Baja windsurfing vacation with non windsurfing wife

[vbr1]

uh, ya

[D-wo]

Is it necessary to rent a car for Arenal? Do you recommend a gear rental spot? Accommodations?

Thanks.

[bamer]

Flight from San Jose to La Fortuna (Arenal) is about $50-$70 per person, I think there is one flight per day. Natureair.com for details and booking.

There are shuttles and buses between San Jose and Arenal as well. Bus trip is 4 hours. Interbuscostarica.com for details and booking.

Rental cars have been covered earlier in the thread, they are available in ether San Jose or La Fortuna (Arenal). Two things on the car: 1. Definitely get a GPS because the signs are lacking in many places, 2. There is a required Costa Rica insurance. If you buy ONLY this insurance you can still get the rental car coverage many credit cards offer. If you use your car insurance you would likely want to call your insurance company for information on what to do.

The drive from San Jose to La Fortuna or the windsurfing end of the lake is about 3 hours. The drive between La Fortuna and the windsurfing spot is about 70 minutes. Very pretty drive on easy roads in both cases.

You will want a rental car if you plan to do anything other than windsurfing. Costa Rica is the easiest foreign country I have driven in by a pretty big margin (out of ~15). International driver's license is not required. There are a million things to do in and around La Fortuna. Trip Advisor has a decent list of the top things if you plug in La Fortuna.

For gear rental and accommodations go to ticowind.com. Most people rent equipment.

If you are traveling with a non-windsurfer, multiple people have warned that it is cruel and unusual punishment to stay at the Tico Wind resort. A better bet would be to stay in La Fortuna or somewhere in between on Route 142. For La Fortuna there will be many options of hotels, B&Bs, etc. you can use whatever booking site you prefer. For somewhere in between you will most likely be renting a cottage or an entire house, so use airbnb.com.

[tstizzle]

good points all, bamer. but it sounds like you may have been there some time ago (?). now there are direct flights to liberia. for arenal, this is the way to go. about an hour up to the lake from there. and it's a beautiful drive.

for gear, ONLY use ticowind. there is a website for a company called "Hotel Tilawa" that claims to rent equipment and a place to stay. AVOID THEM AT ALL COSTS!

ticowind doesn't have a hotel, just the windsurfing concession. but they have links to places to stay on their website: www.ticowind.com. but like many have said, arenal can be cruel and unusual punishment for the non-windsurfer.

[vbr1]

Great info on Arenal and all.
Very helpful

Now back to Baja.

Anyone ?

[D-wo]

Thanks for the info. I'm planning on booking a trip in February. It's a been a while since I've done much lake sailing, but I'm hoping I can do a bit of mountain biking in the area as well.

[tstizzle]

hey d-wo:

figure out your plans? i'm off to arenal very soon for the month of january. i'm happy to help any and all with advice, recommendations or phone numbers. just pm me.

always looking to spread the stoke about the endless winds of arenal. otherwise, stay tuned here as i will probably post another trip report for arenal sailing during the month of january 2017, like i did in this post:

http://www.iwindsurf.com/forums/viewtopic.php?t=27635

[kiethordrum]

Jesus......can you spell Hawaii, almost any island

[isobars]

I realize this is an old thread, but the topic of where to go with a non-WSing spouse (or one whose vacation time doesn't work with the wind) comes up often. Another solution, suggested once in this thread but generally not mentioned, is taking a solo trip. I did that for many years after I retired but my wife still worked or just had no interest in sitting around ANYWHERE for extended periods. (Neither she nor I could stand a pool or a bar for more than 15 minutes a day.) If someone's solo trip leaves a spouse bored, he/she needs more to do. Even when I'm gone, my wife needs 30+hour days just to keep up.

[dvCali]