I had one night planned for the Nicoya Peninsula region. The reason? I was there for only one things—to snorkel Tortuga Island.
This was one of those destinations I researched very little ahead of time. I didn’t really know how I was going to snorkel these islands. I just knew they were snorkelable. And if I got as close as I could, I’d figure it out.
Figure it out, I did! I managed to stay overnight in a very inexpensive Airbnb with a lovely local family. And I believe I discovered one of the most accessible, low cost, and small group tours for snorkeling these islands.
I didn’t even know what I was going to get as part of this tour. But I ended up having an awesome time including plenty of underwater sightseeing in addition to quiet beach time with a fresh fruit feast.
This post is just an excuse to show you more views of the area around Monterverde—because why not?!
I missed seeing the sunset views my first night in Monteverde since I arrived late at night after an unplanned hospital visit. I could feel the mountains despite the pitch darkness beyond the road ahead of me. Feeling mountains but not seeing them is such a tease!
Early during my first day in Monteverde, I got to see layered mountain views looking East toward Arenal Volcano while hiking the Santa Elena Cloud Forest Reserve. I wanted to see more!
I couldn’t wait to catch my first sunset views. I was also looking forward to seeing more roadside mountain views during the daytime since I missed them on the way in. I’m glad I got to experience both on my last night in Monteverde and as I left the region the next morning.
The Santa Elena Cloud Forest is a magical hiking experience. It’s a cheaper, less touristy departure from the nearby Monteverde Cloud Forest entrance. I was able to walk the trails in near solitude and silence aside from the chirping birds and creaking trees.
What I loved about this reserve was its manicured trails depicted on a clear map from which you could choose your own adventure. Not a lot of time? You can pick a shorter path and b-line it for the observation tower for the best views in the park. More time? Take the longer route along Caño Negro.
With the beautiful canopy above, cool mountain air, I was easily enchanted by this place. The views of Arenal mountain on this fairly clear day were the cherry on top!
Did I want to fly over the Costa Rican cloud forest like superman? Absolutely, yes! This is why I came to Monteverde, Costa Rica—the adventure capital of the country. I was there to experience the longest zipline in Latin America from the unique angle of head first.
I’ve never done a major ziplining experience before—just shorter single ones back in the USA. I wanted to experience more beautiful rainforest but from a different perspective and with the adrenaline kick that ziplining provides. What I wasn’t expecting was the giant swing into the canopy below at the end. Yikes!
I did it anyway, in honor of my last swing in New Zealand almost 10 years prior. Overall, my zip-line experience with 100% Aventura was amazing—fast-paced, thrilling, and, most importantly, safe! And I got it all on video.
I had a sore throat when I went to bed while staying with the Brunca people in Costa Rica. When I woke up, it wasn’t better and it only got worse as the morning persisted. I decided I should probably get some medicine to nip this in the bud and not let it ruin the rest of my trip. But I didn’t really know where I should go.
My research online revealed that I had several options but all would basically result in quality care and be very low cost to me, even as a tourist without insurance. That’s because Costa Rica has a universal healthcare system that guarantees medical care to anyone who needs it. It’s considered the best in Latin America and people from all over the world go there for its low cost and high quality doctors and services.
At the recommendation of my Brunca hosts, I decided to visit a hospital just 35 minutes away. Despite a nearly 4-hour wait time in the heat, I received fast, quality care with easy access to all I needed to complete my visit and get my prescriptions filled right there in the hospital.
My visit to the indigenous Brunca village of Rey Curré was one of the best cultural exchanges I’ve ever had in my travels. I went to learn more about the Brunca people, their cultural traditions, and their modern day struggles. I walked away with so much more!
The experience started with a 3-hour artist’s workshop with a couple who craft traditional Brunca masks among other pieces. I then heard stories depicted through paintings in their community center. After, the town museum helped illustrate Brunca history dating back thousands of years through Spanish colonization and up until modern times.
