www.CostaRicaTicas.com

Hello Brothers,

It’s been 35 years, but our roads have finally crossed J. A little background on me, I am a 35 year old from NYC. I have never been to CR, but have made probably about 12 trips to DR in the past 4 years. I don’t speak much Spanish, but I know enough phrases to survive. I have heard stories about Asia, Brazil, and CR, but I’ve never felt compelled to leave DR since “that was my paradise”.

Aside from the fact that I was happy with my new found play land, Brazil was too expensive, Asia too far, and Costa Rica… hmmmm…I guess I would have to say I just kept putting it off and never did the research. Unfortunately on my past two trips to DR, the most recent of which was for the Super bowl, I found myself running into too many familiar faces. Many I had already had, and the others my friend had sampled. This is partly my fault for always going to the same area, but never the less that’s what has pushed me to finally explore CR.

After the Super bowl my friends and I (4 of us) decided that our May trip would be to CR. Two of us have booked, one has dropped out, and the 4th is losing his grip, but that’s OK more chicas for us. We are arriving on Wed. 5/25 and leaving on Sunday 5/29; responsibilities at home always require that I use discretion when determining the length of my trips.

Over the past few weeks I have read about the many experiences that you have all had, and wondered what took me so long J. I have read about newbies entering the HDR for the first time, and I can’t wait until I experience this for myself. Due to the limited amount of and quality of videos in the HDR and KL (on the web), I have had to mostly use my imagination to envision what you guys described and I wish I could move up my date.

Since my buddy and I have a few days, we have decided to head to Jaco when we arrive for one night, just to get the experience. Some friends went to the Beatle Bar about a year ago, and said they had a ball. Our plan is to sample the Beatle Bar, The Monkey Bar, and Le Loft in one night and get our rest on the way to the gulch the next day. We are considering Clarita’s or Copacabana, based on which is more reasonable taking the V.I.P discount into account. I have read various opinions on both, but I am open to suggestions.

Additionally, if you feel that the trip to Jaco is a waste, please tell me why.

We are still in the research stage, but I have read that there are busses that will take us their for about $30 a piece. Are these buses available at the airport, and if not what is the most cost effective, yet reasonably comfortable way to get their and then to the gulch.

We are not cheap, but we are not rich either.

Once we get back to the gulch we are leaning towards getting 2 rooms at the SL, but are also considering the HLH. I know that generally speaking the members of this board recommend the SL, and I can see why. The reason we are considering the HLH is that $35 for onsite action seems very reasonable, in addition to their nice accommodations. We anticipate bringing back 1 chica per day to the hotel, and then maybe hitting 2 MP’s. I know that HLH is not the least expensive MP, but again we aren’t cheap, just not rich and the convenience of having them onsite seems worth it.

I know that there are servicers available at SL, and I hope to sample 1 or 2, but based on my reading that’s somewhere between $60 and $80 dollars per session. We are just thinking that if we feel for a little afternoon action, we can just look out the door and say here is $35.00; the downside being that bringing friends back would require a $10.00 fee. What are your thoughts?

Based on your experiences, am I underestimating the number of friends that we will bring back per day?
Am I overestimating how much we’ll use the MP’s? I ‘m really struggling with this one.

Once we make a decision on the hotel (we plan to do that in a few days) how far in advance do you recommend reserving our rooms? I would hate to waste all this time considering hotels, and end up without a choice? Is this a very popular time for out of towners?

While we are coming to CR primarily for our shared hobby, we plan to get around a little bit. As long as I am visiting this beautiful country for the first time, I am planning to do some zip-lining (250 lbs, not sure if there is a limit); white water rafting, maybe the volcanoes, and definitely want to see some monkeys. Suggestions are welcomed.

Lastly, for now anyway, while I think that I will spend a fair amount of time in KL (I love partying), Salsa gives me a headache after an hour straight, I would like to visit a couple other clubs that play more American music. I understand where I am, and I can appreciate the culture, but as a matter of fact too much of the high pitches in this type of music tends to give me a headache. I would like to visit someplace that plays the local music, but mixes it with reggaeton, reggae, or hip-hop. A good example of this is “Classico’s” in DR for those of you that are familiar. In my research thus far, it seems like a club in El Pueblo named “Friends” most closely matches my wishes. Any information on that club or any other that might suit me would be most appreciated.

Again, due to my limited Spanish and my lack of an “A” game, I am not looking to get any non-pro’s at these establishments, but I am curious to know if semi-pro’s can be met and had.

This is my first post and let me apologize for it’s length and for it’s ignorance since I am sure that you have all seen many of these questions before. I noticed that some of the posts I read were from a couple years ago, and just wanted to get up-to-date information. Additionally, since you guys are the experts, I would love to pick your brains.

Thanks in advance for your help!

MPs are hit or miss always here, best to check them out daily if you want to get a good feel of what they can offer. No harm in sticking your head in for a minute and walking out if nothing catches your eye, lots of people do it every day.

Jaco is fun but can be pricey. You don't have as many options and there are always a lot of newbies getting taken advantage of. Over a hotel, I would look for a condo. There are some decent condos for cheaper than the hotels and you will get more privacy. PM me and I can forward you the phone number of two guys. I don't feel Jaco is a waste by any means, if you want to get some beach time in and still get a chica, that is your option.

For transportation, the cheaper and shared van ride service like interbus can take you to your Hotel for I want to say 12.00 a person. Jaco is like 30 a person each way. You can take the public bus to Jaco at the Coca Cola station for around $3.00.

I would skip on HLH as a hotel itself, nothing against the place that's just my personal opinion. SL won't dock you with a chica fee and you have a better chance of getting some wingmen for the MPs.

El Pueblo can be fun and it can also be super lame. 2 tequila shots for 1000 colones (2 bucks) is cool though. When you leave make sure you get a taxi from up the street and not one of the guys parked directly out front.

