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Nayara Springs – Rainforests, volcanos, and luxury: oh my!

March 8, 2020March 7, 2020bankerchicktravelsLeave a comment

Switching gears on our 10th Anniversary Costa Rica trip, Husband I left the sunny, dry Peninsula Papagayo in Guanacaste and made our way to the rainforest and the small town of La Fortuna, Costa Rica. The drive took us a little over 3 hours, and was, shall we say, a bit adventurous; we may have made a wrong turn, but followed our trusty Google Maps. Somehow we ended up on a mostly unpaved road, essentially offroading over a mountain. We were lucky to have a 4 wheel drive vehicle – at one point it felt like we were climbing at a 90 degree angle!

Screen Shot 2020-03-06 at 2.38.34 PM — See where the blue line exits Rt 142 and appears to cut across? That’s the rough portion of the road. Thanks Google for making things…. interesting!

This friendly fellow greeted us at our lunch stop as we approached the Lake Arenal area:

And by the way … excellent fried chicken to be had here!

As we made our way around Lake Arenal, we enjoyed incredible views of the Arenal Volcano, from across the lake:

Arenal is classified as an active volcano, with its last major eruption in 1968, but most recent in 2010. The volcano is surrounded by a mountainous rainforest full of wildlife and beauty. And it was here that we found our incredible resort, Nayara Springs, which was The. Best. Resort. I’ve. EVER. Visited. Period.

As is proudly displayed on its website, Nayara Springs has won a number of luxury travel awards. Since this was an anniversary trip, and we had used points at our other Costa Rican destination, the Andaz, we chose to splurge on this spot and Oh! was it worth it. (Husband says: Banker Chick is really good at finding excuses to book luxury). Rooms – which aren’t typical hotel rooms, but villas – 1,500 freakin’ sq. ft. villas – average about $900 / night. Because we booked more than six months in advance, we got a special rate of 4 nights for the price of 3. Still far from cheap, but again … this place was worth every penny. And I will note, they don’t nickel and dime you – there is no resort fee, and the resort includes a free in room mini bar (non-alcoholic), free breakfast, free laundry, and free international phone calls.

A few photos of our amazing villa:

A romantic Anniversary greeting awaited us

Seating area with fresh fruit and champagne

Netting around the bed was unnecessary, there were no bugs in the room

sliding glass doors to private balcony with infinity pool

57463880285__E2926F59-B190-4D59-A2B9-A9210A6C0F51 — Infinity pool, surrounded by lush vegetation

57463873800__13CDF8A8-EEFA-4678-BFED-30DFF9750D2B — The bathroom was easily 500 sq. ft. In this photo, indoor shower and outdoor shower

Another view of outside shower. I couldn’t get enough of this bathroom!

View across the bathroom. Did I tell you I couldn’t get enough?

B692AC29-D622-4BFA-AEC9-242AA948AC7F — Ahhhh – pura vida!

Not only the villas, but the entire resort was maintained to perfection. Dense foliage surrounded well lit, hilly pathways:

Since the resort is on the side of a mountain, some of the terrain could be steep. Fortunately, the resort offered golf cart transportation if needed. We were glad to take the cart one night, because our driver spotted this colorful little guy:

Only in Costa Rica: the red-eyed tree frog

The path outside our villa in the evening

There are several restaurants on the property, which also offers evening entertainment. Because of the dark, mountainous terrain, it’s probably advisable to stay on property in the evening unless you are very comfortable with that kind of driving. We enjoyed meals at Mis Amores, a Latin bistro where breakfast is served, Asia Luna, a fusion restaurant, Nostalgia wine & tapas bar, and our favorite: Amor Loco, a sumptuous fine food restaurant with purple velvet seating – quite a contrast to the surrounding rainforest!

That is a serious fruit plate – breakfast at Mis Amores

Our waiter at Amor Loco preparing some kind of flaming drink

Returning to our villa, well lit steps show just how secluded we were

Finally, I would be remiss if I didn’t mention the spa at Nayara Springs. Yes, I know, we went to the spa at Andaz … but Nayara was offering some kind of discount on their massages so we ended up going not once, but twice, squeezing in a second treatment on our last day. The spa at Nayara is open air, so rather than piped in nature sounds, what you hear is an actual rainforest! Try the chocolate scrub – wonderful.

