For solo vacation destinations, Costa Rica is hard to beat. It has something for everyone and at an affordable price. Choosing, as I did, to go out of season is an even better purchase considering the surcharges commonly added to solo travel packages, making it difficult to find affordable luxury travel options for individual travelers. These price drops come quickly after the summer crowds return home, so I took the opportunity to visit in September. Although it was still the rainy season, I don’t recall ever having to dust my umbrella once. Fall deals may also reflect smaller crowds where some tourists may avoid the entire Caribbean due to hurricane hype. In reality, Costa Rica is rarely affected by direct hurricanes and, despite its size, it has several different climate zones. All in all, it was one of my best solo travel destinations.
Hotels abound in a wide range of prices, from high-end global chains to smaller, locally owned properties. TripAdvisor lists 120 hotels in 20 different locations within Costa Rica. A local site listed 61 5-star hotels with nightly rates from a modest $ 113 increase to $ 1,240, providing virtually unlimited luxury travel options for individual travelers. Seven of those 5-star hotels were in the $ 200- $ 299 range and, while not cheap, they compare favorably with prices at resorts around the world.
Costa Rica is one of the best resorts for singles as it offers 4 different types of top vacations for those who travel alone: 1. historical and cultural travel packages that reflect both the Caribbean and Latin American heritage, 2. ecological or ecological travel packages , 3. adventure tour offers and 4. beach getaways not only for honeymooners.
I started my journey in the capital, San José, putting together my own cultural travel package as I went along. The Spanish colonial history of the country began at the beginning of the 16th century when Christopher Columbus on his travels was attributed the name of Costa Rica. After the arrival of the first Spanish settlers in 1522, approximately 300 years passed before independence was achieved.
The city has a number of museums to explore, such as the National Museum of Costa Rica. However, it was the Gold Museum that really intrigued me. Not only was it filled with gleaming gold artifacts, but they represented the much older pre-Columbian figures before the arrival of the Spanish. (Plus, the adjacent gift shop sold copies of these unique items, perfect to take home as gifts for friends and family.)
History scholars and architecture enthusiasts may be disappointed to find that most of the intact buildings in the capital only date from the 19th century and not the colonial period. The impressive Metropolitan Cathedral of San José was built in the late 19th century replacing the original structure destroyed by an earthquake. Newer, but considered the best historical building in San José, is the National Theater of Costa Rica, which also dates from the late 19th century. Now celebrating its 117th anniversary this year, it’s known for its ornate pink and gold marble interior, but it’s also home to a stylish Viennese-style café. Up front, two towering statues, Ludwig van Beethoven and 17th-century Spanish playwright Calderón de La Barca, watch 21st-century visitors closely as they enter.
After leaving San José and heading out into the countryside, it’s easy to see that Costa Rica is one of the world’s top ecotourism destinations offering affordable travel for individual travelers. Rainforest, parks, and wildlife sanctuaries make up 25% of the country. Although small in square miles, Costa Rica has one of the richest biodiversity in the world. In keeping with its green approach, the government has undertaken a program over time to voluntarily achieve carbon neutrality in 2007. The highly photogenic red-eyed tree frog is most typically depicted to represent the wildlife of Costa Rica. As I found out, you don’t have to look far to see colorful examples. From the patio of my hotel, every morning a low-flying hummingbird, one of the 26 local species, accompanied me to breakfast. The rainforest, with its 3-4 distinct levels, provides the opportunity to see sloths resting in the trees and howler monkeys high up in the canopy; however, dense growth can make it difficult to detect.
There is a third option for individual travelers looking to pick up the pace. Beyond placid bird watching and wildlife photography, Costa Rica offers abundant opportunities for adventure vacations for singles, from zip-lining above the treetops to rappelling at the La Fortuna / Arenal waterfalls. . Six to seven rivers have whitewater rafting, while both coasts offer snorkeling and diving. Although the Arenal Volcano no longer draws crowds at night after its nocturnal eruptions ended in 2010, six major volcanoes remain to hike. The resulting hot springs are still an ideal spot for “Happy Hour” watching the sun go down. Not being prepared, I was happy to see that the gift shop was selling attractive swimsuits in bright tropical colors, albeit a bit short on fabric!
Lastly, no trip to Costa Rica is complete without visiting the nearly 300 beaches of the Pacific coast in the west and the calmer Caribbean in the east. I recommend trying both sides.
For me, having my local base of operations in San José, in the Central Valley, was ideal as it was an easy day trip to the rainforest, but with the beaches and boat rides still close at hand. . The quality and prices were definitely pretty good even for solo travelers. If you can’t decide whether you want to go to the Caribbean or Latin America, Costa Rica offers you “2 for the price of 1” instead of single travelers often finding “1 for the price.” price-for-2 “! Whether you’re looking for a boomer trip or millennial adventure, go ahead and add Costa Rica to your bucket list.