MONTEVERDE

Tucked away in the jungle mountains of Costa Rica is the small town of Monteverde. Here you will check off all the nature activities on your list with ziplining, ATVing, bunjee jumping, hiking, and walking through the treetop jungles. It’s a very small, quaint town but packed with activities and things to see. We stayed here a total of 2 days and 3 nights, and spent our days doing activities and nights relaxing in the hammocks of our hostel and trying new cuisines.

Getting Here

The only major airport in Costa Rica is San Jose. Majority of your travel, if you are flying, will start here. Monteverde is a 5 hour bus ride from the main bus station in San Jose (Station 710). There are only a couple of times available each day from San Jose and we opted for the afternoon to get ourselves situated after the long flight and allowed us to check out San Jose (not much to see…).

We bought our tickets about 30 minutes before departure directly at the station, super easy. It’s a public bus so it stops multiple times with 15 min breaks for the bathroom and snacks if you want. I will say the roads are pretty windy and rough towards the end which is why it takes a bit longer. All I can say is bring a book or download some podcasts, and be patient.

  • Public bus – 5 hours: 2940 colon ($4.75 USD)

Location

The town of Monteverde is extremely small so location won’t really be an issue. We stayed right next to the one street with all the bars and restaurants but it’s honestly an easy walk anywhere in the town. If you decide to stay a little outside of the downtown in a nicer resort it’s a very short taxi ride away.

Accommodation: Monteverde Backpackers

I would not recommend staying here unless you are on a budget, budget. Maybe it’s because I am getting older now but there are much better places you can stay on a budget. The overall vibe here was very chill with hammocks upon entry and a full kitchen to use. Many travelers would stay in to cook and you could bring in food or drinks which made the scene very social and relaxing. Despite that the rooms and bathrooms were very run down and small, but some hot water and a bed is sufficient.

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The staff were really friendly. I think a family runs it and they were really helpful, we booked all of our tours through them. They also provide free breakfast in the morning which is always a plus.

  • Cost per night: $13 USD

Activities

Extremo Park – Ziplining

There are sooo many different parks like Extremo that offer ziplining, ATVs, bunjee jumping, etc. so we mainly chose Extremo for ziplining since it offered one more zipline that the others and our hostel recommended it. There are about 16 different ziplines with other activities like abseiling, superman, and the tarzan swing (which was actually very terrifying but a blast!). It takes you through some pretty beautiful jungle forests and through massive canyons with stunning views. The total tour runs for about 4 hours and the price includes pick up from your hotel and a local lunch.

100% Aventura – ATV

Another park that offers every activity under the sun, this time around we did ATVs. Now I totally thought I could do this since I did ATVing before in Hawaii but this time around was no joke. I only recommend this for people who are comfortable handling bigger vehicles and can maneuver through mud and hills. They have a test track that you are required to do before going through the real deal and only 2 out of 8 people were cleared to go, me not being one of them! So I hopped onto my boyfriend’s ATV and let him have a go. We had a blast!

I have to say it was one of the highlights of our trip. We were able to go through the cloud forest with little distraction and see some pretty beautiful scenery. Our guide also took us to this tree for a pit stop. The tree had died as it was consumed by vines which allowed us to climb through it all the way to the top. Unreal experience!

Monteverde Cloud Forest Reserve – Bridge Walk

Here you can also do activities such as ziplining but here they offered the forest bridge walk. The bridge walk allowed you to walk amongst the trees and see just how green and lush this place is. A very easy and gorgeous walk with stunning views.

Sunset View Point

If you have some extra time to kill go for a walk to the sunset view point for nice views of the Monteverde mountains. It’s about a 20 minute walk from downtown. Grab some beers and enjoy the scenery.

  • Cost for 6 pack of beer: 4000 colon ($6.50 USD)

Food & Dining

Sabortico

Highly recommend going here for some cheap, local food. Some other touristy spots were way overpriced and not worth the quality. Here you will get huge portions and quality food.

  • Average cost: 5000 colon ($8 USD)

Sushi Neko

You can tell this place is run by Americans but it’s a nice meal if you want to get some diversity in the diet and miss sushi, I always miss sushi. It’s nothing like home but the quality is really good and fresh, but you will pay a bit more for it.

  • Average cost: 7000 colon ($12 USD)