The resort was so beautiful, we spent most of our four days there enjoying its delights. However, we did manage to get off the property during the day a few times. I pre-booked a pass at Eco Termales Hot Springs. I don’t have any photos of this experience, because once arriving all electronics were stored safely in a locker. But we did enjoy the multiple thermal, sulfuric pools. The resort was clean, not at all crowded, and peaceful.

We also arranged a day tour through the resort: a private horseback riding and hanging bridges trek at Mistico Park in La Fortuna. Note that this tour is not featured on Nayara Springs’ website – be sure to ask the concierge about your choices. We were able to book just a a couple of days in advance. We paid $73 per person including transportation to and from the park.

If you want to be truly immersed in the treetops of the rainforest, and aren’t too afraid of heights, a hanging bridge trek is a great way to learn more about the flora and fauna of the area. There is a fair bit of hiking on uneven paths on this tour, and some up and downhill walking, so be prepared to be active (and to sweat) and wear good trekking shoes.

Our horses, Tequila and Indio, were amazingly well trained and stable on steep and narrow pathways. Once again we enjoyed the services of a fantastic local guide, Francisco. Francisco hailed from Nicaragua, and has 17 – seventeen! brothers and sisters. With so many siblings, he needed to support himself at a young age and migrated to Costa Rica, finding a home near Arenal where he became an excellent horseman. We felt extremely safe with him and these horses.

During our tour we saw wild pigs, a sloth, and a toucan in the wild. Francisco also pointed out an amazing Sleeping Plant (the dormilona), also known as a Touch Me Not, that folds in upon itself when touched, to protect itself against predators and harsh weather.

Low clouds made the first part of our journey very foggy, obscuring the views – the photo below actually looks over a hill, toward Lake Arenal and the volcano (just trust me):

But, within less than 30 minutes, the clouds partially cleared. Francisco was kind enough to take us back to the scenic hilltop for more photos:

Arenal volcano, partially obscured by clouds, in the background

We hated to leave Nayara and the rainforest. I admit, although I knew the resort was going to be very nice based on the reviews and awards, I was surprised – I thought it would be too buggy and humid for me to really enjoy. But the amenities, people, and natural beauty far outweighed any negatives. We will be back!

We flew home from San Jose airport, about a 2 1/2 hour drive from the Arenal area but a bit less adventurous, mostly via highway. We have incredible memories of Costa Rica. Pura Vida!

Eco-friendly Costa Rica: Tico Tours Private Palo Verde Tour Review

March 7, 2020March 7, 2020bankerchicktravelsLeave a comment

First, a little thought on day tours. While I enjoy being an independent traveler and exploring at my own pace, there is something to be said for a guided day tour, particularly when visiting a place to which you’ve never traveled. There are two basic types of day tours – group tours, which take place on a bus or minibus and can include anywhere from 8 – 50 people, and private tours which are, you guessed it, private and catered only to your group. The latter can be a more expensive option, although if your group is more than 4 people, not necessarily on a per person basis. Group tours certainly have their place: less pricy, typically including all of the well researched highlights of a region, meeting fellow travelers, well trained guides with a microphone or headset. Reviews abound. They are simply … predictable. Private tours, on the other hand, offer the traveler the ability to design a “bespoke” day (I hate that word, btw, followed closely by “curated”) – seeing and doing exactly what you want to do. Stop to take a picture of that cute cow. Stop for water or the toilet. Grab lunch when you’re hungry, or skip it entirely. But of course, that flexibility comes at a cost – not only a financial one, but the risk of a little less predictability. The quality and knowledge of the guide makes a huge difference here.

With that said, Husband and I were very pleased we chose to take a private tour, arranged by Tico Tours Guanacaste (which offers both types of tours), called the Palo Verde tour. If you click on the “rates” section of the tour page, you will see the choice between group or private touring. This tour included a visit to its namesake National Park, Palo Verde, full of local wildlife, a boat ride down the Tempisque river, cultural stops and information, and lunch at a hacienda once owned by a former President of Costa Rica.

And so, we’re off!

Our guide, Mario, actually majored in becoming a tour guide. His knowledge was evident as he told us a little about Costa Rica’s history: first, a reminder that the Americas weren’t discovered by Christopher Columbus, but by the Chinese, as evident on maps made well before 1492. Then, the interesting note that unlike much of Central and South America, Costa Rica was not initially populated by the Spanish. Why? Because there wasn’t any gold.