If you want to see chicas dancing and having fun you'll need to listen to THEIR music.

There are non-pros everywhere but without Spanish and only a few days, chances are they won't want anything to do with you. Stick to the sure things for a safe bet on getting your peen wet.

If you want to zip line, I have only done it in La Fortuna, I also weigh 250lbs and it was no problem, I went very fast So you shouldn't have any issues.

1) get a VIP membership, you will save the entry fee in just this one trip with the discounts
2) then you can print out the Membership map and see where every thing in relation ship to each other
3) because of the short trip and first time pick just one city and stay there, suggest SJO for the first trip-- why waste time moving form one to the other, time is better used to recover from or doing some thing that your need to recover from the hassle traveling-- ie- you can either sit in a car with a hang over or be in bed with a young lady --
4) decide on a hotel fast and again because of the limited time from today to the trip CALL the hotel, if you want to stay at SL you are running out of time, (side bar-- if at the Sl pay what ever it takes and get a room other then the court yard).
5) go to the the VIP discount page and you will find a few other hotels very close ( again the map makes this very easy to see ) and just as good ( most a short walk to SL or DR), read hotel review section for the good and bad of each.
6) In SJO go into the SL bar and say "HI" and you find some good guys who can answer any question or willing to show you the ropes
7) post in roll call that your coming and you might line a few wingmen before you even go
and POST a trip report once you return home- there has been some great newbies to CT reports posted in the last few months-- we all enjoy reliving the first time we walked in DR

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My best friend was the clock on the wall, and he turned out not to be much of a friend in the end

Welcome. I will comment on your post and try to answer your questions.

First, you have planned a lot of things for 4-5 days. Trip to Jaco, activities (zip lines, rafting, monkeys), clubs, semi-pros (what is that? ), and 3 chicas per day? You are trying to bite off a little more than you'll be able to chew. I'd add at least 2 days to your trip to do all that.

With only a 4 day trip, I wouldn't waste a day/night in Jaco. There was a recent post that said that Beatle bar now charges guys $12 just to enter and gauges on drinks. Personally, I hate Jaco. The heat and humidity are unbearable for me. I like the climate in San Jose. If you want to go, you can take Interbus. But they only do airport transfers from/to San Jose. It's very weird. But even though you can't take it directly from the airport, they do have a place near the airport (called Rio Segundo) that you'd go to catch the van to Jaco. There are 2 vans daily 8:45am and 3pm that pick up at Rio Segundo. $28.50 per person/each way.

http://www.shuttlebus.co.cr/website/sho ... /index.php (look at the "Important" notice in the middle of the page in red for info on catching the van near the airport)

You are going on a US Holiday weekend. You'd have to check with them, but SL may already be booked up for the new wing and Mansion rooms. They book up months out on holiday weekends. I would contact them TODAY if you want to stay there.

At HLH, there is no guest fee for VIP members if I remember correctly. I think the $10 fee is for non-VIP's.

At SL, you said the girls cost $60-80. Most ask for $100. As a newbie, how confident are you that you can get them down to $60? $80 is very doable, but $60 is a longshot, even more so for a newbie just off the boat (or plane ).

Nobody but you can really tell you whether you will prefer independents or MP's. It's a personal preference. There are some really nice chicas at HLH right now, and you'll be able to take them to your room at HLH (if you choose to stay there), so it's not exactly like going to an MP even though you are taking MP chicas.

Make sure yead this post too: viewtopic.php?f=11&t=16357

Thanks for answering my questions guys, I know that was a mouthful. Based on these comments and some info sent to me via PM, I have decided to leave Jaco for the next trip, and concentrate all my efforts in the gulch . It also appears there is a sense of urgency around booking, so I would like to get that done this weekend.

Can anyone confirm that there is no guest fee at HLH for CRT VIP? This would clinch my decision about which hotel to stay in.

If you spend too much time in the gulch, you may experience burn-out like you did in the DR... same faces, same routines, same attitudes, etc. My advice is is to enjoy your time with the working girls in the gulch, but, then get out and explore the rest of the country. There's plenty to see and do in this little nation.

Jaco is the closest beach to San Jose, and has some p4p, but not like the gulch. I am not impressed with its crappy beach, and enjoy going there to do some fishing during the day... and another kind of fishing at night. For me, two nights in Jaco is about the max I can handle. The least expensive way to travel is bus. Other options include Interbus or renting a private van (especially if you have a group to help split of the costs). I normally rent a car as it gives me more freedom to do what I want. Split a rental car with 1 or 2 other guys, and it becomes very affordable transportation.

On my first trip to San Jose, I stayed at the Hotel Del Rey... and that was also my last time. If I were a newbie today, I would probably opt for one of the hotels just north of Parque Morazan/Parque Espana. I've stayed at Hotel Castillo, La Amistad, Hotel Rincon and Sportsmens Lodge... and liked them all. Most hotels will have affiliations with tour companies that offer very nice excursions of all things tico (eg zip lines, volcanoes, etc.).

I've been to the north coast of the DR only once, but used to be a frequent traveler to CR. Based upon this experience, and my own personal tastes, I would give the chicas working the SJ gulch an edge over the talent in the DR.

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Blue Devil

Pura Vida...enjoying life to the fullest...

All depends on what you guys really want out of your vacation. Just looking for girls, stay in San Jose. Want to experience more of the country, get to Jaco for a day. Might even be good because then you'll know the differences between the two for future excursions.
The country is beautiful, the people are beautiful and I think so many guys don't get to enjoy that side of Costa Rica because of the 'Gulch Fever' that sets in. Almost like the flu keeping someone at home, this sickness keeps men in the gulch...

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The only thing that matters is happiness in all it forms...

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