My wife and I are planning a one-week vacation in Central America away from the kids. We're in our mid-30s and still pretty active with regard to water sports such as wind surfing, snorkeling, swimming, kayaking, etc. (We don't intend to do any scuba diving on the trip.)
The ideal place would have fun activities during the day and hopping bar/restaurants at night. Cost is not an issue. We've narrowed it down to either Costa Rica or Bay Islands of Honduras. Any advice from someone who has been to both?
2006-10-17 15:56:42 · 4 answers · asked by inflate 1 in Travel ➔ Latin America ➔ Costa Rica
Costa Rica is fantastic in many ways, however the bar hopping/restaurants at night this will greatly depend on where you stay if you will have access to this or not.
There are many parts of Costa Rica that are very enjoyable to visit. Some of my clients will say go to Guanacaste for a week for just a beach stay and others will visit maybe 3. However if you are going for a week I really wouldn't do more than 2.
Between the two I would have to say check out Costa Rica. Honduras is definitely beautiful; I just love Costa Rica and hear such rave reviews from here on the countries beauty and friendly locals. It's also quite active for what you want to do.
I would suggest working with a good agent who can not only help in the areas to stay in, but the hotels that are best felt would fit you. Because I can tell you some for sure will not fit your needs.
Much against popular belief agents don't tack on commissions. Well I really can't speak for all I suppose. I know our company does charge min. service fees as we look into many avenues to save you the most money we can for your dates. An agent can ask you various questions to determine which we feel is the best fit for you and what you are wanting. Not all agents can or are good at this. It is like any profession there are good, bad and lazy agents out there.
Please do be careful in planning this on your own if you chose to do so, because not all hotels online in photos are what they seem and you can only take reviews with a grain of salt. Now it is ok to look at reviews and if one has excessive ones then it is a good bet it is best to stay away from that one.
There are also two main airports you can fly into and depending on your departure city and which parts you end up staying in will determine which you will fly into. Costa Rica is a huge country more so than it looks!
If you like I would be happy to help you with this trip for you and your wife. Feel free to email me and I can help you from there.
Either way if I don't hear from you though I do wish you the best of trip in Central America!
2006-10-17 16:25:49 · answer #1 · answered by Pam 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
You should also consider Panama. Both Costa Rica and Panama have a decent infrastructure, Panama more than any other country in Central America. You can do all of the above in both countries, but if you would like to enjoy a day or two in the city... you definitely need to go to Panama. A "downtown" city atmosphere doesn't really exist in Costa Rica or Honduras. Consider, Bocas del Toro, in Panama, near the Costa Rican border... though it's a short ($99) flight or at least 9 hours to Panama City.
2006-10-18 08:32:31 · answer #2 · answered by MovetoLatinAmerica 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
For wind surfing the best is Costa Rica, with 755 miles of coastline on two oceans.
The western end of Lake Arenal is one of the world's premier windsurfing spots, it is considered by many world-class windsurfers as one of the top five best windsurfing locations in the world. You also have the possibility of combining culture and ecology tours, and you can find several quality hotel complexes specialising in water's sports.
Check http://www.windsurfcostarica.com/
http://www.costa-rica-guide.com/plan.htm
http://costaricahomepages.com/what_to_do
http://costaricahomepages.com/travel_and_tourism/lodging/index
2006-10-18 16:45:26 · answer #3 · answered by gospieler 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
costa rica is good
2006-10-18 00:23:02 · answer #4 · answered by Travel in Paradise 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