<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">) where the cost is $5 &#8211; I don&#8217;t get the point, but that&#8217;s how it is!<\/span><\/p>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The two entrances are connected by a well-marked and well-maintained trail that alternates between the forest and the beach. Along these roughly 8 km (<\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.alltrails.com\/trail\/costa-rica\/limon\/sendero-de-la-punta-cahuita?u=m&amp;sh=mxqbmj\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">All Trails<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">) if you pay attention you can see a lot of animals. I saw monkeys, giant lizards, a caiman, a group of raccoons and an iguana. Playa Blanca (<\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/maps.app.goo.gl\/ZsWTPmiXoPdwkMqZ6\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Google Maps<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">), one of the two beaches crossed by the trail, is really pretty and swimming is allowed.<\/span><\/p>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">I recommend spending the whole day inside the park and following the trail from start to finish. The bus to take is the one heading to Limon, which should leave every hour or so; the Puerto Vargas access stop is along the main road, while to enter from Cahuita you&#8217;d better get off once you get to the terminal. The bus costs about $1.5 each way.<\/span><\/p>\r\n<img decoding=\"async\" class=\"img-fluid\" src=\"https:\/\/ilbackpacker.it\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/iguana_costa_rica.jpg\" alt=\"Iguana in Cahuita National Park\" width=\"1110\" height=\"624\" \/>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><em>Iguana on the beach in Cahuita Park.<\/em><\/p>\r\n\r\n<h4 style=\"text-align: left;\"><b>Rent a bike<\/b><\/h4>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Numerous hostels rent bikes for about $5 a day. The almost completely flat stretch of coastal road, just under 15 km long, leading to Playa Manzanillo (<\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/maps.app.goo.gl\/RPDcFcWY38GWoYfM7\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Google Maps<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">) is extremely popular to ride as the road ends at this point and there&#8217;s very little traffic.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Along the way there are numerous beaches where you can stop. The most popular and pretty are <\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Playa Cocles (<\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/maps.app.goo.gl\/w9amHBhxnExKgb2E8\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Google Maps<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">), Playa Chiquita (<\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/maps.app.goo.gl\/1dRgtptYY27rq6eg6\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Google Maps<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">) and Punta Uva (<\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/maps.app.goo.gl\/iqaCwwxp1k2wUtSa7\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Google Maps<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">). Just outside Puerto Viejo, in the direction of Manzanillo, there&#8217;s a wildlife rescue center (<\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/maps.app.goo.gl\/3ehVmeGPU4jWt5HK8\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Google Maps<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">) that offers guided tours of about an hour and a half &#8211; at 9:30 and 11:30, Monday to Saturday, and the cost is $27. I was told that the center is really nice and the money is donated to a good cause. <\/span><a href=\"http:\/\/www.jaguarrescue.foundation\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">This is the website<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">.<\/span><\/p>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><b><i>Where to stay in Puerto Viejo?<\/i><\/b><\/p>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">I&#8217;ve been told that the hostel where I&#8217;d stayed never reopened after COVID. So I recommend checking out <\/span><\/i><a href=\"https:\/\/www.booking.com\/hotel\/cr\/pagalu-hostel.en.html?aid=1680713&amp;no_rooms=1&amp;group_adults=2\"><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Pagal\u00f9 Hostel<\/span><\/i><\/a><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, great reviews and a central location. If you don&#8217;t mind staying slightly outside the center, consider <\/span><\/i><a href=\"https:\/\/www.booking.com\/hotel\/cr\/tasty-dayz-hostel.en.html?aid=1680713&amp;no_rooms=1&amp;group_adults=2\"><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Tasty Dayz Hostel<\/span><\/i><\/a><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">.<\/span><\/i><\/p>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><b><i>How to reach Puerto Viejo?<\/i><\/b><\/p>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">To and from San Jos\u00e9 there are 6-7 departures a day. If, on the other hand, you&#8217;re arriving from or continuing your trip to Panama, later in this guide you&#8217;ll find detailed instructions on how to cross the border.<\/span><\/i><\/p>\r\n<img decoding=\"async\" class=\"img-fluid\" src=\"https:\/\/ilbackpacker.it\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/puerto_viejo.jpg\" alt=\"Puerto Viejo beach, Costa Rica\" width=\"1110\" height=\"624\" \/>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><em>Along the beach in Puerto Viejo.<\/em><\/p>\r\n\r\n<div id=\"san-jose\" style=\"text-align: left;\"><\/div>\r\n<h3 style=\"text-align: left;\"><b>San Jos\u00e9<\/b><\/h3>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">For many travelers, San Jos\u00e9 is simply a waypoint to reach the next destination within the country. Due to Costa Rica&#8217;s road system, traveling from one coast to another or crossing the country from north to south almost always involves passing through the capital.<\/span><\/p>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">I spent only one day in San Jos\u00e9, but it gave me the impression that it was much more livable than other Central American capitals. Also, since it sits at 1,172 meters, temperatures are pleasant all year round.<\/span><\/p>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Even if you&#8217;re coming from another country, sooner or later you&#8217;ll end up passing through San Jos\u00e9. Many people get straight on a bus to their next destination, but if you have time, spend a few days in the city: take a stroll downtown and walk along Avenida Central (<\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/maps.app.goo.gl\/jKbKtJYaQf8hk1Jb6\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Google Maps<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">). The area is nice, and there are a couple of museums nearby.<\/span><\/p>\r\n\r\n<h4 style=\"text-align: left;\"><b>Po\u00e1s Volcano National Park<\/b><\/h4>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">There is, however, an interesting day trip you could take starting right from San Jos\u00e9: the one to Po\u00e1s volcano (<\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/maps.app.goo.gl\/MxcBqGR6G7emhjyA8\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Google Maps<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">). This is an active stratovolcano with a small sulfuric acid lake inside the crater, and the view is really impressive.<\/span><\/p>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">During my visit to Costa Rica, the park was closed due to a recent eruption. I encourage you to do your own research.<\/span><\/p>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">To reach Po\u00e1s Volcano Park, there&#8217;s only one bus a day, so plan accordingly. <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/mytanfeet.com\/costa-rica-national-park\/poas-volcano\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">You can find a detailed guide on this page.<\/span><\/a><\/p>\r\n<img decoding=\"async\" class=\"img-fluid\" src=\"https:\/\/ilbackpacker.it\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/vulcano_poas.jpg\" alt=\"Crater of the Po\u00e1s volcano near San Jos\u00e9\" width=\"1110\" height=\"624\" \/>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><em>Crater of the Po\u00e1s volcano.<\/em><\/p>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><b><i>Where to stay in San Jos\u00e9?<\/i><\/b><\/p>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><em><a href=\"https:\/\/www.booking.com\/hotel\/cr\/cat-hostel.en.html?aid=1680713&amp;no_rooms=1&amp;group_adults=2\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Stray Cat Hostel<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> is a really great hostel: clean, cheap, exceptional staff and breakfast included! It&#8217;s slightly outside the center, in a residential area a short distance from terminal 7-10 and the Caribe terminal, so perfect for saving time and money.<\/span><\/em><\/p>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><b><i>How to reach San Jos\u00e9?<\/i><\/b><\/p>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">From the airport there are buses leaving every 5 minutes to downtown San Jos\u00e9 that cost less than $1; a taxi costs $25-30.