The wrong side of Costa Rica was just right for us.
I’ve always been a contrary person. That’s why I ignored the beaten volcano-beach path in Costa Rica that had been traveled by so many of my friends.
Instead, I took my teenagers to the wilder Caribbean side of this Central American country, where development hasn’t taken off and everything is smaller and funkier, with a reggae vibe.
Most tourists ignore this eastern coastline of Costa Rica, which is just the way I like it. This region was settled by Jamaican immigrants who were brought in to work on the country’s railroads and then remained due to racial segregation.
That means that this province, called Limon, has much more English spoken – in a Jamaican patois – than the rest of the country. It also means that many residents have that laid-back Rastafarian vibe.
We settled on a small Caribbean town called Puerto Viejo de Talamanca in the southern part of the region, only two hours north of Panama.
I’m a little bit hippy-dippy at heart, so the low-scale development of this modest, dusty little beach town appealed to me, with most of the tourists being surfers, Europeans and yoga advocates and heavily skewing toward a younger crowd.
I knew when I decided to visit Costa Rica that I never wanted to see a McDonald’s, a Holiday Inn or any other sign of American commercialism. Luckily, Puerto Viejo fits the bill. There’s not a Subway or Jack in the Box to be found.
What there is, however, is great food with a Jamaican flair – such as mouth-watering jerk chicken – and more than the rice and beans most typical of bland Costa Rican fare.
Most travelers who plan to tour around Costa Rica rent a car, and the country is eminently drivable. In Latin America, I’ve found that it’s usually as cheap to take vans or taxis around, and a lot less stressful, because I hate getting lost. So we hired Caribe Shuttle to pick us up and haul us four hours across the country to the Caribbean coast, stopping at the tiny, open-air El Brujo Carniceria in Guapiles as recommended by our driver for lunch. I spent $40 on a hearty lunch of chicken, rice and beans for five of us.
On our first trip, we arrived in Puerto Viejo after spending two days up in the isolated region of Tortuguero, accessible only by boat or private plane, on the Riverboat Francesca with Francesca Watson and her captain. It was a wonderful trip that I hope someday to repeat.
Then, we drove an hour south to Puerto Viejo and stayed at the adorable, small boutique hotel Banana Azul, which is right on the beach and owned by amiable Canadian expat Colin Brownlee. It has only 14 rooms, along with a small restaurant and bar. Each room is a labor of love, with mosaic murals, local hardwoods and hanging ferns, and it’s deservedly so popular that it can be a struggle to get a reservation.
This was the first time that I’d reserved a separate room for my two teenagers, and it was bliss on earth. They were next to me, but I didn't have to wade through the piles of clothes they threw on the floor, gripe about all the wet towels in the bathroom or tell them to turn off their phones because they didn’t need to use the Wi-Fi to text their friends at 3 a.m.
Yes, it was expensive to get two rooms, but I didn’t care. I had my own wonderful, clean room with my own deck built of gorgeous Caribbean hardwoods that looked out over the small pool and the beach beyond. It was heaven.
The beach at Banana Azul isn’t really swimmable due to riptides, but that didn’t matter so much to us because there are other beautiful beaches up and down the coast and we live on the beach at home.
Because we were visiting during the rainy season, we had to contend with days of rain, so we played cards and board games, because the rooms had no televisions.
When it wasn’t raining (and sometimes even when it was), I sent the teens out on day adventures, including a jungle tour on zip-lines with rappeling down a waterfall.
We loved Colin’s hotel and Puerto Viejo so much that we resolved to come back as soon as we could. Well, two of us loved it. My 17-year-old daughter, not so much. While we were there, her boyfriend back home decided to dump her via text. What is wrong with people? She spent the last few days breaking into heart-rending sobs everywhere we went.
So when I proposed going back to Puerto Viejo this fall, she refused, even though she knew her new boyfriend wasn’t going to break up with her, especially not by text.
The simple solution was to bring the boyfriend along, which meant I had to bring a friend for my 19-year-old son so he wouldn’t be a third wheel. I was supposed to bring a friend for me, but she had to cancel at the last minute.
We loved Banana Azul, but it was a $5 cab ride to town. So I decided that we’d try to find lodging that was walking distance to town this time.
