Costa Rica Caribbean vacation packages for Caribbean summer

The start of Caribbean Summer in Costa Rica is the time for Costa Rica Vacation Packages .

The climate on the Caribbean Coast varies from the rest of Costa Rica. Most of the year, the Caribbean Coast maintains its forever green landscape from regular tropical rain showers. Then, when the rest of Costa Rica enters peak rainy season in September and October, the sun comes out over the Caribbean.

Costa Rica's southern Caribbean Coast has everything you're looking for in a beach vacation – adventure, romance, decadent beaches, wildlife, new flavors and music, cultural exchange … and at Hotel Le Caméléon by Puerto Viejo, you have the utmost in luxury.



Now through the end of October is the time to visit Hotel Le Caméléon for special vacation offers in Caribbean summer. Through Aug. 31, 2015, Hotel Le Caméléon is offering a 30% discount off rates for Superior and Deluxe rooms (for rates over $168.00).

In September, in honor of Costa Rica’s Independence Day on Sept. 15, Hotel Le Caméléon is celebrating “Our Homeland Month”. In October, Costa Rica celebrates the month of cultures, and Limon, the “capital city” of Costa Rica’s Caribbean region, holds its annual carnival celebration. During both September and October 2015, at Hotel Le Caméléon you can receive a 20% discount off rates for Superior and Deluxe rooms.

There is a Romance Package that includes one night in a Superior Room for two persons, breakfast, and one Caribbean lunch or dinner per person, for $198.00 plus tax. There also is a Family Package that includes one night in a Deluxe Room, breakfast, and one Caribbean lunch or dinner per person. For two adults, the price is $218.00 plus tax. For families with two adults and up to two children (under age 12), the price is $253.00 plus tax. Children receive a surprise gift.

Costa Rica Caribbean Summer is a perfect time to visit the beautiful beaches of Cahuita, Puerto Viejo and Manzanillo. The Southern Caribbean Coast offers some of the best surfing in Costa Rica, but this time of year when seas are calm, it is ideal for snorkeling or scuba diving in the crystalline waters of the Cahuita National Park, home of the largest coral reef on Costa Rica’s Caribbean Coast. Now also is a good time for a boat tour to see wild dolphins or to go sea kayaking.

Hotel Le Caméléon is located on Playa Cocles just past Puerto Viejo on one of the prettiest Costa Rica Caribbean beaches. The upscale Costa Rica boutique hotel features modern rooms, beautiful tropical architecture, a gourmet restaurant, spa services, and the fantastic Costa Rica Caribbean beach club La Sula Sea Lounge. An Enchanting Hotel of Costa Rica, Le Caméléon has been awarded the prestigious TripAdvisor Certificate of Excellence for 2015.

How to get to Puerto Viejo, Costa Rica Daily 30-minute flights to Limon from San Jose on Nature Air or Sansa Airlines make it easy to get to Puerto Viejo, Costa Rica. From Limon, it is a short drive less than an hour to Puerto Viejo and Playa Cocles. The drive from San Jose to Puerto Viejo is approximately 4.5 hours.

Article by Shannon Farley

Why you need to start off every vacation with a relaxing massage

Have you ever had that feeling when you go on vacation, that you’re not really relaxed almost until it’s coming to an end?

There is no better quick entry into that unstressed relaxation mode on vacation than getting a massage or spa treatment. It really is amazing how 60 or 90 minutes of making your muscles and body relax can instantly produce those feelings of bliss and well-being. I recommend getting a massage the day after arrival on vacation to soothe travel-weary muscles.

Massage therapy benefits you by relaxing tight muscles, easing stress, increasing circulation, releasing toxins, and benefiting your whole body in positive ways. Massage can boost your health and keep you feeling full of vitality.

It's easy to fall into being tired, stressed, anxious or exhausted with so many things competing for our attention in our accelerated lives; yet it often seems there isn’t enough time to counteract all of that with something positive like the healing benefits of massage.

While on vacation in Costa Rica, take time for a massage. Your body will thank you, and you’ll feel much more refreshed to fully enjoy your downtime.



When visiting the Costa Rica Caribbean Coast, take advantage of the spa services at Hotel Le Caméléon, on Playa Cocles just past Puerto Viejo. The upscale Costa Rica boutique hotel features modern rooms, beautiful tropical architecture, a gourmet restaurant, and the marvelous beach club La Sula Sea Lounge on Playa Cocles – one of the prettiest Costa Rica Caribbean beaches. Le Caméléon has been awarded the prestigious TripAdvisor Certificate of Excellence for 2015.



