Monkey Quads ATV Tours

Monkey Quads is a professional, reputable company that has been providing ATV tours in Nosara for years. Each ATV tour departs at 7:30 am from the Monkey Quad office in Playa Pelada. Over the next four to five hours, enjoy taking in spectacular views of the Costa Rica jungles, waterfalls, rivers and beaches from atop a brand new fleet of Honda 250’s Quads with electric shift. Since the ATV does all the work and is much faster than hiking, it’s an ideal way to explore all the natural beauty that Nosara has to offer.

For a 360 degree Costa Rica adventure we recommend taking the Grand Tour, which includes an ATV excursion through the monkey forest, Rio Nosara, the turtle nesting grounds, Ostional Beach and a blissful snorkel at San Juanillo with lunch. Surf fanatics can also enjoy an ATV tour that takes them to all the best hidden surf spots near Nosara for an unforgettable surfing experience in the Pacific Ocean. Every Monkey Quad ATV tour also includes a professional tour guide with fifteen years experience, helmets, eye protection and dust masks. It’s the perfect way to indulge in your inner adventurer without sacrificing safety, and is one of the best ways to see Nosara.

The Nosara Yoga & Wellness Center

Formerly known as the Costa Rica Yoga Spa, the Nosara Yoga & Wellness Center is founded with the belief that the good life begins with a balanced life. To achieve that ultimate inner balance, the Nosara Yoga & Wellness Center offers retreats, classes, spa treatments and wildlife explorations that enable guests to get in touch with their inner self. The location alone is enough to relax the body and spirit, the Center is set on a private ranch atop a peaceful mountain that overlooks the beautiful Pacific Ocean on Costa Rica’s gold coast.

Visitors to the Nosara Yoga & Wellness Center can enjoy both the Yoga Pavilion and the Wellness Center during their stay. At the Yoga Pavilion, crafted from native Costa Rica teak and pachote wood, practitioners can hone their flexibility and relax while watching the sun rise and set over the Pacific Ocean. The Wellness Center offers private spa rooms for exclusive massages and signature body treatments that will rejuvenate even the weariest traveler. After your mind, body and spirit are in sync and light as a feather, guests can continue their enjoyment of the Center at the private beach, the infinity pool, the Center’s gourmet organic eatery, or by exploring the nearby Ostional National Park.

Horseback Riding in Costa Rica – Beach Tours and Jungle

Beate and Hans of Boca Nosara Tours

Riding a horse through crystal clear surf is a dream for many people – and understandably so. The allure of sitting astride a powerful animal while experiencing the best that nature has to offer is the perfect way to let all the stress of everyday life roll off you while you embrace the moment. Nosara’s gorgeous beaches along Costa Rica’s Pacific Coast are dotted with a number of different horseback riding tour companies who let you experience just that.

For guided beach horseback riding tours, try Boca Nosara. Each guided tour is provided by company owners Beate and Hans, who are fluent in English, Spanish and German. Typical beach rides last from two and a half to three and a half hours, though private tours and custom tours are also available. Importantly, all horses are healthy, well taken care of and very easy to ride; making their beach rides a great experience for novice and riding pro alike.

Horse Riding Tours Are Also Available Through Costa Rica Travel

Another company offering well-organized horseback riding tours through Nosara’s jungles and beaches is Costa Rica Travel. Costa Rica Travel offers horseback riding tours throughout Costa Rica with a few different tour options within Nosara. Adventurers can choose from a jungle tour, sunset and beach tour or a Mala Noche waterfall tour, each guided by a professional naturalist for three to four hours.

Lush Model in Kalia's Emerald Woods Village

For a gorgeously appointed, luxurious yet ecological home in Costa Rica, look no further than Kalia. Nestled against the Costa Rica jungle with views of the Pacific Ocean, Kalia is comprised of four villages with nine different model homes to choose from. Each home is chosen specifically for each residential lot to minimize the development’s impact on Costa Rica’s natural terrain. We have already shared details about the Breeze and Mist model homes, and this time we would like to introduce you to the Lush.

The Lush

The aptly named Lush is enclosed by floor to ceiling glass windows for 360 degree views of the surrounding natural beauty. The Lush boasts nearly 5,500 square feet of living space with over 2,500 square feet of indoor living space and nearly 2,900 square feet of outdoor living space. The home has three spacious bedrooms with the option of a fourth bedroom from the current family room. Water mirrors surround the home, giving each bedroom a serene aquatic view. A large pool just off the living room and dining room is the perfect spot to take an afternoon dip in the pool, or the ideal place for hosting weekend barbeques and pool parties.

