Hi Allen –

I got your name and email address from a mutual friend. I’m hoping to vacation Costa Rica with my boyfriend for 7 – 10 days in February. I’d also be interested in exploring retirement and/or investment opportunities while I’m there if I’ve got time. The boyfriend is really looking for a very relaxing, resort style vacation where he can be pampered, eat nice meals, rest, and sit at the pool. I’m more active, and would like to have the option to do some hiking, rafting, exploring, etc. I’ve heard there are resorts that plan day trips, so I’m hoping he can enjoy the R&R and I can take some day trips. I just spoke very briefly to my friend so I don’t know if you actually do travel planning? If so that’d be great, or maybe you’ve just got a website to refer me to. Any help at all would be really appreciated. I’ve always wanted to visit Costa Rica, and I’m happy to find out that it’s pretty gay friendly.

Thanks, Mark

Dear Mark,

I am so glad to hear that __ is recommending us. We will be glad to help you. Please set your sights on the northern Pacific Coast and fly into Liberia, Costa Rica (LIR) - the new international airport in the country. If you will be coming from Chicago, there is a non-stop on United (a Funjet charter flight) on Saturdays until the end of April. You can also fly Delta, American, or Continental, with connections, if you would rather use one of those airlines…….

…….Would your partner prefer a hotel on the beach in the middle of the tourist "hotspot" with tons of hubbub and things going on outside, or a 5-star all-inclusive on the most beautiful beach in the area, but a 15 minute drive to the hubbub? The hotspot has a great variety of restaurants, activities you could walk to, etc, etc. The 5-star all-inclusive has first-rate rooms, gigantic resort pool, but is somewhat isolated. The all-inclusive meal plan is also "B" to "A-" at best. From the all-inclusive you would have horseback riding, ATVs, windsurfing and jet skis on the beach, and a lot of other things could be arranged through the front desk. The hotel in the hotspot (Tamarindo) is right in the middle of everything, on the main surfing beach, and the rooms might be just "B+". The all-inclusive is smack dab in the middle of the coast you should be exploring for your longer-term objectives, but being in Tamarindo, as a base, only adds 15 minutes to exploring the beaches and mountains around Flamingo, Surfside, Potrero, and Pacific Heights - which you really should see.

http://www.solmelia.com/solNew/hoteles/jsp/C_Hotel_
Description.jsp?codigoHotel=5891 is the link to the 5-star all-inclusive, the Melia Conchal at Playa Conchal.

http://centralamerica.com/cr/hotel/diria.htm, is the link to the Diria Hotel in Tamarindo. The large resort pool they show is actually across the street from the main hotel building and beach. It is in a complex with new condos they have under construction. They also have a smaller pool that faces the beach near the hotel entrance, bar, restaurant.

These would be the two best bets for the treatment you boyfriend is seeking, without going far out of the area (that I think you will find interesting for a lot of other reasons you mentioned for yourself.) There is a Four Seasons in Papagayo, but it is over an hour from the primary target area, and guests often feel trapped because nothing else is close and the prices are quite high.

We can help you plan your trip, make reservations, book tours, etc. Our vacation rental company has a client services desk and we do it all the time for others. If you would like to book either hotel directly on-line, feel free.

As we are also in the real estate business, I will be happy to give you a personal overview tour, if you can devote a morning or afternoon of your stay. Our real estate site you can link to from "Next Gay" has a good sample of the opportunities that are routinely available. The best way to get a sure "bump" in value is to commit to a pre-construction home or condo at the earliest prices. (The drawback is waiting for delivery.) Once delivered, you can rent the property on a short or long-term basis to avoid a financial drain until you are ready to retire or use it more often yourself.

There is a lot to say about Costa Rica, but I will stop here and let you absorb some of the website info and talk things over with your boyfriend. Please ask anything you wish to know. We will be completely honest about what we think, as we have learned a great, great deal in our first 2.5 years here.

Looking forward to continuing this conversation,

Allen Lungo

Allen –

Thanks for the super helpful email. The bf and I are trying to use miles for airfare.  Liberia is very tough when it comes to using miles. Would flying into San Jose result in too long of a drive?

THANKS,

Mark

You are very welcome.

It is a 4.5 - 6 hour drive, depending upon traffic, but it is very pretty most of the way. If your flight arrives in the afternoon, you will wind up driving in the dark some of the way, as the sun sets around 5:30 these days. You may want to spend the first night in San Jose, if that concerns you. The cost of using your miles would be losing the first and last day to get back and forth to San Jose, but if you have not been here before, it can be part of the exploration. You could do a night at Lake Arenal and see the volcano and do Tabacon Hot Springs on either end of the trip.

