It was just 300 kilometers — or 186 miles — from our hotel in Malpais on the southern end of Costa Rica to our next stop in La Fortuna.
That’s the roundtrip distance between Kailua-Kona and Hawaii Volcanoes National Park, which can take about four hours total.
This drive took nine.
Something we heard a lot on this trip: rely on GPS. Don’t look at a map and think, “Oh, that should only take a couple of hours.” Maps don’t show you the rough terrain, the winding roads, the slower-than-normal speed limits that you don’t want to go over. (Corrupt police; long story.) So a distance that might take you a couple of hours on paved roads — or, even better, highways — may take double the time in Costa Rica.
So we were sure to pack drinks and snacks for the long drive.
We decided to spend a portion of our stay in La Fortuna, a lush area around the very active Arenal Volcano, about two hours northwest of the capital of San Jose. Our friends, Mark and Lucy Eidson, moved from Hawaii to Costa Rica a few years ago and now managed a tree house hotel in the area.
Tree house hotel. How could we not pass that up?
Here are scenes from our long drive to La Fortuna and what that tree house actually looked like:
6 Comments
Looking at the hummingbird feeder reminded me that hummingbirds don’t exist in Hawai’i.
That road trip makes the Hana drive look like a a trip through Disneyland. Amamzing scenery! What an adventure!
Hello Cat!
Awesome pixs!
CAT: I remember telling you about the mac nut industry there. I do not believe they taste any different. I remember buying a box of choco nuts with a Hawaiian type label only to read the small print that the nuts were from CR. Bummers!
You should make the drive from Port-Au-Prince to Z’Orange Haiti. You would never ever complain again about driving anywhere else in the world… I mean NEVER. Love the tree house place, I could live in a space like that easily. I would like a screened in porch like we have here. Your pics have me thinking Costa Rica might be a good place to go sometime in the next year or so.
What were your final thoughts about Costa Rica? Are the beaches typically so “grey,” as you mentioned in the video?