Go Galavanting September 2008 Cover

Our story Three Shades of Costa Rica talks all about our Spring trip to Costa Rica - the cities we visited, activites, travel tips and our overall review.

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Needless to say, my childhood memories of songs like “My Favorite Things”, “So Long, Farewell”, and of course “Sound of Music”, came flashing back when I read a news story about one of the real-life daughter’s visit back to Austria to celebrate the opening of Hotel Villa Trapp.

The Sound of Music was based on a true story about Baron Georg von Trapp and his family who end up fleeing Austria to avoid the Nazi regime in the late 1930s. As depicted in the movie, the family always sang and played instruments, and fled to America to tour as ‘The Trapp Family Singers’. Most of the family still lives in Vermont today.

When the von Trapp family left their life behind in Austria, they left a villa in Salzburg, which was eventually seized by a Nazi security chief. After the war, missionaries gained possession of the home.

The Villa has now been converted into a hotel, Hotel Villa Trapp, and is scheduled to open to the public in October.This landmark is sure to draw many visitors to Salzburg, Sound of Music fans and those who want to learn more history about the real von Trapp family.

If you decide to stay at the Hotel Villa Trapp, and want to see more, Salzburg Panorama Tours offers Sound of Music Tours. You can check out the city tour of Salzburg, as well as a visit locations featured in the movie such as Mirabell Gardens, Residence Palace, and Rock Riding School. For a more off the beaten path tour, check out The Hills Are Alive Tours.


If you can’t get to Austria, you can get a little Sound of Music in the U.S. at the Trapp Family Lodge in Stowe, Vermont. You can stay at The Villas at Trapp Family Lodge where the website boasts, “the 2,400-acre resort with sweeping mountain views provides accommodations in an Austrian-style Main Lodge with 96 rooms and suites, 100 2-bedroom Guest Houses and 16 luxurious 3-bedroom Villas. Talented chefs prepare European specialties in The Dining Room, The Lounge and the Austrian Tea Room, complemented by nightly entertainment. First-class facilities are available for meetings and weddings.”

Whether it’s in Austria or Vermont…If you’re a fan of the movie like me, add a little music to your travel plans.

American Airlines - *Takes a deep breath* If you’ve ever read our blog you know that “these people” have had so many problems in 2008 that they are falling out of our good graces. On international flights you have to fill out customs forms….well we were sleep when they passed them out…so they just didn’t give them to us WTF?! They Suck!!

Swiss Travel Services - We arranged for airport/hotel shuttles through Latin Destinations. And as soon as we cleared customs a Swiss Travel representative (english speaking) was right there waiting with a sign. We received vouchers upon arrival for each pick-up service and the driver was always right on time and very courteous. We used the same ervice to travel from San Jose hotel to Arenal (4 hour ride) and from Arenal to Tamarindo (6 hour ride).

Hotel Britannia - Located in downtown San Jose. Far from the airport but an easy 30 minute ride away. The room was sapcious enough for the two of us and very clean. The bathroom was huge, as far as hotel bathrooms go. Cleaning service was on time everyday and they work in crews of 3 so it takes them about 10 minutes to do your entire room. The tropical breakfast buffet left much to be desired…unless you like fruit like that, then I suppose it would have been perfect for you. The concierge at the hotel was not very helpful, but since everything else with the hotel went so well we’ll chalk their lack of assistance up to the language barrier.

El Pueblo - A multi-plex with restaurants, clubs, gift shops, cigar shops etc. We ate lunch at Lukas Restaurant & Bar, where the food was o.k. and the service left much to be desired, and dinner at Papa Pez where the service and the food more than made up for lunch. The shopping plaza is small and doesnt necessarily have to be on your must see list. It is also home to Ebony 56 a club we went to our first night which deserves its own review.

