Dan and I have a very exciting line up of guests visiting us this spring. To start, Dan's parents' Dan and Mary, arrived at the San Jose airport on Friday, March 11th. Since they didn't get in until late at night (about 11:30 pm), we worked as usual and then took the 2:30 pm bus to San Jose. We checked into our AirBnB for the night and managed to finesse some McDonald's and Taco Bell we had been craving. I even had time for a nap before we headed to the airport to grab the special visitors.
Dan and I stood outside the airport anxiously waiting with signs just like we had for our sisters last year. Once we were reunited and exchanged hugs we made our way back to the AirBnB. Our stay was just what we needed for the night. Less than a five minute drive from the airport and conveniently located in the heart of Alajuela, we felt very safe and comfortable. I would highly suggest this place to anyone who needs a stay in Alajuela. You can find the AirBnB here.
After catching up with a night cap of wine, we quickly fell asleep. The next morning, we left at 8:00 am on a shuttle headed to La Fortuna. The drive from Alajuela to our hotel in La Fortuna was about 2.5 hours. Once we arrived in La Fortuna, it was only around 10:30 am so we weren't able to check into our room yet. Instead, we dropped off our luggage and took a walk around town.
Again, our stay was very conveniently located in the downtown of La Fortuna. We stayed at the La Fortuna Downtown Boutique Hotel. The staff was very hospitable and even gave us access to their beautiful pool before check-in. We cooled off at the pool for a while and grabbed lunch at the Lava Lounge before checking into our room.
Afterwards, we made our way to the Paradise Hot Springs! Because of the Arenal Volcano, there are over 12 hot springs to enjoy. Dan and I previously traveled to La Fortuna in September 2021 and spent a day at the Paradise Hot Springs as well. With several different thermal pools to circulate between and a swim up bar, we had everything we needed. The weather was beautiful and we even had dinner at the hot springs.
The next morning, we woke up feeling refreshed from a good night's rest and headed downstairs to the hotel breakfast. Dan and I had the Costa Rica breakfast including gallo pinto (a traditional rice and beans dish). Once we were done, our shuttle picked us up for the next leg of our journey. If you ever plan on traveling between La Fortuna and Monteverde, Jeep Boat Jeep is the way to do it. It's a door to door service that makes it easy to get through the lake and mountains standing in between La Fortuna and Monteverde.
Dan's parents stayed at the El Establo hotel located between Santa Elena and Monteverde. It was only a five minute walk from our house which was ideal. El Establo is a gorgeous and immense mountain hotel! They couldn't have picked a better place to stay in my opinion. There were restaurants, hiking trails, a pool, tennis court, gym, zip lining and more located on the property. There was so much that we needed to take the hotel's shuttle to get around from place to place.
We stayed in Monteverde from Sunday-Friday. This way Dan's parents could see where we call home. The week itself flew by. During the days, Dan and I had work so Mr. and Mrs. Mariani would explore the Cloud Forest and its surroundings on their own. After school, we would meet up with them for more fun. They visited our school one day and they were able to meet our students, coworkers, and get a tour of our beautiful campus. We showed them our favorite restaurants, our grocery store, they met our friends, met our precious cat, Nala, and went on a night walk!
On Friday, March 18th, we made our way to the Santa Elena Cloud Forest Reserve. We took a trail to the observation deck where on a clear day you can see four of Costa Rica's volcanoes. The Santa Elena reserve is our favorite one because of the green luscious scenery and tranquility.
On Friday afternoon, a taxi drove us down to Jaco. Jaco is one of our favorite beach towns (read my top 10 things to do in Jaco here) so we had to show Mr. and Mrs. Mariani around. We picked up a rental car for the weekend and then drove down to Esterillos Oeste. Esterillos is a very special place. We spent two months living there last year and made some incredible friends. Edel and Chris are an incredible mother-son duo that have the kindest, most generous hearts. They have two AirBnB listings out of their beautiful home just a few minutes from the beach. We stayed with them for the weekend and it felt like being reunited with family.
We spent Friday and Saturday at the beach in both Esterillos and Jaco. Dan and I surfed as Mr. Mariani boogie boarded. We showed them our favorite restaurants- Los Almendros and Hola India. During our downtime, we hung out by the pool and Chris and Edel's and got some pet love from their dogs and cat.
On Sunday, we drove down to Quepos (about an hour south). Our favorite national park, Manuel Antonio, was the destination for the day. Beforehand, we grabbed a bite to eat at our favorite restaurant in Quepos, El Avion.
Once we got to the park, we had a bit of a scare as they were sold out of tickets for that day. We didn't purchase in advance so we were really bummed we wouldn't be able to get in. However, after explaining that we work in Costa Rica and that Dan's parents are here visiting, the employees were kind enough to let us in. Manuel Antonio is the park to go to for wildlife. We saw both capuchin and titi monkeys as well as deer, different species of birds, crabs, and more. We walked down to the beach and enjoyed some time relaxing in and out of the sun.
On Monday, March 21st, we packed up and made our way back to Jaco to return the rental car. This was also when we had to part ways as the Mariani's flight was later that day and Dan and I had school the following day. Overall, I am so happy they came to visit! I'm also very thankful for everything they did for us while here. Hopefully, they brought back some warmer weather and sunshine!
Loved your write-up. Sounds like you were able to have a wonderful adventure together.