Professional therapists offer spa services using 100% natural products, such as local organically-grown cacao for a chocolate body therapy and massage, and cured smooth bamboo from the region used in a relaxing bamboo massage. See the full Le Cameleon Spa Menu; English is on the second page.

Hotel Le Caméléon also offers yoga and customized Pilates classes.


How to get to Puerto Viejo, Costa Rica

Daily 30-minute flights to Limon from San Jose on Nature Air or Sansa Airlines make it easy to get to Puerto Viejo, Costa Rica. From Limon, it is a short drive less than an hour to Puerto Viejo and Playa Cocles. The drive from San Jose to Puerto Viejo is approximately 4.5 hours.
Article by Shannon Farley

Plan your dream Costa Rica destination wedding in the Caribbean

Costa Rica's Southern Caribbean Coast has everything could want for a destination wedding and honeymoon.

Imagine your dream wedding exchanging vows with your beloved in a stunning beachside ceremony overlooking the turquoise Caribbean Sea, or under the canopy of a tropical garden with the ocean close by. Picture a romantic honeymoon walking on pristine beaches at sunset, torch-lit tropical gardens and balmy evenings, days full of adventure, personalized service, and Caribbean culture and warmth.


Costa Rica continues to be one of the most popular locations for destination weddings and honeymoons for couples from North America, due to its affordability, warm tropical weather, natural scenic beauty, excellent services, and ease of travel. According to wedding industry statistics, out of the 2 million people in the United States who get married each year,about 25% of those opt for a destination wedding in another country.
“And it is continuing to grow, especially with the current Millennial Generation that has traveled extensively,” commented Larissa Banting of Weddings Costa Rica . “This is a generation looking for unique, authentic experiences. The Costa Rica Caribbean Coast is a perfect location because it is a place where people can go and ‘wow’ their friends and family since it is so unique.”

The southern Caribbean Coast of Costa Rica features vibrant seaside towns, some of the prettiest beaches in the country, lush jungle, crystal-clear Caribbean Sea and amazing surfing waves. The relaxed lifestyle of beach towns like Puerto Viejo, Costa Rica have a unique blend of native Latino, Afro-Caribbean and Bribri indigenous cultures mixed with a widely-varied international population. Puerto Viejo has a great selection of international restaurants and delicious traditional Caribbean cuisine. The area also is known for excellent yoga studios.

“For me, the Caribbean is my favorite location,” noted Banting. “It’s still off the beaten path. The area is teeming with life with the ocean right there, and the backdrop is the mountains always green with jungle. It offers really authentic experiences and is a very magical spot.”

Banting founded her wedding planning company Weddings Costa Rica in 2003 from her personal experience planning her own wedding in Costa Rica. Weddings Costa Rica has helped more than 600 couples enjoy destination weddings in Costa Rica.

Banting said the best time for weddings and honeymoons in the Caribbean Costa Rica is from September to November during the Caribbean summer season. One of her favorite places to hold destination weddings is at the upscale Hotel Le Caméléon on Playa Cocles, a little south of Puerto Viejo.

“You have this very excellent boutique hotel with all of these unique features in a really unique setting. The lovely thing about Le Caméléon is that it offers all the comforts,” said Banting.


Hotel Le Caméléon is an Enchanting Hotel of Costa Rica presenting luxury beach accommodations in the tropical forest of Puerto Viejo. The hotel’s 23 rooms border the pool surrounded by lush tropical gardens, across the street from Le Caméléon’s beach club, La Sula Sea Lounge. Le Numu Restaurant & Bar serves creative international dishes in a contemporary, chic ambience.


For honeymoons, there is a lot to do and see in the Caribbean, including the Cahuita National Park with its amazing coral reef snorkeling, the Gandoca-Manzanillo Wildlife Refuge, Sloth Sanctuary, chocolate tours, zip-lines, whitewater rafting,and great beaches for surfing and swimming. Whether you want a honeymoon of lying in the sun watching parrots and toucans fly overhead and soaking your feet in the warm Caribbean Sea; or hope to try new adventures, Hotel Le Caméléon can arrange the honeymoon of your dreams.

How to get to Puerto Viejo, Costa Rica

Daily 30-minute flights on Nature Air or Sansa Airlines between San Jose and Limon; then drive less than an hour to Puerto Viejo and Playa Cocles. Driving from San Jose to Puerto Viejo takes approximately 4.5 hours.