<\/span><\/i><\/p>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">From any other city in Costa Rica, there are most likely direct buses to the capital several times a day. To reach your next destination, though, be careful, because unfortunately there are several bus terminals in San Jos\u00e9 typically divided by the destination region they serve.<\/span><\/i><\/p>\r\n\r\n<div id=\"quepos\" style=\"text-align: left;\"><\/div>\r\n<h3 style=\"text-align: left;\"><b>Quepos<\/b><\/h3>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Quepos is a small town south of San Jos\u00e9 used as a base for exploring the nearby Manuel Antonio National Park. There&#8217;s not much to do in town, but if you happen to be around on a Friday evening or Saturday morning then I suggest you drop by the market (<\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/maps.app.goo.gl\/HacmdGQt5tqNEyWF7\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Google Maps<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">) held once a week: you can stock up on fruit at bargain prices and have a typical local experience at the same time. But now let&#8217;s move on to the main attraction.<\/span><\/p>\r\n\r\n<div id=\"manuel-antonio\" style=\"text-align: left;\"><\/div>\r\n<h3 style=\"text-align: left;\"><b>Manuel Antonio National Park<\/b><\/h3>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Manuel Antonio is the smallest national park in the country but undoubtedly one of the most visited because of its beauty and accessibility. There are numerous trails; the most popular is a short hike that leads to Manuel Antonio beach (<\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/maps.app.goo.gl\/Bo1TsXYeWEk96ctd6\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Google Maps<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">). The beach is really nice with lots of trees for shelter from the sun but it&#8217;s also the most crowded; you&#8217;ll probably see monkeys and raccoons frolicking on the beach among the visitors.<\/span><\/p>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Many people stop here but I recommend walking the other trails as well (<\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.alltrails.com\/trail\/costa-rica\/puntarenas--2\/excursion-completa-de-manuel-antonio?u=m&amp;sh=mxqbmj\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">All Trails<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">). The park is home to over 100 species of mammals and 180 species of birds, so seeing animals won&#8217;t be difficult at all; among the most common in addition to the monkeys and raccoons already mentioned are numerous lizards, iguanas, sloths and frogs.<\/span><\/p>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The park is open Tuesday to Sunday from 7:00 to 16:00 and admission costs $16. The number of people allowed inside the park at one time is limited, so it pays to go early in the morning and enjoy it to the fullest. To reach it from nearby Quepos, just take one of the buses that leave about every half hour, 305 CRC, about 10 minutes.<\/span><\/p>\r\n<img decoding=\"async\" class=\"img-fluid\" src=\"https:\/\/ilbackpacker.it\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/spiaggia_manuel_antonio.jpg\" alt=\"Manuel Antonio park beach.\" width=\"1110\" height=\"624\" \/>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><em>Manuel Antonio beach.<\/em><\/p>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><b><i>Where to stay in Quepos?<\/i><\/b><\/p>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><a href=\"https:\/\/prf.hn\/l\/55AOE0w\"><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Passifloras Hostel<\/span><\/i><\/a><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> is a good budget hostel in downtown Quepos but there are plenty of options in and around town.<\/span><\/i><\/p>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><b><i>How to reach Quepos?<\/i><\/b><\/p>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">From San Jos\u00e9, buses leave from Tracopa Bus Terminal (<\/span><\/i><a href=\"https:\/\/maps.app.goo.gl\/ZdVKVBtVGuAxxT4g7\"><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Google Maps<\/span><\/i><\/a><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">). <\/span><\/i><a href=\"https:\/\/centrocoasting.com\/costarica\/quepos\/\"><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">On this page you can find all the connections<\/span><\/i><\/a><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">.<\/span><\/i><\/p>\r\n\r\n<div id=\"tortuguero\" style=\"text-align: left;\"><\/div>\r\n<h3 style=\"text-align: left;\"><b>Tortuguero<\/b><\/h3>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The small town of Tortuguero (literally &#8220;turtle region&#8221;), located within the national park of the same name, is undoubtedly one of the most remote and wild places in the country. Its beaches are famous for the thousands of turtles that return each year to lay their eggs, making it one of the best places in the world to observe this phenomenon.<\/span><\/p>\r\n\r\n<h3 style=\"text-align: left;\"><b>Tortuguero National Park<\/b><\/h3>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The park can be visited year-round, but in my opinion it&#8217;s during the turtle nesting season that it&#8217;s really worth visiting. Tours to observe this phenomenon are offered by practically everyone, starting at $20; the season runs from April to May for leatherback turtles and from July to October for green turtles. Tours take place in the evening and last a couple of hours on average.<\/span><\/p>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">In addition to the famous beach, the park also includes numerous freshwater canals and lagoons that branch out through the lush forest that dominates the area, also called the Amazon of Costa Rica. Many lodges and agencies in town offer boat or canoe tours to observe wildlife including caimans, freshwater turtles, monkeys, numerous bird species and more, again starting at about $20.<\/span><\/p>\r\n<img decoding=\"async\" class=\"img-fluid\" src=\"https:\/\/ilbackpacker.it\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/Tortuguero_tour_barca.jpg\" alt=\"Boat tour in Tortuguero National Park\" width=\"1110\" height=\"624\" \/>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><em>Tortuguero National Park boat tour.<\/em><\/p>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><b><i>Where to stay in Tortuguero?<\/i><\/b><\/p>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><a href=\"https:\/\/prf.hn\/click\/camref:1100l3LP6\/destination:https%3A%2F%2Fwww.hostelworld.com%2Fhosteldetails.php%2FCabinas-Tortuguero%2FTortuguero%2F97504%3FdateFrom%3D2018-09-07%26dateTo%3D2018-09-08%26number_of_guests%3D1\"><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Cabinas Tortuguero<\/span><\/i><\/a><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> is a good budget hostel, but there are lots of more or less affordable options, including lodges completely immersed in the forest that look really nice.<\/span><\/i><\/p>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><b><i>How to reach Tortuguero?<\/i><\/b><\/p>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">As I said, this is a fairly remote place that can be reached by plane (expensive) or with a combination of boat and bus, as follows. Take the 9:00 bus from San Jos\u00e9 to Cariari from the Gran Caribe terminal (<\/span><\/i><a href=\"https:\/\/maps.app.goo.gl\/EqG5pL8NXxm87wU96\"><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Google Maps<\/span><\/i><\/a><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">).<\/span><\/i><\/p>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The bus should arrive in Cariari around 11:00, and from there you have to take the direct bus to La Pavona, which leaves at 11:30. In La Pavona there&#8217;s a boat transfer to Tortuguero, where you arrive around 15:00 after an hour and a half or two on the boat. The whole trip costs about $10. To return, follow the instructions in reverse: the boats from Tortuguero to La Pavona should leave at 5:30, 11:00 and 14:30 every day.<\/span><\/i><\/p>\r\n\r\n<div id=\"monteverde\" style=\"text-align: left;\"><\/div>\r\n<h3 style=\"text-align: left;\"><b>Monteverde<\/b><\/h3>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Monteverde became famous following the publication of an article in National Geographic where it was described as the best place in the world to observe the <\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">rare <\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">resplendent quetzal and has since <\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">attracted nature lovers from all over the world. The Monteverde Cloud Forest is one of the most visited places in the country and undoubtedly a destination that is almost always part of the itinerary for a trip to Costa Rica.<\/span><\/p>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Small note: Monteverde refers to the entire community made up of Santa Elena (the main town) and the numerous villages around it.<\/span><\/i><\/p>\r\n<img decoding=\"async\" class=\"img-fluid\" src=\"https:\/\/ilbackpacker.it\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/Monteverde_puente.jpg\" alt=\"Suspension bridge in the cloud forest, Costa Rica\" width=\"1110\" height=\"624\" \/>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><em>Suspension bridge, Monteverde Reserve.