The best parts, however, were the simple conversations with all the people I met—how they formed their families, their perspectives on life in Rey Curré, and their efforts to protect their culture from further colonization. The food I ate and trinkets I walked away with were icing on the cake! I had an amazing time and I hope to be back again to experience their famous New Years festival one day!
I am so glad I listened to the advice of a local on what to do my last day on the Osa Peninsula. Lynch, my dive master from the day before, recommended Corcovado National Park as a must see guided tour destination.
So I booked it straight away. I knew that guided rainforest walks are the thing to do while in Costa Rica. I just wasn’t entirely sure where I would do one. But then I learned that Corcovado National Park is considered “the most biologically intense place on Earth in terms of biodiversity” by the National Geographic.
Referred to as the “crown jewel” of the Costa Rican park system, it was a tour of this 164-square mile conservation area or no tour at all for me! I ended up seeing everything from the endangered tapir and all four species of Costa Rican monkeys to the adorable coati and the iconic three-toed sloth.
This was hands down the best decision I made for seeing wildlife in Costa Rica!
You never know where chatting up a local may go. As a solo traveler, I really welcome my alone time on my trips. But sometimes being a solo traveler means anything but being on my own. Instead, it grants me the opportunity to meet others more fluidly and easily.
While diving Drake Bay, my dive master turned out to be a fun guide to a whole afternoon and evening of special experiences including a river swim and sunset bonfire on the beach.
I recount the story in this short post about the second half of my day. This was an off-the-beaten-path adventure around the Osa Peninsula after diving Caño Island.
Taking a little break from Costa Rica this week to bring you some extra content from my trip to Santorini!
On our last day in Greece, on the island of Santorini, Carolina and I decided to explore one last area. The Akrotiri peninsula includes a few nice highlights that are worth the bus ride down for part of the day.
We went to the red beach and to the Venetian Castle of Akrotiri. Both of these were free to visit. We had the option to also visit the Akrotiri Museum but we opted not to. Sometimes there are certain highlights that I choose to pass up on trips especially when they cost money. The fee and not feeling enthusiastic enough about the museum turned us away.
Otherwise we had a nice visit to Akrotiri before we departed for our next adventure in Sweden and Norway!
Caño Island is one of the best dive locations in all of Costa Rica. The best place to dive the island is from Drake Bay because of the inclusive experience, smaller groups, and closer access.
On the way out to Caño Island, we had a special sighting of spotted dolphins in the distance. Upon my return, the dive company fed us all lunch—something very unique and special compared to any other company I’ve dived with around the world.
I dove 2 sites and explored Caño Island in between. While one dive was long and filled with sharks and turtles, the other was short and filled with rays and eels. Although the dives were pretty normal the overall experience was unique. This is why I highly recommend diving Caño Island from Drake Bay.
The Drake Bay Hiking Trail is one of the best hikes I’ve ever been on! I saw giant bamboo, pretty flowers, white-faced monkeys, and so much more!
This hike was hot, sweaty, and wet—possibly more wet than you’d expect with a treacherous river crossing included! But San Josecito beach is the payoff. It’s considered one of the best beaches on the entire Osa Peninsula. The calmer waters here make taking a dip a complete delight.
From the amazing plants and silly monkeys to the dense jungle and sandy beaches, this trail is packed with a variety of sights, sounds, and something for nature lovers and animal lovers alike!
My first 2 days in Costa Rica were all about driving the 6+ hours to Drake Bay. Of course, I had to stop along the way to see some of what the west coast of Costa Rica had to offer.
These highlights turned out to be a great introduction for what was to come. From spotting my first bit of wildlife to sunset views and a waterfall—I was already living the Pura Vida life!
People warned getting out to Drake Bay would mean encountering bad roads possibly unfit for a simple car. But I managed to get there with no problem and enjoy the views along the way. I hope you, too, enjoy what I share as my Costa Rica adventure begins!