Article by Shannon Farley

 

10 Restaurants in Puerto Viejo Costa Rica not to miss while on vacation

The relaxed Caribbean beach town of Puerto Viejo, Costa Rica not only has some of the prettiest beaches in Costa Rica, along with upscale Costa Rica boutique hotels, Puerto Viejo also is the gastronomic capital of the Costa Rica Southern Caribbean Coast.

Puerto Viejo’s dining scene reflects its widely-varied international population – Caribbean, Italian, Argentinean, Mexican, Asian, Spanish, Middle Eastern, North American, and of course, Costa Rican.

“Considering the size of Puerto Viejo – a small beach town – you wouldn’t expect to find such good specialty restaurants, like Italian and Spanish,” said Daniel Chavarria, director of Enchanting Hotels of Costa Rica. “And you have excellent Caribbean cuisine restaurants, and many trendy places. There is a lot to offer in such a small place. You have many possibilities to go out to eat.”

From fresh seafood to paella, pasta, sushi and steak, be sure to try these 10 top restaurants in Puerto Viejo Costa Rica during your visit.



Le Numu Restaurant & Bar

Located in Hotel Le Caméléon in Playa Cocles, Le Numu serves a mix of Costa Rican Caribbean cuisine, creative international dishes and tropical cocktails in a contemporary, chic ambience. The restaurant’s name “Numu” means Chameleon in the indigenous Bribri language. Open for breakfast, lunch and dinner. Hotel Le Caméléon’s beach club, La Sula Sea Lounge, serves cocktails and lunch from Le Numu out on the beach at Playa Cocles. Le Caméléon Hotel also can arrange for candlelight dinners on the beach. The beach club also is ideal for weddings, exclusive beach parties and other events. (+506-2750-0501)

Koki Beach

Eco-friendly eclectic-style restaurant, bar and lounge overlooking the sea on the edge of the road in the center of Puerto Viejo. Serves Latin fusion cuisine and organic products with an ocean view. Open 5:00-11:00 p.m. for dinner, with a full bar. (+506-2275-0902)



Amimodo

Serving traditional Italian dishes, the family-style restaurant has been in Puerto Viejo for 20+ years. It is located on the main road in front of the famous Salsa Brava surf spot. There is a little bar for pizza and cocktails. Open for lunch and dinner. (+506-2750-0257)

Bread and Chocolate

Offering freshly made hearty breakfasts, lunches and specialty baked goods, this little café is located just off the main road in the center of Puerto Viejo. There are only a few tables that fill up fast. Open from 6:30 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. Tuesday to Saturday; 6:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. Sundays; closed Mondays. (+506-2750-0723)



Café Viejo

This upscale Italian restaurant serves authentic Italian dishes in a sophisticated ambience; centrally located on the main road near the middle of Puerto Viejo. Open for dinner, with a full bar. (+506-2750-0817)

Soda Lidia

Traditional Costa Rican Caribbean cuisine served in a casual, family-style atmosphere behind the main road of Puerto Viejo. This is definitely a local’s hang-out. Open for lunch and dinner. (+506-2750-0598)



La Pecora Nera

Authentic Italian cuisine prepared by an Italian chef is served in a romantic, yet family-friendly, open-air restaurant; located on the main road in Playa Cocles. (+506-2750-0490)



Jungle Love Cafe

This very popular restaurant on the main road in Playa Chiquita serves international-California fusion cuisine served up by the owner-chef from San Francisco. Open 5:30-9:30 p.m. (+506-2750-0162)



Pita Bonita

This Middle Eastern restaurant serves fresh pita, hummus, falafel, salads and other traditional fare. Located where Playa Chiquita meets Punta Uva. Open 1:00-9:00 p.m. for lunch and dinner. (+506-2756-8173)

Maxi’s

This traditional Caribbean restaurant has been around for many years on the beach in Manzanillo. It is famous for fresh fish and seafood. (+506-2759-0673)



Where to stay in Puerto Viejo, Costa Rica Hotel Le Caméléon is one of the few upscale Costa Rica boutique hotels in the Costa Rica Southern Caribbean region. Located on Playa Cocles, to the south of Puerto Viejo, Hotel Le Caméléon is an Enchanting Hotel of Costa Rica featuring modern rooms, beautiful tropical architecture and lush jungle gardens.



How to get to Puerto Viejo, Costa Rica Daily 30-minute flights on Nature Air or Sansa Airlines between San Jose and Limon; then drive less than an hour to Puerto Viejo and Playa Cocles. Driving from San Jose to Puerto Viejo takes approximately 4.5 hours.

