www.CostaRicaTicas.com

La Amistad, Castillo, and Dunn Inn are all within your budget. I've stayed at Castillo and Dunn Inn - very good places to stay. I haven't stayed at la Amistad, but it gets good reviews from CRT members. If you rent a car, you may prefer Dunn Inn because they have a parking area.

I don't have any knowledge of car rental, so I'll leave that for someone else to comment on.

If you are having your CRT card mailed to you and don't receive it before you leave, you can go to the Dunn Inn and see Boyd. He'll fix you up with a temporary card that will provide all the discounts. No card - no discounts!

With such a short duration trip, you would probably be better off skipping Jaco entirely. One night over there isn't even worth the ride / drive. Speaking of driving, why bother? If you want to see something outside the gulch, ask the front desk at the hotel to tell you about the available tours, etc. Or ask Pops about another type of tour entirely!

Pops conducts tours of San Jose - check his website referenced above. Almost all the hotels can arrange tours to attractions outside of San Jose, such as volcanoes, rain forests, zip lines, etc. There's usually a rack of tour brochures at the hotels. Most of the out-of-town tours are all day excursions.

Dunn Inn gets my vote as your best option for Hotel in SJ. You will surely meet several CRT members at the bar who will be happy to give you advice. Also, I would not bother renting a car. Taxis are plentiful and cheap, and driving in CR is a nightmare.

Once you get to the gulch and look around, there is no way you will want to waste your precious time driving to Jaco and back. Beaches are everywhere man

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Why not heart of the action Sportsmens Lodge? courtyard rooms and clubhouse rooms are well within your budget...