<\/em><\/p>\r\n\r\n<h3 style=\"text-align: left;\"><b>What to do and see in Monteverde<\/b><\/h3>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">There are numerous reserves in the area: the Monteverde Cloud Forest, the Santa Elena Cloud Forest, the Bosque Eterno de los Ni\u00f1os (&#8220;children&#8217;s eternal forest&#8221;) reserve and Bajo del Tigre.<\/span><\/p>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Monteverde Reserve<\/span> <span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">(<\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/maps.app.goo.gl\/nUPPrPsowhc9FHU8A\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Google Maps<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">)<\/span> <span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">is the most popular. It has well-maintained trails with numerous viewpoints and a suspension bridge in the middle of the forest. The reserve is open every day from 7:00 to 16:00, and admission costs $20. <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.alltrails.com\/trail\/costa-rica\/puntarenas--2\/senderos-nuboso-la-ventana-camino-wilford-guindon-tosi-quebrada-cuecha?u=m&amp;sh=mxqbmj\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">I recommend hiking this trail<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The Santa Elena reserve (<\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/maps.app.goo.gl\/ExLwjMtaDMAXTGiy8\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Google Maps<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">) is at a higher elevation and is therefore wetter and more immersed in clouds. Here too there are several trails including one that leads to a nice viewpoint from which you can see the Arenal volcano, as long as it isn&#8217;t too cloudy. The reserve is open every day from 7:00 to 16:00, and admission costs $16. <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.alltrails.com\/trail\/costa-rica\/guanacaste\/senderos-youth-challenge-cano-negro-encantado-y-del-bajo?u=m&amp;sh=mxqbmj\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">I recommend hiking this trail<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">.<\/span><\/p>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">For the two most famous reserves there are direct buses that leave from town in front of Banco Nacional (<\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/maps.app.goo.gl\/8WAshbz7ZS8E36baA\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Google Maps<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">) 4-5 times a day. You can find the schedule <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/monteverdecostarica-info.weebly.com\/bus-schedule.html\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">here<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">. I recommend going early in the morning when the trails are less crowded and the animals are more active so the chances of seeing some of them are greater.<\/span><\/p>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">As you can see, entry to the reserves isn&#8217;t cheap, and if you want to be accompanied by a guide or join a night tour, the costs go up. For those on a tight budget, I think the Santa Elena reserve is the best option of the three.<\/span><\/p>\r\n\r\n<h3 style=\"text-align: left;\"><b>Ziplining in Monteverde<\/b><\/h3>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">This is a fairly expensive activity that I haven&#8217;t personally done, but it was recommended to me by lots of travelers and it&#8217;s undoubtedly a popular thing to do in Monteverde. There are four different parks offering ziplining; they all have good reviews and I think it&#8217;s very subjective, but if it helps, a dear friend recommended <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.tripadvisor.com\/ShowUserReviews-g951347-d623319-r460381093-Selvatura_Park-Monteverde_Province_of_Puntarenas.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Selvatura<\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> to me (<\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/maps.app.goo.gl\/sCn4hkvKHYiDzmho8\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Google Maps<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">); the price is $80 plus tax (updated October 2026) for a tour of a couple of hours that includes 13 ziplines, one of which is over 1 km long. This is the <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/selvatura.com\/tours\/canopy-tour\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">official website<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">.<\/span><\/p>\r\n<img decoding=\"async\" class=\"img-fluid\" src=\"https:\/\/ilbackpacker.it\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/zipline_costa_rica.jpg\" alt=\"Ziplining in Monteverde, Costa Rica\" width=\"1110\" height=\"624\" \/>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><em>Ziplining in Monteverde.<\/em><\/p>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><b><i>Where to stay in Monteverde?<\/i><\/b><\/p>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.booking.com\/hotel\/cr\/mi-casa-tica-planta-baja.en.html?aid=1680713&amp;no_rooms=1&amp;group_adults=2\"><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Mi Casa Tica<\/span><\/i><\/a><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> is a very spartan but incredibly cheap hostel and all in all not bad.<\/span><\/i><\/p>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><b><i>How to reach Monteverde?<\/i><\/b><\/p>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">From San Jos\u00e9 there are two buses a day from terminal 7-10 (<\/span><\/i><a href=\"https:\/\/maps.app.goo.gl\/VaCjm6hbdUZZNWxy7\"><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Google Maps<\/span><\/i><\/a><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">), at 6:30 and 14:30; it takes about 5 hours. <\/span><\/i><a href=\"https:\/\/www.transmonteverde.com\/\"><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">You can buy your ticket online<\/span><\/i><\/a><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">.<\/span><\/i><\/p>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">From Nicaragua, or from anywhere in northwestern Costa Rica, get to the city of Liberia; from there take the bus to Ca\u00f1as, then Tilar\u00e1n &#8211; Santa Elena (last bus at 17:00). Departures are frequent, but there are lots of changes to make, so try to leave early in the morning.<\/span><\/i><\/p>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">From Puntarenas there are 4 buses: 8:00, 13:15, 13:30, 14:15, about 3 hours of travel, 1455 CRC.<\/span><\/i><\/p>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">From La Fortuna \/ Arenal take the 8:00 bus to Tilaran and from there the one to Santa Elena.<\/span><\/i><\/p>\r\n\r\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><em><strong>Planning your trip? If you still need travel insurance, you can find my <a href=\"https:\/\/ilbackpacker.it\/en\/start-here\/safety\/travel-insurance\/\">guide to the best travel insurance<\/a> here. Purchasing through the links in the guide supports this site at no additional cost to you.<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\r\n<div id=\"la-fortuna\" style=\"text-align: left;\"><\/div>\r\n<h3 style=\"text-align: left;\"><b>La Fortuna<\/b><\/h3>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Formerly known as Burio, it was renamed after the 1968 eruption of the volcano, which completely razed 3 villages but miraculously spared El Burio, now called La Fortuna. The town is the ideal base for exploring the nearby Arenal Volcano National Park.<\/span><\/p>\r\n\r\n<h3 style=\"text-align: left;\"><b>What to do and see in La Fortuna<\/b><\/h3>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">There are lots of activities to do, both inside and outside the national park, such as canyoning, ziplining, horseback riding, waterfalls and hot springs, just to name a few, and I&#8217;m sure you won&#8217;t have any trouble finding an agency in town, although it&#8217;s all pretty expensive.<\/span><\/p>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">In fact, the destination is absolutely not a budget one: the tours offered in town are really expensive, and getting around the various attractions without your own vehicle or a taxi is difficult, even when it comes to reaching the entrance to Arenal National Park. The only bus to the entrance of the national park and back to La Fortuna is the one headed to Tilaran, which drops you off at the junction leading to the park, about 3 km from the actual entrance. The bus has the following, not exactly ideal, schedule, and a taxi costs around $20.<\/span><\/p>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Tilar\u00e1n &#8211; La Fortuna: 7:00, 12:15, 15:30<\/span><\/p>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">La Fortuna &#8211; Tilar\u00e1n: 6:30, 11:30, 15:55<\/span><\/p>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Discouraged by other travelers&#8217; stories and the research I did (particularly <\/span><a href=\"http:\/\/www.twobagsandasuitcase.com\/2017\/el-arenal-la-fortuna-budget-cheap-travel\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">this article<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">), I decided to skip it. Just to give you an idea: Canyoning costs about $100, access to the famous and crowded La Fortuna waterfall (<\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/maps.app.goo.gl\/hSYqHPcWQS4C8tuf8\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Google Maps<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">) costs $20, and the many hot springs cost from $35 and up. Anyway, the choice is yours: if your budget allows, I&#8217;m sure the places in question are incredible, but I also believe there are other destinations within the country where you can have the same kind of experiences without spending a fortune, especially when it comes to national parks.