Article by Shannon Farley  

 

Enjoy yoga on vacation in Puerto Viejo, Costa Rica

“Find moments in your day to be grateful, to hold peace for a moment, appreciate beauty in the world, and remember to smile.”

Even if you don’t come to Costa Rica for a yoga retreat, you can still practice yoga on your vacation. Yoga has become so popular in Costa Rica that you can find a yoga class or instructor in nearly every part of the country. That is especially true on Costa Rica’s Caribbean Coast.

The areas of Puerto Viejo and Playa Cocles in the Southern Caribbean Costa Rica are excellent for practicing yoga. Easily some of the prettiest beaches of Caribbean Costa Rica, the really special thing about this region is that when you are on the beach, all around you there is only nature … and maybe the occasional person or pretty tropical bird or monkey. Here, there is harmony with the rainforest and ocean, and the widely-varied international population lives a relaxed, laid-back lifestyle. Perfect energy for yogis and yoginis.


Yoga in Puerto Viejo Costa Rica
Here are 3 options for yoga in the Puerto Viejo area:

Hotel Le Caméléon on Playa Cocles, just past Puerto Viejo, offers private yoga classes – whether you are just one person or have more in your group – with the hotel’s yoga instructor. Classes (scheduled upon request) can be held in the private second floor lounge above the Le Numu Restaurant, in a garden setting on the breakfast terrace, or in a shaded area on the beautiful beach of Playa Cocles. Coming in October 2015, Krama Yoga Center of Escazú, Costa Rica, will hold a yoga retreat at Hotel Le Caméléon.

Om Yoga Studio & Academy in Playa Cocles. Classes are offered seven days a week in a range of styles, languages and levels. You are sure to find a class that supports your mind, body and spirit, and may even find a new style to try or one not available at your home.
Cashew Hill Jungle Lodge in Puerto Viejo offers yoga classes and retreats.  



Where to stay in Puerto Viejo, Costa Rica
Hotel Le Caméléon is an upscale Costa Rica boutique hotel featuring ultra-chic rooms, beautiful tropical architecture, a gourmet restaurant, and the fantastic beach club La Sula Sea Lounge right on Playa Cocles.

How to get to Puerto Viejo, Costa Rica
Daily 30-minute flights on Nature Air or Sansa Airlines between San Jose and Limon make it easy to get to Puerto Viejo, Costa Rica. From Limon, it is a short drive less than an hour to Puerto Viejo and Playa Cocles. The drive from San Jose to Puerto Viejo is approximately 4.5 hours.

Article by Shannon Farley

 

10 Things not to expect on Costa Rica’s Southern Caribbean Coast

The two coastlines of Costa Rica – Caribbean and Pacific – are about as opposite as you can get in landscape and lifestyle – kind of like New York and California. Most tourists to Costa Rica head west to the Pacific Coast beaches. It is the adventurer looking for the unique Costa Rica who chooses to explore the Costa Rica Caribbean Coast. Here are 10 things not to expect when you visit the Costa Rica southern Caribbean Coast:

1. The same weather. Costa Rica’s Caribbean Coast experiences nearly complete opposite weather patterns. When the Pacific Coast is baking under a blazing sun, the Caribbean Coast is getting greener from tropical rain showers; and when the rest of the country is drenched in “Rainy Season,” it is Costa Rica Caribbean Summer thanks to a unique microclimate.

2. Dust and desert-like landscapes. It’s not called the Costa Rica dry season for nothing. The Pacific Coast gets drier and browner as time marches from January to May with little to no rain. That terrible dust problem you find elsewhere in the country – you won’t find it in the Caribbean. Regular showers all year keep the Caribbean green and lush … and cooler!

3. Huge mega resorts and hotel chains. When you're on the beach at Puerto Viejo or Playa Cocles on the Caribbean Coast of Costa Rica all you see are sea, sky, sand and jungle. Hotels in Puerto Viejo are set back from the beach, are at the most two-stories high, and retain harmony with nature.




4. Resort prices. You can go to a hotel chain on the Pacific Coast if you want to pay $26 for a basic fresh fish sandwich.

5. Fast food chains. You won’t find McDonald’s here, or KFC or Pizza Hut. Only lots of real, authentic Caribbean cuisine and food from all over the world, thanks to Puerto Viejo’s cosmopolitan population.



6. Destruction of nature. On the Costa Rica southern Caribbean Coast, the jungle stretches right to the sea – thick, lush and full of wildlife. It hasn’t been bulldozed for those mega resorts or clear-cut for cattle.



