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Looking for help to pick a beautiful place to stay for a month on the ocean thats not hugely expensive yet authentic beautiful clean and safe

If I was staying for a month I would stay in Tamarindo area and find something at a monthly rate--you could then hit Flamingo and other beaches 20 minutes away--women in short supply though--very safe and a good atmosphere.

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I AM a Cien boy + Propina!

By authentic I am guessing you mean as opposed to a resort made beach. And I am only advising you about the Pacific side, having only been to the Atlantic side and didn't get everywhere, but it definetely is the reggae scene which is not for me. I think I've been to every Pacific beach that has road access from Liberia all the way south to Uvita and on to Ballena, and that one is a totally uninhabited National Park. I am a beach bum at heart and spend minimal time in SJ last 10-12 years. First 3 years, different story. But a long time ago, but not soon enough, I found my favorite.

Manuel Antonio is my favorite beach. It's very, very beautiful, lots of palms from one end to the other, very wide, very long--25-30 minute walk one end to the other. The beach is very clean (I am not going to get into the water quality issue of any CR beach), roaring surf, and very safe violence wise--but I wouldn't leave my camera while I took a long stroll. Very little, minimal development even close to the beach. I suggest you Google both Manuel Antonio and also Quepos (which is the town/biz center about 10-15 minutes away by car, but bus service to the beach every 15 minutes from Quepos). Lots of hotels and monthly rentals in both places at various price ranges. Google also using the Images tab to get an idea of the beauty.

The mid to southern pacific beaches like Manuel Antonio tend to be more "tropical", the northern alot drier looking.

The big plus for me in Manuel Antonio is that Quepos is nearby, a big town by coast standards (maybe 5,000 people) with banks, a regional hospital, doctors, dentists, pharmacies, car rentals, an airport, a major bus station, grocery stores, Western Union, an ICE office (govt controlled cell phone service in case you have a phone problem), all of these very important if you are staying a month. Also tons of restaurants and bars, a strong police presence for what that's worth, plenty of taxis, yet you drive 15 minutes to the beach at M.A. and you're at one of the nicest beaches in America, often cited as such in travel mag's. Not crowded at all, very few people actually during the week, week-ends tend to fill up a little with locals at the south end but even then you have football fields of space if you want for the most part. And if you like world class fishing, it has a huge new marina with dozens of captains and boat sizes to choose from. Also, the most popular CR National Park where you can get a tour and see all sorts of wildlife and stuff. And every kind of day trip you want, from rafting (best in season), zip lining, 4 wheel, whatever, it's there.

CR has other beautiful beaches that fit your criteria, of course, but most of them are really small beach towns with only a few bars and restaurants and minimal amenities (leaving out Jaco and Coco, bigger but crummy beaches and not clean). A month is a long time at a small CR beach unless your into that kind of total seclusion thing. Remember it get's dark in CR at around 6-6:30pm. The beach is not an option after that, so then what do you?

Everybody has their favorites and many can make points for other beaches. But for a month stay, I'd go Quepos/MA if for no other reason the hospital.

I presume you are not going until at least December (raining alot now until then) so you'll have plenty of time to do your due diligence. Make sure you bring an unlocked 3G and buy a sim card at the airport.

In addition to the central and south Pacific beaches of CR, I would check out the beaches between Puerto Viejo and Manzanillo on the southern Caribbean side of the country. The Manzanillo-Gandoca preserve is worth checking out as well.

I would suggest that you check out Pavones, on the Pacific, close to Panama. Kinda remote, but they have several small restaurants, plenty of surf and deserted beaches, and lots of cold beer. A few hotels and hostels. I found no p4p, but there are some amateurs.

Playa Zancudo is also down near there. Try them both.

Manuel Antonio

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This post is provided purely for entertainment purposes and free of charge on the part of the author. No "Sex tourism or travel" promotion is expressed or implied. The author of this post was not provided any compensation for this hopefully entertaining contribution. Any posts regarding any event or hotel item are just my humble opinions only.

