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johnnye00 Montezuma - A travel report by John
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Montezuma,  Costa Rica - flag Costa Rica -  Puntarenas
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johnnye00's travel reports

Spending time in Montezuma

  16 votes
I heard quite a bit how Montezuma was a must for a young person going through Costa Rica, and found it to be a most enjoyable place. Originally a small fishing village, Montezuma is dominated by European backpacker types, and English is most often spoken.


Montezuma travelogue picture
As it snowed for the first time in a decade in Houston, it was more than pleasant to be treading the warm pacific waters in Montezuma. There are two popular routes for getting to Montezuma, one by plane ($55 ow) to Tambor and the other originates in Punta Arenas via the ferry (1000 Colones) to Parquero. Parquero seems to be a town designed solely for carrying ferry passengers to the Montezuma Mal Pais region. There are plenty of autobuses ($40 pp) and public transport (1000 C) to get you there in about an hour and a half. The bus stops in the center of the action right next to the beach (Café Iguana and Bar Chicos ). Most of the bars, restaurants, and hotels are near this bus station. We made our way across the main beach near the waterfall to a little quieter hotel and then hit the sand. The beach here does not have crystal clear water, but the place is truly great for rest and relaxation with company. The sand is mostly volcanic, but not very muddy. In the super high season the beach would have 20 – 30 people lying out or in the water and it never really disturbed the peaceful sound of the ocean. A thirty minute walk away from town will lead you to some pretty abandoned stretches of coastline. But don’t go to Montezuma for the solitude, because the place is full of people mostly in there 20-30s who keep the village buzzing. We met quite a few people who we enjoyed sharing travel stories and planning the next adventures with, and Montezuma is a good place to meet fellow travelers. There are some signs of the fishing village roots in Montezuma, but tourism is the main draw. Delightfully, we often heard jazz music in the streets at night with a light saxophone, guitar, drum, it was a real treat and unexpected

Favourite spots:
Paquero Ferry
Paquero Ferry
The main beach was a very enjoyable place to spend most of the time. Cabo Blanco nature reserve, Playa de la Manch, the Waterfall.

What's really great:
Waterfall
Waterfall
The people we met in Montezuma really made the trip worthwhile, most were not from Costa Rica, but everyone really seemed to be enjoying themselves. A lot of moonlight conversations in different languages with Imperials on the sand next to the waves with new friends. The pace of life was simply relaxing and easy to enjoy yourself

Sights:
Lost
Lost
Cabo Blanco Nature Reserve was a real adventure since we got truly lost, we crawled two miles down a river bed to the ocean and finally found where the trail was supposed to end. Plenty of time to enjoy the howler monkeys and worry about poisonous snakes. The Montezuma waterfall is very close and worth the trip. The pool in the waterfall is very cold and refreshing for your skin after a couple of days of tropical sun. I also wish I would have gone to Mal Pais which is very close. Public transportation outside of Montezuma to Parquero is VERY limited, so you really have to plan ahead.

Accommodations:
Lawn at Amor Del Mar
Lawn at Amor Del Mar
At first I was afraid that our hotel was too far away from the town center, but it turned out to be a good move. We stayed at Hotel Los Mangos twice in a hostel type room and once in a bungalow. The hostel room was more than pleasant and at a good price considering the season, the bungalow was a real treat and an excellent nights rest. This hotel offers Yoga classes and has a magnificent pool (to wash the salt water away). We also stayed at Amor Del Mar, which has a grand lawn that juts out in the Pacific (great for sunset), this hotel also has a tasty restaurant. Both these hotels are close to the waterfall and about a 5 minute walk from the town center. From friends we learned that the hotels in the center were unbearably noisy and without the best facilitates. Our spot was quiet enough to hear the waves breaking each night. Pension Lucy also seemed a nice spot.

Nightlife:
Volcanic Rocks at Dusk
Volcanic Rocks at Dusk
Every night was capped off at Chico’s (right near the bus stop) which has two or three dance floors and an outdoor part near the pacific with reggae music, candles, and tiki lights. The bar has all types of drinks and is an alright place for clubbing.

Hangouts:
The bars around the beach are pretty enjoyable with hamocks and a great view. There is no hope for a real pub, but every place has Imperial and Pilsen beers, and plenty of tropical drinks. Guaro, the Costa Rican sugar cane liqour (30 proof) is also very good.

Restaurants:
Cocolores was excellent and I must recommend there filet (yeah I know Costa Rican beef usually isn’t good, but this one is!) and their lobster, both are very inexpensive. Café Lucy was excellent, as was Café Iguana (especially there smoked tuna sandwich). Breakfast is a real treat in Costa Rica, with blackberry milkshakes and fresh mango, papaya, pina, with yogurt and granola.

Published on Friday February 25th, 2005


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Sun, Apr 30 2006 - 10:04 AM rating by jorgesanchez

Excellent report!

Thu, Mar 03 2005 - 11:07 AM rating by mistybleu

Cool report and well illustrated.

Rgds
Misty

Sat, Feb 26 2005 - 08:48 AM rating by davidx

Even my best friends would never describe me as a young person - but you really make me want to go there! A fine report.
Cheers, David

Sat, Feb 26 2005 - 12:25 AM rating by bootlegga

You've mad me want to visit! Great job on the report.

Fri, Feb 25 2005 - 07:52 PM rating by magsalex

A good report!

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