Ebony 56 - Hey, the place as the same name as me, so we HAD to go, right? Wrong. It was terrible. But only 2000 colons to enter and ladies drink free. You can’t beat a $4 club night. It was like dance groups with hype men doing routines in uniform. Not only were they not percise but we watched 2 groups dance and yell in the mic for an hour each and they each shoul dhave gotten the ‘Gong’. But everyone else seemed to like it. And if you don’t speak Spanish you can ‘forget about it’ in here. However, since it is possible that I was tired (but we had slept for like 3 hours before we went, so I don’t think thats the case) I’m going to give it……instead of the one it deserves

Mercado Central - A cab ride from El Pueblo to Mercado Central was about 15 minutes (due to traffic) but it was only like $3. (Sidebar: Take a cab everywhere!) When you think of this place think of the local flea market in any U.S. city, the Straw Market in the Bahamas, or Central Row in Puerto Rico. Anything you need to buy you can find it here. (San Jose was less expensive overall than the other cities. As you get closer to the coast, prices rise.) Souvenirs are much more affordable in Mercado Central and you have the ability to haggle. Keep in mind the aisles are small and due to a multitude of seafood shops, the smell pungent, but you can’t beat the prices.

Arenal Paraiso Resort and Spa - Pretty darn cool. It was at the base of a live volcano, it was erupting on the other side though, so we saw no lava. The resort is set up like duplex houses…one on each side…we had our own porch with glass doors, two rocking chairs and a drive-way. After check-in the concierge puts your luggage in a shuttle van and drives you to your home. The resort offered many optional tours so there is no need to sign-up in advance especially if you want to visit a hot springs because guess what…its right there! And its FREE! Aside from the ants that infiltrated the bathroom, and I was so unhappy to find them in my contact lense case, the resort was great.….because of the ants

Canopy Tour - ‘Zip-Lining’ Mz Travel Diva’s favorite activity. (Laughing on the inside…I’m breathing now….and ready to continue) The Arenal Paraiso Resort had a zip-line tour right there on the property. Talk about perfect. The tour was about 2 hours long and they give plenty of instructions…and even when you don’t follow them….they help you out without getting upset. Isn’t that right Chris?

Tamarindo Diria Hotel - I have no idea what the people on Travel Advisor were talking about. This was the best hotel we stayed at by far! It was centrally located in Tamarindo and walking distance to the hottest clubs, shopping, and most eateries. Our beachfront property was white sand and picture perfect. The room was newly remodeled and decorated and except for the crab that jumped out on Chrissy in the room, everything was Wonderful!

Babylon - Local nightclub about 10 minutes walking distance from our hotel. I was kind of nervous because most roads in this town are unpaved so they kind of pop up everywhere. Well the dirt path that leads to this place takes you behind some well lit buildings into darkness and then lights emerge and there it is. I was for sure we were being led into a trap. The night we visited The Funky People Online, from NYC, were hosting so the music was mixed DJ and a live Reggaeton Band. This place beat out Ebony 56 hands down!





I’m afraid that if I go any further into deciphering our trip I might either ruin Costa Rica for you or make you want to move there! Remember, every experience is different and unique. Go forth and discover!Ever been to Costa Rica? Share your experience with us in The JetSet Community.

We conclude our ‘tale of three cities’ with the final leg of our Costa Rica trip… The Beach - Tamarindo.
Our ride from Arenal, central Costa Rica, to the Tamarindo, the western coast, proved to be especially long. If I can remember correctly, it took us about 6 hours to get there. We finally made it right before sunset, and checked-in to our ‘home’ for the next 2.5 days the Tamarindo Diria Resort. We read mixed reviews of this hotel prior to leaving for our trip, but our experience turned out to be a good one. The beachfront property is centrally located and walking distance to shops and restaurants.

source: twojetsetdivas

Once known as being a ’sleepy surfer town’, the beach was definitely awake with tons of surfing activity now. If you’re looking for clear blue water like in the Caribbean, you’re not going to find that here. Nonetheless, you will find a nice beach area, lovely sunsets, and wave riding surfers galore. Even though it was the low-key green season, the beach still had a good amount visitors, both locals and visitors alike.

The good thing about Tamarindo Diria was it’s breakfast buffet. The bad thing was that the buffet was so filling, we opted to return to our room and take a nap instead of hitting the sunshine and the beach. Wrong choice…it’s green season remember? When we awoke, the sun had been replaced by rain. The chances of beach time were now slim to none. Even though we missed the beach, we got to do a little shopping. To our surprise, there were some lovely boutiques in Tamarindo. From jewelry and clothing to artwork and crafts, you can find something to bring back here.

You can also find some nightlife in this ’sleepy town’. Later that evening we hung out at Babylon Club at a party hosted by American-based networking group, FunkyPeople Online, which organized a trip to the area as well.

