Has anyone dived in Costa Rica?

Has anyone dived in Costa Rica or done any tours of the Tropical Rain Forest for that matter?

We are thinking of booking a holiday from the UK through First Choice. They do a 5 day Cloudforest Tour. The brief intro to this says: 'Arenal and Monteverde Areas. This 5 day tour gives you the unique opportunity to float down the river on a tropical safari, bathe in hot springs, slide through the cloud forest and see the steams and sparks of Arenal Volcano.' You get the chance to do a canopy tour (which we may pass on as we have done it in Mexico) or walk on rope bridges high above the jungle to see all the wildlife up close which I would prefer. Can anyone tell me if they have been on any of these tours and what they are like? How close up to wildlife do you really get? One website worried me because it mentioned Yellow Fever injections being recommended. Is this essential as I am terrified of needles! :eek: Also can anyone tell me about malaria precautions?

As regards diving - what is it like? When we visited the Pacific side of Mexico one year we were a bit disappointed as the water was quite cool and the visibilty wasn't very good. It was also quite rocky rather than a coral reef which is what I enjoy. The area we are looking at is the Gulf of Papagayo. What are the currents like? I understand that there is a lot of surfing in that area - does this mean the beaches aren't good for swimming off?

We are interested in the holiday as we would like to get off the beaten track and visit somewhere which is undeveloped/natural and unspoilt. The idea of visiting the tropical rain forest really appeals. :)

Any information you could give us would be very much appreciated. Thank you. :)

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by bubbles

Has anyone dived in Costa Rica or done any tours of the Tropical Rain Forest for that matter?

We are thinking of booking a holiday from the UK through First Choice. They do a 5 day Cloudforest Tour. The brief intro to this says: 'Arenal and Monteverde Areas. This 5 day tour gives you the unique opportunity to float down the river on a tropical safari, bathe in hot springs, slide through the cloud forest and see the steams and sparks of Arenal Volcano.' You get the chance to do a canopy tour (which we may pass on as we have done it in Mexico) or walk on rope bridges high above the jungle to see all the wildlife up close which I would prefer. Can anyone tell me if they have been on any of these tours and what they are like? How close up to wildlife do you really get? One website worried me because it mentioned Yellow Fever injections being recommended. Is this essential as I am terrified of needles! :eek: Also can anyone tell me about malaria precautions?

As regards diving - what is it like? When we visited the Pacific side of Mexico one year we were a bit disappointed as the water was quite cool and the visibilty wasn't very good. It was also quite rocky rather than a coral reef which is what I enjoy. The area we are looking at is the Gulf of Papagayo. What are the currents like? I understand that there is a lot of surfing in that area - does this mean the beaches aren't good for swimming off?

We are interested in the holiday as we would like to get off the beaten track and visit somewhere which is undeveloped/natural and unspoilt. The idea of visiting the tropical rain forest really appeals. :)

Any information you could give us would be very much appreciated. Thank you. :)

---

Have yet to dive down there, but the surfing is excellent! A couple of my Army buds and I used to fly down every year in the mid 80's for a couple of weeks of surfing and we loved it. We did our own jungle tour on one trip (had a compadre with us that wanted to venture out one day, the rest of us had seen ample exploration time a bit further north in years past) and wildlife was quite abundant and varied; not sure what the commercial tours of today would be like down there but I am guessing you will enjoy it. I have heard a lot of positive comments from friends who have done the canopy tours in recent years.

Definitely see your doctor and start taking Chloroquine (antimalarial drug) prior to departing on your trip (even if you plan to never leave the major cities); usually start 2 weeks prior to entering a suspect area and continue for 2 months after your exit. Some folks get sick from it initially (stomach ailments), but for most it does not last long and is not too severe; much better than the alternative if you ask me. That and common sense (limit your exposure in areas that are infested with mosquitoes) and your worries are minimal.

Not sure what the CDC and WHO recommend for vaccinations, but I would strongly suggest talking to your doctor about getting vaccinated for any and all tropical threats (yellow fever, hepatitis, etc.) A lot of these are only recommend if you are coming in from another endemic area, so you may have to say you want it as opposed to being advised to get it. Our vaccinations were still current (while in the military we were vaccinated for diseases I have yet to hear of) but we still looked into such matters before each trip down. Trust me when I say that you do get used to needles over time and they are not near as bad as the alternative (I hated needles years ago, but these days I can pop myself in the hip, shoulder, or where ever is called for without blinking an eye.) Malaria has always seemed to be the greatest concern down there (away from major cities) but I would rather be safe myself from everything.