Beautiful Panoramic Views From the Interior

The Lush is one of the few Kalia homes that is all on one level, making it easy to reside in for families with younger children or senior citizens. The single level also means that Lush is an entertainer’s dream vacation home, especially since the home is built around a courtyard for an intimate, welcoming feel. And of course, as with all Kalia homes, the Lush home has convenient access to all the planned amenities the Kalia community will offer including world class spas, workout centers, restaurants and walking trails. For more about the Lush home, please visit Kalia’s website.

An interview with Costa Rica’s ministro de Turismo (Tourism Minister), Carlos Ricardo Benavides, who says that tourism in Costa Rica,  like the rest of the world, has dropped a little bit but sees recovery.

eTN: How is the current situation when it comes to tourism in Costa Rica?

Carlos Ricardo Benavides: Like the rest of the world, it has decreased a little bit, because our main market is the United States, and North America itself is almost 62 percent of our market, so when North America comes down, our tourism also goes down a lot. But we have maintained also a very high-class tourism, the one that goes for example to the Hyatt or to the Four Seasons, that still comes, it doesn’t matter what the crisis is at this point. We have been in a small recuperation in August and September, and we hope to maintain our progress, and probably help us a little bit with vacationers coming for December so we can have maybe a negative loss for the whole 2009 around -6 or -7 percent; that is what we are forecasting right now.

eTN: The air links from the United States, they decreased or they stayed the same?

Benavides: Well, some of them decreased, but not because of lack of people flying, but for example, in the case of Delta, it was because of the power of the fleet, and it was not very fuel efficient itself, so long trips, for example the ones from New York to San Jose, over a 5-hour trip, were very positive for them with all planes. Other airlines have decreased the size of the planes, trying to bring full planes and not at all require planes from different parts. But all of them are still flying. We have not lost any kind of carrier. As a matter of fact, we added two new carriers from the United States. We added JetBlue that initiated flights from Orlando direct to San Jose, and we added Spirit Airlines who also initiated flights from Ft. Lauderdale in the United States, and last year we initiated Frontier Airlines from Denver.

eTN: You mentioned 5-star tourism to Costa Rica is a big issue. Did you see the prices coming down for hotels?

Benavides: No, not much, not much. We have a philosophy – when you make your product very cheap, and people get accustomed to paying $1 for something that you know that is worth a hundred dollars, when you got back to charge them the $100, they will turn to you and say, but that was worth $1, and you will tell them, no there was a crisis, I’m sorry. If you will charge $1, it is probably because it was worth $1 not $100.

eTN: I love this philosophy, but is it realistic that the hotels follow your philosophy?

Benavides: They didn’t go so low as to make the destination extremely cheap. They went down a little bit, but what we made was another thing – we made special packages. For example, if you stay 3 nights, we will give you 2 nights free; if you stay 5 nights, we will give you a complimentary night or a complimentary free meal at the spa, and a complimentary tour. In other words, what we wanted to add was not a cheaper product, but add more product to what you are paying. In that way, your product will always have a normal price, but people will feel that they are getting more for what they are paying.

eTN: Besides North America, United States, Canada, what other targets are there for you?

Benavides: Our main targets are Spain, Germany, France, England, and then regional tourism from Central America, and United States, Canada, and Mexico. I would say from the big pie that would be like 75 percent of the graphics.

eTN: A lot of destinations have told me they see an enormous difference in the number of stays between Europe and North America. Have you experienced the same thing?

Benavides: Yes, because in all across the chart, the expenditure has always come down, so that means that the income from tourism will also come down – it’s inevitable. But I think we will recuperate that next year. I think we are seeing that – the numbers coming up.

eTN: What are your air links currently from Germany? Are there charter flights or is it based on commercial flights?

Benavides: We have Condor. Condor is making two weekly flights, and we were trying to make Lufthansa maybe try one flight directly to San Jose, because most of the people have to go to Madrid and get by way of Iberia or go to the United States by way of Continental and then come down. But the market is there. We are very aggressive in Germany; a lot of marketing going on in Germany, a lot of cooperative campaigns especially for tour operators like Tui, and we are very, very, very strong in Germany. It’s a good market for us.

eTN: Besides the classical idea, is there any niche market people should know about in Costa Rica?