You could also check the connecting domestic schedule for Sansa or Nature Air. They both fly to Tamarindo or Liberia from San Jose a few times each day. The flight is approx 40 minutes and $85.00 one way. I would leave at least 90 minutes of connecting time, in case your international flight is late. The domestic terminal is a little "hut" next to the international one and you can walk the distance in less than 5 minutes once you emerge from customs and the arrival baggage area. The links to these airline websites are on the Airline Page of www.vacationrentalsoftamarindo.com.

I can help you with more details of each option, once you decide what will be your choice.

Happy New Year,

Greetings,

Hi guys, we saw your ad in a magazine and then went to your website.

We are going to be making our first visit to Costa Rica starting 19 February.  We'll actually be flying into San Jose and visiting in/around that area.  We'll be able to get away from the city a bit for "touring" also.  We are staying in San Jose we actually join a group and go to the Pacific coast by bus to take an all gay (our first ever) cruise (we've been on many non gay cruises) for a week.  We hope to be pleasantly surprised by the area, having heard many good or great things about almost everything (except the roads!).

Do you have any MUST SEE things to suggest that we should see or do as tourists either in San Jose or within a convenient distance of it?  We'll probably see several areas along the coast via our cruise, we'll be seeing the rain forests and taking a zip-line trip, and don't know how much free/independent time we'd have to visit or see other things.  Hopefully, our first introduction to C.R. will mean we'll want to come back again fairly soon.  Perhaps we'd then make it to the Liberia area also.

Investing in property is not a priority at this time, however, that doesn't rule it out if we absolutely loved it there and found something we couldn't resist, on another visit.

Looking forward to your advice and suggestions.  Thanks in advance for any help.

Sincerely,

Terry

Dear Terry,

Thank you for your email. I am glad our ad and website sparked your inquiry. Due to the response, we will be enhancing the Next Gay site a great deal over the next few weeks to add tons of content and recommendations. You may want to check it a couple times before your trip.

I assume you are doing the Pacific coast near Manuel Antonio, which has been the traditional coast for gay tourists and is very pretty. It is considered the Central Pacific zone here. We are the Northern Pacific Coast, closer to Nicaragua and near the new Liberia International Airport. We are the more undeveloped part of the country with a more dramatic coastline and the most beautiful, yet to be crowded beaches, if you are beach afficionados .

When you arrive you might want to look at the weekly throw away tourist papers. There is one with green printing on the masthead called "Costa Rica News" or something like that that has a gay guide to San Jose in each issue. You may want an overview and map, in case you are in the right parts of town for another reason. We do not see the paper much out here on the Pacific coast, because it is targeted for San Jose. The landmark evening destination for cocktails and dancing boys on the bar is Puchos , near the National Court building, funnily enough. They are closed one night like Sunday or Monday. It says with the map.

If you are museum people, there is a Gold Museum in San Jose that some tours include. I have not done it myself. There are historically significant buildings in the center of San Jose, but it is actually not a very pretty urban downtown. Just take cabs, especially at night, and keep your wallets in your front pockets at all times.

There is a replica of the US White House on the southern mountain ridge of the San Jose basin which is a hotel, restaurant, and a great city view at night. It is above the new, trendy suburb of Escazu , which itself is  approximately 15 minutes form the center of San Jose. The replica idea is sort of corny and crazy, but if you want to see the basin view (a la Mulholland Drive/LA) and have dinner and/or drinks, it is a great spot.

Escazu is "The" spot for the latest everything, especially in shopping and restaurants, if that interests you. You can find sushi, Italian , Peruvian , deli, late night pastry/cocktail places, etc, etc. Traditional Costa Rican cooking is rather simple, solid, and will taste good, but there is a reason you do not see Costa Rican restaurants all around the world. Unless the beef is imported, order chicken, pork or fish.

You will enjoy your drives from place to place, as the country is completely lovely, even from the harrowing 2-lane roads. Most places (after you leave San Jose) will amaze you at how clear the air is and how fresh it all smells, unless the sugar cane fields are burning before the harvest.....but that is only 3 times per year.

As far as "must see' things, it will depend upon your route. If it includes the Arenal Volcano, go into Tabacon Springs. It is a bit touristy , but there are lovely gardens you can move through as you try the hot springs pools from the high point, where the water comes out of the mountain at 104 degrees, to lower, cooler levels. There are cold, refreshing waterfalls you can sit in from time to time as well.

You can also look for rainforest tours, or zip-line experiences, if you like them. 

The real "must-see" anywhere is the sunset from the Pacific Coast. It, along with the spiritually uplifting karma of the whole country, is what draws certain people here repeatedly or permanently. The sunset is a 90 minute show that goes on and on, because the sky is so big, and we literally can see to the edge of the earth. There is no way to let yourself enjoy one and not feel more at peace or relaxed, by the time it is dark.