<\/span><\/p>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><a href=\"https:\/\/mytanfeet.com\/cities-costa-rica\/la-fortuna-de-san-carlos-a-real-fortune-in-nature\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Here you can find a very detailed guide about what to do in La Fortuna.<\/span><\/a><\/p>\r\n<img decoding=\"async\" class=\"img-fluid\" src=\"https:\/\/ilbackpacker.it\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/vulcano_arenal_costarica.jpg\" alt=\"The Arenal volcano in La Fortuna\" width=\"1110\" height=\"624\" \/>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><em>Arenal volcano, La Fortuna.<\/em><\/p>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><b><i>How to reach La Fortuna?<\/i><\/b><\/p>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">From San Jos\u00e9, from terminal 7-10 (<\/span><\/i><a href=\"https:\/\/maps.app.goo.gl\/VaCjm6hbdUZZNWxy7\"><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Google Maps<\/span><\/i><\/a><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">), there are buses at 6:15, 8:40 and 11:30; it takes about 4 hours.<\/span><\/i><\/p>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">From Monteverde, take the 7:00 bus to Tilaran. From Tilaran, take the 12:30 bus to La Fortuna.<\/span><\/i><\/p>\r\n\r\n<div id=\"nicoya-peninsula\" style=\"text-align: left;\"><\/div>\r\n<h3 style=\"text-align: left;\"><b>Nicoya Peninsula<\/b><\/h3>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The Nicoya Peninsula is sprinkled with small surfer towns, beautiful beaches, and places still relatively far from mass tourism where mainly only backpackers venture. Traveling within the peninsula can be a slow process as the roads aren&#8217;t well maintained and in places are still unpaved.<\/span><\/p>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">As I said, the peninsula is extremely popular with surfers or would-be surfers and with those who simply want to see a different side of Costa Rica from its main tourist destinations.<\/span><\/p>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Fun fact: the peninsula is a so-called <\/span><\/i><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Blue_zone\"><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">blue zone<\/span><\/i><\/a><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> i.e., a demographic\/geographic area where life expectancy is considerably higher than in the rest of the world, in short, a very special place!<\/span><\/i><\/p>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">But now let&#8217;s look at some popular destinations within the peninsula:<\/span><\/p>\r\n\r\n<div id=\"montezuma\" style=\"text-align: left;\"><\/div>\r\n<h3 style=\"text-align: left;\"><b>Montezuma<\/b><\/h3>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Montezuma is probably the most popular destination in the southern part of the peninsula, especially because it can be reached from San Jos\u00e9 in 4-5 hours. The town has a reputation for being a bit hippie, with all that entails. Surfing and partying are very common activities, but there are also some trails in the surrounding area, such as the one leading to Montezuma Waterfall (<\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/maps.app.goo.gl\/eTF26uLQUNQHsjn56\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Google Maps<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">).<\/span><\/p>\r\n\r\n<div id=\"santa-teresa\" style=\"text-align: left;\"><\/div>\r\n<h3 style=\"text-align: left;\"><b>Santa Teresa<\/b><\/h3>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Santa Teresa is where I spent my stay on the Nicoya Peninsula. The town has seen a lot of development in recent years, but it&#8217;s still just a dirt road with buildings on the right and left. The conditions for surfing, and for learning to surf, are excellent all year round, and even someone who &#8211; like yours truly &#8211; is definitely not a fan of the sport can spend a fantastic week of sea, beach, relaxation and some of the most spectacular sunsets of their life.<\/span><\/p>\r\n<img decoding=\"async\" class=\"img-fluid\" src=\"https:\/\/ilbackpacker.it\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/tramonto_santa_teresa.jpg\" alt=\"Sunset in Santa Teresa, Costa Rica\" width=\"1110\" height=\"624\" \/>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><em>Sunset in Santa Teresa.<\/em><\/p>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><b><i>Where to stay in Santa Teresa?<\/i><\/b><\/p>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The hostel where I&#8217;d stayed has closed, so I recommend checking out <\/span><\/i><a href=\"https:\/\/www.booking.com\/hotel\/cr\/casa-del-sol-santa-teresa-beach.en.html?aid=1680713&amp;no_rooms=1&amp;group_adults=2\"><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Casa del Sol<\/span><\/i><\/a><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> and <\/span><\/i><a href=\"https:\/\/www.booking.com\/hotel\/cr\/ico-living-hostel.en.html?aid=1680713&amp;no_rooms=1&amp;group_adults=2\"><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">ICO Living Hostel<\/span><\/i><\/a><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">.<\/span><\/i><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u00a0<\/span><\/i><\/p>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><b><i>How to reach Santa Teresa and Montezuma?<\/i><\/b><\/p>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">From San Jos\u00e9, the most practical and fastest way to reach Santa Teresa and Montezuma is to take the direct bus from terminal 7-10, departing at 6:00 and 14:00, 7545 CRC to Santa Teresa and 7320 CRC to Montezuma; the 800 CRC ferry fare is included.<\/span><\/i><\/p>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">To save a bit of money starting from San Jos\u00e9, or if you&#8217;re somewhere else in the country, you could break up the trip. First you have to get to Puntarenas; from the terminal to the port it&#8217;s 5 minutes by taxi (1500 CRC), or you can walk like I did, about half an hour.<\/span><\/i><\/p>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The ferries to Paquera, where buses wait to take you on to Cobano, leave at 05:00, 09:00, 11:00, 14:00 and 17:00. Once you get to Cobano, there are connections to Montezuma and Santa Teresa. Doing it this way saves a bit of money, but I don&#8217;t think it&#8217;s worth it; if you&#8217;re not in San Jos\u00e9, though, it&#8217;s the only option available. Anyway, on <\/span><\/i><a href=\"https:\/\/centrocoasting.com\/costarica\/puntarenas\/\"><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">this site<\/span><\/i><\/a><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> you&#8217;ll find all the schedules you might need.<\/span><\/i><\/p>\r\n\r\n<h3 style=\"text-align: left;\"><b>Other destinations in the Nicoya Peninsula<\/b><\/h3>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">As I said, there are dozens of possible destinations along the coast of the Nicoya Peninsula: between Santa Teresa and Montezuma there&#8217;s Playa Mal Pais, and a little further north Manzanillo, both still relatively undeveloped.<\/span><\/p>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">In the northern part of the peninsula, on the other hand, there are Samara and Tamarindo, both much more developed, since they became popular destinations much earlier and are more easily accessible thanks to connections from the city of Nicoya (the regional capital). I haven&#8217;t personally been there, but I think they&#8217;re destinations more frequented by families.<\/span><\/p>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><a href=\"https:\/\/mytanfeet.com\/cities-costa-rica\/nicoya-peninsula-blue-zone\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Here you can find an overview of the various destinations<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">.<\/span><\/p>\r\n\r\n<h3 style=\"text-align: left;\"><b>Other national parks in Costa Rica<\/b><\/h3>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">There are 27 national parks, 30 protected areas and numerous private reserves. In this guide I&#8217;ve only mentioned a few of them; obviously, visiting them all in a single trip is unthinkable, and for independent travelers, especially those on a limited budget, some parks are too expensive to reach or visit: Corcovado National Park, for example, doesn&#8217;t allow access without a guide, others can&#8217;t be reached by public transport, and so on.<\/span><\/p>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">In my opinion, if you&#8217;re on a limited budget, visiting 2-3 parks is more than enough. For example, you could visit Cahuita or Manuel Antonio among the coastal parks, the Santa Elena reserve in Monteverde to see the cloud forest, and, if you happen to be in Costa Rica during the right season, Tortuguero. Visiting these 3-4 parks is more than enough, but if you have the chance to visit them all, good for you, I envy you!