I found Cashew Hill Jungle Lodge, Andrew Denley’s little cabana resort, online and immediately knew it was our kind of place. Perched on a hill overlooking the town, it backs up to the rain forest, yet walking down the hill puts you in town in minutes.
It’s not for everyone. There’s only a small dipping pool and no air conditioning and you have to climb a set of monumental stairs from town to get there. When we arrived, our van couldn’t even make it up the hill, so all the luggage had to be schlepped by hand, along with the groceries we’d bought in town to cook in our kitchen.
I didn’t mind the many stairs up and down to the town, since I was getting my exercise, but the hot water in the bathrooms was temperamental and ceased working regularly. And we fought valiantly against ant invasions in the kitchen. Still, I loved it there, especially the artwork throughout the house and the beautiful wood carvings. Andrew seemed genuinely interested in making us happy, even lending us a cooking pot and bringing me extra patio chairs from his own house when we asked.
All the cabins are open to the jungle — they have screens and lattice protecting the many windows, but not a pane of glass to be found. I loved this. It felt like being in a wonderful, rustic summer camp. Every day, we’d hear the howler monkeys roaring in the jungle behind us, along with tree frogs, cicadas and other noisy denizens of the rain forest. They woke me up every morning, but I never minded at all.
However, the screening did mean that bugs sometimes got in. One day, I was lying by the pool and heard blood-curdling screams. Eventually, I realized they were coming from my cabana and I raced uphill, heart pounding, only to discover my daughter shrieking like a banshee over a large bug she’d discovered in her room.
Beds also had mosquito nets, though we didn’t need them in December.
Our cottage lacked the ocean view that some others on the property had, but it did have three bedrooms and two baths, which meant that I could throw the teenagers upstairs and I could take the downstairs bedroom for myself.
I’d made a vow to myself that I would spend this trip getting healthy, and in fact I booked private yoga lessons for all of us on the resort’s yoga platform overlooking the sea. I expected the teenagers to balk at this, but they actually enjoyed the daily lessons, and it was as relaxing as I had hoped.
The entire town and coastline are flat and easily bikeable, so the teens rented bikes every day and explored the area. I had intended to learn to ride a bike to join them, but my lessons fell behind. Next time, I promised myself.
I told the four teens that they would be cooking most of the meals in rotation, because I wasn’t feeding five people three meals per day. That caused great consternation because some of them couldn’t even boil water. But it was a good learning experience, and we all survived the experiment.
Puerto Viejo has dozens of restaurants in all price points, and though I’d vowed we were going to eat in to save money, I couldn’t resist taking the teens out to eat nearly every day. Who could resist fabulous seafood that was just caught that morning? Or cocktails on the beach?
Because the drinking age in Costa Rica is 18, all the teens were old enough to imbibe, so I waved goodbye to them in the evening as they headed downhill excitedly to hit some of the town’s small clubs, where drinks were cheap and the locals were friendly.
I was happy to put my feet up with a glass of wine, put some music on my tablet via the cottage’s excellent Wi-Fi and read a book. The cottages have no electronics, perhaps an example of the youthfulness of the town itself, as owner Andrew assumes that everyone who visits wants great Wi-Fi but will bring their own.
Because we were visiting the rain forest in the winter rainy season, a couple of our eight days were very wet indeed, but never cold. Most times, the downpours would end, leaving the rest of the day humid but walkable.
As soon as we arrived, I walked down into town and booked day tours through ATEC, the Asociación Talamanqueña de Ecoturismo y Conservación, a nonprofit association that channels most of the proceeds back to the local tour guides.
One day we went out to visit the local indigenous tribe, the BriBri, and learn about their culture. And we really enjoyed meeting local Creole Sherman Peña, our guide for our wild dolphin small-boat tour out of the remote, unspoiled village of Manzanillo, even though the pouring rain cut our day way too short. We still managed to find ourselves in the midst of a huge, thrilling dolphin pod before we had to give up early and head back to shore.
The teens wanted to repeat their jungle adventure of the previous year, so they headed off to hike through the forest, take a zip-line and rappel down a waterfall, swim in a local swimming hole and use a Tarzan swing, while I strolled the beachfront and had a leisurely lunch. We also went back to the Jaguar Rescue Center, a wonderful place where volunteers care for wounded and orphaned animals, and the teens went riding on the beach with Caribe Horse, which I’d booked online in advance.