Benavides: Especially, what we have promoted always eco-tourism – beaches, volcanoes, nature – that is our main goals. And I always tell people, we are not perfect in eco-tourism, but at least we give the fight. So to keep eco-tourism as our main market, we have 25 percent of our country protected. We have 4.5 percent of all the bio-diversity in the world are present in Costa Rica. So we are protecting that part that is nature. So, if you want to see nature, if you want to see hotels contracted with nature in mind, with a maximum high level, you go to Costa Rica.

eTN: When you compare the GDP to tourism, how important is tourism to Costa Rica?

Benavides: Excluding inter-continental, because there is no way to measure inter-continental, tourism is number one.

eTN: What does the government do? Yesterday, we heard Geoffrey Lipman talking about the Road of Recovery. Are these all interesting developments for you to cooperate?

Benavides: Yes, but, what we have done especially is to promote local tourism; try to keep the tourism that we already have.

eTN: Our readers are travel industry professionals – these are travel agent, tour operators, PR agencies, journalists. Is there anything you want them to know about Costa Rica?

Benavides: When you get in Costa Rica, you are getting a way of doing tourism, and in the end you are betting for the future – for your future and the future of your sons and granddaughters and grandsons, because we are trying to keep the message that you can do tourism by respecting nature, and in the future, if we don’t do that, then nothing else will matter than what we have done with nature. We know that in the future, as many have said, the big fight will be for water and for food, so when you get to come to our country, we believe in this form of doing things – that everything can be on a balance with nature and with progress and with tourism.

Mist Model in Kalia's Ruby Sky Village

As a child, many of us dream about living in our own special treehouse, set high above the rest of the world with a sweeping aerial view of the world below. The inspiration in designing Kalia’s Mist model home was to recapture that unparalleled feeling of freedom, perspective and airiness amidst the sprawling Costa Rica jungle; a state of the art modern tree house with all the luxury amenities you’ve become accustomed to living with. Gorgeous views of the ocean and surrounding jungle, beautiful water features and thousands of square feet of decks and balconies make living in a treehouse a desirable reality.

Residents of the Mist model home enter their luxury abode through a walkway floating over one of the home’s numerous water features. Providing a soothing visual effect, the water features also work to naturally cool the Mist home. An infinity edge pool is the perfect place to take a refreshing dip in the warm Costa Rica afternoons, and the surrounding gardens are filled with native Costa Rica plant life that requires little extra care and watering. These gardens, along with the Mist’s unique rooftop gardens, are there to be enjoyed and to provide a sustainable benefit to the home, not to create additional work for the home’s residents.

All three luxurious bedrooms are upstairs on the second floor of the Mist, furnished with sustainable furniture and decorated with eco-friendly and sustainably sourced interior design materials. To maximize the home’s incredible treehouse effect, each bedroom has a private cantilevered balcony for spectacular views of Costa Rica. With over 4,800 square feet of indoor and outdoor living space, the Mist is the treehouse you dreamed of as a kid, with the luxury amenities and commitment to sustainability you desire as an adult.

Mist Interior Render

Nosara has a handful of great surfing beaches, including Playa Guiones, Playa Negra, Playa Grande, Witch’s Rock, Ollie’s Point, Mal Pais, Jaco Beach and Playa Hermosa. Playa Guiones is arguably the best-known surfing beach in Nosara, and offers 2-6 foot surfs with long rides, safe enough for beginners but still enough of a thrill for dedicated surfer guys and girls. Windy days can bring the big waves, and with them come some of the most perfect barrels to take for a ride.

The waters are filled with a good mix of local Ticos and Ticas (Costa Rican men and women), sun-bronzed ex-pats living out their endless summer and eager tourists looking for a surfing thrill. Everyone is friendly and out there to have a good time, so beginners need not worry about the intimidation factor. For novice surfers who want to learn the basics, consider taking lessons from one of the two popular surf schools in the area:  Safari Surf School and Coconut Harry’s Surf Shop. All this can be enjoyed just minutes away from Kalia’s luxury eco-villages Ruby Skky, Emerald Woods and Black Beauty.

The Breeze Model is available for your next luxury vacation in Costa Rica starting in December.

Set high over the Costa Rica rain forest lies The Breeze, one of Kalia’s impressive new model homes. The height and openness of the Breeze give residents spectacular views of Costa Rica’s lush tropical jungles. Clean, modern lines and floor to ceiling windows characterize the sweeping silhouette of the two-story luxury home that boasts a large, open floor plan. As with all Kalia model homes, the Breeze was designed to maximize the residents’ enjoyment of Costa Rica indoor/outdoor living with a total living area of 4,844 square feet.