<\/span><\/p>\r\n<img decoding=\"async\" class=\"img-fluid\" src=\"https:\/\/ilbackpacker.it\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/lucertola_cahuita.jpg\" alt=\"Green basilisk lizard\" width=\"1110\" height=\"624\" \/>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><em>Female green basilisk lizard.<\/em><\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n<h3 style=\"text-align: left;\"><b>Crossing the Costa Rica-Nicaragua border<\/b><\/h3>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">If you&#8217;re continuing your trip to <a href=\"https:\/\/ilbackpacker.it\/en\/destinations-en\/nicaragua-en\/backpacking-nicaragua\/\">Nicaragua<\/a>, wherever you are, I recommend first getting to the city of Liberia, which has direct buses from San Jos\u00e9, Puntarenas, Monteverde (via Las Juntas) and many other destinations where you might find yourself in the north of the country.<\/span><\/p>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Once you get to Liberia, there are buses to Pe\u00f1as Blancas (the border town) about every half hour from 5 in the morning to 9 in the evening, 1650 CRC, 2 hours. Once you&#8217;ve crossed the border, you can easily reach San Juan del Sur, Ometepe or any other destination in Nicaragua.<\/span><\/p>\r\n\r\n<h3 style=\"text-align: left;\"><b>Crossing the Costa Rica-Panama border<\/b><\/h3>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><em>The most popular crossing is Puerto Viejo &#8211; Bocas del Toro. For the Puerto Viejo &#8211; Sixaola (the border town with Panama) bus, you&#8217;ll find the schedule <\/em><a href=\"http:\/\/www.mepecr.com\/HorarioS_S.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><em>here<\/em><\/a><em>; cross the border on foot, then take a bus to Changuinola ($1) and from there another one to Almirante ($1.25).<\/em><\/p>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><em>Or take one of the many shared taxis waiting at the border; I think the official fare is around $7-10, but coming from the opposite direction, after haggling for a while, I paid $3.5. From Almirante you can take a boat to Bocas del Toro (which I recommend) or continue to any other destination.<\/em><\/p>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><em>Obviously, you can also cross the border on the other coast, but the route I&#8217;ve just described is, in my opinion, the best one.<\/em><\/p>\r\n\r\n<div id=\"iti\" style=\"text-align: left;\"><\/div>\r\n<h2 style=\"text-align: left;\"><b>Recommended itineraries in Costa Rica<\/b><\/h2>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Below I list possible itineraries for 10 days, 2 weeks and 3 weeks. Obviously, there&#8217;s no such thing as the perfect itinerary for a given time frame, so, considering what you&#8217;ve read so far, take the following as inspiration and adjust the itinerary to your interests\/budget.<\/span><\/p>\r\n\r\n<h3 style=\"text-align: left;\"><b>10-day itinerary in Costa Rica<\/b><\/h3>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Ten days isn&#8217;t a lot, but it&#8217;s more than enough to visit a couple of national parks; with the following itinerary you&#8217;d visit three. Manuel Antonio and Cahuita have great beaches, but if you&#8217;d rather spend a few days just at the sea, then I suggest you skip some of them and head to the Nicoya Peninsula.<\/span><\/p>\r\n<img decoding=\"async\" class=\"img-fluid\" src=\"https:\/\/ilbackpacker.it\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/itinerario_costa_rica.jpg\" alt=\"Costa Rica travel itinerary map\" width=\"700\" height=\"777\" \/>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><b>San Jos\u00e9 (1 night)<\/b><\/p>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><b>Day 1:<\/b><\/p>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Recover from jet lag, walk around the city center.<\/span><\/p>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><b>Tortuguero (2 nights)\u00a0<\/b><\/p>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><b>Day 2:<\/b><\/p>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Transfer to Tortuguero. Tour to spot turtles in the evening.<\/span><\/p>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><b>Day 3:<\/b><\/p>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Canoe tour in the forest.<\/span><\/p>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><b>Puerto Viejo (3 nights)<\/b><\/p>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><b>Day 4:<\/b><\/p>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Bus to San Jos\u00e9. Bus to Puerto Viejo.<\/span><\/p>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><b>Day 5:<\/b><\/p>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Cahuita National Park.<\/span><\/p>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><b>Day 6:<\/b><\/p>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Cycling day along the coast.<\/span><\/p>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><b>Monteverde (3 nights)<\/b><\/p>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><b>Day 7:<\/b><\/p>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Bus Puerto Viejo &#8211; San Jos\u00e9, San Jos\u00e9 &#8211; Monteverde.<\/span><\/p>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><b>Day 8:<\/b><\/p>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Monteverde Reserve or Santa Elena Reserve.<\/span><\/p>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><b>Day 9:<\/b><\/p>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Ziplining \/ coffee tour \/ relaxing day.<\/span><\/p>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><b>Day 10:<\/b><\/p>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Bus to San Jos\u00e9.<\/span><\/p>\r\n\r\n<h3 style=\"text-align: left;\"><b>Two-week itinerary in Costa Rica<\/b><\/h3>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">With two weeks available, I wouldn&#8217;t change the itinerary just described by much. You could add a few days in La Fortuna (not exactly a low-cost destination) or, better still in my opinion, a few days at the beach on the Nicoya Peninsula.<\/span><\/p>\r\n\r\n<h3 style=\"text-align: left;\"><b>20-day itinerary in Costa Rica<\/b><\/h3>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Twenty days or three weeks is a good amount of time to explore the country. As always, the itinerary doesn&#8217;t change much, since more often than not you have to go back to San Jos\u00e9 anyway. The 10-day itinerary just described is a good base to start from. In my opinion, the only two stops to add are the Nicoya Peninsula and, budget permitting, a few days in La Fortuna.<\/span><\/p>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">To save time, keep in mind that from Quepos and Monteverde, there are direct buses to Puntarenas, where you can take the ferry to the southern part of the peninsula without returning to San Jos\u00e9. Similarly, from Monteverde, you can reach the northern part of the peninsula (Tamarindo, Samara, etc.) without having to return to San Jos\u00e9. This costs about $8 compared to $45 for a shuttle, as described in the <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/centrocoasting.com\/costarica\/tamarindo\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">comments on this page<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">.<\/span><\/p>\r\n\r\n<div id=\"how\" style=\"text-align: left;\"><\/div>\r\n<h2 style=\"text-align: left;\"><b>How to get around Costa Rica<\/b><\/h2>\r\n<h4 style=\"text-align: left;\"><b>Buses in Costa Rica<\/b><\/h4>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Buses are undoubtedly the cheapest way to travel within the country and reach virtually every possible destination. The only downside is that almost the entire system is based on routes to and from San Jos\u00e9, which often makes the time to reach a given destination considerably longer.<\/span><\/p>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Another not-so-ideal thing is that there isn&#8217;t a single bus terminal in San Jos\u00e9; in fact, there are several terminals that generally serve a specific region of the country. For example, almost all buses heading to the Caribbean coast leave from the <\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Gran Caribe Terminal.<\/span><\/p>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">In any case, the main ones are all within a radius of a kilometer and a half, so you can easily walk between them; be wary of taxi drivers who&#8217;ll tell you otherwise! Also, given the compact size of the country, even if you sometimes need to go back to San Jos\u00e9, you can often reach your next destination on the same day without having to spend the night in the capital: do your research in advance and you won&#8217;t have any problems.<\/span><\/p>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Generally speaking, in Costa Rica you can&#8217;t book bus tickets online. The only way to secure a ticket is to buy it at the station. Departures for particularly busy routes are frequent and you should have no problem securing a seat on board.<\/span><\/p>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">To take a look at times and prices, in my opinion the best site is <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/centrocoasting.com\/costarica\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">centrocoasting.com<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> (save it as a favorite!) but you can also take a look at <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/costa-rica-guide.com\/travel\/transportation\/bus-schedule\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">this page<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">.