My 14-night trip around Costa Rica was everything I needed and more. And I only spent about $1550 total for it all!
By using points to cover the flights and most of the car rental, I was left with spending money only on gas, accommodation, food, and fun!
In this cost breakdown, I reveal how I searched for the best deals and locked in some of my best experiences at the best prices possible during Costa Rica’s “slack” season in May.
I only planned to be in Oslo, Norway for 2 nights. Then my COVID-19 test remained positive and 2-nights turned into 5!
I had to find things to do that were not only predominantly outdoors and socially distant but also low budget—just in case my travel insurance didn’t come through for me on this occasion (it did!).
Anyway, what I learned is that Oslo is a small, fairly quiet city and it has some really special features and experiences that make it stand out.
I had an awesome time exploring everything from its outdoor sculptures to parks and waterways. Check out this post for my list of low-budget highlights in the beautiful city of Oslo!
For the last week I’ve been traveling solo for the first time in nearly 4.5 years.
I am in Costa Rica!
I heard so much about this country from other traveles that I moved it to the top of my list. And now here we are!
I can’t wait to share all about this trip with your after I am back.
For now, here is a photo diary with just a sampling of my first few days in Costa Rica! More to come in a few weeks!
As one of Norway’s three most spectacular hikes, Trolltunga easily made it to my top 5 hikes of all time. The hike met my standards in terms of length, challenge, and interesting terrain.
The views, especially at the “Troll’s Tongue,” are what made this out and back hike move right onto my favorite hikes list.
The hike from the village of Skjeggedal requires some pre-booking and planning especially depending on the time of year and extent of the challenge that you want. That way, if you happen to go, you can choose the best way for you to enjoy this hike’s spectacular Norwegian landscapes.
We began our road trip into Norway after picking up Carolina's coughing, sniffling child in Stockholm (lol). We were on our way but stopped for a night at a friend's place in Kopparburg, Sweden and at a park before crossing the border north of Oslo.
In this post, I cover the major highlights we saw as we made our way from the Oslo area out to the Bergen area and back over 7 days.
From roadside views with multiple waterfalls to the longest tunnel in the world, Norway is a great country to take a road trip.
Carolina and I had time to kill in Stockholm for a day as we waited for her daughter to arrive from Italy. After recovering from our red eye flight from Greece with a car garage nap, we wandered the streets and did a little self-guided landmark and art museum sight-seeing.
We were on our own and pretty aimless until we met up with an old friend of mine. Giles took us around to a few of the more interesting spots including a sunken warship museum with a funny backstory.
This top 10 must-see’s include some typical stops but also some unexpected ones, like where to find Stockholm’s legendary stone face crying over—you’d never guess it—a sculpted vulva! Keep reading to find out more about our 24 hours in Stockholm!
I was embarking on the second half of my trip to Europe in July 2022 knowing full well I had a lot less control over what was about to happen.
For one, I would be traveling with Carolina in her part of the world so I let her do most of the planning. We were going to be using her car and using her high quality camping gear for the majority of the trip. Plus, we were going to be traveling with her child.
All of these factors had benefits to me as a solo traveler because it’s always less expensive and fun when you can share the costs of things with locals. What I didn’t anticipate was us all getting sick with COVID-19, diminishing the fun and causing the costs to skyrocket quickly!
In the end, insurance saved me and I got a huge reimbursement bringing my expenses to just under $1500. Not bad for one of the more expensive places in Europe to travel!
Our Fira host, Alex, recommended to us a secret place to get in the caldera waters in Oia. He showed us on a map and told us we couldn’t miss it.
He mentioned a tiny island with a church called Saint Nicholas on it. “Swim out to this island,” he said, “it’s not far. Then jump off the wall!”
We had no idea what to really expect but when you get a recommendation for something so unique—you go! This little off-the-beaten path spot turned out to be an unexpected highlight of our time in Santorini!