At first I'd say go with Manuel Antonio/Quepos. The town of Quepos is pretty typical of a lot of small towns in Costa Rica. However, once you leave the town and start the climb over the mountain toward the Manuel Antonio National Park, you have every style/level of hotel, condos, great restaurants and interesting bars. Once you get to MA, you have beautiful beaches along with some incredible wildlife and the best short hiking trails in the country giving you incredible views of the almost perfect beaches. In addition, you have every kind of eco-tourist activity you can imagine readily available including offshore fishing, diving/snorkel trips to Isla de Cano, white-water rafting, zip lines, ATV tours and a lot more.

If you are talking more to get away from it all and have an adventurous spirit, perhaps Puerto Viejo and beaches south are more your style. This is a very genuine community but the culture is a bit different from most of Costa Rica with a definite 'Rastafarian' style. The beaches are world class and imho are the best in the country. There are some very interesting things to do such as a stay (night, week) with the Bre Bre Indian Tribe in the jungles along the river that marks the Panama/CR border. However, this part of CR is definitely more primitive with A/C, internet and cable being a rare find.

The beaches of the southern Nicoya Peninsula are as empty as they are beautiful and has more of a 'hippie' culture. The numerous small beaches in the northern Nicoya Peninsula would also be an good choice.

Keep in mind, P4P is not really available in any of these places outside the 'rent-a-rasta' (it's what the locals call it, don't yell at me) in PV. Good luck and let us know how the trip goes! Should make for an interesting read...

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

any thoughts on domical?

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But mama, that's where the fun is

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Manual Antonio +4

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as my father says "better to be lucky than good"

The landscape from Dominical south is beautiful. The beach at Dominical is covered with flotsam and other natural debris. The riptide and longshore current here is also very strong... and dangerous. Dominical does attract surfers and some back-backing tourists, through.

For a first time beach trip I would go to Quepos / Manuel Antonio. If you are traveling solo (or with a couple of guys) I would stay in the town of Quepos. You can walk to a lot of small bars and there is a little P4P there.

If you are bringing a woman, stay in one of the resorts in MA. I've only stayed at Costa Verde. It was excellent but be sure to check out whether your room has air conditioning or not. I got a gorgeous room, with an ocean / pool view but it was only equipped with a ceiling fan. MA can get very hot and sticky and to me AC is a must.

That said, I am going to try out the East coast this trip for a couple of days and go to Puerto Viejo.

iffen i was u i would go to guanacaste ~ i think that from jaco on down it is much more tropical than the drier breezier northwest ~ why not go to samara or tamarindo & head up the coast from there ~ town to town till you hit the one 4 u ~ if i was gonna stay a month that's what i'd do... i think....

Good suggestion...and my bet is that you would not get past Samara.

I lived in Jaco in the Central Pacific for 12 years and loved living there. BUT, I would have to go with Guanacaste. There are so many cool and different beaches you have access to in a smaller area. More than I can name up there. I always loved getting away and hanging out in Avellanas (sp). Playa Grande was always fun.

Nationwide, Costa Rica currently treats only 2.6% of human waste
generated, ranking Costa Rica amongst the five worst countries in
Latin America. And the country is falling backward. The 2.6% figure
was revised down from 4% after the current Minister of Environment
challenged the inclusion of non-operative treatment systems in the
estimate.) The Central Valley area, which includes greater
metropolitan San Jose and nearly two million people, has an
antiquated sewage collection system with many underground lines
dating from mid-century that have rusted through. In some areas
sewage can be seen leaking into the streets. Despite the fact that
at least 100 new residential subdivisions have been added to the
network, there has been no extensive work on the Central Valley
sewer system since 1981.

Nearly all waste enters the rivers that flow through San Jose
and drain into the Pacific Ocean at the Gulf of Nicoya via the Rio
Grande de Tarcoles. Local residents know they should avoid beaches
in that area due to the "black waters".


http://wikileaks.c4ss.org/cable/2007/04 ... SE653.html

ENJOY the beach!

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"Actual happiness always looks pretty squalid in comparison with the over-compensations for misery. And, of course, stability isn't nearly so spectacular as instability. And being contented has none of the glamour of a good fight against misfortune, none of the picturesqueness of a struggle with temptation, or a fatal overthrow by passion or doubt. Happiness is never grand."
- Aldous Huxley, Brave New World, Ch. 16