It’s hard to believe that it’s already 15 months since our last international travel adventure. 2020 did not pan out as expected, but as we quarantined at home, we found plenty of time to look at travel photos and reminisce about all the fun we have been having these past couple of years.
The year got away from me as we rescheduled then cancelled trips in order to stay safe, but my favorite photos bring back the highlights of the Guanacaste area of Costa Rica, which is a tropical paradise with gorgeous beaches and shoreline, beautiful mountain ranges, and a number of volcanoes.
Costa Rica was never on our radar until 2020. We usually plan Maui in January/February, which to be truthful, we did as well in January. But we discovered that Chicago to Liberia, Costa Rica on United is just under a 5 hour flight. In February the average temperature is high 70’s to low 80’s daytime, so finding a JW Marriott Resort & Spa on the beach near Tamarindo, it was hard to resist a second winter getaway.
The JW Marriott is pretty fabulous but not walk to town. Relaxing is key here with the huge pool area fronting the beach, surrounded by hacienda type buildings and (at this time) seven dining options, which change based on time of day. For example, Tamarine, the sushi restaurant that looks out over the pool area in the evening, is a breakfast buffet in the morning.
If you’re a pool person, you really do not have to leave the resort. Rum coconuts, fruity drinks, frosty Mansita pilsners and shrimp tacos will be brought to your lounge chair while you enjoy tropical breezes.
There are water aerobics classes if you feel the need to exercise or you can walk down the beach to a couple other resorts or bar/restaurants.
Daily nature walks on the property start very early before temperatures heat up. You will see howler monkeys, parrots, toucans snake skins (which delighted the kids), and plenty of local flora & fauna.
If you decide to stay at the resort and dine at one of the many restaurants, make sure to time dinner around sunset so that you do not miss walking on the beach with champagne or just sitting on a fallen driftwood tree to get the perfect sunset shot.
The town of Tamarindo is about 20 minutes away by resort shuttle or taxi/Uber if you would like to shop or try out the restaurants.
Pangas Beach Club is one of the top rated restaurants in Tamarindo, on the beach and I would say a romantic date destination. We did take the evening shuttle into Tamarindo one evening to visit Pangas to include sunset on the beach. We were not disappointed as we are both seafood lovers, and the ambiance of sitting at the table with your feet in the sand, candlelight, drinks & your beloved close at hand while you watch the sunset is just so relaxing. You sigh and realize, This is retirement!
We still need to learn to totally relax, so had planned our week so that every other day we would have one activity and the next day would be relaxing at the resort with a little exercise, so yes we did try water aerobics a couple times.
Our first activity was a private sloth encounter which we found quite interesting. We have probably seen sloths at the zoo, but this day trip involved visiting Finca Verde Lodge in Bagaces. This is a private ecotourism reserve with sloths in their natural habitat, birdwatching, frogs, lizards, and butterflies. The guide helped us site many sloths with huge binoculars and assisted us with taking photos.
We also recommend a sunset sail that includes lunch & snorkel. We booked the Blue Dolphin Charter, but there are many to choose from and they leave from the beach area in Tamarindo all around the same time.
Now that we are fully & gratefully vaccinated, it’s time to start planning 2021 adventures…C’est tout!