Playa Ostional is just minutes away from this beautiful vacation home.

The indoor open floor plan encompasses 2,691 square feet of luxury while modern outdoor decks and water features claim the remaining 2,153 square feet. Thanks to Costa Rica’s year-round mild weather and warm climate, future Breeze homeowners will appreciate the seamless integration between the indoor and outdoor design of the home, enabling them to enjoy themselves equally indoors and out.

As we’ve discussed, Kalia’s mission is the marriage of sustainability and luxury, which is why the Breeze is filled with ecofriendly appointments. Eye-catching rooftop gardens insulate and reduce storm water runoff to keep Costa Rica’s waters crystal clean and free from pollutants, soothing water features double as relaxing décor and natural cooling for the home, and sustainable furniture and building materials make the Breeze the epitome of refined eco-luxury living. Luckily, discerning travelers who want a taste of the Breeze can begin by making reservations at this expansive estate starting in December.  If you are looking for a tropical paradise in which to spend the holidays, check out the Breeze and reserve your spot before it’s too late.

An Unforgettable Bird’s Eye View

Located in Nosara on Costa Rica’s stunning Pacific Coast, Miss Sky Canopy Tours is the country’s premiere provider of zip lining tours through the lush rainforests. Adventurers and nature lovers are invited to take to the pure blue skies and sail through the air to experience a once-in-a-lifetime perspective on Costa Rica’s natural beauty. Unique amongst Costa Rica’s zip lining tour options, Miss Sky Canopy is set within a completely natural 2500 acre forest reserve on a coastal mountain range. Set out in the middle of pristine wilderness, there is little distraction to Costa Rica’s breathtaking natural beauty.

Taking a Miss Sky Canopy Tour

Miss Sky Canopy Tours offers a long daytime zip lining tour, a condensed midday zip lining tour and an enchanting nighttime zip lining tour. The tour company’s 21 zip lining runs range from 500 to 600 meters long and are perched a few hundred feet off the ground for spectacular 360 degree views of Costa Rica. At the end of the tour, adventurers zip line directly into a modern disco and bar, where they can share the exciting sights seen on their zip lining with family and friends. It’s a truly unique way to experience Costa Rica’s rainforests, and is the premiere company that provides the utmost in safety and spectacular sights.

The Miss Sky Canopy Tour is only minutes away from Kalia’s Ruby Sky, Emerald Woods and Black Beauty Villages.

Emperor penguins atop an icy glacier.

Wealthy adrenaline junkies and intrepid travelers need not sacrifice their everyday luxuries to experience sweeping adventure. Thanks to a growing class of travelers with upper crust sensibilities and a longing for excitement, luxury travel companies are offering high end adventure tours to some of the world’s most intriguing places.

Accustomed to living richly in their daily lives, these discerning globe trotters want to spend their nights among jaguars and water buffalo in the African plains – while settling down to sleep amongst the finest five hundred thread count pillows and sheets in a luxury tent. For fearless travelers with such tastes, here is a list of some of the best adventure tours for the rich and famous:

Adventure Collection Tour to Antarctica

Sail south from the tip of Argentina into the other-worldly white plains of Antarctica. Large ships outfitted with bars, lounges and libraries break through glacial ice and on-board naturalists lecture on Antarctica’s rich and unique wildlife. On the mainland, socialite travelers will find themselves in the company of royalty – in the form of the regal Emperor Penguins that call the arctic home. Further adventuring can be accomplished by sea kayaking through icy cold waters, camping in the white wilderness and even cross country skiing.

Abercrombie & Kent’s Ancient Wonders Adventure Tour

Delve into the ancient wonders that lie within Israel, Jordan and Egypt on this luxury adventure tour from Abercrombie & Kent. Leaders in upper crust adventure travel for decades, Abercrombie & Kent travel guides will lead explorers through the sands of the ancient world by camel. Adventurers will get a taste for Bedouin life by enjoying tea with local families, preparing a Jordanian meal at the Petra Kitchen and taking a refreshing dip in the Dead Sea.

Gaia Hotel & Reserve in Costa Rica

The Gaia Hotel & Reserve offers discerning travelers a Costa Rica Adventure Package that includes three days of exploring the country’s pristine rainforests, mangroves and beaches. Adventurers can satisfy their need for thrill on rushing white water rapids or by guided ATV tours that uncover Costa Rica’s rich biodiversity, and satiate their need for luxury by curling up in Gaia’s plush suites in front of a flat screen TV.