The background picture on the Next Gay site, and many of the sunset shots you see on all of our sites are real photos taken from our house or coast. We are at 1100 feet above sea level, and only 10 minutes form the beach below, and the combination makes for a memorable experience 95 out of 100 evenings. It is a much better partner than the evening news on TV.

I hope this little sermon hits some of your questions. I will be glad to continue to correspond and add updates if you can tell me where you are staying, etc, etc. If you have more questions after reviewing the travel tips (etc) pages, just email.

I am sure you will love your trip. When you decide to return, start by flying to Liberia Airport and spend your next vacation on this coast. You will be glad you did. I decided to turn my life upside down after coming here for my birthday trip 4 years ago (which also started in San Jose). You may not be in exactly the same place I was, but, if you sense a future for you with Costa Rica in your life, I will be glad to share many more dimensions of the experience my partner and I have had.

Best Regards,

Allen

Dear Allen,

Greetings once again and thanks for the very prompt reply.  The information you gave will be very helpful and we have each looked at your "vacation rentals of Tamarindo" website.  Looks quite nice, modern, and tempting.  We'll keep the rentals in mind for our first visit to the north coastal area.  My partner has said for the first time ever "IF WE EVER BUY ANOTHER PROPERTY, Costa Rica looks nice and practical" (distance wise from Atlanta, I guess) which I found interesting. 

Our itinerary after San Jose and surrounding area will be cruise boarding at Puerto Caldera.  Then to Coiba, Panama, Drake Bay, C.R., Quepos and the Manuel Antonio Nat'l Park area, Playas del Coco, Tortuga Isle, and back to Puerto Caldera.  I believe that Playas del Coco will be the only area along the northern coast "up your way" so we'll get to sample a bit of the scenery there also.

Tabacon Springs and the pools/streams sounds great as do the sunsets over the Pacific.  I guess we are shopper/tourists more than anything else (swimming-scuba, hiking, museums, any sports- all to a minimum) but certainly do enjoy beautiful scenery, different customs, languages, food/drink, etc.  My partner once studied Spanish (8 years in school) while I've had a bit of three European languages so we should be fine getting around with/without a guide.

I know that Delta does fly non-stop from ATL to LIR while various other carriers have service with a connection.  Next time we will consider Liberia as a destination.  We'll watch your website for any changes and look forward to any other ideas/suggestions by email if you think of any.   In the meantime, thanks again for the information.

Cheers,

Terry

Hi Allen,

Just thought I'd mention that the background-view and scenery on your "CostaRicarealestatestore" page is fantastic!  It appears to be taken looking "over" an infinity pool with Palm Trees, and coves and scenery in the background.  It does appear to be from a higher elevation with view to the ocean.  Is this truly a view from the area near your house?  What a view!  If this is near your house, I'm assuming that it is along the northern coast. 

We might be more impressed than we realized with the landscapes and vistas, and we are also excited about the trip.  Looking forward to our visit.

Cheers,

Terry

Dear Terry,

Yes, it is the view from our pool area and I took the picture myself. When we took our second vacation here, we had a real estate agent give us an overview of this coast for a day. She ended it with Pacific Heights, which is the mountain we live on now. We saw this view and decided to leave the US on the spot. (We were predisposed to foreign locations for possible retirement one day anyway.) A lot has happened since, but we eventually wound up with a house with our "dream view" in the middle of the coast we like the best. We consider ourselves very fortunate.

We live 1100 feet above sea level, with a beautiful white sand beach less than ten minutes below us. I am a pool person and would rather look at this view from mine, than live on the beach. (Have done that before) The scenery in the distance is what we drive to each day to go to work.

I was going to ask if you had your cruise itinerary and knew what day you were landing at Coco? What sort of activities do they have planned for you there? Please don't judge this coast by Coco. It is the only functioning harbor at the moment, since Flamingo is about to be rebuilt, so it is the one place near here to put ashore. Coco was primarily a beach resort for locals until recently.  The most generous thing to call it is "charming". There is tourist shopping and places to eat. I assume they are not throwing you on a bus for a trip anywhere.

If you are being told what you are sailing by, as the ship heads north from departure, I hope you will be close enough to view the beaches at Playas Negra , Avellanas , Conchal , and Flamingo, as they are the most beautiful. The town of Flamingo is on a peninsula and islands that stick into the Pacific. If you are sailing north past it we are near the top of the tallest mountain on the north side of the bay north of (after) the Flamingo peninsula.

It is always great to chat with you,

Allen