Costa Rica Tours > Travel Guide > Nightlife > Manuel Antonio Quepos Costa Rica: Tours and Fun Things to Do
Manuel Antonio Quepos Costa Rica: Tours and Fun Things to Do
Manuel Antonio, Costa Rica, is the "Fun Capital" of Costa Rica beaches in high season. The nightlife scene in Manuel Antonio and Quepos -- from nightclubs to discos, from casinos to beachfront dancing, is lively, and daytime tours and travel activities abound.
This article highlights the area's tours and vacation attractions. You won't find most of this info in your travel book, so feel free to print a copy of this page for the trip Manuel Antonio, Costa RicaSome hotel bars with tropical nightlife action include Hotel Parador, Plinio, La Mariposa and Makanda by the Sea. The El Mirador del Pacifico is no longer the hot nightspot it was in the past (even the fishermen no longer hang out here). In fact, the hotel has gone downhill faster than a runaway train this year. The sports bar at Byblos has seen little action, but is still the place for billiards.
There is always lots of partying down at Mar y Sombra by the public beach, especially from 10 PM on Thursday and Friday nights. But the real action is on Saturday nightsDowntown QueposEl Banco Bar, a lively joint, was the top spot for downtown dining and drinking for years. It is currently closes while the new owner tries to rent it out.
On the Beaches
Manuel Antonio National Park consists of seven beaches, all more private than the free beach and featuring more exotic, tropical setting. ($7 for gringos; food, drinks, water gear, tours are availableClosed on Mondays).But visitors report seeing less wildlife after a road to the new entrance made it possible to picnic and party closer to the beaches. Animals and birds were still less abundant than a few years ago. A footbridge is being built to enable visitors to enter the park without wading through the stream or waiting for a boat. Too bad, because that was part of the adventure.
Most of the beaches can be dangerous for swimming, so stay close to shore and don’t go in alone. Take a diving cruise if you want to see more of the marine life, Planet Dolphin offers two daily trips in high season. During low tide, you can see remnants of circular stone turtle corrals built by pre-Colombian Quepoa Indians.
The public beach, at the end of the bus ride from downtown, is a convenient place for sun but also tricky for swimming. Beach umbrellas, jet skis, food and drink are nearby, and the bus (75 colones) and taxi stop (900 colones) is handy. You can ride horses on the public beach. Unless you are a bacterium, the beach in front of downtown is too polluted for swimmingSportfishingThis is a picture perfect place to nail a marlin or sailfish, the ultimate in fishing from Quepos Costa Rica. For pictures of this one and some of the other top boats in the area, click Costa Rica Boat Charter.
In the Ocean: Water Sports and FunManuel Antonio National Park is great for snorkeling. Much farther south and offshore from remote Drake Bay, Canos Island is clearly the place for scuba. You can take great pictures of the palm-fringed beaches from the boat.
Planet Dolphin runs a snorkeling tour and a cataraman cruise. Parasailing is also available. A surf shop, run by Burro, is located behind Hector’s downtown. Fishing off Quepos and Manuel Antonio is best from December through May -- billfish season. The rest of the year, June through August in particular, expect yellow-fin tuna, rooster, snapper, dorado, amberjack, snook and tuna. A full day costs from $500-$1,200. For more sportfishing news, see Costa Rica fishingSunset Cruises, Cliff side SunsetsThe Blue Fin, a 31-foot motor boat, offers four hour booze and cruise tours in the day and for sunset. Drinks, fruit, and bocas. From shore, you can get some spectacular views of the sun setting over the Pacific at Villas Parque and Immaculada, both on the hill. Barba Roja also enjoys a great sunset. So does the newest hot spot on the hill, Ronnie's.
National Parks and Wildlife PreservesUnder development for several years, Rainmaker Mountain Nature Refuge covers 1,500 acres of virgin mountain and primary rainforest near Parrita, 40 minutes north of town. The panorama of wildlife, butterflies, birds, poison frogs and snakes, and medicinal plants is described by guides on the 4-hour tourIncludes shuttle, breakfast, lunch.A five-hour boat ride, the Isla Damas Nature Tour takes you to see monkeys and aquatic life along the estuary north of downtown. Hot springs and caves near Damas and Cerros are now open to the public, with horseback riding on rarely visited trails along a winding stream. A free 15-kilometer nature trail can be explored from the grounds of Hotel Plinio on the way up the hill from downtown. It features a 60-meter observation tower with hypnotic views of the Damas Mountains, downtown, the beaches and surrounding jungle.