Monday was our final full day in Costa Rica, and we were determined to make the most of it with….BEACH TIME! After breakfast, we headed straight for the beach. We had a wonderful and relaxing beach day…the weather was perfect! We even made a new friend.

Our friend, “surfer dog”. source: twojetsetdivas

Tuesday, it was time to head back to U.S.A. We were flying out of Liberia International Airport, which was less than an hour away from Tamarindo. When booking our trip, we decided not to include the optional airport transfer to Liberia which was offered at $135/per person. We were going to chance it, and hoped to find something more reasonable when we got to Costa Rica. It worked out, because the hotel concierge arranged a shuttle for us that was $80 for the both of us! Talk about some savings.

Visiting Costa Rica was a great experience. Friendly people, good food, and amazing natural beauty. Visiting three different regions gave us the opportunity to experience a variety of landscape, culture, and a participate in a wide range of activities.

EAT
La Palapa - our late night munchies savior. Great quesadillas!
Cafe Nari - Italian cafe, a part of Tamarindo Diria. Eb had a ‘panini’, and I had a shrimp pasta dish and a yummy pineapple drink.
Pizzaola - We had meatlovers and hawaiian.

PARTY
Pacifico - Live DJ and live percussionist, playing at the same time.
Jazz Casino - Never really heard jazz when walking past this place, but I did hear some Hip-Hop and R & B.
Monkey Bar - Didn’t get to go here, but hear its a popular spot in Tamarindo.


SHOP
Azul Profundo
Bamboo Groove
Dulce

Central America has a unique flavor and a local warmness that make it a very special place. We’ll never forget our visit to The City, The Volcano, and The Beach…and hopefully will get to visit again.

So….where are we goin’ next??

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Friday morning, we left the hotel in San Jose, hopped on our shuttle, and headed northwest for about 3 hours to our next destination, Arenal Volcano. This majestic volcano, near the town of La Fortuna, is still active, and erupts everyday. That’s right…it erupts everyday. However, there’s no fear here. Life appears to go on without a thought of being so close to this massive…active…erupting volcano. So hey, we went with the flow too. (no pun intended)

Arenal Volcano. source: twojetsetdivas

Our accommodations during our visit to Arenal were provided by Hotel Arenal Paraiso Resort & Spa. Our room had an up-close, front porch view of the mighty volcano. The property included lovely hot springs and my favorite, the wetbar. Sooo relaxing.

MzETravel -The Gliding Diva. source: Arenal Paraiso

Before the relaxation, however, it was time for some adventure! Before we came to Costa Rica, we read all about the canopy (zip-line) tours offered in the La Fortuna area. The thrill and excitement of zipping through beautiful, lush Costa Rican jungles was an experience I knew that we had to try out. We researched several canopy tour companies, but discovered that we were lucky enough to have a tour being offered right at our resort! Talk about convenience. So we signed up for the resort’s canopy tour, which was $45 for an approximately 2 hour long tour.

If we were looking for a thrill…we got it. We zipped through the forest on 11 different lines, varying in length. We had a great experience, and it’s something that I’d definitely do again…even considering the ‘technical difficulties’ that occurred on some of my zip lines. If you want to know more about that story….hit me up in our JetSet community, and I’ll give you all the splendid details involving me, the zip line, and a river. That’s all I’m saying about that on here.

Down hill to the wetbar. source: twojetsetdivas

After the tour, we were NOW ready for lunch and then some relaxation. Like the canopy tour, we researched some hot springs that were available in the area. Luck strikes again and Hotel Arenal Paraiso had about 10 hot springs with various temperatures, right there on the property! We definitely saved up on transportation costs today. So we relaxed our aching muscles in the springs for a while, then headed downstream to the wetbar. We spent the rest of the evening enjoying the music and atmosphere at the wetbar. Don’t forget this is green season, so a shower was starting to roll through, so we headed back to the room to change for dinner. Well…the shower turned into a torrential downpour. Because the rooms are like little separate cottages around the resort, and are disconnected some distance from the restaurant, the rain had us stuck in our rooms for the rest of the night. Oh well..at least we got lunch.

We only spent a night in Arenal. In hindsight, I really liked this place and wish we’d stayed here an extra day. Nonetheless, it was time to move on to our next destination, The Beach!

