Costa Rica Travel – As the U.S. gets its taste of cold snaps, it’s time to start booking escapes to warmer climes. And thanks to some full-service airlines like JetBlue, American, and Panama-based, regional carrier COPA, booking a trip to Costa Rica just got a lot more appealing. Flights from eight U.S. cities, including Houston, Miami, and Pittsburgh, are as low as $216 round-trip to Costa Rica’s capital San José, according to Scott’s Cheap Flights. That’s nearly 60 percent off the usual flight cost.
You can find the full list of fares below:
- Fort Lauderdale from $216
- Houston from $285
- Jacksonville, Florida from $318
- Miami from $200
- New York City from $294
- Orlando from $268
- Pittsburgh from $296
- Washington, D.C. from $299
Though there’s plenty to do in San José alone, like visiting the opulent Teatro Nacional or the Pre-Colombian Gold Museum, make it your entry point into all the joys of western Costa Rica. Your choices are varied: Santa Teresa, on the southernmost point of the Nicoya Peninsula and about five hours from San José, is a surfer’s (even a beginning surfer’s) paradise. And we don’t say that lightly: Travelercontributor Verena von Pfetten’s accidental surfboard-to-the-face experience actually sold her on the hospitality and community in Santa Teresa. Nearby, also on the Nicoya Peninsula, is the sleepy town of Nosara, a haven for expats, yogis, and, of course, surfers. Book a stay at the Harmony Hotel, owned by co-founder of BuzzFeed and Nosara convert John Johnson, for some downtime at the on-site healing center and yoga studio.
If you’re not looking to head to the beach, go inland and overnight at Hacienda AltaGracia, An Auberge Resort, about three hours from San José. The top-rated resort in all of Central America in Traveler‘s annual Readers’ Choice Awards, Hacienda AltaGracia sits on 864 acres, high in the mountains of Pérez Zeledon in southern Costa Rica. A stay in one of the 50 spacious casitas means access to a nature-lover’s holy grail of amenities: 28 stables, swimming, and an onsite organic farm. Those who’d rather stay inside can book treatment at the largest spa in Central America, equipped with its own hydrotherapy center.
by Meredith Carey, From Conde Nast Traveler
