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Manuel Antonio, Costa Rica

written by Parita Leave a Comment

Manuel Antonio was specifically chosen for its location on the Pacific coast! My sister and Adarsh knew that after a few packed days in La Fortuna/Arenal, we’d be ready for some R&R.  Personally, I LOVED Manuel Antonio, as lazy beach days are my favorite!

Let’s take a look at where we stayed, what we ate, and what we did…

WHERE WE STAYED

Our Airbnb in Manuel Antonio was the definition of spacious and luxurious (and expensive!).  Totally worth it!  When we walked into our unit, we were all confused and so so excited.  First of all, we had our own elevator.  And the rooms were beautiful, the bathrooms had rain showers, there was an awesome game room downstairs.  I told my sister I wish we had a couple of more days to enjoy the place!  Not to mention, the location was perfect too.  HIGHLY RECOMMEND splurging a little for a place like this!

WHERE WE ATE

I really liked the meals we enjoyed in Manuel Antonio. Everything was fresh and tasty and made with care.  Super fan over here!

Sancho’s – We ate dinner at Sancho’s on our first night and loved the food/service.  They’re known for the wet burrito (a stuffed burrito covered in their special sauce).  I wasn’t too hungry, so I didn’t order that (Niel and Adarsh did and loved it), but my tostada was quite tasty.

Sancho's - Manuel Antonio, Costa Rica

Emilio’s Cafe – We loved this place so much we ate breakfast here twice!  The view is incredible, and the food and fresh juices are super tasty.  I personally loved the veggie, cheese, and egg croissant sandwich.  Simple yet so good!  I also loved Vishnu’s dish on day 2.  He ordered a savory French toast stuffed with an herbed cheese.  Oh my gosh!  It was perfection!

Café Agua Azul – We ate dinner here on our last night.  I’ll be honest.  Mama may have had a little too much wine beforehand, but I do remember the burrito my sister and I shared being pretty good.  The boys all ordered fish and said everything tasted super fresh.  Loved the ambiance here, so would recommend it for that reason alone!

Group picture - Manuel Antonio, Costa Rica

WHAT WE DID

ATV tour – This was the only excursion we did in Manuel Antonio, and I think it kind of fell short of everyone’s expectations.  Except mine!  The boys and my sister wanted to go fast, however, the guide made me go first right behind him.  I didn’t drive fast…at all.  When we finally stopped for a break, I pleaded with the guide to let me move to the very back.  He finally agreed, and everyone had a much better time for the last 25% of the ride.  Haha!  I also had a lot more fun riding at my own pace!

ATV tour - Manuel Antonio, Costa Rica

ATV tour - Manuel Antonio, Costa Rica

Beach days! – We spent 1.5 days hanging out at two different beaches.  While I didn’t partake, the rest of the group did some boogie boarding.  I did, however, read and get plenty of sun!  Someday we’re going to own a house by the ocean…someday!

Manuel Antonio beach

And that’s a wrap on our trip to Costa Rica! So many adventures, so much great food, so many memories!  Can’t wait to vacation with this group (of my favorite people) again. 🙂

Written on April 6, 2018 Related:Travel

Goofy group picture in Arenal

La Fortuna/Arenal, Costa Rica

written by Parita 2 Comments

Now that I’ve shared my personal must pack list for a trip to Costa Rica, let’s dive into the details of our getaway.

We (me, Vishnu, Vishnu’s brother, my sister, and her husband) spent a total of 6 nights in Costa Rica, including short stints in San Jose on our way in and out.  I wasn’t necessarily a huge fan of where we stayed these nights, but they served the purpose and were super cheap!  I will say, though, that the fast food in San Jose, namely Pizza Hut and Taco Bell, tasted pretty delicious.  Even better than the states!

Ariel view of San Jose, Costa Rica

Ok, so we woke up super early on Thursday to drive (we rented a big SUV) to La Fortuna/Arenal.  We were being picked up at our La Fortuna Airbnb around 9 am for our hiking excursion.  The drive took a little over 2.5 hours and was scenic and beautiful.

And that was the start to a very fun 2.5 days in La Fortuna/Arenal…

WHERE WE STAYED

I’m very thankful to my sister and Adarsh (my BIL) for doing the majority of the planning behind this trip.  They did an amazing job picking great places to stay and the best excursions.