Before we arrived, I’d considered traveling at least overnight to Panama. Numerous companies will take you down to Bocas del Toro, an archipelago with stunning scenery just two hours south. But I decided to put that trip off for the future and just get to know our town better.
It’s not typically in my nature to spend eight nights in one town. I’m too restless for that. And it’s simply ridiculous to me that we’ve never been anywhere else in Costa Rica. But we’ve just fallen in love with the Caribbean coast, and we’re already plotting our next adventure there.
Cashew Hill, we’ll be back.
IF YOU GO
Puerto Viejo is so small that you can ask any local how to find any place you seek. Learn more about Puerto Viejo at puertoviejosatellite.com. I highly recommend visiting ATEC when you arrive, the Asociación Talamanqueña de Ecoturismo y Conservación. It’s on Calle Principal. It offers sustainable tours including guided hiking in national parks, boating and snorkeling, cultural walks and more. The local guides keep 80 percent of your fees. info@ateccr.org or ateccr.org
Lodging
Banana Azul: This small, simple property of 14 units is built with Costa Rican hardwoods on a lovely (though unswimmable) beach. Slightly north of town. English spoken. 305-846-8220, info@bananaazul.com or Bananaazul.com
Cashew Hill Jungle Lodge: A small, rustic cabana property that sits atop the town, with ocean view. Several cottages with kitchens. Restaurant, dipping pool and yoga platform. Howler monkeys will wake you up and you might see the resident sloth. Cashewhilllodge.co.cr, reservations@cashewhilllodge.co.cr or call from the U.S. at 011-506-2750-0001. $100 and up nightly for full cottages with screens only, no glass windows.
Dining
Koki Beach Restaurant: This beautiful, art-filled, somewhat pricey yet casual restaurant across from Koki Beach was our favorite place. It has an extensive menu and good cocktails. If you love lobster, splurge on the extra-large size. Colorful Adirondack chairs overlook the ocean in the lounge area. Entrees $15 and up. kokibeach.blogspot.ug. Phone: 2750-0902.
Chile Rojo: This restaurant has good food and a wide variety of dishes, including sushi. Dinner for five was $82, including cocktails. Phone: 2750-0025
Flip Flop: Among the advantages of dining here is the varied cuisine and reasonable prices, along with a friendly owner who’s around to make sure you have a good time. Good choice if you have people who can’t agree on a cuisine. Phone: 2750-2031.
Lazy Mon: It’s the place to go in town, right on the beach for drinks, hanging out and catching live music. Great sunsets. thelazymon.com. Phone: 2750-0016.
Getting around
Book a red-eye flight: You arrive in the morning, plenty of time to travel to the Caribbean coast without having to spend a night in the capital city of San Jose – the closest international airport to the area.
Caribe Shuttle is a reliable transport company that can get you to and from the airport and other points in Costa Rica. For taxis, it’s easy to catch cabs in Puerto Viejo to anywhere you want to go from a local stand in town, or the MEPE bus goes up and down the highway among the various towns cheaply.
Adobe Rent a Car is right in town and recommended by locals. Phone: 2750-0290.
Things to do
Hit the beaches: There are numerous lovely spots up and down the coast, often with riptides, though, so beware. The surfing is great here; this town was "discovered" by surfers who traveled unpaved roads to hit the famed Salsa Brava break, recommended for experts only.
Rent a bike: It’s the easiest and cheapest way to get explore the area. Expect to pay around $7 per day. Ask at your lodging, or find rental places all over town. Make sure the bike is in good condition.
Indulge in a spa treatment: Yeah. A gorgeous massage with aromatherapy and a jungle view. Need I say more? Walk there from town. PureJungleSpa.com. Phone: 2756-8413.
Visit the Jaguar Rescue Center: You want to come here to see the animals being lovingly cared for by volunteers before being returned to the wild. It’s a special place. We splurged on the $60 private tour, which is worth it. Regular tours are $20. jaguarrescue.foundation
Explore two national parks: There’s Cahuita National Park to the north and Gandoca-Manzanillo National Wildlife Refuge to the south. Both have marvelous hiking, wildlife viewing and snorkeling.
Plan some adventures: Numerous companies also offer zip-lining, river rafting, surf lessons and more.
Contact the writer: mfisher@scng.com or 714-796-7994
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