While Costa Rica’s abundant farmland produces cantaloupe, pineapple, palm oil, bananas, coffee, watermelon, and citrus fruits, an important crop is sugar cane. Did you know that sugar cane can be used to make a wide variety of products, including molasses, fuel, and paper? We didn’t! We stopped to watch migrants from Nicaragua harvest the sugar cane by hand, using machetes. Apologies for the distance of the photo, but I didn’t want to get that close…

Workers harvesting sugar cane in Guanacaste, Costa Rica

The Nicaraguan workers toiling under the hot sun are paid by the square meter harvested, and as a result they move surprisingly fast given the heat. Mario explained that the majority of the workers are migrants, because the native Costa Ricans are financially well off and don’t need to do this type of hard labor. He credits the excellent public education, government provided healthcare, and the tourism industry for giving Costa Rica such a strong economy for the area. The 9.16% income tax covers not only healthcare, but retirement pensions, for residents of Costa Rica. No wonder that many foreigners, especially Americans, are making Costa Rica home.

Our next stop was a visit along the Tempisque river, where oxen assist in dredging the riverbed for dirt and sand that will be used in making concrete:

Concrete is an essential product in Costa Rica, where most homes are built of concrete – wood is too quickly rotted by termites here. Mario explained that using oxen to mine the cement base is more environmentally friendly, maintains tradition, and keeps the profit in the pocket of local families rather than large corporations.

On our way to the hacienda lunch, Mario had a quiz for us. He picked what appeared to be a fruit off a tree, and asked us what we thought it was:

A pepper? No.

A tomato of some sort? No.

A sweet fruit like a mango or papaya? No.

We didn’t guess correctly until we were offered a number of clues: It starts with a C. It’s sold at almost any grocery. It contains protein. It often comes in a can. Finally….. it’s a nut. What? That “fruit” above is the casing for one, single cashew nut! And by the way, the rind has a nasty taste. Amazing – Every day I realize how much I don’t know, and even more so when I travel.

Our next stop was a hacienda where we were led, along with other Tico Tours guests, on a cultural experience led by Ramon and Juanita, a couple dressed in traditional clothing who run this small tourist attraction. First, we watched the traditional process of extracting sugar cane, using oxen:

yoked oxen walk in a circle, grinding pulp into sugar cane using a long pole

Ramon and Juanita also treated us to “puntalita”, little corn-based snacks, and taught me how to make a tortilla in preparation for a delicious, authentic lunch.

I was a little intimidated by the hot, hot pan used to cook the tortillas

After lunch, we continued our journey, deeper in to Palo Verde National Park, where we embarked on our jungle river cruise. Thanks to Mario’s eagle eyes, on the way we were treated to a very special sight in the adjacent wetlands: the Jabiru. Less than 100 of these stork-like birds remain in the wild in Costa Rica. Wow!

Mario made note that Costa Rica has a very environmentally conscious wetlands law: wetlands are not taxed, and if kept wild, owners actually receive a stipend from the government.

We embarked on a small boat for our eco-tour of the river, where our captain helped us spot various wildlife:

Basilisk, aka “Jesus Christ Lizard”, because they can walk on water

On this highly informative tour, we learned is that despite growing wealth through tourism and real estate development, Costa Ricans desire to preserve the many natural wonders that surround them. Moreover, Costa Ricans have a sense that their country is special. And we agree!

Guanacaste, Costa Rica: bringing the heat – and the chill

March 7, 2020March 8, 2020bankerchicktravels6 Comments

For our 10th Anniversary, Husband and I treated ourselves to a first class trip to Costa Rica. Our first stop in this beautiful and friendly country was dry, sunny Peninsula Papagayo.

We flew directly from Newark to Liberia, the smaller of Costa Rica’s two major international airports, located in the country’s dry northwest. While I usually use points for flights, we were able to secure first class seats on United for the 5 hour flight, for under $500 each, by flying on a Wednesday. Note that for this trip we chose an “open jaw” route, flying into Liberia and home from San Jose, Costa Rica’s capital. I often search for this type of route, which allows flexibility in finding the cheapest/ lowest point flight choices, and also allows for movement within the trip without backtracking.

We secured a rental car through Vamos, a local company. The rental car experience felt very local … we were shuttled to a small office that could have (and probably did) double as someone’s home. There was a short wait for the car, a 4 wheel drive Dihatsu – which helped us acclimate to “Costa Rica time” – and then we were off to the beautiful Andaz Costa Rica Resort at Peninsula Papagayo.

