Volcano Arenal

La Fortuna was a good place to kick it off.

The drive from San Jose to La Fortuna was beautiful and the roads were in good shape.  We found throughout our trip that good roads are hard to come by in C.R..  It´s definitely well worth it to rent a 4x4 Vehicle.  There was one bridge on the way there that seemed uncrossable; but you just gotta go for it.!!  We arrived later in the afternoon and decided to hunker down in La Fortuna for the night.  It was inexpensive and worth it(AC, Tele.).  I forget the name, but it was next to the Super Mercado in the S.W. corner of town.

We really enjoyed our stay in the area despite the inconsistent weather. This was only the beginning of our expedition through the beautiful country of Costa Rica.

The 2nd night we stayed at Los Lagos Resort which was great.  It´s not the cheapest place, but it was a good spend.  They have there own Canopy Tour, Hot Springs, Restaurant and other amenities.  The best thing about Los Lagos is their view point of the Volcano.  Spectacular!!!!  If the lava is coming off the 'Los Lagos' side, it is for sure the place to be.  The viewpoint is accessible through the top of the resort.  The drive up there is fun!!  If you don´t have a ride, it´s definitely walkable.  Just look out for the Volcano Monsters!!!  Kidding..

The 3rd night we stayed at the Congreja Lodge which is about 1\2 way between La Fortuna and the Volcano on the right side of the road.  This is also an awesome place to view the Volcano.  All the rooms have enormous windows that face the Volcano.  It was great to be able to sit in the room and watch the Lava Flow.  This was our last night in the area, and man did we get a grand finale.  The weather cleared up and We shot up to Los Lagos for a better look.  Luckily we still had the resort bracelet and they let us in no problem.  So if you go and stay at Los Lagos and the weather is overcast, make sure you save your bracelet.  It was definitely a surreal experience to see the Volcano 'Spit Hot Fire' and lava rocks.

The weather there is unpredictable during the wet season.  It was nice and cool in comparison to the other places we visited.  We also went on a killer Canopy Tour with Arenal Adventures.  It cost a bit more than the others but it´s well worth it. They have a Gondola car that takes you up to the beginning of the course. During the ride up, they explain all the plants and wildlife in the area.  The guide was very knowledgable and spoke great english.  Once you get to the top they have a massive platform that overlooks Lake Arenal - The biggest man made lake in the country.  They have one of the longest zip lines in the country(1/2 mile!!)  If you like speed, thats the place to go.

We also did a moderate hike through Arenal National Park.  The trail is about 2 miles one way.  It peaks out on top of an old lava flow, where there is excellent views of the Volcano and Lake Arenal.

There are hot springs all over the place and they all seem kind of pricey($25).  Some of the hotels will give you a discounted price($7-8 off) if you buy admission from them.

As far as eating goes, we ate typical Tico for breakfast and Dinner.  There´s a couple of Sodas (little diners) right across from the new church in the middle of La Fortuna that are good.  I believe one places is a Pizzaria - awesome place to go for breakfast: Desayuno Tipical - huevos fritos, pinto(black beans and rice),  platanos maduros(sweet plantains), and Cafe con Leche.  DELICIOSO!!!  For dinner, we stuck to our guns and had Arroz con Pollo(chicken with rice), which is simple, but so good when it´s done right.  We had a great dinner at the Steak House up the road from La Fortuna(you can´t miss it, on the right).  It´s comfortable, and the service was good.  Our server (Christian) was very informative about our next destination(Tamarindo)

The drive to Tamarindo was nice.  WE drove across the Dam and stopped at a German Hotel for Breakfast.  The food was good.  Our next stop was at  a German Bakery in the next little town over, it´s where you make the first right to head to Tamarindo.  The guy in the bakery gave us directions for a short cut, which cut an hour off our drive.  Just look for the Wind Mill sign and take a right when you see it.  This road takes you up to higher elevation where the country side is lined with gigantic wind mills.  I don't know what the other route is like, but this one is fast and super scenic.

We really enjoyed our stay in the area despite the inconsistent weather.  This was only the beginning  of our expedition through the beautiful country of Costa Rica.