Hope you have a great trip. A good friend moved his family down there in 2005 (they are building a small beach front resort) and he loves it, even during the rainy season.

Thank you BamaCaveDiver for all the information you gave me.

Yes I had seen that there was lots of surfing there which is why I am hoping that the sea is still suitable to swim in - don't like big waves but from the brochure it looks quite calm - maybe that area is protected by headlands.

I will look into the malaria situation then - I had malaria tablets when we went to the Maldives (travel agent recommended them so we purchased them from the chemist). I got a severe allergic reaction to them came up in an awful rash which was horrible in the heat - it was then that the doctor out there told me not to use them as it wasn't necessary for the Maldives - so much for the travel agent getting it right! I know there are many different types of malaria tablet so this time I will have to go to my doctor and find out what I should be taking. Will also have a word re injections - perhaps get my husband protected rather than me! :eek:

Thank you once again.

Oh one other thing - is it still green even in the dry season. Bit concerened as to how much rain they would have in the wet season!!!!

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by bubbles

Oh one other thing - is it still green even in the dry season. Bit concerened as to how much rain they would have in the wet season!!!!

---

It stays green and lush year round down in those parts, all the dry season does is raise the heat. My buddy is living in a more remote section, so he experiences the fun of mud roads during the rainy season (read, he gets his truck stuck on a regular basis:p come to think of it, the first time I ever met him was when he got his truck stuck in a FL swamp:p ) The cities and the major tourist destinations are not near as bad, just wet and humid.

There are a number of areas that do not see the major wave action. Everything we surfed was reef breaks, so I would think that the diving should be awesome.

Bummer about the reaction the antimalarial, do you recall what you were taking? That is the number one threat you need to be cautious of down there; they say it is not so bad in the cities (as opposed to the more remote regions) so you might be able to just limit your exposure (wear long pants and shirts as opposed to shorts and T-shirts, use headnets, etc.) depending on where you will be spending your time; that's a good idea even with the antimalarials, but wants to wear pants and long sleeves in a tropical paradise:p .

I'll shoot Herbie an email and see if he has any recommendations to add.

Ahhh thanks for all the advice. I will have to look at the malaria tablets - I kept the packet somewhere in order that I would remember what I was allergic to but I just can't remember where I kept it! :D

Beginning to get really excited and yet I won't be going till next year. :) Have Mexico booked for 4 months time but we have to plan ahead in order to budget and save for all these holidays! We had originally been thinking about the Maldives for 2009 but my husband wanted to visit somewhere different and the Maldives seems to be going too upmarket and thus is being spoilt - no longer the Robinson Crusoe desert island feel. :(

Have you got any holiday plans?

I went to the nicoya peninsula during the rainy season. The weather was very nice up to about 3:00 P.M. then the down pours came. It probably rained 3 inches an hour, but the rain was over with by around 5:00 p.m. If you like mud I would recommend an a.t.v. tour Me and my wife went with Two other couples and they all said that it was the highlight of the trip.

Yeah I have done ATV in Jamaica and got extremely muddy! There was a chance to jump off the cliff (a very high one in my opinion) into the sea to get the mud off - I opted for a shower instead and said 'I couldn't swim!' There was no way I was being persuaded to jump off that cliff as many others were!!!! :eek: :D

I should point out that there was steps to get out but they were being used by those exiting the sea - it was a one way route.

I went there in the dry season and it still rained evryday, but only a little bit. I did the hot springs and sky rail both were amazing. no diving for me though.

I've been to Costa Rica about a dozen times to surf. I did do some diving one time out of Playa Flamingo, near Tamarando, which was fairly basic.

When I was hanging out in Mal Pais, I was told that the diving was pretty good around Cabo Blanco but I didn't go myself as the surf was really good. I'd think there would be some good diving over on the East Coast someplace, and everyone knows about Cocos and Malo Pelo and the big Pelagics.

Have you ever heard about any cave diving in CR, DeWayne?

I'm heading down there in two weeks to surf Pavones with my brother, I can't wait!