Guided horseback riding tours trot off to Nara Waterfalls for 5 1/2 hours. Mountain bike tours are also available from local tour companiesCanopy Tours, Nature TrailsSeveral zip line canopy tours are available. Our choice is Dream Forest Canopy Tour (777-4567), which has the longest zip lines in the area. One is over 600 meters. It has eleven platforms. And the Dream Forest Canyoning Tour features rappeling down four waterfalls, diving off rocks into deep pools of crystal clear water, and relaxing in natural pools on your way down river. New mountain biking tours are available through Estrella tours.
Rainmaker Mountain Nature Refuge covers 1,500 acres of virgin mountain and primary rainforest near Parrita, 40 minutes toward Jaco. A guided 4-hour tour, which includes shuttle, breakfast, lunch, costs $45-65White Water RaftingIguana Tours ventures to the Rio Naranjo for a half-day class III-IV, the Rio Parrita for a full day of class III, and the isolated Rio Savegre for a class III challenge through the jungle.
Iguana uses 6-man U-paddle rafts in high water, two-man inflatable kayaks in low water (high season). They also offer a kayaking, a three-hour park tour, and dolphin tours on a Zodiac. The Zodiac tour visits marine life, blowholes and other sites inshore, goes offshore for sea turtles and dolphins, and concludes with snacks and a swim in Biesanz Bay.
Amigos del Rio advertises a "100% Satisfaction Money back guarantee." They hit the Naranjo's white water, seven miles of challenging class III-IV river, and also offer ocean kayaking around the Damas Island estuary and the coast.
Amigos del Rio is the only outfit to run the world class Upper Rio Savegre through the jungle, called among the most difficult and beautiful stretches on the planet. The trip pauses at a waterfall for lunchNightlife, Casinos, BarsFree drinks for the ladies are packing 'em in on Tuesday and Thursday at Banco Bar from 10 PM-1 AM. Mar y Blues sees a lot of action after 9:30. On weekend nights, lots of young locals and a few gringos show up for disco at Mar Y Sombra, the open air restaurant on the public beach.
The Rainforest Casino, along with the Divasamar Hotel, is closed and now for sale. Downtown, the Kamuk Hotel’s casino is cramped and more like a Reno sawdust joint. The Parador usually opens its casino for high season.
Best sports bar up the hill is the Billfish Billiards Sports Bar at Hotel Byblos, which has four full-size pool tables, six ping pong tables, and slot machines. They will screen your fishing and surfing videos at the bar, popular with the college crowdDowntown Quepos DiningBest food downtown is still at Banco Bar. The breaded calamari and quesadillas are among our favorite examples of what Brian calls "comfort foods," and you cannot go wrong with the Catch of the Day. The menu has changed with the new ownership, and for the better. They added the "Big Ass Burrito" and the El Gringo Chronico ("makes you want to smack your mama!" and are about to bring on the lasagna and other new entrees. Banco also has the best beer prices south of the Beatle Bar in Jaco, lots of TVs for sports -- and you can change dollars there too.
Don't miss the Italian ice cream at Escalofrio up the street from Sargento Garcia's. Coconut, banana and mora (blackberry) are all sensational when the temperature hits the high 80s.
Locals and savvy tourists eat at El Almendro. Excellent food, huge servings. From Dos Locos (another place to avoid, despite what you read in the travel guides), go left past Escalofrio and again at the end of the street. It's across the street from Hi-Tech SportfishingDowntown SightsThe La Botanica Spice Shop offers an agroecological tour of an organic spice farm and private wildlife refuge that ends in a guided nature trail to Rio Naranjo. All spices grown on the farm are blended and sold at the shop in town.Getting aroundTaxis are reasonable and will suffice for most travelers. They don't use meters here, so ask the driver. Most speak a little English. You can take a local bus or a rental car south to Playa Dominical for a day trip. Click here for a road map.Sleeping around and Staying Around:Hotels, Resorts, Real Estate
With all the fun you'll have here, you will definitely need to sleep at some point. For real estate info, make an offer on real estate.
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