Quepos

Alex was invited to see a new hotel in Quepos, so we spent a weekend in this beach town.  Geographically, it is on the Pacific coast, and the drive is about 4hrs from San Jose depending on traffic.

The town feels like an "older" place with lots of history when compared to others that we have visited.  It seems this town was put on the map decades ago as people traveled to the cherished Manuel Antonio National Park.  The town felt like Mazatlan, Mexico where my grandmother and uncle spent so much time.  Quepos has a marina, a fishing culture, an oceanside boardwalk, and a downtown area.

There are dozens of hotels in Quepos because of the adjacent national park.  Many of these hotels are older.  Jungle Vista is a new hotel to attract customers who want a modern experience, and they invited Alex to check it out in hopes that she would recommend it to her customers that want to visit the national park.

On Saturday, we did a horseback excursion, which is a popular tourist activity in Costa Rica.  Alex is familiar with Herberto, who offers a ride through the jungle to a waterfall.  It was an awesome way to enjoy a Saturday morning!  Herberto takes great pride in raising his own horses and has lived on the ranch his entire life. He's been leading these excursions for 30yrs and his daughter is now a part of the business.

We spent Sunday at the beach and discovered a place Alex had never been.  This specific beach is one of the few where people can drive their cars onto the beach and park.  It reminded me of Daytona Beach in that regard, and this place was hopping as if "spring break" was happening.  It felt like a football tailgating party, but on the beach!  Lots of young people and music.  And the waves were the best I might have ever seen for body surfing.  I was out in the waves for way too long because my body hurt the next day.  We met some fellow travelers from the US.

Unfortunately, we didn't get to experience the national park because most of the activities were closed for COVID.  Oh well...it was still a wonderful weekend and we'll see the park another time.