Like I said, we stayed at a 2 bedroom, 2 bathroom Airbnb.  The whole vibe reminded me a lot of India.  We even had a mini farm next door!

In my opinion, the best part about this particular home was the fact that the owner was incredibly gracious and kind.  And that it had a washing machine for all our dirty hiking, rapelling, and rafting clothes.  I bet everyone else would say they loved the hammock and the location!  Ha!

Overall, I think all five of us would recommend this place.

WHERE WE ATE

In terms of meals, we really only had to think about dinner because we ate breakfast at home (in the form of bananas, bars, and PB sandwiches) and lunches were covered as part of the excursions, with the exception of zip lining.

Rainforest Café – We had high hopes for this place as it came recommend by one of our hiking guides.  Personally, I felt like the food was a bit Americanized and not as authentic as I wanted.  My sister and I shared some yucca fries and nachos, while the guys ordered special plates with a few different items.  I did, however, love the fried plantain with cheese on Vishnu’s plate and had a few bites of that.

Don Rufino – This was our more fancy meal while in La Fortuna/Arenal.  Overall, I really enjoyed the ambiance and food.  There weren’t too many vegetarian options on the menu but what they did have was great.  My sister and I shared a cauliflower steak with couscous.  However, the butternut squash risotto that came with the chicken dish stole the show.  I’m already thinking of how to recreate it at home!

Dinner at Don Rufino Costa Rica

Group photo in front of Don Rufino - Costa Rica

Chill Out Café (lunch) – Because we had a 5 hour drive ahead of us, we wanted to make sure we ate before heading from zip lining to Manuel Antonio.  I will say, for what it was, the food at Chill Out Café was pretty decent.  I ordered a veggie quesadilla and fries (because duh!) and liked it a lot.  Everyone else ordered tacos and said they tasted better than expected.

WHAT WE DID

La Fortuna Extreme Hike – This was a crowd favorite excursion.  And I liked it a lot too!  I will say that a baseline of fitness is probably something that should be recommended, as certain portions of the hike were very challenging.  My favorite parts included seeing all the cool animals and birds, the views of the volcano, the team work our little group displayed as we climbed up and down for eight miles, and our super energetic guide.  At the end of the hike, you go to a hot ‘river’ for an hour to relax.  Not my favorite as the river was very rocky and the water pressure crazier than expected, but all in all, it was a great way to end the day!

Group photo - hiking in Arenal

Toad on hike in Arenal

Goofy group picture in Arenal

Desafio Combo Canyoning and Rafting – I ended up loving both of these excursions more than I expected.  To be fair, my bar was set pretty low to begin with.  The waterfall rapelling (crayoning) definitely got our adrenaline up and proved to be a challenge.  Essentially, you rapell down four waterfalls and incur two ‘ wet surprises’ along the way.  There is a bit of ‘hiking’ involved with this so I highly recommend taking your water shoes with you.  After a breakfast break, we headed to the river for the rafting portion of the day.  This was a ton of fun, mainly because our guide was awesome.  He let us get in the river and float along, and he also let a few of us ‘ride the bull.’  FYI – I didn’t do this!  All in all, I would highly recommend this combo package – just remember adventure is the name of the game.  Oh and lunch was pretty delicious too!

Sky Trek Zip Lining – I ended up loving this more than I thought I would (a personal theme for the trip!).  Don’t get me wrong, it’s frightening if you think too much about what you’re about to do, but if you can get over the height element, it’s amazing!  We zip lined across/down seven different paths, all of varying heights and lengths.  The guides were awesome and made sure you had a lot of fun along the way.  Again, highly recommend this adventure!

Group photo - zip lining in Arenal Costa Rica

Zip lining in Arenal Costa Rica

Next up, a little bit of adventure and lots of relaxation in Manuel Antonio…

P.S. To be honest, I was very nervous about all of the excursions we signed up for.  I kept imaging someone getting seriously injured.  I’m happy to share no one in our group got hurt over the course of our 6 day trip.  We owe this in large part to our guides and the safety standards they follow.  I felt safe and secure at all times.  Also, as Vishnu pointed out, the safety regulations in Costa Rica probably surpass those in the US, as tourism is their main industry.