7. Super highways. There is one main two-lane road from Limon to Puerto Viejo and Manzanillo, and the locals like it that way. The main mode of transportation around Puerto Viejo is beach cruiser bicycle. Time to relax and slow down.



8. Rush hour traffic. Other than maybe a group of people on bicycles heading to the beach or a party, you won’t see traffic over here.

9. Stressed out, pushy, rude people. Unless you bring them – or are one yourself. You’ll find most people on Costa Rica’s Caribbean Coast are easygoing, friendly and happy.



10. Concrete jungle. It’s only the real deal jungle here, with not much concrete in sight.

Where to stay in the Southern Caribbean of Costa Rica When you visit Puerto Viejo, Costa Rica, you want to stay at Hotel Le Caméléon. Just past Puerto Viejo, on Playa Cocles – one of the prettiest beaches on the Costa Rica southern Caribbean Coast – the upscale Costa Rica boutique hotel features ultra-chic rooms, beautiful tropical architecture and the fantastic beach club La Sula Sea Lounge.



Coming up on Saturday, April 4, La Sula Sea Lounge at Hotel Le Caméléon will host a fun Caribbean Calypso party. The festivities begin at 8:00 p.m. with drink specials, delicious Caribbean cuisine, live music by The Calypsonians and dancing till you drop.


New daily 30-minute flights on Nature Air or Sansa Airlines between San Jose and Limon make it easy to get to the Southern Caribbean of Costa Rica. From Limon, it is a short drive less than an hour to Puerto Viejo and Playa Cocles.

Article by Shannon Farley

 

The flavors of Costa Rica Caribbean cuisine

The southern Caribbean Coast of Costa Rica is a big melting pot of traditions and cultures. It is the heart and soul of the country’s Afro-Caribbean community, as well as home to indigenous populations of Bribrí, Carib, Miskito and Cabécar. There are descendants of Spanish conquistadors, North Americans who worked for United Fruit Company during the banana boom, and Chinese laborers who were brought to Costa Rica in the 1870s to work on the railroad along with the Jamaicans.

They mixed languages, customs and cuisine. In addition to Spanish, the main language spoken in Caribbean Costa Rica is Patois, a Creole blend of Jamaican English, West African dialects, French, Spanish and lots of local slang. Musical preferences are reggae and calypso. And the cuisine is very uniquely Costa Rican Caribbean. Coconut milk features in many dishes, along with ginger, curry, allspice, cinnamon, chili pepper and other strong spices brought to the Caribbean by spice traders.

When you visit Costa Rica’s southern Caribbean Coast, be sure to try these Caribbean cuisine favorites:

Rice and Beans: Not to be confused with gallo pinto, or the traditional white rice and black beans that are served everywhere else in Costa Rica; Caribbean Rice and Beans is a mixture of white rice, red beans and coconut. It is usually served with fresh fish, chicken, pork or beef.

Rondón: This seafood stew is named from the English word “run-down” – as in whatever the cook could “run down” or find that day to mix into the soup. Rondón is made with whatever seafood is available, tubers like sweet potato, cassava, taro and potatoes, plantains and coconut milk with spices

.Patí: A spicy meat pie in the shape of a turnover; usually made with ground beef, onion and chili pepper.

Agua de sapo: Literally meaning “toad water” (however, no toads are involved), it is a refreshing lemonade made with brown sugar, lime and ginger.

Pan Bon: Dark bread made with flour, dried fruit, walnuts, butter, egg whites, vanilla, hibiscus seeds, honey and sugar.

Johnnycake: Coconut bread

Plantintah: A pastry made with ripe plantains

Coconut-encrusted shrimp: Covered in crunchy coconut and fried, this is the best way to eat big, fresh Jumbo shrimp or fresh lobster.

You can enjoy Costa Rica Caribbean cuisine and creative international dishes at the elegant Le Numu Restaurant & Bar at Hotel Le Caméléon in Playa Cocles.
Just past Puerto Viejo, Playa Cocles is one of the prettiest beaches on the southern Caribbean Coast of Costa Rica. The upscale Costa Rica boutique hotel features ultra-chic rooms, beautiful tropical architecture, lush jungle gardens and the fantastic beach club, La Sula Sea Lounge.
The Costa Rican airline Nature Air now operates daily flights to Limon from San Jose. From Limon, it is an easy drive under an hour to Puerto Viejo and Playa Cocles.

Article by Shannon Farley