<\/span><\/p>\r\n<img decoding=\"async\" class=\"img-fluid\" src=\"https:\/\/ilbackpacker.it\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/terminal_autobus_costa_rica.jpg\" alt=\"Bus terminal in Costa Rica\" width=\"1110\" height=\"624\" \/>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><em>Bus terminal in Costa Rica.<\/em><\/p>\r\n\r\n<h4 style=\"text-align: left;\"><b>Taxis in Costa Rica<\/b><\/h4>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Taxis are available almost everywhere, but be careful, because it&#8217;s common practice to charge tourists more than necessary by, for example, extending the route. There are several pirate taxis that would be best avoided; the official ones are red with a yellow triangle on the side and by law are required to use the meter (&#8220;Maria&#8221;, as the locals call it).<\/span><\/p>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">If you&#8217;re forced to take an unofficial taxi, be sure to establish the price before you leave to avoid unnecessary arguments upon arrival at your destination. It&#8217;s always a good idea to ask your lodging or a local resident for the typical fare for a particular route. For the time being, <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.uber.com\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Uber<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> only works in San Jos\u00e9.<\/span><\/p>\r\n\r\n<h4 style=\"text-align: left;\"><b>Domestic flights in Costa Rica<\/b><\/h4>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">There are only two companies that operate domestic flights in Costa Rica. <\/span><a href=\"http:\/\/www.natureair.com\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">NatureAir<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> and <\/span><a href=\"http:\/\/flysansa.com\/en\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Sansa<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">.<\/span><\/p>\r\n\r\n<h4 style=\"text-align: left;\"><b>Hitchhiking in Costa Rica<\/b><\/h4>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Hitchhiking is an extremely common and safe practice especially in rural areas. Costa Ricans are generally kind and helpful people; if this is your way of getting around, you shouldn&#8217;t have any particular difficulties in Costa Rica.<\/span><\/p>\r\n\r\n<div id=\"cost\" style=\"text-align: left;\"><\/div>\r\n<h2 style=\"text-align: left;\"><b>Backpacking Costa Rica: costs<\/b><\/h2>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">How much does a trip to Costa Rica cost? Quite a lot: unfortunately, Costa Rica is really very expensive, especially when compared to the other countries of Central America. It&#8217;s still relatively cheap by European standards, but it&#8217;s definitely not a budget destination. <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/ilbackpacker.it\/en\/start-here\/planning\/40-tips-for-backpackers\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Even as a backpacker<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, I&#8217;d budget at least 40\u20ac a day. The good news is that flights to Costa Rica outside the high season can be cheap, starting from 400-500\u20ac round trip.<\/span><\/p>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\">You might also be interested in: <a title=\"How to find cheap flights \u2013 The definitive guide\" href=\"https:\/\/ilbackpacker.it\/en\/start-here\/transport\/find-cheap-flights\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">How to find cheap flights<\/a><\/p>\r\n\r\n<h4 style=\"text-align: left;\"><b>Cost of accommodation in Costa Rica<\/b><\/h4>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">For a dorm bed, expect to pay between $10 and $15. For a private room, $30-40. Free wifi is pretty much standard and some hostels also include breakfast. There&#8217;s almost always a kitchen. Cheap hotels start at $25 per night.<\/span><\/p>\r\n\r\n<h4 style=\"text-align: left;\"><b>Cost of food in Costa Rica<\/b><\/h4>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">If you want to eat out without spending a fortune, then the &#8220;soda&#8221; or &#8220;soda tipica&#8221; are the typical local restaurants and by far the cheapest. Here a typical local dish such as the &#8220;casado&#8221; normally costs from 2500 CRC up, depending on the area you&#8217;re in, and it&#8217;s a one-plate meal that usually includes salad, rice, beans and meat\/fish.<\/span><\/p>\r\n<img decoding=\"async\" class=\"img-fluid\" src=\"https:\/\/ilbackpacker.it\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/casado_costa_rica.jpg\" alt=\"Casado, typical Costa Rican dish\" width=\"1110\" height=\"624\" \/>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><em>Casado dish.<\/em><\/p>\r\n\r\n<h4 style=\"text-align: left;\"><b>Cost of transport in Costa Rica<\/b><\/h4>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Public transport is fairly cheap. Buses cost roughly $1-2 per hour. <\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Between the main tourist destinations there are shuttles with door-to-door service. They can be booked through hostels\/hotels and are undoubtedly a more convenient and faster way to get from one place to another, but also much more expensive than public transport, three or even four times as much. The few domestic flights that exist are also quite expensive and have fixed prices: a San Jos\u00e9 &#8211; Tortuguero flight for example costs around $100 versus $10 for the bus. <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.easyridecostarica.com\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Here<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> you can find some prices just to get an idea.<\/span><\/p>\r\n\r\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\">To reduce exchange and withdrawal fees, see my <a href=\"https:\/\/ilbackpacker.it\/en\/start-here\/gear\/best-travel-cards\/\">guide to the best travel cards<\/a>.<\/p>\r\n<div id=\"safe\" style=\"text-align: left;\"><\/div>\r\n<h2 style=\"text-align: left;\"><b>Backpacking Costa Rica: safety<\/b><\/h2>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Is Costa Rica safe? Definitely yes. It&#8217;s without a doubt the safest country in all of Central America. Obviously, as in any other part of the world, you need to <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/ilbackpacker.it\/en\/start-here\/safety\/backpacking-safety\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">use common sense<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, and walking around San Jos\u00e9 at night on a deserted street, for example, could mean trouble. Never lose sight of your luggage on buses and at bus terminals; other than that, you shouldn&#8217;t have any kind of problem. Tap water is also generally safe to drink, unless you&#8217;re in some isolated area.<\/span><\/p>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\">Are you planning a trip to Costa Rica? Check out these posts:<\/p>\r\n\r\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><a href=\"https:\/\/ilbackpacker.it\/en\/start-here\/gear\/packing-list\/\">What to bring on your trip<\/a><\/p>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><a title=\"Travel backpack: which one to choose?\" href=\"https:\/\/ilbackpacker.it\/en\/start-here\/gear\/travel-backpack\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">How to choose a travel backpack<\/a><\/p>\r\n\r\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\">Do you have any questions? Updated information? Feel free to leave a comment or message me on <a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/ilbackpacker\/\">Instagram<\/a>!<\/p>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><em><strong>Since I no longer run ads, if you found this article helpful, please consider purchasing your <a href=\"https:\/\/ilbackpacker.it\/en\/start-here\/safety\/travel-insurance\/\">travel insurance<\/a> through one of the links on this site. Doing so supports my work at no additional cost to you. For EU and UK residents, I recommend <a href=\"https:\/\/www.truetraveller.com\/?tag=4486\">True Traveller<\/a>. For everyone else, I recommend <a href=\"https:\/\/heymondo.com\/?utm_medium=Afiliado&amp;utm_source=ILBACKPACKER&amp;utm_campaign=PRINCIPAL&amp;cod_descuento=ILBACKPACKER&amp;ag_campaign=INPUT&amp;agencia=3e3e0e90cc3ad100e738962ea2e0b0be8d69\">HeyMondo<\/a>, which offers a 5% discount. Thank you for your support!<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.paypal.com\/donate\/?hosted_button_id=QTBBEQQCE37GA\">For donations\/pizzas and virtual beers<\/a> \ud83d\ude42<\/p>\r\n\r\n<h5 style=\"text-align: center;\">Did you like the post? Pin it!<\/h5>\r\n<img decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-7655\" src=\"https:\/\/ilbackpacker.it\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/THE-DEFINITIVE-GUIDE.png\" alt=\"Costa Rica travel guide\" width=\"330\" height=\"495\" srcset=\"https:\/\/ilbackpacker.it\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/THE-DEFINITIVE-GUIDE.png 330w, https:\/\/ilbackpacker.it\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/THE-DEFINITIVE-GUIDE-200x300.png 200w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 330px) 100vw, 330px\" \/>\r\n\r\n&nbsp;","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Costa Rica has historically been one of the most visited countries in Central America. It&#8217;s a country rich in flora and fauna, beautiful beaches, volcanoes and truly hospitable people, and it boasts one of the oldest democracies in the world, in contrast with the other countries in the region.","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":5790,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[51],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-7752","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-costa-rica"],"acf":[],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t<!