14 Hours in Costa Rica

I spent three days near Jaco, on the west coast of Costa Rica last week, and the following is my advice for a great way to spend a full day. It’s a lot to cram in, but it’s totally do-able.

I love a roadtrip. I like them even more when they exist inside of another trip. There’s something exhilarating in pulling out a paper map, unfolding it and scribbling in highlighter. Discussing routes down a coastline or through a forest makes me feel 16 again … when your first car afforded you that dizzying level of freedom. I adore pulling over at roadside stands for weird snacks (subsequently spitting them out when I realize I’ve purchased chips flavored like Prawn Anus). Happily waving a strangers and showing off my atrocious foreign language skills. Roadtrips, I guess, just offer moments to pause for a split second and appreciate how great life is.

So, without further adieu (or more long-winded speeches about road tripping)

COSTA RICA IN 14 HOURS

Jaco > Manuel Antonio > Quepos > Herradura > Jaco

8 AM – If you land in San Jose, grab a bite of breakfast or at least a cup of coffee to go from Finca Rosa Blanca. It’s a boutique hotel and coffee plantation located approximately 15 minutes from the airport. They have a gorgeous pool, and it looks like a fantastic place to stay. I did not actually stay there, but I did drink the coffee after a tour of the plantation. Rich, sustainably produced, with a nice level of bitter. Wonderful staff. Again … did I mention the pool? Hi Flintstones.

9 AM – My trip actually started in Jaco, about 2 hours from the airport, but you could easily get up a bit earlier add that drive into this day. Starting in Jaco, head due south down Highway 34. You can pull off for a quick swim at the black-sand Hermosa Beach. I heard that people occasionally have their cars broken into there, so make sure to lock what you love in the trunk. The road down to Quepos and it’s neighboring beach marine park called Manuel Antonio is beautiful. The narrow highway is well-paved, there are dense palm tree forests for long stretches and a few gorgeous old churches with small, weathered cemeteries in the side yards.

10:30 AM – Quepos is a cute-enough little town, and you hit it approximately one hour past Jaco. But given the fairly early hour not much was happening, so we pushed on over the curvy mountainside (littered with brightly painted, hippie-run guesthouses) to Manuel Antonio. Manuel Antonio and the road into it looks a bit like a Phish festival came to town and just never left. Not that there’s anything wrong with that. It’s definitely been ‘created’ to this effect rather than some beach towns that merely got discovered in their original weather-beaten states of beauty. Then again, who hates a new hammock, a cold beer and a good live version of Buffalo Solider? 

There’s a national park you can visit or you can simply rent a $6 chair on the neighboring beach, take pictures of half-naked women and this cool, machete-weilding  coconut guy.

1 PM – Lunch. We stopped in a corner restaurant in downtown Quepos for a bite. Dos Locos has wide, enormous windows that offer perfect streetside, people-watching opportunities. I was excited to stick my 85mm lens in the windowsill and catch people across the road, doing people things in their natural habitat. It was a rare moment when, as a food writer, I didn’t even care about the actual food. 

If I had been concerned with the food, I would have nixed the idea of eating Mexican in Costa Rica. To me, that’s like visiting New Orleans and sitting down to Tex Mex in the French Quarter. They may be close together, but when in Rome, I don’t eat Greek food.

Point-in-case, the tacos were lame. My friend Annie’s Arroz con Pollo, however, was surprisingly good. It had this heavy-handed level of saffron and big chunks of juicy shredded chicken. I’d go back again for the views and a second order of that. So, I suppose the lesson is: When in a Mexican restaurant in Costa Rica, order the most Costa Rican thing on the menu.

3 PM – Back to Jaco for Stand Up Paddleboard Yoga 

Called SUP (that stands for Stand Up Paddle, in case you failed 2^nd grade), paddleboarding is great fun. If you like an added challenge and a way to workout without really realizing you are working out – then check out this company for a yoga class on the water.

It was my first time on a paddleboard, but you get the hang of it quickly. If you’ve done yoga or pilates for a while, trying them on a board in water offers a great way to refresh your form and a totally new way to experience the calming effects that both seem to bring. The sound of water in the opening meditation around you, the slight rocking motion and the extra balance requirements all add up to something I would love to do on a constant level in my life. Plus, you occasionally fall in and you get tan. Win.

6 PM – Massage at Los Suenos Marriott, Herradura 

If you can afford to crash at the Los Suenos Marriott, I say, ‘do it.’ It’s got a beautiful, hacienda-styled design that equals a lot of open air dining and outdoor drinking options. The pool is the largest in Central America, and it winds around the back of the resort, overlooking the ocean beyond. The spa also landed on a bunch of ‘best of’ lists last year, and the staff is incredibly friendly and conscientious. If you can’t afford to shack up, the SIBO rainforest spa is still a great deal. An hour massage will set you back around $120. Totally worth it after a day in the car and an hour trying to do headstands on a wobbling surfboard.

8 PM – Drinks & Dinner at The Marina

Walk five minutes down from Los Suenos through the tree-canopy walkway over to the neighboring marina for drinks and dinner. Or, just drinks (we made that mistake). A local fisherman was raving about Laterna, which is high-end Italian. We stuck to simply eating the garnishes off cocktails – ordering enough Margaritas to convince the bartender at The Terrace Lounge that it was wise to toss us free shots of Cacique Guaro. “It’s the best selling spirit in Costa Rica!” That claim didn’t impress me much and to be honest, the spirit doesn’t either. Distilled from sugar cane, it’s close to a bland rum. Not bad, not really good. Does it do the job of a full drink when slammed in a shotglass? Yes. Hell yes.

10 PM – The Green Room Café, Jaco

Someone suggested we hit up Monkey Bar in Jaco. We informed the door guy arranging our cab of this decided destination. He shook his head adamantly, and barked a quick, “No. It’s too sketchy for you. There are hookers there.”

Hookers?! Of course, I immediately then wanted to go there even faster. However, we took his advice first and headed to The Green Room Café. If you are going to drink with hookers and sketchy people, then it’s best to get your game face and discuss strategy. Furthermore, we needed a few more beers. No one likes to chat up a hooker sober. At Green Room Cafe, there was a band playing. The beers were really cold. The décor was a warming mix of rough tile floors, faded sail sheets hanging from the ceiling and comfortable white furniture. Long story short, we became happy. We got slightly content. Then even happier. Thank you, tequila. Yet again, you thwarted my efforts to meet up and hang out with hookers. We never left the Green Room that night. I’d definitely go back again though, so no regrets.

And that my friends, is how you cram coffee, yoga, paddleboarding, tequila, tacos, a roadtrip, two beaches, a massage, cows, coconuts and the dream of hanging out with hookers into a mere 14 hours in Costa Rica. After doing it, you should call room service and order a cheeseburger. Trust me, it will save your life the next morning.