The Stats
Location - Central America, between Nicaragua and Panama
Time Zone - UTC/GMT -6 hours or Mountain Time in US. No daylight savings.
Weather - Average annual temperatures between 22°C (72°F) and 24°C (75°F)
Currency - Generally US$1 = 500 Colones. For current exchange rates, visit xe.com

The Snapshot
Wednesday, May 21st: ATL/STL to Miami to San Jose
Thursday, May 22nd: San Jose
Friday, May 23rd: Arenal
Saturday, May 24th: Arenal and Tamarindo
Sunday, May 25th: Tamarindo
Monday, May 26th: Tamarindo
Tuesday: Liberia to Miami…to home sweet home.

In keeping with our “maximize your paid time off” philosophy, we again traveled during a holiday weekend - Memorial Day. While this can often be one of the busiest times to travel, it’s often how you travel during holiday weekends that counts. We usually pick low volume travel days, such as Tuesdays and Wednesdays. Like our Thanksgiving Italy trip, we visited Costa Rica during its off-season which is called its green season (May-November). Point blank…it’s rainy. Rainy season, however, yields lower hotel rates and less “tourist” prices when it comes to shopping, food, transportation, etc. Overall, it wasn’t too bad. There were moments of downpours, but also moments of sunshine. You just have to go with the flow…literally.

Getting there…
We booked our vacation online through Latin Destinations, which gave us the ability to customize our trip, compare hotels, and add on features such as tours and transportation. The tough part for us when coordinating trips is the fact that we’re flying from different cities - Atlanta & St. Louis. This is often hard to juggle because fares and vacation packages are often higher than if we were flying out of NYC, Miami, or Chicago.

We usually book our packages leaving from one city and meet up there, because it would NOT be fun if one of our direct flights got canceled or delayed and one of us ended up in another country without the other. At least if we connect, we could manage the situation better. However, traveling this way does have its downside. It’s sometimes hard to coordinate connecting flights and fares. Some weeks ATL-MIA was extremely high, while STL-MIA was on sale, or vice versa. Then the arrival times didn’t mesh. We really ended up playing airfare roulette with booking the connecting flights for this trip. I ended up having a LONG layover in MIA (6 hours in fact), and Ebonee ended up having to book at a higher fare than she planned. Oh well…we got to Costa Rica, so that’s all that matters, but we vowed to plan that part of our trip better next time.

Hotel Britannica. source: twojetsetdivas

Do you know the way to San Jose?
We touched down in San Jose near midnight. No, our flight wasn’t drastically delayed… for some reason most flights arrive in the late evening into Juan Santamaria Airport.
Sidenote: If you fall asleep on an international flight, make sure you get your customs form before getting off the plane. Eb and I both woke up as the flight was landing and missed the custom form hand-out. You’d think the attendant would have left some on our laps or somewhere. We got off the plane realizing we missed getting custom forms, and were standing in the customs line looking crazy. Luckily there were some extras from another airline that we just used, but that won’t happen again.

After making through the fun in customs, we were met by our tour operators and driver, and headed to our hotel downtown, Hotel Britannia. Formerly a mansion built in the early 20th century, the hotel was quaint and cozy, with good sized double rooms. MzETravel is going to give the full review of where we stayed and what we did, so I won’t go into too many details.

City life. source: twojetsetdivas

Rested up, the next day we were ready to check out San Jose. When reading some travel reviews of the city of San Jose, I admit, I was a little worried. Don’t expect this city to be a metropolis like NYC or London. However, its a bustling Central American city with central markets, shops, restaurants, nightlife, and TRAFFIC. If you’re trying to get somewhere, even just a few miles during rush hour in this town…forget about it. Grab your patience and hold on tight to it.

Papa Pez. source: twojetsetdivas

San Jose highlights:
Eat:
Lukas Bar & Restaurant (lunch). El Pueblo. International cuisine. I had nachos.
Papa Pez (dinner). El Pueblo. Seafood. Grilled platter was delish!
See:
El Pueblo - Multiplex with restaurants, bars, gift shops, craft shops, etc. Seems like everything is in this one spot…but be aware, it’s really not as big as it seems.
Mercado Central - from fresh fish and pet parakeets to shot glasses and postcards, you can find it here.
Party:
Ebony 56… MzETravel will give you the 411 on this place in her review, but let’s just say I wasn’t sure if I was at a club or an audition taping for the dance show, So You Think You Can Dance…

Overall, our day in San Jose was cool. Nothing more, nothing less. It’s not as dismal or unsafe as some travel guides paint it as being, but it’s also not a city on “my must comeback to” list either. Because we were only there a limited amount of time, our experiences were limited as well. But in my opinion, a day visit did the job. A good thing about San Jose was that it was quite inexpensive. Taxi rides ranged from $2 to $5; dining, $6 to $10; club admission and drinks, around $2 to $4. If you’ve been to San Jose, give us your thoughts and suggestions for others that might consider visiting the city and let us know what we missed.