-- All in One SEO 5.0.4 - aioseo.com -->\n\t<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Where to go, what to see, itineraries, costs, useful tips and more to plan your trip to Costa .\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"max-image-preview:large\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Tr1nCa92\"\/>\n\t<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/ilbackpacker.it\/en\/destinations-en\/costa-rica\/backpacking-costarica\/\" \/>\n\t\t<meta name=\"generator\" content=\"All in One SEO (AIOSEO) 5.0.4\" \/>\n\t\t<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n\t\t<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Il Backpacker - Viaggi economici con lo zaino in spalla.\" \/>\n\t\t<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n\t\t<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Backpacking Costa Rica: Itinerary, Costs &amp; Budget Tips\" \/>\n\t\t<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Where to go, what to see, itineraries, costs, useful tips and more to plan your trip to Costa .\" \/>\n\t\t<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/ilbackpacker.it\/en\/destinations-en\/costa-rica\/backpacking-costarica\/\" \/>\n\t\t<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2018-09-24T12:47:14+00:00\" \/>\n\t\t<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2026-10-28T18:23:54+00:00\" \/>\n\t\t<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n\t\t<meta name=\"twitter:title\" content=\"Backpacking Costa Rica: Itinerary, Costs &amp; Budget Tips\" \/>\n\t\t<meta name=\"twitter:description\" content=\"Where to go, what to see, itineraries, costs, useful tips and more to plan your trip to Costa .\" \/>\n\t\t<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"aioseo-schema\">\n\t\t\t{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"BlogPosting\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/ilbackpacker.it\\\/en\\\/destinations-en\\\/costa-rica\\\/backpacking-costarica\\\/#blogposting\",\"name\":\"Backpacking Costa Rica: Itinerary, Costs & Budget Tips\",\"headline\":\"Costa Rica Travel Guide\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/ilbackpacker.it\\\/en\\\/author\\\/tr1nca92\\\/#author\"},\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/ilbackpacker.it\\\/en\\\/#organization\"},\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/ilbackpacker.it\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2018\\\/09\\\/tramonto_costa_rica.jpg\",\"width\":1110,\"height\":624},\"datePublished\":\"2018-09-24T14:47:14+02:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2026-10-28T18:23:54+01:00\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/ilbackpacker.it\\\/en\\\/destinations-en\\\/costa-rica\\\/backpacking-costarica\\\/#webpage\"},\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/ilbackpacker.it\\\/en\\\/destinations-en\\\/costa-rica\\\/backpacking-costarica\\\/#webpage\"},\"articleSection\":\"Costa Rica\"},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/ilbackpacker.it\\\/en\\\/destinations-en\\\/costa-rica\\\/backpacking-costarica\\\/#breadcrumblist\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/ilbackpacker.it\\\/en\\\/#listItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/ilbackpacker.it\\\/en\\\/\",\"nextItem\":{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/ilbackpacker.it\\\/en\\\/category\\\/destinations-en\\\/#listItem\",\"name\":\"Destinations\"}},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/ilbackpacker.it\\\/en\\\/category\\\/destinations-en\\\/#listItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Destinations\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/ilbackpacker.it\\\/en\\\/category\\\/destinations-en\\\/\",\"nextItem\":{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/ilbackpacker.it\\\/en\\\/category\\\/destinations-en\\\/costa-rica\\\/#listItem\",\"name\":\"Costa Rica\"},\"previousItem\":{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/ilbackpacker.it\\\/en\\\/#listItem\",\"name\":\"Home\"}},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/ilbackpacker.it\\\/en\\\/category\\\/destinations-en\\\/costa-rica\\\/#listItem\",\"position\":3,\"name\":\"Costa Rica\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/ilbackpacker.it\\\/en\\\/category\\\/destinations-en\\\/costa-rica\\\/\",\"nextItem\":{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/ilbackpacker.it\\\/en\\\/destinations-en\\\/costa-rica\\\/backpacking-costarica\\\/#listItem\",\"name\":\"Costa Rica Travel Guide\"},\"previousItem\":{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/ilbackpacker.it\\\/en\\\/category\\\/destinations-en\\\/#listItem\",\"name\":\"Destinations\"}},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/ilbackpacker.it\\\/en\\\/destinations-en\\\/costa-rica\\\/backpacking-costarica\\\/#listItem\",\"position\":4,\"name\":\"Costa Rica Travel Guide\",\"previousItem\":{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/ilbackpacker.it\\\/en\\\/category\\\/destinations-en\\\/costa-rica\\\/#listItem\",\"name\":\"Costa Rica\"}}]},{\"@type\":\"Organization\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/ilbackpacker.it\\\/en\\\/#organization\",\"name\":\"Il Backpacker\",\"description\":\"Viaggi economici con lo zaino in spalla.\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/ilbackpacker.it\\\/en\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/ilbackpacker.it\\\/en\\\/author\\\/tr1nca92\\\/#author\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/ilbackpacker.it\\\/en\\\/author\\\/tr1nca92\\\/\",\"name\":\"Tr1nCa92\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/ilbackpacker.it\\\/en\\\/destinations-en\\\/costa-rica\\\/backpacking-costarica\\\/#authorImage\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/ilbackpacker.it\\\/wp-content\\\/litespeed\\\/avatar\\\/418eb0c2717e744a80a3e0af9ac6669f.jpg?ver=1793365548\",\"width\":96,\"height\":96,\"caption\":\"Tr1nCa92\"}},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/ilbackpacker.it\\\/en\\\/destinations-en\\\/costa-rica\\\/backpacking-costarica\\\/#webpage\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/ilbackpacker.it\\\/en\\\/destinations-en\\\/costa-rica\\\/backpacking-costarica\\\/\",\"name\":\"Backpacking Costa Rica: Itinerary, Costs & Budget Tips\",\"description\":\"Where to go, what to see, itineraries, costs, useful tips and more to plan your trip to Costa .\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/ilbackpacker.it\\\/en\\\/#website\"},\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/ilbackpacker.it\\\/en\\\/destinations-en\\\/costa-rica\\\/backpacking-costarica\\\/#breadcrumblist\"},\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/ilbackpacker.it\\\/en\\\/author\\\/tr1nca92\\\/#author\"},\"creator\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/ilbackpacker.it\\\/en\\\/author\\\/tr1nca92\\\/#author\"},\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/ilbackpacker.it\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2018\\\/09\\\/tramonto_costa_rica.jpg\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/ilbackpacker.it\\\/en\\\/destinations-en\\\/costa-rica\\\/backpacking-costarica\\\/#mainImage\",\"width\":1110,\"height\":624},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/ilbackpacker.it\\\/en\\\/destinations-en\\\/costa-rica\\\/backpacking-costarica\\\/#mainImage\"},\"datePublished\":\"2018-09-24T14:47:14+02:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2026-10-28T18:23:54+01:00\"},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/ilbackpacker.it\\\/en\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/ilbackpacker.it\\\/en\\\/\",\"name\":\"Il Backpacker\",\"description\":\"Viaggi economici con lo zaino in spalla.\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/ilbackpacker.it\\\/en\\\/#organization\"}}]}\n\t\t<\/script>\n\t\t<!