Shout out to an article on The Points Guy, a very helpful and friendly website for those who want to maximize the use of credit card points, for making me aware of an excellent deal using Hyatt Points via my Chase Sapphire Reserve card. For only 15,000 points per night, we booked our room at the Andaz, a beautiful resort situated on a steep hillside overlooking Culebra Bay on the Gulf of Papagayo. A tremendous bargain, as the rooms typically go for up to $700 per night.

The points deal was supposed to offer us only a “Forest View”, but we were very pleased with the view we had, which included Culebra bay. Bright morning sunlight awoke us each morning, but the sunrise was worth the early waking time.

A complementary Anniversary treat in our room at the Andaz

A few things to know about Papagayo, if you plan to go:

It is close to Libera airport – less than an hour by car
It is extremely hot and sunny in March, and really, for most of the year. See this link: Annual Average Weather for Peninsula Papagayo.
If you’re afraid of monkeys, staying there may be difficult; they are everywhere in the trees and even visited us by the pool once or twice. We were warned not to leave anything on the open balcony of our room, because the monkeys can be a little grabby…
The peninsula is developed as a luxury destination; while there is dry forest wilderness surrounding each resort, there are also luxuriously landscaped grounds and golf courses. Other nearby resorts include the Four Seasons, Secrets, and the Kasaiiya Papagayo Luxury Wilderness Retreat . In fact, the entire peninsula is gated and available only to guests or visitors to these resorts. We went through two sets of gates to get to the Andaz.
Because of the gated, resort nature of the area, there is no town or city to wander to find restaurants, bars, and nightlife. Therefore, it’s likely that you will end up dining at your hotel most evenings for dinner. Quiet relaxation is the order of the day.

We enjoyed each of the Andaz’ 3 main restaurants, Chao Pescao, a small plates venue; Rio Bhongo, which was the only restaurant serving breakfast; and Ostra, the resort’s special occasion, seafood specialty restaurant which served us the most amazing ceviche I’ve ever had. Because we had noted our anniversary on the reservation, we were treated to a bottle of champagne and special treat with our meal at Ostra:

We also pampered ourselves with spa treatments, a specialty at many of the resorts in this area. Pricey but worthwhile. The spa includes its own small, shaded outdoor pool, where Husband and I were the only occupants for several hours.

When we visited the resort’s main pool one afternoon, we were treated to a visit from a family of Capuchin monkeys. They seemed quite comfortable posing for the camera and entertaining the resort’s guests.

this little guy scared the bejeezus out of a lady sitting nearby

Despite the heat, relaxation, and excellent dining, we did manage to leave the resort a few times. We booked two private day tours with Tico Tours, a local company. The first was their “Palo Verde” tour. This tour was so informative and interesting, I wrote a separate post about it! Click here for my review of Tico Tours’ Palo Verde tour. Highly recommend. The other tour was an ATV tour of the vistas and beaches, found here on Tico’s website: Tico Dune Buggy Tour We enjoyed this tour too – plan to get dirty though!

Husband modeling the buff and goggles that protected our faces from the dirt. Also looking ready to drive the Dune Buggy!

The Dune Buggy tour included a stop at an excellent beach bar/restaurant called Aquasport in the tiny enclave of Playa Hermosa. This is the kind of place I could spend many, many hours … couldn’t you?

Another day, we chose to drive ourselves around the Guanacaste area, discovering the small beach town of Playa Coco. The vibe in Playa Coco was truly unique; extremely casual, full of extremely suntanned surfers, locals, and a number of Americans, many of whom have relocated to Costa Rica permanently, or “snowbird” there during the winter. Each bar and venue we stopped at (and we stopped at several!) felt like Cheers – it seemed that everyone knew one another’s name.

We even found an “Irish” pub in Playa Coco – a necessary stop, because it was St. Patrick’s Day!

We’re all a little Irish on St. Patrick’s Day!

Our stay in Guanacaste was an excellent introduction to northwestern Costa Rica. What we were soon to learn, however, is that it’s the diversity of Costa Rica’s experiences that make it such a fantastic destination. There is just so much more to uncover – and while Guanacaste is a very friendly, relatively developed, and not particularly remote beach area, its scenery and experiences are far less dramatic than much of the country has to offer. Click here to read about our next Costa Rican stop, which included The. Best. Resort. I’ve. EVER. Visited.