Next up…onward we go to The Volcano and The Beach.

Right in line with our journey to Costa Rica, Forbes Traveler highlights some of the best beaches to visit in Central America.

According to Forbes: The appeal of Central American beaches is an offbeat and organic sexiness that blends together visitors of varied ages and economic backgrounds.

I agree. Not always first on the list for a beach vacation, beach life in Central America has a unique flavor all its own. For a different kind of beach vacation, go test the waters in Central America. You’ll be pleasantly surprised.

Placencia, Belize source: Tyrone Domingo

Here’s a few of the beaches that made the list:
1. Bastamientos, Bocas del Toro, Panama
2. San Blas Archipelago, Panama
3. Montezuma, Costa Rica
4. Manzanillo, Costa Rica
5. Mal Pais, Santa Teresa, Costa Rica
6. Placencia, Belize
7. West Bay Beach, Roatán Island, Honduras
8. Chachahuate Beach, Cayos Cochinos, Honduras
9. Monterrico, Guatemala
10. Los Cobanos, El Salvador

Here’s a sneak peak of some of our beach photos from Tamarindo Beach, Costa Rica…
The rest are coming soon. Promise!

We have Jet Set to Costa Rica. A whole week of Beaches, Volcanoes, and Costa Rican Food. Who could ask for anything more?!

Tell you all about it when we get back!

I’m soo excited! In less than 2 months the Divas will be taking on Central America! Costa Rica has been on my list of must-see destinations for a long time. Costa Rica has created quite a buzz as a top eco-tourism destination. And we’re ready to see first-hand what the buzz is all about.

With our accommodations booked…its time for the Divas to do what we do best, PREPARATION! We’ll be providing updates on our planning as our trip draws nearer. We’re using a great trip planning site www.imin.com to keep us organized.

Here’s the rundown of our itinerary so far:
The City - San Jose (2 nights)
The Volcano - Arenal (1 night)
The Beach - Guanacaste (3 nights)

Of course we will fill this schedule in with tours, restaurants, partying, and definitely some beach time. If you have any suggestions or tips, PASS THEM ON!

Check out how our trip planning has gone so far in the forum section of our Globetrottin’ online community.

During our visit to Italy last Fall, my wallet had a rude awakening. As the trip drew nearer, I knew it was time to face the music and research the currency exchange rates. Let’s not forget those service fees tacked on for good measure. At that time, it was going to cost me roughly $1.60 for every Euro I planned to spend. OUCH! I almost convinced myself that the pizza and gelato were just as good here at home. Nah.

A great strategy for overcoming the exchange rates and getting the most ‘bang for your buck’, could possibly be planning your vacation around them. There are still some destinations where the exchange rate is more favorable. The February issue of Conde Nast Traveler magazine uncovers some of these hidden gems in its article, Dollar Power, and I’m passing them on to you, my Divas.
Your purse can thank me later.

Some Currency Super Stars:
1. Costa Rica
Value of $1 five years ago: 384.70 Colones
Value of $1 today*: 495.35 Colones
Increase of nearly 40 percent

2. Laos
Value of $1 five years ago: 7,905 Kip
Value of $1 today: 9,297 Kip
Increase of nearly 20 percent
3. Egypt
Value of $1 five years ago: 4.6 Egyptian pounds
Value of $1 today: 5.51 Egyptian pounds
Increase of nearly 20 percent

Honorable mentions:
Maldives, Barbados, St.Kitts, St. Lucia, Turkey, Ecuador, Panama

Ever seen an $18 hot chocolate? Well, here it is…from Venice, with love.

For some perspective on my spending in Italy: $1 today is equivalent to .68 Euros…
Costa Rica, here we come!

To calculate more currency exchange rates, visit XE.com

*currency rate as of 1/20/2008