-- All in One SEO -->\n\n","aioseo_head_json":{"title":"Backpacking Costa Rica: Itinerary, Costs & Budget Tips","description":"Where to go, what to see, itineraries, costs, useful tips and more to plan your trip to Costa .","canonical_url":"https:\/\/ilbackpacker.it\/en\/destinations-en\/costa-rica\/backpacking-costarica\/","robots":"max-image-preview:large","keywords":"","webmasterTools":{"miscellaneous":""},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"BlogPosting","@id":"https:\/\/ilbackpacker.it\/en\/destinations-en\/costa-rica\/backpacking-costarica\/#blogposting","name":"Backpacking Costa Rica: Itinerary, Costs & Budget Tips","headline":"Costa Rica Travel Guide","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/ilbackpacker.it\/en\/author\/tr1nca92\/#author"},"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/ilbackpacker.it\/en\/#organization"},"image":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https:\/\/ilbackpacker.it\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/tramonto_costa_rica.jpg","width":1110,"height":624},"datePublished":"2018-09-24T14:47:14+02:00","dateModified":"2026-10-28T18:23:54+01:00","inLanguage":"en-US","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/ilbackpacker.it\/en\/destinations-en\/costa-rica\/backpacking-costarica\/#webpage"},"isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/ilbackpacker.it\/en\/destinations-en\/costa-rica\/backpacking-costarica\/#webpage"},"articleSection":"Costa Rica"},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/ilbackpacker.it\/en\/destinations-en\/costa-rica\/backpacking-costarica\/#breadcrumblist","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","@id":"https:\/\/ilbackpacker.it\/en\/#listItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/ilbackpacker.it\/en\/","nextItem":{"@type":"ListItem","@id":"https:\/\/ilbackpacker.it\/en\/category\/destinations-en\/#listItem","name":"Destinations"}},{"@type":"ListItem","@id":"https:\/\/ilbackpacker.it\/en\/category\/destinations-en\/#listItem","position":2,"name":"Destinations","item":"https:\/\/ilbackpacker.it\/en\/category\/destinations-en\/","nextItem":{"@type":"ListItem","@id":"https:\/\/ilbackpacker.it\/en\/category\/destinations-en\/costa-rica\/#listItem","name":"Costa Rica"},"previousItem":{"@type":"ListItem","@id":"https:\/\/ilbackpacker.it\/en\/#listItem","name":"Home"}},{"@type":"ListItem","@id":"https:\/\/ilbackpacker.it\/en\/category\/destinations-en\/costa-rica\/#listItem","position":3,"name":"Costa Rica","item":"https:\/\/ilbackpacker.it\/en\/category\/destinations-en\/costa-rica\/","nextItem":{"@type":"ListItem","@id":"https:\/\/ilbackpacker.it\/en\/destinations-en\/costa-rica\/backpacking-costarica\/#listItem","name":"Costa Rica Travel Guide"},"previousItem":{"@type":"ListItem","@id":"https:\/\/ilbackpacker.it\/en\/category\/destinations-en\/#listItem","name":"Destinations"}},{"@type":"ListItem","@id":"https:\/\/ilbackpacker.it\/en\/destinations-en\/costa-rica\/backpacking-costarica\/#listItem","position":4,"name":"Costa Rica Travel Guide","previousItem":{"@type":"ListItem","@id":"https:\/\/ilbackpacker.it\/en\/category\/destinations-en\/costa-rica\/#listItem","name":"Costa Rica"}}]},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/ilbackpacker.it\/en\/#organization","name":"Il Backpacker","description":"Viaggi economici con lo zaino in spalla.","url":"https:\/\/ilbackpacker.it\/en\/"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/ilbackpacker.it\/en\/author\/tr1nca92\/#author","url":"https:\/\/ilbackpacker.it\/en\/author\/tr1nca92\/","name":"Tr1nCa92","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","@id":"https:\/\/ilbackpacker.it\/en\/destinations-en\/costa-rica\/backpacking-costarica\/#authorImage","url":"https:\/\/ilbackpacker.it\/wp-content\/litespeed\/avatar\/418eb0c2717e744a80a3e0af9ac6669f.jpg?ver=1793365548","width":96,"height":96,"caption":"Tr1nCa92"}},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/ilbackpacker.it\/en\/destinations-en\/costa-rica\/backpacking-costarica\/#webpage","url":"https:\/\/ilbackpacker.it\/en\/destinations-en\/costa-rica\/backpacking-costarica\/","name":"Backpacking Costa Rica: Itinerary, Costs & Budget Tips","description":"Where to go, what to see, itineraries, costs, useful tips and more to plan your trip to Costa .","inLanguage":"en-US","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/ilbackpacker.it\/en\/#website"},"breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/ilbackpacker.it\/en\/destinations-en\/costa-rica\/backpacking-costarica\/#breadcrumblist"},"author":{"@id":"https:\/\/ilbackpacker.it\/en\/author\/tr1nca92\/#author"},"creator":{"@id":"https:\/\/ilbackpacker.it\/en\/author\/tr1nca92\/#author"},"image":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https:\/\/ilbackpacker.it\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/tramonto_costa_rica.jpg","@id":"https:\/\/ilbackpacker.it\/en\/destinations-en\/costa-rica\/backpacking-costarica\/#mainImage","width":1110,"height":624},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/ilbackpacker.it\/en\/destinations-en\/costa-rica\/backpacking-costarica\/#mainImage"},"datePublished":"2018-09-24T14:47:14+02:00","dateModified":"2026-10-28T18:23:54+01:00"},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/ilbackpacker.it\/en\/#website","url":"https:\/\/ilbackpacker.it\/en\/","name":"Il Backpacker","description":"Viaggi economici con lo zaino in spalla.","inLanguage":"en-US","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/ilbackpacker.it\/en\/#organization"}}]},"og:locale":"en_US","og:site_name":"Il Backpacker - Viaggi economici con lo zaino in spalla.","og:type":"article","og:title":"Backpacking Costa Rica: Itinerary, Costs &amp; Budget Tips","og:description":"Where to go, what to see, itineraries, costs, useful tips and more to plan your trip to Costa .","og:url":"https:\/\/ilbackpacker.it\/en\/destinations-en\/costa-rica\/backpacking-costarica\/","article:published_time":"2018-09-24T12:47:14+00:00","article:modified_time":"2026-10-28T18:23:54+00:00","twitter:card":"summary_large_image","twitter:title":"Backpacking Costa Rica: Itinerary, Costs &amp; Budget Tips","twitter:description":"Where to go, what to see, itineraries, costs, useful tips and more to plan your trip to Costa ."},"aioseo_meta_data":{"post_id":"7752","title":"Backpacking Costa Rica: Itinerary, Costs &amp; Budget Tips","description":"Where to go, what to see, itineraries, costs, useful tips and more to plan your trip to Costa .","keywords":null,"keyphrases":{"focus":{"keyphrase":"","score":0,"analysis":{"keyphraseInTitle":{"score":0,"maxScore":9,"error":1}}},"additional":[]},"primary_term":null,"canonical_url":null,"og_title":null,"og_description":null,"og_object_type":"default","og_image_type":"default","og_image_url":null,"og_image_width":null,"og_image_height":null,"og_image_custom_url":null,"og_image_custom_fields":null,"og_video":"","og_custom_url":null,"og_article_section":null,"og_article_tags":null,"twitter_use_og":false,"twitter_card":"default","twitter_image_type":"default","twitter_image_url":null,"twitter_image_custom_url":null,"twitter_image_custom_fields":null,"twitter_title":null,"twitter_description":null,"schema":{"blockGraphs":[],"customGraphs":[],"default":{"data":{"Article":[],"Course":[],"Dataset":[],"FAQPage":[],"Movie":[],"Person":[],"Product":[],"ProductReview":[],"Car":[],"Recipe":[],"Service":[],"SoftwareApplication":[],"WebPage":[]},"graphName":"BlogPosting","isEnabled":true},"graphs":[]},"schema_type":"default","schema_type_options":null,"pillar_content":false,"robots_default":true,"robots_noindex":false,"robots_noarchive":false,"robots_nosnippet":false,"robots_nofollow":false,"robots_noimageindex":false,"robots_noodp":false,"robots_notranslate":false,"robots_max_snippet":"-1","robots_max_videopreview":"-1","robots_max_imagepreview":"large","priority":null,"frequency":"default","local_seo":null,"breadcrumb_settings":null,"limit_modified_date":false,"ai":{"faqs":[],"keyPoints":[],"schemas":[],"titles":[],"descriptions":[],"socialPosts":{"email":{"subject":"","preview":"","content":""},"linkedin":[],"twitter":[],"facebook":[],"instagram":[]}},"created":"2024-11-18 17:58:03","updated":"2026-10-28 18:40:15","seo_analyzer_scan_date":null,"focus_keyword":null,"additional_keywords":null,"truseo_locale":null},"aioseo_breadcrumb":"<div class=\"aioseo-breadcrumbs\"><span class=\"aioseo-breadcrumb\">\n\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/ilbackpacker.it\/en\/\" title=\"Home\">Home<\/a>\n\t\t<\/span><span class=\"aioseo-breadcrumb-separator\">\u00bb<\/span><span class=\"aioseo-breadcrumb\">\n\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/ilbackpacker.it\/en\/category\/destinations-en\/\" title=\"Destinations\">Destinations<\/a>\n\t\t<\/span><span class=\"aioseo-breadcrumb-separator\">\u00bb<\/span><span class=\"aioseo-breadcrumb\">\n\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/ilbackpacker.it\/en\/category\/destinations-en\/costa-rica\/\" title=\"Costa Rica\">Costa Rica<\/a>\n\t\t<\/span><span class=\"aioseo-breadcrumb-separator\">\u00bb<\/span><span class=\"aioseo-breadcrumb\">\n\t\t\tCosta Rica Travel Guide\n\t\t<\/span><\/div>","aioseo_breadcrumb_json":[{"label":"Home","link":"https:\/\/ilbackpacker.it\/en\/"},{"label":"Destinations","link":"https:\/\/ilbackpacker.it\/en\/category\/destinations-en\/"},{"label":"Costa Rica","link":"https:\/\/ilbackpacker.it\/en\/category\/destinations-en\/costa-rica\/"},{"label":"Costa Rica Travel Guide","link":"https:\/\/ilbackpacker.it\/en\/destinations-en\/costa-rica\/backpacking-costarica\/"}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/ilbackpacker.it\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7752","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/ilbackpacker.it\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/ilbackpacker.it\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ilbackpacker.it\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ilbackpacker.it\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=7752"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/ilbackpacker.it\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7752\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ilbackpacker.it\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/5790"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/ilbackpacker.it\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=7752"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ilbackpacker.it\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=7752"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ilbackpacker.it\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=7752"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}