Travel Review: Family Trip to Costa Rica, Manuel Antonio, Arenal, Penas Blancas River Float, Hanging Bridges Tour, Ziplining

This travel agency did an excellent job planning the vacation of lifetime for my family.  I was traveling with my husband and our 14 and 12 year old children.  We visited the Arenal Volcano area and stayed at an upscale hotel where we were comfortable in two adjoining rooms.  It had natural hot springs, lovely onsite dining options, swimming pools, and truly first class rooms.  While in Arenal we went on the Hanging Bridges Tour through the rainforest.  We had a private guide through Eco Terra.  They picked us up from our hotel right on time and did a great job on the tour.  We also did a river float tour on the Penas Blancas River.  Our guide for this tour was fabulous and pointed out every single animal advertised in the brochure.  We especially loved the coffee stop at a 100 year old farm along the river.  We also went a night hike searching for different species of frogs and insects.  It was at a local family's home and garden.  Our driver drove us from Arenal to Manuel Antonio for the second half of our trip.  Along the way we stopped for a horseback ride to a waterfall.  My kids loved this adventure.  The drive from Arenal to Manuel Antonio, with the stop, took all day.  We were thrilled to arrive at our amazing hotel in Manuel Antonio.  Here we had a suite, with two bathrooms.  It was an ideal set-up for my family.  We especially loved our private balcony with a hot tub.  The beach at the hotel is unbelievable.  The water was at least 90 degrees.  The lounges and towel service and restaurant on the beach were all just perfect.  Onsite we saw multiple sloths, white faced monkeys, squirrel monkeys, many iguanas, and the most amazing crab migration that only happens once a year.  We toured Manuel Antonio National Park with a guide , we went on a zip line tour, and went on a sunset snorkel catamaran.  Our travel agency arranged all of our tours, provided us with exact times for pick ups at our hotel, and provided us with vouchers for all of these activities.  Our driver picked us up on our final morning to drive us back to San Jose for our return trip to the US.  Everything was so easy for us.  We had the perfect balance every day of activity and leisure.  Our biggest concern was that the land travel around Costa Rica takes especially long.  Keep in mind that it can take 3-4 hours to go 100 miles.