Written on April 5, 2018 Related:Travel, Uncategorized

Costa Rica

Must Pack List for an Adventure Filled Trip to Costa Rica

written by Parita 2 Comments

I thought I’d start my Costa Rica posts with one about my personal must pack list.  Personally, this was a unique trip for me because our days were filled with so many adventures/excursions.  Let’s put it this way – you’re not packing for just the beach!

Let me provide some context about our trip.  We were in Costa Rica for 6 nights total – mainly in Arenal and Manuel Antonio.  Over the course of four of those days, we participated in five different excursions (I’ll share more detail in my other posts).  As you can imagine, shopping and packing for this trip was interesting.

Costa Rica

With that being said, here is my must pack list for an adventure filled trip to Costa Rica…

1. Water shoes – These bad boys saved my feet/toes multiple times as the hot springs and beaches can be quite rocky.  We also wore our water shoes during the waterfall rapelling and white water rafting excursions, and they were the perfect footwear.  Highly recommend!

2. Hiking boots – I was super skeptical about this purchase, but looking back, I’m so glad both Vishnu and I splurged on good quality hiking boots.  If you’re planning to do any kind of hiking in Costa Rica, I recommend a solid pair of boots.  I almost rolled my ankle twice!  We also wore our boots in place of sneakers for all other excursions.  We bought ours at a local REI.  I recommend getting fitted if you’re new to this just like you would for running shoes.  The last thing you need on an eight mile hike through the Costa Rican rainforest is an uncomfortable pair of shoes.

3. Rain jacket – Even if you’re travelling during the dry season (which we did), I still highly recommend bringing a good quality rain jacket with you.  It drizzled during our zip lining excursion, and while our jackets didn’t necessarily keep us warm, they did keep us dry which was as good as it got at the time!

4. Bug spray – A strong, good quality bug spray is a must!  Those Costa Rican mosquitos aren’t messing around.  For those of you who follow me on Instagram Stories or have been reading MIS for a while, you know my favorite natural spray is Bug Off by Me and a Tree Skincare.  This stuff has travelled with me to India, Panama, Florida, and now Costa Rica.  Not only is it safe to use, it really does keep the bugs away.  I didn’t get a single mosquito bite during this trip (or any of the others)!  And an added bonus – it smells amazing!

5. SPF – Don’t forget a good quality SPF for face and body.  Personally, I like using something different on my face because of how sensitive my skin is.  I can’t recommend the Drunk Elephant SPF enough.  I use the tinted kind and LOVE it.

6. Hat – This may seem like a ‘maybe/maybe not’ kind of item, but it’s a must because that sun isn’t messing around.  All five of us wore our hats daily.

7. First aid kit – So technically, we didn’t have to open our first aid kid during this trip.  However, I still recommend bringing one, especially if your trip is excursion heavy.  I scraped my knee pretty bad during the waterfall rapelling (at the VERY end while we’re walking to lunch…ugh!), and I’m so thankful someone else in our wider excursion group had a water resistant band aid.  Rafting would’ve been very painful otherwise.

8. Sunglasses – Be sure to bring a CHEAP pair of sunglasses with you.  Keep the good stuff at home!

9. Pants/hiking pants – While it may seem counterintuitive to pack pants for a HOT Costa Rican vacation, hear me out!  A good, comfortable pair of pants/hiking pants will protect your legs from scraps, bugs, etc.  The boys wore actual hiking pants (I got these for Vishnu, and he raved about them such great fit/quality for the price), while my sister and I got away with workout leggings.

10. Water bottles – Obviously, bottled water is sold everywhere in Costa Rica.  But you’ll appreciate having a liter (or more) bottle of your own after a few hours in the sun.  I got two of these bottles for me and Vishnu and feel that they served the purpose, not only when we were out and about, but also when we were just hanging out at our Airbnbs.  A little tip – instead of buying small individual bottles, buy a (or more!) 6 liter jugs.  Life saver!

Obviously, we packed other things like nice dinner outfits, bathing suits, flip flops, etc.  But the 10 items above are the ones you really need!

No portion of this post is sponsored.  However, affiliate links are included. There is no extra cost to you, but I do receive a small commission on anything you buy through my links.  Thank you for reading and supporting My Inner Shakti!

Written on April 3, 2018 Related:Travel, Uncategorized

Welcome to My Inner Shakti! This is my little corner of the internet where I explore and share more about the things that give me my inner strength. I hope you stick around! Read More Here...
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