Costa Rica for My 40th was an epic adventure! Considering all the tips I learned on this site I felt it was only fair to repay the favor with a detailed day by day write up.
Here’s how it broke down:
Dominical (Nights 1–4) — Girls’ trip, just me and my best friend, based at Lamangata Surf Resort. Think surf lessons, slow mornings, and zero itinerary pressure.
La Fortuna (Nights 5–8) — Family mode. My family flew in and we spent one night at the Peace Lodge before settling into three nights at Tabacon — volcanoes, hot springs, alllll the activities and keeping two very energetic boys (age 7 and 19 months) entertained. Once they flew out, I had another girlfriend fly in.
La Fortuna, continued (Nights 9–11) — Back to girls’ trip energy, this time with a different close girl friend. Two nights at Nayara Tented Camp followed by one night at Finca Rosa Blanca Resort to close out the trip with relaxation and style.
Day 1:
After a long travel day from EWR we landed in SJO around 11am. Immigrations and baggage were very fast / easy. We hit up the duty free liquor on our way out as we heard those were the best prices and ultimately I would agree with that. Deciding which tequila to buy for our margaritas that week probably took double the time of immigrations.
Car rental – decided on Adobe based on the overwhelming positive reviews on this site. They weren’t the cheapest by any means ($1700 for 12 days – 8 seater 4×4 SUV) but they were easy, pleasant and the cars all looked in great condition. I booked through mytanfeet and got a car seat, booster, cooler and a blanket to cover luggage in the trunk thrown in for free. Tan feet also sent reminder emails and a video of what my rental car would look like a head of time which was super helpful in preparation for trunk space.
To all the people saying things in Costa Rica take a lot longer than you anticipate – you weren’t lying! In my proposed agenda we were getting to our hike at Hacienda y Beneficio La Chimba at noon. Reality was 2pm.
La Chimba parking was easy and secure and yes we left our luggage in the trunk without concern (another hot topic on this site) – bringing only our backpacks for secure documents and electronics. The hike was $15pp with an option for 5k (to see the famous hand) or 9k (which after the heat, incline, subpar lunch, and jet lag started kicking in you literally couldn’t pay me to do). The bathrooms onsite were clean and there was a beautiful restaurant at the finish line that I would to have loved to have sat for hours, drinking cold beverages and dreaming the day away if I weren’t pressed for time. Note to self – plan less, enjoy more : )
La Chimba Tips:
– For the 5K plan for at least 2 hours
– Walking stick, sun screen and water very much needed
– A good short cut would have been the paved path from the Buddha to the Costa Rica sign
– Leave time for a cold beverage at the end and thank me later
After leaving La Chimba we headed to Dominical which took about 4 hours. I might have been able to do it in less but my friend has an fondness for gas station snacks. 
I was nervous because I knew at this point I would be driving in the dark however it was probably some of the easiest driving I’ve ever done. I was perplexed on why some of the people in this site are against it until I made the drive to La Fortuna later in the week – tha must be what the warnings are for. Anyway, after the croc bridge the only challenge was dealing with large trucks that like to go 20-30 KM below the speed limit and it’s mostly single lane roads so patience is key when passing. As a side note, the tolls take credit cards and the easiest / fastest lines are the ones with the agent.
We arrived to our destination, Lamangata Luxury Surf Resort, around 8:30 PM where a healthy and flavorful coconut Thai chicken dinner was awaiting us along with homemade kombucha. We spent the next four nights here and the first impressions were magical. It’s an all-inclusive oasis with only six bedrooms that offers peak privacy and relaxation.